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Redwing

The redwing (Turdus iliacus) is a bird in the thrush family, Turdidae, native to Europe and the Palearctic, slightly smaller than the related song thrush.

Taxonomy and systematics
This species was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1758 10th edition of Systema Naturae under its current scientific name.

The English name derives from the bird's red underwing. It is not closely related to the red-winged blackbird, a North American species sometimes nicknamed "redwing", which is an icterid, not a thrush. The binomial name derives from the Latin words turdus, "thrush", and ile "flank".

About 65 species of medium to large thrushes are in the genus Turdus, characterised by rounded heads, longish, pointed wings, and usually melodious songs. Although two European thrushes, the song thrush and mistle thrush, are early offshoots from the Eurasian lineage of Turdus thrushes after they spread north from Africa, the redwing is descended from ancestors that had colonised the Caribbean islands from Africa and subsequently reached Europe from there.

The redwing has two subspecies:
 * T. i. iliacus, the nominate subspecies described by Linnaeus, which breeds in mainland Eurasia.
 * T. i. coburni described by Richard Bowdler Sharpe in 1901, which breeds in Iceland and the Faroe Islands and winters from western Scotland and Ireland south to northern Spain. It is darker overall, and marginally larger than the nominate form.

Description
It is 20–24 cm long with a wingspan of 33–34.5 cm and a weight of 50–75 g. The sexes are similar, with plain brown backs and with dark brown spots on the white underparts. The most striking identification features are the red flanks and underwing, and the creamy white stripe above the eye. Adults moult between June and September, which means that some start to replace their flight feathers while still feeding young.

Song
The male has a varied short song, and a whistling flight call. Redwings show a distinct dialectic variation in song, having a considerable similarity in song patterns among birds within a local population.

The Redwing song consists of a number of introductory elements of descending or ascending frequency. These elements may be of pure tonal quality, or of a more harsh quality (varying degrees of frequency modulations or "trills"). After the introductory elements, a fast and more complex song pattern often follows. It is the introductory elements which show a geographic variation. The boundaries of any given dialect may vary but in a rural and forested environment in Norway the average size of these dialect areas is around 41.5 km2.

Distribution and habitat
It breeds in northern regions of Europe and the Palearctic, from Iceland south to northernmost Scotland, and east through Scandinavia, the Baltic States, northern Poland and Belarus, and through most of Russia to about 165°E in Chukotka Autonomous Okrug. In recent years it has expanded its range slightly, both in eastern Europe where it now breeds south into northern Ukraine, and in southern Greenland, where the Qaqortoq area was colonised in 1990–1991.

It is often replaced by the related ring ouzel in areas of higher altitude.

It is migratory, wintering in western, central and southern Europe, north-west Africa, and south-west Asia east to northern Iran. Birds in some parts of the west of the breeding range (particularly south-western Norway) may be resident, not migrating at all, while those in the far east of the range migrate at least 6,500–7,000 km to reach their wintering grounds.

There are multiple records of vagrants from the north-east coast of North America, as well as two sightings on the north-west coast (one in Washington in 2005, and one in Seward, Alaska in November 2011).

Behaviour and ecology
Migrating and wintering birds often form loose flocks of 10 to 200 or more birds, often feeding together with fieldfares, common blackbirds and starlings, sometimes also with mistle thrushes, song thrushes, and ring ouzels. Unlike the song thrush, the more nomadic redwing does not tend to return regularly to the same wintering areas.

The movement occurs in the Autumn to early Winter and they often move at night making a "Tseep" contact call that can carry a long distance.

Breeding
It breeds in conifer and birch forest and tundra. Redwings nest in shrubs or on the ground, laying four to six eggs in a neat nest. The eggs are typically 2.6 x 1.9 centimetres in size and weigh 4.6 grammes, of which 5% is shell, and which hatch after 12–13 days. The chicks fledge at 12–15 days, but the young remain dependent on their parents for a further 14 days.

