Lucy Ward (musician)

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Lucy Ward
Background information
Born (1989-12-12) 12 December 1989
Derby, Derbyshire, England, United Kingdom
Genres Folk, singer-songwriter
Instruments vocal, guitar, concertina
Labels Navigator Records
Website www.lucywardsings.com

Lucy Ward (born 12 December 1989)[citation needed] is a British singer, guitarist and concertina player from Derby. She performs, with a voice described as expressive and powerful,[1] traditional English folk songs as well as her own material. Her debut album, Adelphi Has to Fly (Navigator Records), was released on 13 June 2011 to critical acclaim.[2][3][4]

Professional career

Adelphi Has to Fly

On Adelphi Has to Fly, which is produced by Stu Hanna from Megson, Lucy Ward is accompanied by Sam Pegg, Belinda O'Hooley and Heidi Tidow from O'Hooley & Tidow and by Debbie and Stu Hanna.

The songs on the album include "Stitch in Time" by Mike Waterson, Child ballad "The Two Sisters", "Maids When You're Young", a traditional song which was popularised by The Dubliners, and "Death (Rock Me to Sleep)", based on a poem said to have been written by Anne Boleyn,[5]set to a tune by Lucy Ward.

"Alice in the Bacon Box", a song written by Ward in the style of a traditional folk song, tells the story of Derbyshire hermit Alice Grace (1867–1927) from Little Eaton who, on being evicted from her cottage, lived in a box previously used for storing bacon, which had been given to her by the local butcher.[3][6][7] The song inspired several paintings by the artist Bartholomew Beal of Derbyshire's folklore, people and the industrial history of the Derwent Valley Mills heritage site that were exhibited at Derby Museum and Art Gallery from September to November 2013.[8]

Single Flame

On 7 August 2013, in a concert at St Pancras Old Church, London, she launched her second album, Single Flame. Produced by Stu Hanna, it was released by Navigator Records on 19 August 2013.[9]

The album includes "For the Dead Men", a self-penned protest song, which was released as a single in January 2012 coupled with a remixed version of "Maids When You’re Young". This was again produced by Stu Hanna, who also performs on the two tracks, with his wife Debbie Hanna providing backing vocals.

In a four-starred review for The Guardian, Robin Denselow said that Lucy Ward "proves to be an even more mature and thoughtful singer-songwriter than she was on Adelphi Has to Fly" and described her follow-up album as "impressive and original" and "a brooding, often angry set that deals with everything from politics to love, death and personal tragedy, with a couple of powerful traditional songs added in".[10]

Other work

Lucy Ward's music has been used as the soundtrack for award winning director Kim Hopkins' documentary film Folie à Deux – madness made of two.[11][12] The film soundtrack uses "For the Dead Men", some new original material and some cover songs played by Lucy Ward and Hungarian fiddle player Barnabas Balázs.[13] The film, which shows the human cost of the banking crisis, premiered in November 2012 at the International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam[14] and was broadcast on BBC Four in its Storyville international documentary series on 11 November 2013.[15]

Lucy Ward has also written songs and music for Robin Hood by the touring theatre company Oddsocks .

She has performed and recorded with the Cupola trio (Doug Eunson, Sarah Matthews and Oli Matthews) as Cupola:Ward, releasing in 2012 the EP Four.

Awards and recognition

Lucy Ward was a finalist in the BBC Radio 2 Young Folk Awards 2009.[16][17] In the 2012 BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards she won the Horizon award (for best newcomer) and her recording of "Maids When You’re Young" was nominated as best traditional track.[18]

Discography

Lucy Ward

Album Release date Label
Adelphi Has to Fly 13 June 2011 Navigator Records (Navigator 47)[19]
Single Flame 19 August 2013 Navigator Records (Navigator 083)[9]
Single Release date Label
"For the Dead Men" (Lucy Ward) /
"Maids When You're Young" (remix) (traditional, arranged Lucy Ward)		 29 January 2012 Navigator Records (Navigator 070)[19]

Cupola:Ward

EP Release date Label
Four
"Cotton Mills of Cromford" (traditional) / "The Bone Lace Weaver" (Leonard Wheatcroft, Roy Harris) /
"When God Dips His Pen of Love in My Heart" (Alison Krauss) / "King of Rome" (David Sudbury)		 2012 Coth Records[20]

