{"title":"Shirley Collins","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eShirley Collins is a British folksinger, born on July 5, 1935 in Hastings, East Sussex, United Kingdom. She has made significant contributions to the folk music scene and is known for her captivating vocals and authentic storytelling. In the late 1950s, she collaborated with American musicologist Alan Lomax on his field recordings, further enhancing her knowledge and passion for traditional music. With a career spanning several decades, Shirley Collins continues to be an influential figure in the folk genre.\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"lodestar-1","title":"Lodestar","description":"\u003cp\u003eShirley Collins – legendary folk singer and one of England’s most respected song collectors – returns to recording after 38 years. With the new album, \u003ci\u003eLodestar\u003c\/i\u003e, Shirley has created the unlikeliest release of the century so far. \u003ci\u003eLodestar\u003c\/i\u003e is a collection of English, American and Cajun songs dating from the 16th Century to the 1950s, recorded at Shirley’s home in Lewes by Stephen Thrower and Ossian Brown of Cyclobe and produced and musically directed by Ian Kearey.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eCD - First Edition CD With 28 Page Featuring Song Notes By Shirley Collins With Sleeve Notes By Stewart Lee.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eLP - Heavyweight Vinyl with Download.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eLP+ - Limited Edition Deluxe Vinyl On Heavyweight Vinyl With a 24 Page 12” Booklet Featuring Song Notes By Shirley Collins With Sleeve Notes By Stewart Lee plus Download.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Domino","offers":[{"title":"LP.","offer_id":50383727690059,"sku":"1000076","price":19.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"LP","offer_id":50383727919435,"sku":"1000075","price":24.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/29e37c48-865c-46a8-91b2-ab0d46b89c2a_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1726276529"},{"product_id":"heart-s-ease-love-record-stores-variant","title":"Heart's Ease (Love Record Stores Variant)","description":"\u003cp\u003eShirley Collins releases \u003ci\u003eHeart's Ease\u003c\/i\u003e, her second album for Domino. \u003ci\u003eHeart’s Ease\u003c\/i\u003e follows 2016’s \u003ci\u003eLodestar\u003c\/i\u003e; which on its arrival, seemed like a musical miracle - an enthralling new LP from a woman who is widely acknowledged as England’s greatest female folk singer, but who had not recorded an album for 38 years. With \u003ci\u003eHeart’s Ease\u003c\/i\u003e, Shirley delivers a record even stronger than \u003ci\u003eLodestar\u003c\/i\u003e having completely regained her confidence, and singing so well that you can’t believe she was away for so long.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eRecorded at Metway in Brighton,\u003ci\u003e Heart’s Ease\u003c\/i\u003e is as compelling and original as Shirley’s great albums from the Sixties and Seventies. There are traditional songs, of course, from England and the USA, but there are also more new songs than in the past (four non-traditional tracks) and there’s even a burst of experimentation that hints at possible new directions to come. \u003ci\u003eWondrous Love\u003c\/i\u003e comes from an 18th Century English ballad about the infamous sea captain William Kidd, who was hanged for piracy in 1701. Collins first heard the hymn at a Sacred Harp Convention in Alabama (Collins and Alan Lomax recorded it on their field recording trip in 1959).\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eCollins’ intriguing choice of songs on \u003ci\u003eHeart’s Ease \u003c\/i\u003eincludes two with lyrics by her first husband Austin John Marshall, a graphic artist and poet who produced several of her albums and had the inspired idea of getting Shirley to work with blues \/ jazz \/ world music guitarist Davy Graham on that extraordinary album \u003ci\u003eFolk Roots, New Routes \u003c\/i\u003ein 1964. There are more family memories with \u003ci\u003eLocked In Ice\u003c\/i\u003e, written by Dolly’s son the late Buz Collins and the most startling new piece is the finale, \u003ci\u003eCrowlink\u003c\/i\u003e, named after a pathway on the South Downs overlooking the English Channel “where I love to be,” in which Shirley sings against a moody, atmospheric fusion of Ossian Brown’s hurdy-gurdy, and electronica and field recordings of waves and sea birds from Matthew Shaw.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eHeart’s Ease\u003c\/i\u003e is a glorious reminder that Shirley Collins is still in a class of her own, both as a folk singer with a distinctive no-nonsense style that is all her own, and as an innovator.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Domino","offers":[{"title":"Green | LP.","offer_id":50407087046987,"sku":"1108455","price":27.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/d3451cfc-95a9-4bfc-a5fa-3a1d32b6fd11_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1726594411"},{"product_id":"folk-roots-new-roots","title":"Folk Roots, New Routes","description":"\u003cp\u003eFirst released in 1965, \"Folk Roots, New Routes\" is a remarkably experimental record, uniting Shirley Collins' beautiful singing with Davy Graham's jazz-inflected guitar work. Although the partnership only lasted for this recording and a handful of live shows, it left a powerful legacy in the English folk song revival.