Feeding
It is omnivorous, eating a wide range of insects and earthworms all year, supplemented by berries in autumn and winter, particularly of rowan Sorbus aucuparia and hawthorn Crataegus monogyna.

Natural threats
A Russian study of blood parasites showed that all the fieldfares, redwings and song thrushes sampled carried haematozoans, particularly Haemoproteus and Trypanosoma.

Status and conservation
The redwing has an extensive range, estimated at 10 million square kilometres (3.8 million square miles), and an estimated population of 26 to 40 million individuals in Europe alone. The European population forms approximately 40% of the global population, thus the very preliminary estimate of the global population is 98 to 151 million individuals. The species is believed to approach the thresholds for the population decline criterion of the IUCN Red List (i.e., declining more than 30% in ten years or three generations), and is therefore precautionarily uplisted to near threatened. Numbers can be adversely affected by severe winters, which may cause heavy mortality, and cold wet summers, which reduce breeding success.

title: Redwing


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Anthony Blair (disambiguation)

Anthony Blair or Tony Blair (born 1953) is a former prime minister of the United Kingdom.

Anthony Blair may also refer to:

 * Anthony Blair (criminal) (1849–1879), American murderer
 * J. Anthony Blair (born 1941), Canadian philosopher

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

title: Anthony Blair (disambiguation)


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Martin Carthy

Martin Dominic Forbes Carthy MBE (born 21 May 1941) is an English singer and guitarist who has remained one of the most influential figures in English folk music, inspiring contemporaries such as Bob Dylan and Paul Simon, and later artists such as Richard Thompson, since he emerged as a young musician in the early days of the folk revival in the UK during the 1960s and 1970s.

Early life
He was born in Hatfield, Hertfordshire, England, and grew up in Hampstead, North West London. His mother was an active socialist and his father, from a family of Thames lightermen, went to grammar school and became a trade unionist and a councillor for Stepney at the age of 21. Martin's father had played fiddle and guitar as a young man but Martin was unaware of this connection to his folk music heritage until much later in life. His vocal and musical training began when he became a chorister at the Queen's Chapel of The Savoy. He picked up his father's old guitar for the first time after hearing "Rock Island Line" by Lonnie Donegan. He has cited his first major folk music influences as Big Bill Broonzy and the syncopated guitar style of Elizabeth Cotten. Carthy performed his first professional engagement at the age of 16 at The Loft, a coffee bar in Primrose Gardens. Although his father wanted him to go to university to study classics, Carthy left school at 17 and worked behind the scenes as a prompter at the open-air theatre in Regent's Park, then as an assistant stage manager (ASM) on a tour of The Merry Widow, and then at Theatre in the Round in Scarborough. He became a resident at The Troubadour folk club in Earls Court in the early 1960s after his friend Robin Hall persuaded him to visit and listen to the piper Seamus Ennis. He joined Redd Sullivan's Thameside Four in 1961 as a skiffle guitarist and singer.

In the early 1960s, Carthy visited Ewan MacColl's Ballads & Blues club to watch a friend, the singer Roy Guest. The main performer that night was Sam Larner. Carthy has since described how Larner's performance of "Lofty Tall Ship" altered his perception of how a traditional folk song could be sung, and how it was a key moment in his own development as an artist.

When American singer Bob Dylan arrived in London for the first time in 1962 to perform in Madhouse on Castle Street, he visited Martin Carthy at The Troubadour, The King & Queen, and The Singers Club. He learned the traditional song "Scarborough Fair" from Carthy, which he later developed into his own song "Girl from the North Country".

Musical career
Carthy is a mostly solo performer of traditional songs in a very distinctive style, accompanying himself on his Martin 000-18 acoustic guitar; his style is marked by the use of alternative tunings (notably CGCDGA), and a strongly percussive picking style that emphasises the melody.

