John Renbourn
Encyclopedia
John Renbourn is an English
guitarist
and songwriter
. He is possibly best known for his collaboration with guitarist Bert Jansch
as well as his work with the folk group Pentangle
, although he maintained a solo career before, during and after that band's existence (1967–1973).
While most commonly labelled a folk musician, Renbourn's musical tastes and interests take in early music, classical music, blues
and world music. His most influential album, Sir John Alot (1968), featured his take on songs from the Medieval era
.
" and this eventually led him to explore the work of artists such as Lead Belly, Josh White
and Big Bill Broonzy
.
In the 1960s the new craze in popular music was Rhythm and Blues, also the impact of Davey Graham
was being felt. In 1961 Renbourn toured the South West with Mac MacLeod
and repeated the tour in 1963.On returning from the South West Renbourn and MacLeod recorded a demo tape together. Renbourn briefly played in an R&B band while studying at the Kingston College of Art in London. Although the British "Folk Revival" was underway, most folk clubs were biased towards traditional, unaccompanied folk songs, and guitar players were not always welcome. However, the Roundhouse
in London had a more tolerant attitude and here, John Renbourn joined blues and gospel singer Dorris Henderson
, playing backing guitar and recording two albums with her.
Possibly the best known London venue for contemporary folk music in the early 1960s was "Les Cousins
" on Greek Street, Soho
, which became the main meeting place for guitar players and contemporary singer-songwriters from Britain and America
. Around 1963, Renbourn teamed up with guitarist Bert Jansch
who had moved to London from Edinburgh
, and together they developed an intricate duet style that became known as "folk baroque
". Their album Bert and John
is a fine example of their playing.
Renbourn released several albums on the Transatlantic
label during the 1960s. Two of them, Sir John Alot and Lady And The Unicorn sum up Renbourn's playing style and material from this period. Sir John Alot has a mixture of jazz/blues/folk playing alongside a more classical/early music style. Lady And The Unicorn is heavily influenced by Renbourn's interest in early music.
At around this time, Renbourn also started playing with Jacqui McShee
who sang traditional English folk songs. Together with Bert Jansch
, bassist Danny Thompson and drummer Terry Cox, they went on to form Pentangle
. The group became very successful, touring America in 1968, playing at Carnegie Hall
and the Newport Folk Festival
.
Renbourn went on to record more solo albums in the 1970s and 1980s. Much of the music is based on traditional material with a Celtic influence, interwoven with other styles. He also collaborated with American guitarist Stefan Grossman
in the late 1970s, recording two albums with him, which at times recall his folk baroque days with Bert Jansch.
In the mid-1980s Renbourn went back to the university to earn a degree in composition. Since then, he has focused mainly on writing classical music, while still performing in folk settings. He also added acoustic guitars for the movie soundtrack Scream for Help
, a studio project with his neighbour John Paul Jones
.
In 1988, Renbourn briefly formed a group called Ship of Fools with Tony Roberts
(flute), Maggie Boyle
(lyrics, misc. instruments) and Steve Tilston
(guitar). They recorded one eponymous album together. After practising by mailing tapes to each other in England, they held their first concert, comprising two sold-out shows, at Harvard's Hasty Pudding Club
Theater. Regrettably, the soundboard bootleg tape was not saved due to a dispute between the concert promoter and the audio engineer.
Renbourn continues to record and tour. He toured the USA with Archie Fisher
. In 2005 he toured Japan (his fifth tour of that country) with Tokio Uchida and Woody Mann
. In 2006 he played at number of venues in England, including appearances with Robin Williamson
and with Jacqui McShee. In the same year, he was working on a new solo album and collaborated with Clive Carroll
on the score for the film Driving Lessons
, directed by Jeremy Brock
. In 2011 he released the CD Palermo Snow, a collection of instrumental guitar solos also featuring clarinetist Dick Lee.