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe album captures the first really great accompanied English folk song and was a template for Fairport Convention's seminal \"Liege and Lief\". For this carefully remastered edition Fledg'ling have restored all the elements of the original artwork and added several previously unpublished photographs. New sleeve-note essay by Ken Hunt; deluxe slip-cased packaging.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e180 Gram Vinyl with download.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Universal","offers":[{"title":"CD","offer_id":50439859208523,"sku":"1025102","price":14.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/79c9f49d-fd3b-46a0-a302-c2a9f98b2187_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1726957261"},{"product_id":"all-in-the-downs-reflections-on-life-landscape-and-song","title":"All in the Downs: Reflections on Life, Landscape, and Song","description":"\u003cp\u003eA legendary singer, folklorist, and music historian, Shirley Collins has been an integral part of the folk-music revival for more than sixty years. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn her new memoir, \u003ci\u003eAll in the Downs\u003c\/i\u003e, Collins tells the story of that life long relationship with English folksong—a dedication to artistic integrity that has guided her through the triumphs and tragedies of her life. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eAll in the Downs\u003c\/i\u003e combines elements of memoir—from her working-class origins in wartime Hastings to the bright lights of the 1950s folk and the English landscape have played in shaping her vision. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eFrom formative field recordings made with Alan Lomax in the United States to the “crowning glories” recorded with her sister Dolly on the Sussex Downs, she writes of the obstacles that led to her withdrawal from the spotlight and the redemption of a new artistic flourishing that continues today with her unexpected return to recording in 2016.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThrough it all, Shirley Collins has been guided and supported by three vital and inseparable loves: traditional English song, the people and landscape of her native Sussex, and an unwavering sense of artistic integrity. \u003ci\u003eAll in the Downs\u003c\/i\u003e pays tribute to these passions, and in doing so,illustrates a way of life as old as England, that has all but vanished from this land \u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Strange Attractor","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":50446211973451,"sku":"1012871","price":18.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/ba350842-f0e4-4575-96e6-d8163ec091a5_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1727054722"},{"product_id":"america-over-the-water","title":"America Over The Water.","description":"\u003cp\u003eIn AMERICA OVER THE WATER, celebrated English folksinger Shirley Collins offers an affecting account of her year-long stint as assistant to legendary musical historian and folklorist Alan Lomax. Collins describes a journey both emotional and musical, as she and Lomax work tirelessly to uncover the traditional music of the American South. Together, they traveled to Virginia, Kentucky, Alabama, Mississippi, Arkansas, and Georgia, encountering Mississippi Fred McDowell, Muddy Waters, and many others, their diligent work uncovering the traditional music of America's heartland.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eA fascinating journey into the cultural roots of traditional American music, blending the personal story of Shirley Collins' relationship with Lomax and a unique first hand account of an America on the brink of the civil rights era, America Over the Water cuts right to the heart of the blues in a fascinating account of Collins' and Lomax's groundbreaking journey across the southern states of the USA to record the music that started it all.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eCollins first met Lomax at a party hosted by English folksinger Ewan MacColl, who later married Peggy Seeger, half-sister of American folksinger and activist Pete Seeger. Collins's chronicle of her time with Lomax, with whom she became romantically involved, recounts the discovery of a world of beauty and dignity in the face of deprivation and prejudice among America's traditional folk and blues musicians.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eOriginally published over fifteen years ago, this definitive edition includes a new introduction by Shirley and an afterword from her collaborator Matthew Shaw.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"White Rabbit","offers":[{"title":"Paperback - BOGOHP","offer_id":50452988920139,"sku":"1131342","price":14.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/dab6a845-56f6-401c-87bc-7cc8e7fd577d_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1727167331"},{"product_id":"an-introduction-to-4","title":"An Introduction To","description":"\u003cp\u003eFew singers of the English folk revival have attempted as much on record as \u003cstrong\u003eCollins\u003c\/strong\u003e - an extraordinary combination of fragility and power.