In 1964, Carthy joined Marian Mackenzie, Ralph Trainer and Leon Rosselson in the group The Three City Four. The group concentrated on contemporary songs, including some of Rosselson's own, and made two albums – the first for Decca and a second, Smoke and Dust (Where the Heart Should Have Been), for CBS. The 1965 eponymous debut The Three City Four featured Carthy singing lead vocals on two tracks – Sydney Carter's "Telephone Song" and Rosselson's own "History Lesson". Roy Bailey would replace Carthy when he later left the group.

Carthy's debut solo album, Martin Carthy, was released in 1965, and also featured Dave Swarbrick playing fiddle on some tracks, although he was not mentioned in the album's sleeve notes. Carthy's arrangement of the traditional ballad "Scarborough Fair" was adapted, without acknowledgement, by Paul Simon on the Simon and Garfunkel album recording Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme in 1966. This caused a rift between the pair which was not resolved until Simon invited Carthy to sing the song with him on-stage at the Hammersmith Apollo in 2000.

Musical collaborations
He has also been involved with many musical collaborations. He has sung with The Watersons since 1972; was twice a member of British folk rock group Steeleye Span; was a member of the Albion Country Band 1973 line-up, with members from the Fairport Convention family and John Kirkpatrick, that recorded the Battle of the Field album; and was part of the innovative Brass Monkey ensemble, which mixed a range of brass instruments with Carthy's guitar and mandolin and John Kirkpatrick's accordion, melodeon and concertina. Carthy was also a member of The Imagined Village for all three of their albums (2007–2012).

For many years Carthy enjoyed a creative partnership with fiddle player Dave Swarbrick; more recently, Waterson:Carthy has provided the forum for his successful musical partnership with wife Norma Waterson and their daughter Eliza Carthy.

Awards and honours
In June 1998 he was appointed an MBE in the Queen's Birthday Honours. He was named Folk Singer of the Year at the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards in 2002, and again in 2005 when he also won the award for Best Traditional Track for "The Famous Flower of Serving-Men". In the 2007 Folk Awards Martin Carthy and Dave Swarbrick won Best Duo. In 2008 he was made an Honorary Fellow of the University of Central Lancashire. In 2014 he was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award at the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards.

Original/studio albums (solo, with Dave Swarbrick or with Eliza Carthy)

 * Martin Carthy (1965) with Dave Swarbrick
 * Second Album (1966) with Dave Swarbrick
 * Byker Hill (1967) with Dave Swarbrick
 * But Two Came By (1968) with Dave Swarbrick
 * Prince Heathen (1969) with Dave Swarbrick
 * Landfall (1971)
 * Shearwater (1972 / 2005 with extra tracks)
 * Sweet Wivelsfield (1974)
 * Crown of Horn  (1976)
 * Because It's There (1979)
 * Out of the Cut (1982)
 * Right of Passage (1988)
 * Life and Limb (1990) with Dave Swarbrick
 * Skin and Bone (1992) with Dave Swarbrick
 * Signs of Life (1998)
 * Waiting for Angels (2004)
 * Straws in the Wind (2006) with Dave Swarbrick
 * The Moral of the Elephant (2014) with Eliza Carthy

Compilations and live albums

 * This Is... Martin Carthy: The Bonny Black Hare and other songs (1971) with Dave Swarbrick [six tracks from Byker Hill and six tracks from But Two Came By]
 * Selections (1971) with Dave Swarbrick [six tracks from Byker Hill; three tracks from No Songs EP, 1967; three tracks from But Two Came By]
 * Selections (1972), New Zealand and Australia only
 * Round Up (circa early 1970s) with Dave Swarbrick [second side of Martin Carthy and first side of Second Album]
 * Brigg Fair (circa early 1970s) with Dave Swarbrick [reissue of Byker Hill]
 * Tales of Long Ago (circa early 1970s) with Dave Swarbrick [reissue of But Two Came By]
 * The Collection (1993)
 * Rigs of the Time: The Best Of Martin Carthy (1993)
 * The Kershaw Sessions (1994) [recorded for BBC Radio, 1987 and 1988]
 * A Collection (1999)
 * Both Ears and the Tail (2000, live recording from 1966) with Dave Swarbrick
 * The Carthy Chronicles (2001), 4-CD 83-track box set
 * The Definitive Collection (2003)
 * Martin Carthy at Ruskin Mill (2005) [very limited release – only 200 copies]
 * The January Man: Live In Belfast 1978 (2011)
 * Walnut Creek: Live Recordings, 1989–1996 (2011)
 * Essential Martin Carthy (2011)