In the mid 1960s, he acquired a Gibson J-50
. This was the main acoustic guitar that he used through the late 1960s and early 1970s: for example, he is seen playing it in the cover picture of the 1967 Another Monday album. Through that period, he also used a Gibson ES-335
"dot", semi-acoustic guitar, playing it fingerstyle as well as for lead lines.
In the mid 1970s, Renbourn acquired a Guild D-55
which he used on several albums, including his collaborations with Stefan Grossman. Later in the 1970s, having seen the Franklin guitar owned by Grossman, he started using a Franklin OM guitar, based on the style of Martin OM guitars, made by Nick Kukich who founded the Franklin guitar company. Renbourn continues to use this guitar and another OM-style instrument, made by Ralph Bown of York, UK, in 1985.
With Ship of Fools
With Pentangle — see Pentangle
article
With Stefan Grossman
With Bert Jansch
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
guitarist
Guitarist
A guitarist is a musician who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselves on the guitar while singing.- Versatility :The guitarist controls an extremely...
and songwriter
Songwriter
A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...
. He is possibly best known for his collaboration with guitarist Bert Jansch
Bert Jansch
Herbert "Bert" Jansch was a Scottish folk musician and founding member of the band Pentangle. He was born in Glasgow and came to prominence in London in the 1960s, as an acoustic guitarist, as well as a singer-songwriter...
as well as his work with the folk group Pentangle
Pentangle (band)
Pentangle are a British folk rock band with some folk jazz influences. The original band were active in the late 1960s and early 1970s and a later version has been active since the early 1980s...
, although he maintained a solo career before, during and after that band's existence (1967–1973).
While most commonly labelled a folk musician, Renbourn's musical tastes and interests take in early music, classical music, blues
Blues
Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
and world music. His most influential album, Sir John Alot (1968), featured his take on songs from the Medieval era
Medieval music
Medieval music is Western music written during the Middle Ages. This era begins with the fall of the Roman Empire and ends sometime in the early fifteenth century...
.
Career
John Renbourn studied classical guitar at school and it was during this period that he was introduced to Early Music. In the 1950s, along with many others, he was greatly influenced by the musical craze of "SkiffleSkiffle
Skiffle is a type of popular music with jazz, blues, folk, roots and country influences, usually using homemade or improvised instruments. Originating as a term in the United States in the first half of the twentieth century, it became popular again in the UK in the 1950s, where it was mainly...
" and this eventually led him to explore the work of artists such as Lead Belly, Josh White
Josh White
Joshua Daniel White , better known as Josh White, was an American singer, guitarist, songwriter, actor, and civil rights activist. He also recorded under the names "Pinewood Tom" and "Tippy Barton" in the 1930s....
and Big Bill Broonzy
Big Bill Broonzy
Big Bill Broonzy was a prolific American blues singer, songwriter and guitarist. His career began in the 1920s when he played country blues to mostly black audiences. Through the ‘30s and ‘40s he successfully navigated a transition in style to a more urban blues sound popular with white audiences...
.
In the 1960s the new craze in popular music was Rhythm and Blues, also the impact of Davey Graham
Davey Graham
David Michael Gordon "Davey" Graham, originally spelled Davy Graham, , was a British guitarist and one of the most influential figures in the 1960s British folk revival...
was being felt. In 1961 Renbourn toured the South West with Mac MacLeod
Mac MacLeod
Mac MacLeod is an English musician who was a part of the Hertfordshire folk and blues scene from 1959 onwards. He played in St Albans alongside Mick Softley, Maddy Prior and toured with John Renbourn...
and repeated the tour in 1963.On returning from the South West Renbourn and MacLeod recorded a demo tape together. Renbourn briefly played in an R&B band while studying at the Kingston College of Art in London. Although the British "Folk Revival" was underway, most folk clubs were biased towards traditional, unaccompanied folk songs, and guitar players were not always welcome. However, the Roundhouse
The Roundhouse
The Roundhouse is a Grade II* listed former railway engine shed in Chalk Farm, London, England, which has been converted into a performing arts and concert venue. It was originally built in 1847 as a roundhouse , a circular building containing a railway turntable, but was only used for railway...
in London had a more tolerant attitude and here, John Renbourn joined blues and gospel singer Dorris Henderson
Dorris Henderson
Dorris Henderson was an American-born, United Kingdom-based folk music singer and autoharp player.-Early years:Born in Lakeland, Florida but raised in Los Angeles, she was the daughter of an African American clergyman and the granddaughter of a Blackfoot Native American...
