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Background 

 The musicians of Magpie Lane first came together in the winter of 1992-93 to record "The Oxford Ramble", a collection of songs and tunes from, or about, Oxfordshire. Although originally conceived as a one-off recording project, the band soon took on a life of its own. The success of "The Oxford Ramble" led to the release of a second CD, "Speed the Plough", a year later; to be followed shortly afterwards by "Wassail: a Country Christmas" and "Jack in the Green". The celebration of beer in song "A Taste of Ale" was commissioned by highly respected author and folksong scholar Roy Palmer, to accompany his book of the same name, and was the first to feature new recruit Benji Kirkpatrick. The band's most recent recording is "Six for Gold" with Sophie Polhill and Marguerite Hutchinson in the line-up, alongside Benji, and original members Ian Giles, Mat Green and Andy Turner.

Immediately after the release of "The Oxford Ramble", a series of promotional concerts in and around Oxford proved immensely enjoyable - for band and audience alike - and confirmed Magpie Lane very much as a live band, as well as a recording outfit.

Since then Magpie Lane have built up a loyal following: in particular, the band’s regular Christmas concerts at the Holywell Music Rooms have become something of a tradition on the Oxford music scene, and are invariably sold out.

 'The bill-boards advertising their annual Christmas concert at the Holywell Music Room said 'Sold Out' - yet fans queued in the bitter cold fog in hope of last minute cancellations. Those of us inside were treated to a feast of seasonal carols, wassails, ballads and the second instalment of the Bampton Mummer's play they began last year... A great night and a splendid way to begin the countdown to Christmas Day.'
Helen Peacocke, The Oxford Times  - writing of the 1995 concert

Magpie Lane have also made successful appearances at festivals including Sidmouth, Towersey, Fylde and Chippenham.

At Sidmouth '99 the band provided music for the highly successful Arena Theatre show Flashback, which celebrated the meeting in 1899 of Cecil Sharp and William Kimber, and the continuing revival of morris dance in England.

The sound of Magpie Lane is unmistakably English. The group’s repertoire originally focused exclusively on Oxfordshire. Although a concert set might now include the occasional item from Ireland, the Isle of Man or even France - as well as a few recently-composed pieces - English traditional songs and dance tunes remain at the core.

When mixing The Oxford Ramble Ashley Hutchings happened to be in the Woodworm Studio.
On hearing the Swalcliffe May Day Carol he commented "You can tell it's English a mile away".
We think he meant this as a compliment; we certainly took it as such!

The band’s instrumental line-up is based around that of a nineteenth century village band, with fiddle, cello, concertina, whistles and percussion to the fore. However Magpie Lane prefer to remain true to the spirit of the tradition, rather than slavishly reproduce an "authentic" sound. The band has always made use of the eclectic range of instruments at its disposal - thus bouzouki and guitar have rubbed shoulders with melodeon, autoharp, smallpipes, recorders, flute, harmonium, viola and Appalachian dulcimer.

The group’s instrumental prowess is matched, if not surpassed, by its vocal strength. Fronted by the wonderful voice of Ian Giles, all the members of Magpie Lane can in fact sing, and powerful vocal harmonies are one of the band’s trademarks.

 Current Lineup

Ian  Giles
is lead singer and frontman for the band. His voice is amongst the finest on the folk scene: warm and mellow, but with great power when required. A veteran of many folk club gigs and pub sessions, Ian is equally at home with a lyrical ballad, or leading a lusty chorus song. On the instrumental front, he contributes hurdy-gurdy and a variety of percussion.
Ian is a member of the Oxford Waits; he also sings three-part harmony as GMW with Ian Woods and Oxford's favourite Yorkshireman Graham Metcalfe. He has recorded with the Mellstock Band and Christminster Singers, while his solo album "The Amber Triangle" is available on the WildGoose label .
More at
www.myspace.com/iangiles1

 

Andy  Turner
was winner of the Sidmouth Singer award in 1984, and is equally well respected as a singer and anglo-concertina player. An occasional member of the Oyster Band in the early eighties, he also worked with Chris Wood (as a duo, and in Polkabilly), and sang on three of the Mellstock Band's CDs. Andy is now a member of dance band Geckoes, and West Gallery choir the Christminster Singers. He performs regularly at folk clubs and festivals, both solo and with Mat Green.
More at
www.magpielane.dsl.pipex.com/andyturner
www.myspace.com/andy_turner

 

Mat  Green
began dancing with Bampton Morris in 1972 and has become one of the key figures in the current generation of dancers. He has been playing fiddle since the age of 13, both for the morris, and for many years with the Woodpecker Band, possibly Oxfordshire's most popular barn dance band. He is surely one of the finest exponents of the traditional style of English fiddle-playing, giving dance tunes tremendous vigour and vitality.
The Woodpecker Band website is at www.woodpeckerband.co.uk

 

Jon Fletcher
The band's newest recruit - joined 2004.
Jon grew up in a musical family in Reading, he sang from an early age and began playing guitar and writing music when he was 15. As a teenager he played in various rock, jazz and acoustic bands, and during three years studying in York he learned 5-string banjo, played in a surf instrumental band and wrote a dissertation on "Recurrent themes and Imagery in British Ballads".