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\"I like music to be fairly straightforward, simply embellished - the performance without histrionics allowing you to think about the song rather than telling you what to think.\"\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThrough an impressive series of experimental recordings \u003cstrong\u003eShirley\u003c\/strong\u003e established an extraordinarily sympathetic marriage of traditional songs handed down through generations of rural labouring people with ground breaking contemporary arrangements - recordings that have scarcely been equalled in subsequent decades.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThis collection of songs draws together some of her most iconic recordings and will serve as an introduction to her very special catalogue of music.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Topic","offers":[{"title":"LP","offer_id":50471438877003,"sku":"1019929","price":24.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"CD","offer_id":50471439237451,"sku":"1019928","price":8.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/55b2186e-e8d0-4902-bd4a-f580e9ae5a2d_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1727403168"},{"product_id":"the-sweet-primeroses","title":"The Sweet Primeroses","description":"\u003cp\u003eTopic Records are proud to present here for the first time the original Shirley Collins album The Sweet Primeroses plus bonus material by way of the From Heros Of Love Topic E.P. with sleeve notes by Colin Irwin and photos by Brian Shuel and packaged with the original album artwork.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eDuring the 1960s and ‘70s Shirley Collins was regarded by many as the first lady of folk music, the subsequent decades have only served to enhance that reputation. Between 1955 and 1978 she recorded for the Folkways, Argo, Harvest and Topic labels. After the release of ‘For As Many As Will’ in 1978 she withdrew from performing and the music world after developing dysphonia. Shirley recently returned to recording after a very long hiatus and is still widely acknowledged as one of the finest singers and ambassadors to have emerged during the Folksong Revival of the 1960s.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eFew singers of the English folk revival have a empted as much on record as Collins - an extraordinary combination of fragility and power. “I like music to be fairly straightforward, simply embellished- the performance without histrionics allowing you to think about the song rather than telling you what to think.” Through an impressive series of experimental recordings Shirley established an extraordinarily sympathetic marriage of traditional songs handed down through generations of rural labouring people with ground breaking contemporary arrangements - recordings that have scarcely been equalled in subsequent decades.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eTopic Records are proud to announce the release of the classic Topic album The Sweet Primeroses album as part of its Topic Treasures releases in 2019. Featuring original artwork and sleeve notes by respected folk journalist Colin Irwin as well as additional photos of Shirley and Dolly Collins by Brian Shuel.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Topic","offers":[{"title":"CD","offer_id":50472273707339,"sku":"1059206","price":14.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/f3a04404-ce90-4be8-88e3-8222382b1eea_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1727420966"},{"product_id":"lodestar","title":"Lodestar","description":"\u003cp\u003eLodestar\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Domino","offers":[{"title":"CD","offer_id":50494948901195,"sku":"1005676","price":12.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}]},{"product_id":"heart-s-ease","title":"Heart's Ease","description":"\u003cp\u003eShirley Collins releases \u003ci\u003eHeart's Ease\u003c\/i\u003e, her second album for Domino. \u003ci\u003eHeart’s Ease\u003c\/i\u003e follows 2016’s \u003ci\u003eLodestar\u003c\/i\u003e; which on its arrival, seemed like a musical miracle - an enthralling new LP from a woman who is widely acknowledged as England’s greatest female folk singer, but who had not recorded an album for 38 years. With \u003ci\u003eHeart’s Ease\u003c\/i\u003e, Shirley delivers a record even stronger than \u003ci\u003eLodestar\u003c\/i\u003e having completely regained her confidence, and singing so well that you can’t believe she was away for so long. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eRecorded at Metway in Brighton,\u003ci\u003e Heart’s Ease\u003c\/i\u003e is as compelling and original as Shirley’s great albums from the Sixties and Seventies. There are traditional songs, of course, from England and the USA, but there are also more new songs than in the past (four non-traditional tracks) and there’s even a burst of experimentation that hints at possible new directions to come. \u003ci\u003eWondrous Love\u003c\/i\u003e comes from an 18th Century English ballad about the infamous sea captain William Kidd, who was hanged for piracy in 1701. Collins first heard the hymn at a Sacred Harp Convention in Alabama (Collins and Alan Lomax recorded it on their field recording trip in 1959). \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eCollins’ intriguing choice of songs