, playing backing guitar and recording two albums with her.
Possibly the best known London venue for contemporary folk music in the early 1960s was "Les Cousins
Les Cousins (music club)
Les Cousins was a folk and blues club in the basement of a restaurant in Greek Street, in the Soho district of London. It had its heyday during the British folk music revival of the mid-1960s and was notable as a venue in which musicians of that period met and learnt from each other...
" on Greek Street, Soho
Soho
Soho is an area of the City of Westminster and part of the West End of London. Long established as an entertainment district, for much of the 20th century Soho had a reputation for sex shops as well as night life and film industry. Since the early 1980s, the area has undergone considerable...
, which became the main meeting place for guitar players and contemporary singer-songwriters from Britain and America
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Around 1963, Renbourn teamed up with guitarist Bert Jansch
Bert Jansch
Herbert "Bert" Jansch was a Scottish folk musician and founding member of the band Pentangle. He was born in Glasgow and came to prominence in London in the 1960s, as an acoustic guitarist, as well as a singer-songwriter...
who had moved to London from Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
, and together they developed an intricate duet style that became known as "folk baroque
Folk baroque
Folk baroque or baroque guitar is the name given to a distinctive and influential guitar fingerstyle developed in Britain in the 1960s, which combined elements of American folk, blues, jazz and ragtime with British traditional music to produce a new and elaborate form of accompaniment...
". Their album Bert and John
Bert And John
Bert And John is the fourth album by Scottish folk musician Bert Jansch, released in 1966. A number of songs are performed with friend and fellow guitarist John Renbourn, who would later join him in the group Pentangle. An expanded version of the album was later released in America in 1969 by...
is a fine example of their playing.
Renbourn released several albums on the Transatlantic
Transatlantic Records
Transatlantic Records was a British independent record label. It was established in 1961. It started began primarily as an importer of American folk, blues and jazz records - by many of the artists who influenced the burgeoning British folk and blues boom. Within a couple of years, the company had...
label during the 1960s. Two of them, Sir John Alot and Lady And The Unicorn sum up Renbourn's playing style and material from this period. Sir John Alot has a mixture of jazz/blues/folk playing alongside a more classical/early music style. Lady And The Unicorn is heavily influenced by Renbourn's interest in early music.
At around this time, Renbourn also started playing with Jacqui McShee
Jacqui McShee
thumb|300px|right|Jacqui McShee performing with [[Pentangle]] at the 2007 [[BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards]]Jacqueline 'Jacqui' McShee is an English singer. Since 1966 she has performed with Pentangle, a jazz influenced folk rock band.-Biography:McShee's musical career began as a soloist in British folk...
who sang traditional English folk songs. Together with Bert Jansch
Bert Jansch
Herbert "Bert" Jansch was a Scottish folk musician and founding member of the band Pentangle. He was born in Glasgow and came to prominence in London in the 1960s, as an acoustic guitarist, as well as a singer-songwriter...
, bassist Danny Thompson and drummer Terry Cox, they went on to form Pentangle
Pentangle (band)
Pentangle are a British folk rock band with some folk jazz influences. The original band were active in the late 1960s and early 1970s and a later version has been active since the early 1980s...