References and footnotes

  1. ↑ Paul Rhodes (8 March 2011). "Review: Idgy Vaughn, House Concert (Near York)". The Press (York). Retrieved 23 October 2011. "Ward has an expressive, powerful voice. She also has an outsize personality, like a latter-day Judy Henske, and a well honed ability to work an audience."
  2. ↑ Robin Denselow (16 June 2011). "Lucy Ward: Adelphi Has to Fly – review". The Guardian. Retrieved 17 June 2011. "[T]his mature and varied set matches painful laments against the occasional humorous song. She may be surrounded by established musicians, but doesn't rely on them, as she proves with her unaccompanied treatment of A Stitch in Time, Mike Waterson's story of a wife's revenge against a drunken husband. Elsewhere, she provides a delicate solo vocal on The Fairy Boy, before being joined by Belinda O'Hooley's bravely sparse piano accompaniment, and demonstrates more gutsy singing on a rousing Maids When You're Young. But the best songs are the bleakest: Death is a thoughtful setting for verses supposedly written by Anne Boleyn before her execution, while Bricks and Love is a self-composed ballad of death and the folk scene, based on a true story. It's the most poignant new song I've heard this year."
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Alex (21 June 2011). "Lucy Ward – Adelphi Has to Fly". Folk Radio UK. Retrieved 25 July 2011. 
  4. ↑ Allan Wilkinson (1 July 2011). "Album Review: Lucy Ward – Adelphi Has To Fly (Navigator)". Northern Sky Music Magazine. Retrieved 11 October 2011. "The traditional songs are each delivered with a confidence and expressiveness, unusual for one so young...A truly exceptional debut."
  5. ↑ Sources differ whether George or Anne Boleyn wrote "O Death Rock Me Asleep" but the consensus is that Anne wrote it – see Fatal conspiracies: O Death Rock Me Asleep (Me and Mine website about the life and times of Anne Boleyn).
  6. ↑ "Little Eaton". Derbyshire UK: Guide to Derbyshire & the Peak District. 2011. Retrieved 25 July 2011. 
  7. ↑ "Old Alice in the Bacon Box – the Little Eaton Hermit". h2g2. 10 May 2002, updated 21 April 2004. Retrieved 1 September 2012. 
  8. ↑ "Artist unveils tales of Derbyshire" (Press release). FD2D.com. 2 September 2013. Retrieved 2 September 2013. 
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 Reinhard Zierke (18 July 2013). "Single Flame". Mainly Norfolk: English Folk and Other Good Music. Retrieved 27 August 2013. 
  10. ↑ Robin Denselow (15 August 2013). "Lucy Ward: Single Flame – review". The Guardian. Retrieved 27 August 2013. 
  11. ↑ "Folie à Deux – Madness made of two (2012)". Internet Movie Database. Retrieved 17 November 2012. 
  12. ↑ "Folie à Deux – Madness Made of Two". British Films Directory. British Council. 28 January 2013. Retrieved 8 October 2013. 
  13. ↑ "Lucy Ward writes and records film soundtrack, theatre score and new album on the way". Navigator Records. 15 November 2012. Retrieved 17 November 2012. 
  14. ↑ Simon Holland (5 August 2013). "Lucy Ward – Single Flame". Folk Radio UK. Retrieved 8 August 2013. 
  15. ↑ Kim Hopkins (18 September 2013). "Grief at Gray’s Court: acclaimed film chronicles York property nightmare". Cinema Preview. York Mix. Retrieved 15 November 2013. 
  16. ↑ "Radio 2 Young Folk Award 2009". BBC Radio 2 website. December 2008. Retrieved 17 June 2011. 
  17. ↑ Louise Parmakis (2011). "Adelphi Has to Fly – Lucy Ward: the bright young folk review". Bright Young Folk. Retrieved 17 June 2011. 
  18. ↑ "BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards Wednesday 8 February 2012". BBC Radio 2 website. 8 February 2012. Retrieved 12 February 2012. 
  19. ↑ 19.0 19.1 Reinhard Zierke (18 July 2013). "Adelphi Has to Fly". Mainly Norfolk: English Folk and Other Good Music. Retrieved 9 August 2013. 
  20. ↑ Reinhard Zierke (18 July 2013). "Cupola:Ward: Four". Mainly Norfolk: English Folk and Other Good Music. Retrieved 9 August 2013. 

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