on \u003ci\u003eHeart’s Ease \u003c\/i\u003eincludes two with lyrics by her first husband Austin John Marshall, a graphic artist and poet who produced several of her albums and had the inspired idea of getting Shirley to work with blues \/ jazz \/ world music guitarist Davy Graham on that extraordinary album \u003ci\u003eFolk Roots, New Routes \u003c\/i\u003ein 1964. There are more family memories with \u003ci\u003eLocked In Ice\u003c\/i\u003e, written by Dolly’s son the late Buz Collins and the most startling new piece is the finale, \u003ci\u003eCrowlink\u003c\/i\u003e, named after a pathway on the South Downs overlooking the English Channel “where I love to be,” in which Shirley sings against a moody, atmospheric fusion of Ossian Brown’s hurdy-gurdy, and electronica and field recordings of waves and sea birds from Matthew Shaw. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eHeart’s Ease\u003c\/i\u003e is a glorious reminder that Shirley Collins is still in a class of her own, both as a folk singer with a distinctive no-nonsense style that is all her own, and as an innovator.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Domino","offers":[{"title":"Black | LP.","offer_id":50498738553163,"sku":"1094728","price":22.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"Black | LP","offer_id":50498738684235,"sku":"1094727","price":24.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"CD","offer_id":50498738782539,"sku":"1094726","price":12.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/86d7ba90-2150-4702-b948-ad53c0812925_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1727756060"},{"product_id":"archangel-hill","title":"Archangel Hill","description":"\u003cp\u003eOne of the most important voices in British folk music Shirley Collins returns with \u003ci\u003eArchangel Hill\u003c\/i\u003e, her third album for Domino. It showcases another peerless collection of songs chosen by Collins, some from traditional sources but others from favourite writers of hers.  Produced by Ian Kearey - Shirley Collins’ musical director - the arrangements were shared between Collins, Kearey, Pip Barnes, as well as Dave Arthur and Pete Cooper, players from The Lodestar Band. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAll of the songs on \u003ci\u003eArchangel Hill\u003c\/i\u003e were recorded last year except for “Hand And Heart”, which was taken from a live performance at the Sydney Opera House in 1980 and features an arrangement by Shirley’s beloved and talented sister Dolly Collins. \u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Domino","offers":[{"title":"Black LP","offer_id":50506283417931,"sku":"2020612","price":24.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"Green LP","offer_id":50506283614539,"sku":"2020613","price":27.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"CD","offer_id":50506283090251,"sku":"2020611","price":9.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/Shirley_Collins_-_Archangel_Hill_-_Packshot_WIG494D_63a7ca0d_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1727821229"},{"product_id":"sweet-primeroses","title":"Sweet Primeroses","description":"\u003cp\u003ethe cd edition of 'sweet primeroses' is a collection of 20 folk gems mainly originating from the south coast of england. sad songs of longing, love and loss. here we hear the beginning of her and sister dolly's exploration of the dark underbelly of medieval rural music, what shirley later described as 'the black horror of medieval song behind all the trappings'. shirley's pure, innocent, unaffected singing casts sunlight shafts across the dark tales of child murder and fairy magic while dolly's purpose built portative pipe-organ stirs in the shadows. this true folk music, like true poetry, raises the hackles on the back of your neck in acknowledgement of some ancient, almost forgotten truth.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"No Label","offers":[{"title":"CD","offer_id":50507945443659,"sku":"321154","price":10.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/94993ffa-b000-44f7-ad1f-ab6b947457b0_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1727854826"},{"product_id":"sweet-england","title":"Sweet England","description":"\u003cp\u003eRecorded 67 years ago, and reisued in Shirley's 90th year in this universe. Limited to 800 black vinyl \/ cd limited to 1000, each packaged in reverse board printed card sleeve. Remastered and with restored original artwork, lp with postcard inserts. Recorded by Alan Lomax and Peter Kennedy\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eShirley Collins - voice, John Hasted - banjo, Ralph Rinzler - guitar, Guy cCarawan - guitar (Orginal copies of the lp are rare and go for £1000+)\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Moved By Sound","offers":[{"title":"LP Black","offer_id":51548259778891,"sku":"R9187-5032","price":33.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"CD","offer_id":51548259811659,"sku":"R9187-2888","price":13.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/cover.ki-3_392396fe-b29e-4a41-9e8d-4fefdac01cb1.jpg?v=1743274449"}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/collections\/test_4b692363_thumbnail_4096_45228abd-05e2-407c-9a32-d0cd3c10a14f.jpg?v=1726276501","url":"https:\/\/shop.roughtrade.com\/collections\/shirley-collins.oembed","provider":"Rough Trade","version":"1.0","type":"link"}