. The group became very successful, touring America in 1968, playing at Carnegie Hall
Carnegie Hall
Carnegie Hall is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, United States, located at 881 Seventh Avenue, occupying the east stretch of Seventh Avenue between West 56th Street and West 57th Street, two blocks south of Central Park....
and the Newport Folk Festival
Newport Folk Festival
The Newport Folk Festival is an American annual folk-oriented music festival in Newport, Rhode Island, which began in 1959 as a counterpart to the previously established Newport Jazz Festival...
.
Renbourn went on to record more solo albums in the 1970s and 1980s. Much of the music is based on traditional material with a Celtic influence, interwoven with other styles. He also collaborated with American guitarist Stefan Grossman
Stefan Grossman
Stefan Grossman is an American acoustic fingerstyle guitarist and singer, music producer and educator, and co-founder of Kicking Mule records.-Early life and influences:Born in Brooklyn, New York, to Herbert and Ruth Grossman...
in the late 1970s, recording two albums with him, which at times recall his folk baroque days with Bert Jansch.
In the mid-1980s Renbourn went back to the university to earn a degree in composition. Since then, he has focused mainly on writing classical music, while still performing in folk settings. He also added acoustic guitars for the movie soundtrack Scream for Help
Scream for Help (album)
2000 Compact disc editionSame track listing and order as the vinyl release.- Personnel :* John Paul Jones - Keyboards, synthesizer, bass guitar, guitars, backing vocals, producer* Jimmy Page - Electric guitars...
, a studio project with his neighbour John Paul Jones
John Paul Jones (musician)
John Paul Jones is an English multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, composer, arranger and record producer. Best known as the bassist, mandolinist, and keyboardist for English rock band Led Zeppelin, Jones has since developed a solo career and has gained even more respect as both a musician and a...
.
In 1988, Renbourn briefly formed a group called Ship of Fools with Tony Roberts
Tony Roberts
Tony Roberts may refer to:*Tony Roberts , American actor*Tony Roberts , British author of the Casca series *Tony Roberts , Welsh football player...
(flute), Maggie Boyle
Maggie Boyle
Maggie Boyle is a London-born Irish singer-songwriter.As a youngster she joined the Fulham branch of Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann. Later she became an events organiser...
(lyrics, misc. instruments) and Steve Tilston
Steve Tilston
Steve Tilston is an English singer-songwriter.-Early years:Steve Tilston was born in Liverpool and raised in Leicestershire. Tilston was a graphic designer before taking up music in 1971, living in Bristol at the time, where he recorded his first album "An Acoustic Confusion". In the early...
(guitar). They recorded one eponymous album together. After practising by mailing tapes to each other in England, they held their first concert, comprising two sold-out shows, at Harvard's Hasty Pudding Club
Hasty Pudding Club
The Hasty Pudding Club is a social club for Harvard students. It was founded by Nymphus Hatch, a junior at Harvard College, in 1770. The club is named for the traditional American dish that the founding members ate at their first meeting...
Theater. Regrettably, the soundboard bootleg tape was not saved due to a dispute between the concert promoter and the audio engineer.
Renbourn continues to record and tour. He toured the USA with Archie Fisher
Archie Fisher
Archie Fisher MBE is a Scottish folk singer and song writer.-The early years:Archie Fisher was born in Glasgow on 23 October 1939 into a large singing family. His sister Cilla Fisher is also a professional singer, as was his late sister Ray. In 1960 he moved to Edinburgh and appeared regularly at...
. In 2005 he toured Japan (his fifth tour of that country) with Tokio Uchida and Woody Mann
Woody Mann
-Biography:Mann specializes in jazz, blues, and American roots music.He was born in New York, where he first studied acoustic guitar with ragtime and blues guitarist Reverend Gary Davis from 1968-72. From 1973-78, Mann continued private lessons, focusing on improvisation with jazz pianist Lennie...