Releases on other formats

 * No Songs (7-inch vinyl EP 1967) with Dave Swarbrick
 * "The Bonny Lass of Anglesey" b/w "Palaces of Gold" (7-inch vinyl single 1976)
 * 100 Not Out (1992), longform video with Dave Swarbrick
 * British Fingerstyle Guitar (instructional VHS video released 1993, reissued on DVD 2006)
 * Guitar Maestros (DVD 2006)

As a member of Steeleye Span

 * Please to See the King (1971)
 * Ten Man Mop, or Mr. Reservoir Butler Rides Again (1971)
 * Storm Force Ten (1977)
 * Live at Last (1978)
 * The Journey (Live at The Forum, London, 1995) (1999)

With Ashley Hutchings, the Albion Country Band and the Albion Band

 * Battle of the Field (1976, recorded 1973)
 * ''Son of Morris On (1976)
 * Rise Up Like the Sun (1978), as guest
 * Lark Rise To Candleford (1980)
 * The BBC Sessions (1998) (tracks 1–4 recorded 1973)

As a member of The Watersons and Waterson:Carthy

 * Lal & Mike Waterson: Bright Phoebus (1972)
 * The Watersons: For Pence and Spicy Ale (1975)
 * The Watersons: Sound, Sound Your Instruments of Joy (1977)
 * The Watersons: Green Fields (1981)
 * Waterson:Carthy: Waterson:Carthy (1994)
 * Waterson:Carthy: Common Tongue (1996)
 * Waterson:Carthy: Broken Ground (1999)
 * Waterson:Carthy: A Dark Light (2002)
 * The Watersons: The Definitive Collection (2003)
 * Waterson:Carthy: Fishes & Fine Yellow Sand (2004)
 * The Watersons: Mighty River of Song (2004) 4-CD & DVD box set of Watersons and related recordings
 * The Watersons: A Yorkshire Christmas (2005)
 * Waterson:Carthy: The Definitive Collection (2005)
 * Waterson:Carthy: Holy Heathens and the Old Green Man (2006)
 * Norma Waterson & Eliza Carthy with the Gift Band: Anchor (2018)

As a member of Brass Monkey

 * Brass Monkey (1984)
 * See How It Runs (1986)
 * The Complete Brass Monkey (1993) compilation of the previous two albums
 * Sound and Rumour (1999)
 * Going and Staying (2001)
 * Flame of Fire (2004)
 * The Definitive Collection (2005)
 * Head of Steam (2009)

As a member of Blue Murder

 * No One Stands Alone (2002)

Other notable releases

 * Thamesiders & Davy Graham (1963) 7-inch EP
 * Three City Four: Three City Four (1965)
 * Dave Swarbrick, Martin Carthy & Diz Disley: Rags, Reels & Airs (1967)
 * Hedy West, Serves 'Em Fine (1967) (as accompanist)
 * Various Artists: Bright Phoebus: Songs by Lal & Mike Waterson (1972)
 * John Kirkpatrick: Plain Capers (1976)
 * Yuletracks (1986)
 * Band of Hope: Rhythm And Reds (1994)
 * Wood, Wilson, Carthy: Wood, Wilson, Carthy (1998)
 * Dave Swarbrick: Swarb! (2003) 4-CD box set career retrospective with numerous Carthy tracks
 * Martins4: Guitar Nights presents the Four Martins (2003) released on CD and DVD (DVD has additional tracks)
 * Various Artists: The Imagined Village (2007)
 * The Imagined Village: Empire & Love (2010)
 * The Imagined Village: Bending The Dark (2012)
 * Three City Four: Smoke & Dust (2010), compilation of tracks from two 1960s albums.

title: Martin Carthy


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Scaly thrush

The scaly thrush (Zoothera dauma) is a member of the thrush family Turdidae.