During the late 90s, Jon (together with siblings Kate & Colin, and fiddler/singer Nancy Kerr) was a member of acclaimed roots-pop group Epona, who toured the folk and festival circuit in the UK and Germany and released the album Shine Again. 

Jon currently lives in Oxford where he combines performing with teaching, production work and running a youth music project. As well as performing his own material, Jon is a sought-after collaborator, performing and recording with a number of other artists in Oxford's vibrant acoustic scene, including Lisa Fitzgibbon, Sharron Kraus and Matt Sage. 

Jon has released one solo album "A Month in the Summer", a beautifully-arranged collection of songs showcasing Jon's beguiling vocals and intricate guitar-work, and covering a musical spectrum from traditional folk to swinging jazz and soulful acoustic pop.

More at 
www.jonfletcher.co.uk 
www.myspace.com/jonfletcheruk

 

Marguerite Hutchinson
joined Magpie Lane January 2001. A fine singer, well-known on the Oxford folk scene, Marguerite also plays recorder, whistle, flute and Northumbrian small-pipes.
She has performed in an occasional duo with leading early music / folk musician Giles Lewin (Afterhours, Dufay Collective, Carnival Band etc.) and was formerly in Divers Divas.

 

Sophie Polhill
also joined January 2001. Sophie studied music at the Colchester Institute of Music where - amongst other things - she became involved in West Gallery singing. With Magpie Lane she sings, plays the cello and tambourine, and does on-stage prawn impressions. She has recorded a CD of celtic songs with ex-Fairport musician Maartin Allcock, and is a member of Oxford all-woman quartet Divers Divas. She also sings with smoky late-night jazz duo, Lady Daze and plays cello for up-and-coming singer-songwriter Phil Bentley.

 

Magpie Lane 2001

Former Members 

Benji Kirkpatrick
First played with Magpie Lane 1999; left 2004.
Played on: A Taste of Ale, Six for Gold.

Benji joined Magpie Lane in 1999, contributing guitar, bouzouki and vocals. He started performing solo in 1998, and released his first CD  "Dance in the Shadow" later the same year to universally favourable reviews. Benji plays with family dance bands Copperknob and Sons, the John Kirkpatrick Ceilidh Band and Mr. Gubbin's Bicycle; he is also a member of the justly acclaimed  Dr. Faustus , along with Tim Van Eyken, Rob Harbron and Paul Sartin.
During the Summer of 2001 Benji was part of the Oysterband "Big Session" along with a number of other talented young musicians. Since then he has continued to work with the Oysters, and accompanied John Jones on his 2004 solo tour. He has recently released his second solo CD, "Half A Fruit Pie" (Fellside Recordings FECD181); read a review.
 
    
Tom Bower
Founder member; left December 2000.
Played on: Oxford Ramble, Speed the Plough, Wassail, Jack-in-the-Green, A Taste of Ale.
Tom added a number of instruments to Magpie Lane's line-up - whistles, flute, recorders, harmonium, dulcimer, bass mandolin, even bass guitar when we let him (!) . He also contributed lead and harmony vocals, and along with Andy Turner was one of the main arrangers of the group's material. Outside Magpie Lane, Tom formerly sang with the Christminster Singers, and has played bass with any number of local dance bands (principally Captain Webb at present). He is also an extremely fine and original artist; amongst many other commissions, Tom has provided cover artwork for CDs by the Mellstock Band, Dave Townsend and Northern Harmony - check out http://web.ukonline.co.uk/bibleartist
 
    
Di Whitehead
First performed with Magpie Lane Christmas 1993; left December 2000
Played on: Speed the Plough, Wassail, Jack-in-the-Green, A Taste of Ale.
An accomplished cellist and recorder-player, Di's classical training on the cello was evident on some of the band's more lyrical song arrangements; at the same time she was able to provide a solid rhythmic bass-line for dance tunes, and this became one of the hallmarks of the Magpie Lane sound. Di is a member of Ayres and Graces, Bonne Bouche, and continues to play in various classical ensembles.

 

Peter Acty
Founder member; left 1999.
Played on: Oxford Ramble, Speed the Plough, Wassail, Jack-in-the-Green.
An immensely sensitive accompanist on guitar, Pete had worked with Ian Giles for a number of years before joining Magpie Lane. In addition to Magpie Lane's first four recordings, Pete's guitar and mandola work can be heard on several collections on the Beautiful Jo label.
 
   
Joanne Acty
Founder member; left 1999.
Sang on: Oxford Ramble, Speed the Plough, Wassail, Jack-in-the-Green.
A distinctive singer, often given the job of tackling the heavy ballads with Magpie Lane. Joanne also contributed a number of songs to "English Songs of Love" (BEJOCD-19 ) alongside Julie Murphy and Lynne Denman.
For details of Joanne's artistic activities see http://www.artworks.org.uk


Isobel Dams
Founder member; left 1993.
Played on: Oxford Ramble.
Isobel played cello on our first CD, and in the very first series of concerts around Oxfordshire. She left the band, to be replaced by Di Whitehead, when nursing work took her to Brighton.

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