. In 2006 he played at number of venues in England, including appearances with Robin Williamson
Robin Williamson
Robin Williamson is a Scottish multi-instrumentalist musician, singer, songwriter and storyteller, who first made his name as a founder member of The Incredible String Band.-Career:...
and with Jacqui McShee. In the same year, he was working on a new solo album and collaborated with Clive Carroll
Clive Carroll
Clive Carroll is an acoustic guitar player and composer. He is most famous for a song called Eliza's Eyes. In 2004, he toured together with Tommy Emmanuel on his Australian tour....
on the score for the film Driving Lessons
Driving Lessons
Driving Lessons is a 2006 British dramedy film written and directed by Jeremy Brock. The plot focuses on the relationship between a shy teenaged boy and an ageing eccentric actress.-Plot:...
, directed by Jeremy Brock
Jeremy Brock
Jeremy Brock is an English actor, producer, writer, fisher and director whose works include the screenplays Mrs. Brown, Driving Lessons, Last King of Scotland, and Charlotte Gray....
. In 2011 he released the CD Palermo Snow, a collection of instrumental guitar solos also featuring clarinetist Dick Lee.
Guitars
In Renbourn's early recordings, he was using a Scarth guitar. Scarths were English-made guitars, mainly used by dance band players, having maple back and sides, arched top, and tailpiece (like most jazz guitars), but featuring a round soundhole. The guitar is clearly visible on the cover of the 1965 John Renbourn album.In the mid 1960s, he acquired a Gibson J-50
Gibson Guitar Corporation
The Gibson Guitar Corporation, formerly of Kalamazoo, Michigan and currently of Nashville, Tennessee, manufactures guitars and other instruments which sell under a variety of brand names...
. This was the main acoustic guitar that he used through the late 1960s and early 1970s: for example, he is seen playing it in the cover picture of the 1967 Another Monday album. Through that period, he also used a Gibson ES-335
Gibson ES-335
The Gibson ES-335 is the world's first commercial thinline arched-top semi-acoustic electric guitar. Released by the Gibson Guitar Corporation as part of its ES series in 1958, it is neither hollow nor solid; instead, a solid wood block runs through the center of its body...
"dot", semi-acoustic guitar, playing it fingerstyle as well as for lead lines.
In the mid 1970s, Renbourn acquired a Guild D-55
Guild Guitar Company
The Guild Guitar Company is a USA-based guitar manufacturer founded in 1952 by Alfred Dronge, a guitarist and music-store owner, and George Mann, a former executive with the Epiphone Guitar Company...
which he used on several albums, including his collaborations with Stefan Grossman. Later in the 1970s, having seen the Franklin guitar owned by Grossman, he started using a Franklin OM guitar, based on the style of Martin OM guitars, made by Nick Kukich who founded the Franklin guitar company. Renbourn continues to use this guitar and another OM-style instrument, made by Ralph Bown of York, UK, in 1985.
Solo albums
- John RenbournJohn Renbourn (album)-Track listing:All tracks composed by John Renbourn; except where indicated# "Judy"# "Beth's Blues"# "Song"# "Down on the Barge"# "John Henry" # "Plainsong"# "Louisiana Blues" # "Blue Bones"...
(1965) - Another Monday (1967)
- Sir John Alot of Merrie Englandes Musyk Thyng and ye Grene Knyghte (1968)
- The Lady and the Unicorn (1970)
- Faro AnnieFaro AnnieFaro Annie is the 1971 solo album by British Folk musician John Renbourn. On this release, Renbourn ventures into Folk Rock and Blues territory. There is also heavy use of the sitar on this album, played by Renbourn himself...
(1971) - So Clear (1973)
- Heads and Tails (1973)
- The Guitar of John Renbourn (1976, released 2005, aka The Guitar Artistry of John Renbourn)
- The Hermit (1976)
- The Black Balloon (1979)
- So Early In The Spring (1979)
- One Morning Very Early (1979)
- Enchanted Garden (1980)
- The Nine MaidensThe Nine Maidens-Track listing:# "New Nothynge" – 3:50# "The Fish in the Well" – 2:24# "Pavan d'Aragon" – 5:38# "Variations on My Lady Carey's Dompe" – 6:07# "Circle Dance" – 4:18# "The Nine Maidens"#* "Clarsach" – 5:43#* "The Nine Maidens" – 4:50#* "The Fiddler" – 2:40...
