The nominees for the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards 2015 were announced last night on Mark Radcliffe’s Folk Show. The awards will be held on Wednesday 22 April at the Wales Millennium Centre in Cardiff.
As with previous years there will be a number of artists performing on the night, the line-up for which includes Yusuf/Cat Stevens as well as three artists that have all appeared with featured albums on FRUK during 2014: Loudon Wainwright III, 9Bach and Kate Rusby. There are more to be announced. Both Yusuf/Cat Stevens and Loudon Wainwright III are to receive lifetime achievement awards and Ewan MacColl is to be inducted in to the Radio 2 Folk Awards Hall of Fame.
Talking about Ewan, Mark Radcliffe said
“It is pretty much impossible to overstate the importance of Ewan MacColl’s influence on folk music. A writer, dramatist, enabler and activist he has inspired generations of musicians and poets to stand up for what they believe and to use art to challenge authority and the status quo. But he isn’t just a voice of protest. He was a romantic too – a lover as well as a fighter – and capable of sublime moments of heartfelt tenderness and passion. He also taught us to be proud of where we come from, and the indigenous music that spoke of the generations that went before us. Folk music needs to keep moving forward, but only with full understanding of the traditions that brought us here. Ewan MacColl understood this as much as anyone.”
Below, you can find a list of all the nominees, the Best Album category is voted for by the public which you can do so here. Those we have reviewed during 2014 have links.
Folk Singer of the Year
Cara Dillon (read our review of A Thousand Hearts)
Julie Fowlis
Nancy Kerr
Jez Lowe
Best Duo
Josienne Clarke & Ben Walker (read our review of Nothing Can Bring Back the Hour)
O’Hooley & Tidow (read our review of The Hum)
Greg Russell & Ciaran Algar (read our review of The Call)
Chris While & Julie Matthews
Best Group
Bellowhead (read our review of Revival)
The Furrow Collective (read our review of At Our Next Meeting)
The Gloaming (read our review of The Gloaming)
The Young’Uns (read our review of Never Forget)
Best Album
(vote here for this category)
Album titles linked to reviews on FRUK
Fair Warning – The Rails
Nothing Can Bring Back The Hour – Josienne Clarke & Ben Walker
Sweet Visitor – Nancy Kerr
The Moral Of The Elephant – Martin & Eliza Carthy
Tincian – 9Bach
Horizon Award
Ange Hardy (read our review of The Lament of the Black Sheep)
Maz O’Connor (read our review of This Willowed Light)
Stick In The Wheel (read our review of Bones EP)
The Rails (read our review of Fair Warning)
Musician of the Year
Martin Green (read our review of Crows Bones)
Will Pound (read our review of Haddo – Borderlands)
Sam Sweeney (read about Made in the Great War)
Kathryn Tickell (read our review of Kathryn Tickell and The Side)
Best Original Song
Swim To The Star – Peggy Seeger/Calum MacColl (performed by Peggy Seeger)
The Necklace Of Wrens – Michael Hartnett (performed by The Gloaming)
The Pitmen Poets – Jez Lowe
The Spider And The Wolf – Paul Simmonds (performed by Naomi Bedford) Read our review of A history of Insolence.
Best Traditional Track
Bedlam – Stick In The Wheel
Handsome Molly – The Furrow Collective
Manus Mo Rùin – Cruinn
Samhradh Samhradh – The Gloaming
BBC Radio 2 Young Folk Award
Cup O’Joe
Roseanne Reid
Talisk
Wildwood Kin
On Wednesday 22 April drivetime presenter Simon Mayo will be broadcasting a special programme live from the Wales Millennium Centre (5pm-7.30pm) on the day. The interval will feature performances from the nominees for the Young Folk Award 2015.
Listeners will be able to watch highlights of the awards on BBC iPlayer for 30 days after the event and on Red Button.
The BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards will be broadcast live from 7.30pm-10pm on Radio 2.
