Festival Bell

Festival Bell
Studio album by Fairport Convention
Released	January 2011
Recorded	The Bowman's Retreat, Oxfordshire; 2010
Genre	Folk-rock
Length	59:04
Label	Matty Grooves
Producer	John Gale with Fairport Convention
Fairport Convention chronology
Sense of Occasion (2007) Festival Bell (2011) By Popular Request (2012)

Festival Bell is a studio album by the electric folk band Fairport Convention, released in January 2011.

Overview

The name of the album (as well as the cover and the title track) is a reference to the bell of the same name that currently rings in St Mary's Church in Cropredy, Oxfordshire.^[1] The track Ukulele Central features guest appearances from comedian Frank Skinner and singer Joe Brown.^[2]

Release and critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
Record Collector	[3]
musicOMH	[4]
BBC	(favorable) [5]
The Guardian	(favorable) [6]

The album was released four years after the band's previous studio work, Sense of Occasion. It consists of 14 tracks, mixing original compositions with four cover versions including a reworking of the title track from the band's 1975 album Rising for the Moon.^[3] Record Collector magazine's 4 star review of the album stated: "Festival Bell is a work of maturity and depth, yet delivered with a lightness of touch that will delight fans old and new".^[3]

Track listing

1. "Mercy Bay" (Chris Leslie)
2. "Rui's Guitar" (Chris Leslie)
3. "Danny Jack's Chase" (Ric Sanders)
4. "Reunion Hill" (Richard Shindell)
5. "Wouldn't Say No" (Chris Leslie)
6. "Around the Wild Cape Horn" (Ralph McTell)
7. "Celtic Moon" (Mark and Carolyn Evans)
8. "Ukulele Central" (Chris Leslie / Ric Sanders)
9. "Albert and Ted" (Ric Sanders / Dave Pegg)
10. "Darkside Wood" (Chris While)
11. "London Apprentice" / "Johnny Ginears" (Ralph McTell / Ric Sanders)
12. "Rising for the Moon" (Sandy Denny)
13. "Danny Jack's Reward" (Ric Sanders)
14. "The Festival Bell" (Chris Leslie)

Personnel

• Simon Nicol - vocals, acoustic guitar, electric guitar, bass ukulele
• Dave Pegg - vocals, bass guitar, ukulele, mandolin, acoustic guitar
• Chris Leslie - vocals, mandolin, bouzuki, violin, Portuguese guitar, ukulele, whistle
• Ric Sanders - backing vocals, violin, ukulele, keyboards, bass ukulele
• Gerry Conway - drums, percussion

Guest musicians

• Frank Skinner - banjo ukulele on "Ukulele Central"
• Joe Brown - ukulele, backing vocals on "Ukulele Central"

References

1. "Cropredy Church Bells". Cropredy Village info. Retrieved 2011-02-19.
2. "Festival Bell information from Expletive Delighted". Ian Rennie. Retrieved 2011-05-16.
3. Abbott, Kingsley (April 2011). Lewis, Alan; Draper, Jason, eds. Record Collector (London: Diamond Publishing Ltd) (387): 86. Retrieved 8 May 2011. Missing or empty |title= (help); |contribution= ignored (help)
4. Chapple, Jon (April 2011). musicOMH (OMH). Retrieved 11 July 2011. Missing or empty |title= (help); |contribution= ignored (help)
5. Smith, Sid (30 March 2011). "BBC - Music - Review of Fairport Convention - Festival Bell". bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 3 January 2012.
6. Denselow, Robin (7 April 2011). "Fairport Convention: Festival Bell – review | Music | The Guardian". The Guardian (London: GMG). ISSN 0261-3077. OCLC 60623878. Retrieved 3 January 2012.