Distribution and habitat
It breeds in wet coniferous taiga, mainly in the Himalayas through Malaysia.

Description
The sexes are similar, 27–31 cm long, with black scaling on a paler white or yellowish background. The most striking identification feature in flight is the black band on the white underwings, a feature shared with Siberian thrush. The male has a song which is a loud, far-carrying mechanical whistle, with 5-10 second pauses between each one second long phrase twee...tuuu....tuuu....tuuu.

Taxonomy
There are several races which are now often split into a varying number of separate species. Z. aurea (White's thrush), including the questionable subspecies Z. a. toratugumi, is the migratory Siberian and north-east Asian form. Z. neilgherriensis (Nilgiri thrush) is resident in the hills of southwest India. Z. imbricata (Sri Lanka thrush) is endemic to the hills of Sri Lanka and is particularly distinctive, being smaller, long-billed and rufous below. Z. d. dauma (scaly thrush) breeds in the Himalaya and migrates to the foothills in winter. Z. d. horsfieldi (Horsfield's thrush) is resident in Indonesia on the islands of Sumatra, Java, Bali, Lombok and Sumbawa. Z. major (Amami thrush) is restricted to the Amami Islands in Japan and is now considered a distinct species.

The taxonomy of this group is still in flux. Some of these subspecies are very similar and the identity of some populations, such as those on Taiwan, is uncertain.

The fawn-breasted thrush (Z. machiki) of Indonesia and the Bassian thrush (Z. lunulata) and russet-tailed thrush (Z. heinei) of Australia were also included in Z. dauma in the past.

Behaviour
The scaly thrush is very secretive, preferring dense cover. It nests in trees, laying three or four dull green eggs in a neat cup nest. It is omnivorous, eating a wide range of insects, earthworms and berries.

title: Scaly thrush


text: Talk:Airbus A300

title: Talk:Airbus A300


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C. F. Martin & Company

C.F. Martin & Company (often referred to as Martin) is an American guitar manufacturer established in 1833 by Christian Frederick Martin. It is highly respected for its acoustic guitars and is a leading manufacturer of flat top guitars and ukuleles. The company has also made mandolins and tiples, as well as several models of electric guitars and electric basses, although none of these other instruments are still in production.

The company's headquarters and primary factory are situated in Nazareth, Pennsylvania, located in the Lehigh Valley region of the state. The original factory on North Street is listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 2018. This building no longer houses manufacturing, instead a luthier store called Guitar Maker's Connection. The current headquarters on Sycamore Street includes the Martin Guitar Museum, which features over 170 guitars made by the company over its history. Visitors can see pictures of famous guitar owners, try out and purchase guitars, or take a factory tour.

The range of instruments manufactured by Martin include steel-string and classical acoustic guitars and ukuleles. The company also manufactures instruments and strings in Navojoa, Mexico. It produces approximately 193 guitars per day.

Company history
The company has been run by the Martin family throughout its history. Its executive chairman, C.F. 'Chris' Martin IV, is the great-great-great-grandson of the founder. The firm was the first to introduce many of the characteristic features of the modern flattop, steel-string acoustic guitar. Influential Martin innovations include the Dreadnought body style and scalloped bracing.

In June 2021, CFM IV retired as CEO. He still maintains a seat on the Board as Executive Chairman. The first non-family member, Thomas Ripsam, has since assumed the role of CEO.

Founding

C. F. Martin was born in 1796 in Markneukirchen, a small town in Germany historically famous for building musical instruments. He came from a long line of cabinet makers and woodworkers. His father, Johann Georg Martin, also built guitars. By the age of 15, according to the book "Martin Guitars: A History" by Mike Longworth, C. F. Martin apprenticed to Johann Georg Stauffer, a well-known guitar maker in Vienna, Austria. Martin returned to his hometown after completing training and opened his own guitar-making shop. However, he soon became embroiled in a controversy between two guilds.

