The Songs of Nick Drake and Sandy Denny
Date: Saturday 25th April, 2026 at 7.30pm (Doors 7.00pm)
Venue: Shipton Gorge Village Hall, DT6 4LZ
Tickets: £13 / £7 (u18's)
Available from: https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/whats-on/shipton-gorge/shipton-gorge-village-hall/the-songs-of-sandy-denny-and-nick-drake/e-bgqdgp
Both Nick Drake and Sandy Denny possessed unique voices that created haunting and melancholic personal songs. Influenced in the 60s by the emergence of acoustic songwriting, their songs had a singularly British identity. Both were signed by Joe Boyd to Island Records and sadly both died at a tender age. This evening of classic English Folk music is brought to you by Martin Ansell and Sally Barker, friends of many years standing. Martin and Sally have written and played music together over the years and perform these wonderful songs with a love, care and ease in the way only old friends can.
Wistful and ethereal, Nick Drake's three critically acclaimed albums - Five Leaves Left, Bryter Layter, and Pink Moon - combining his ethereal voice with jazz and orchestral arrangements, sold poorly in his lifetime. Drake suffered from depression and found it difficult to perform in front of live audiences. After the recording of his 3rd album, his mental health declined and he died of an overdose of antidepressants in 1974. Since his death at the age of 26, interest in his music has garnered widespread influence and a sizable cult following.
Sandy Denny was a pioneering presence in the 60s London folk scene with her own compositions and renditions of traditional songs. With her distinctive and otherworldly vocal timbre, she gained prominence as the lead vocalist of Fairport Convention before forming Fotheringay and then releasing four albums in her subsequent solo career.
She sang on Led Zeppelin's 'The Battle of Evermore' and was among a handful of artists who were instrumental in creating the British folk-rock movement. Her song 'Who Knows Where The Time Goes' remains her most well-known and many versions have followed since its first recording by Judy Collins in 1968.
Sandy suffered a brain hemorrhage in 1979 from a fall down the stairs in 1978 and died at the age of 31. In the years that have followed her work has been re-issued and her status as a legend of British folk assured.
Martin Ansell performs the songs of Nick Drake. Martin himself was signed to Chris Blackwell's Island Records in the 1980s and supported artists such as Van Morrison, Roy Harper and Chris Isaak. Martin's varied career included spells as a session singer, most notably for Tom Robinson and Captain Sensible, and as a songwriter; Spanish-Italian singer Miguel Bose had an international hit with Martin's song 'Eighth Wonder'.
When he's not singing songs Martin works as a taxi driver in the south of England; in fact, when he's not driving, he sings his songs in his taxi !
Sally Barker sings Sandy Denny. Sally's appearance as Sir Tom Jones' finalist in the 'Voice UK 2014' belies a long career in music - one that wasn't spent singing pop covers for a light entertainment audience but fashioned in the folk clubs of the British Isles. In a career spanning the best part of 40 years, English singer/songwriter Sally has released a string of solo albums and been a part of dozens more, notably with fem-folksters The Poozies. After her success on 'The Voice' Sally was offered a deal by Island Records (!) She didn't take it up because they didn't want her songs. In her time Sally has supported (amongst many others) Bob Dylan, Robert Plant, Jools Holland and Sir Tom himself, worked with inspirational musicians such as maverick double bass genius Danny Thompson, country folk-rock guitarist Jerry Donahue, the mercurial accordionist Karen Tweed and legendary drummer Dave Mattocks.
The combination of Nick Drake, Sandy Denny, Martin Ansell and Sally Barker is the “perfect double coupling”.