(1986) - Shines Bright (1987)
- Folk Blues of John Renbourn (1988)
- Medieval Almanac (1989)
- Will the Circle Be Unbroken (1995)
- Lost Sessions (1996)
- Traveller's PrayerTraveller's Prayer (album)-Track listing:# "Bunyan's Hymn " – 3:11# "When the Wind Blows" – 6:17# "Wexford Lullaby" – 4:37# "I Saw Three Ships/Newgate Hornpipe" – 7:39# "Planxty Llanthony/Loftus Jones" – 5:36# "Fagottanz" – 4:02# "At the Break of Day" – 3:49...
(1998) - Palermo Snow (2011)
Group albums
With The John Renbourn Group- A Maid in BedlamA Maid in BedlamA Maid in Bedlam is a 1977 album by The John Renbourn Group.-Track listing:# "Black waterside" – 3:24# "Nacht Tanz/Shaeffertanz" – 3:26# "A Maid in Bedlam" – 3:57# "Gypsy Dance/Jews Dance" – 3:27# "John Barleycorn" – 3:40...
(1977) - The Enchanted Garden (1980)
With Ship of Fools
- Ship of Fools (1988)
With Pentangle — see Pentangle
Pentangle (band)
Pentangle are a British folk rock band with some folk jazz influences. The original band were active in the late 1960s and early 1970s and a later version has been active since the early 1980s...
article
Collaborations
With Dorris Henderson- There You Go (1965)
- Watch the Stars (1967)
With Stefan Grossman
- Live In (1978)
- John Renbourn and Stefan Grossman (1978) (*)
- Under the VolcanoUnder the Volcano (Stefan Grossman and John Renbourn album)Under the Volcano is the name of a Kicking Mule guitar album recorded by Stefan Grossman and John Renbourn in 1979. It was re-released on CD in 1998.- Track listing :#"Idaho Potato" - 4:52#"Medley: Shebeg and Sheemor/Drunken Wagoner" - 3:50...
(1979) - The Three Kingdoms (1986)
- (* Selected tracks from John Renbourn and Stefan Grossman and from Under the Volcano were re-released under the title Keeper of the Vine (1982), and a different selection re-released under the title Snap a Little Owl (1997))
With Bert Jansch
- Bert and JohnBert And JohnBert And John is the fourth album by Scottish folk musician Bert Jansch, released in 1966. A number of songs are performed with friend and fellow guitarist John Renbourn, who would later join him in the group Pentangle. An expanded version of the album was later released in America in 1969 by...
(1966) (*) - (* Re-released with additional tracks by Bert Jansch unter the title After the Dance (1992) on Shanachie)
Compilations
- The Essential Collection Vol 1: The Soho Years (1986)
- The Essential Collection Vol 2: The Moon Shines Bright (1987)
- Essential John Renbourn (1992)
- Collection (1995)
- Definitive Transatlantic Collection (1998)
- Nobody's Fault But Mine: An Anthology
Live albums
- Live in America (1981) - The John Renbourn Group
- Live ... In Concert (1984) - John Renbourn and Stefan GrossmanStefan GrossmanStefan Grossman is an American acoustic fingerstyle guitarist and singer, music producer and educator, and co-founder of Kicking Mule records.-Early life and influences:Born in Brooklyn, New York, to Herbert and Ruth Grossman...
- Wheel of Fortune (1993) - John Renbourn and Robin WilliamsonRobin WilliamsonRobin Williamson is a Scottish multi-instrumentalist musician, singer, songwriter and storyteller, who first made his name as a founder member of The Incredible String Band.-Career:...
- BBC Live in Concert (1998)
- Live In Italy (2006)