This is the third volume of Mike Butler’s projected ten volume study of Bill Leader the recording engineer and record producer who made a colossal contribution to the British folk revival of the 1960s and 1970s. This volume details Bill’s construction of a recording facility on the top floor of the Workers Music Association on the Bishops Bridge Road in London in 1957. This is a fascinating story in its own right, and recalls the contribution of Dick Swettenham, a maintenance engineer and audio equipment designer for EMI, who made a vital contribution.
The overall title for this series is ‘Bill Leader & Co’ and as a result there is a vast army of unsung heroes and heroines who Mike has, in EP Thompson’s famous phrase, rescued ‘from the enormous condescension of posterity’ whom we encounter. For example, Reg Hall described by Bill as a man ‘whose unique contribution to the understanding of traditional music and the part it played in our lives has yet to be recognised’. Hopefully Mike’s account of the ubiquitous Reg will put this right.
Bill Leader’s significance was his belief that music is best captured live. In awesome detail Mike chronicles the vast folk cultural treasure trove this produced. - the Irish scene in London, the Keele and Cambridge Folk Festival in the 1960s , the Watersons, the Ian Cambell Folk Group; the big names – Ewan MacColl, Peggy Seegar and others who deserve to be remembered – fiddlers Alex Stewart and Michael Gorman and Flora MacNeil the traditional Gaelic singer. For those interested in the musical history of England and Ireland this is essential reading. The selection of many rare and fascinating photographs, delightful illustrations by Peter Seal, an index of ‘Possibly Significant People’ and a comprehensive general index make this, like the previous volumes, a highly professional presentation.
As noted in my reviews of the preceding volumes, Mike’s highly convivial and conversational style can disguise the fact that this is scholarship of a very high order. It’s a sobering thought that, if it was not undertaken, there would be a vast cultural deficit. Bill Leader had stipulated that the biographical approach should provide due prominence to his colleagues and contemporaries whose contributions are largely unsung. Mike and Bill are putting this right and deserve full praise.
Eddie Little
Details of the book can be found on Mike’s website: www.soundingthecentury.com
Or Mike Butler at: wildchild.butler@gmail.com.