In the early 1800s, European craftsmen still operated under the guild system. The guitar (in its modern form) was a relatively new instrument, and most guitar makers were members of the Cabinet Makers' Guild. However, the Violin Makers' Guild claimed exclusive rights to manufacture musical instruments. The Violin Makers' Guild filed appeals on three occasions—the first in 1806—to prevent cabinet makers from producing guitars. Johann Martin is mentioned in a surviving submission dated 1832.

Although the cabinet makers successfully defended their right to build guitars, C. F. Martin believed that the guild system was too restrictive and moved to New York City in 1833. By 1838, he moved his business to Nazareth, Pennsylvania.

Company
The Martin company is generally credited with developing the X-bracing system during the 1850s (possibly July 1842) although C. F. Martin did not apply for a patent on the new bracing system. During the 1850s, X-bracing was used by several makers, all of whom were German immigrants who were known to each other, and according to historian Philip Gura there is no evidence that C. F. Martin invented the system. The Martin company was the first to use X-bracing on a large scale, however.

From the 1860s on, fan bracing became standard in Europe. Martin and other American builders including Washburn and others since forgotten (Schmidt & Maul, Stumcke, Tilton) used X-bracing instead. While some consider the sound of X-bracing less delicate sounding in guitars strung with gut strings, this bracing method helped prepare the American guitar for steel strings, which emerged in the first quarter of the 20th century. Martin's tinkering did not stop at X-bracing. From his cabinet-making heritage, he carried over the dovetail joint to connect the neck of the guitar to its body. Some feel that this new technique contributed to the propagation of tone transmission from the guitar neck into the body.

The growing popularity of the guitar in the early 1900s led to a demand for louder and more percussive guitars. In response, many companies began to use metal strings instead of the traditional catgut. These became known as steel-string guitars. By 1921, Martin had focused production towards steel-string guitars.

The company's reputation and output continued to grow. Forays into mandolin making in the late 1890s and ukulele making in the 1920s greatly contributed to their expansion, and by 1928 they were making over 5,000 instruments per year. The ukulele was responsible for keeping the company profitable in the 1920s. The company remained family-owned and employed a relatively small number of highly trained craftsmen making instruments primarily by hand. By the early 1960s Martin guitars were back-ordered by as much as three years due to limited production capacity. In 1964, Martin opened a new plant that is still the primary Martin production facility.

One of the consistent policies of the company was to not engage in endorsement deals. At the same time, they offered a 20% discount as a courtesy to professional musicians. They would also offer to customize instruments with inlays of names for the performers.

The Great Depression
The Great Depression in 1929 drastically affected Martin's sales. The company came up with two innovations to help regain business.

14 fret orchestra model
One of these was the 14-fret neck, which allowed easier access to higher notes. Most guitars of the day, with the exception of Gibson's L-5 archtop jazz guitars, had necks joined at the 12th fret, half the scale length of the string. Martin intended it to appeal to plectrum banjo players interested in switching to guitar for increased work opportunities. This was in response to specific requests from tenor players including Al Esposito, the manager of the Carl Fischer store in New York City. The "Carl Fischer Model" tenors were soon renamed 0-18T. Martin altered the shape of its 0-size guitar body to accommodate 14 frets, the first time Martin changed one of their original body shapes to accommodate a longer neck with more frets clear of the body.

It was also during this time that Perry Bechtel, a well-known banjo player and guitar teacher from Cable Piano in Atlanta, requested that Martin build a guitar with a 15-fret neck-to-body join. In keeping with Bechtel's request, Martin modified the shape of their 12-fret 000-size instrument, lowering the waist and giving the upper bout more acute curves to cause the neck joint to fall at the 14th fret rather than the 12th. Fourteen-fret guitars were designed to play with a pick and replace banjos in jazz orchestras. Thus Martin named its first 14-fret, 000-shape guitar the Orchestra Model (OM). Martin applied this term to all 14-fret instruments in its catalogs by the mid- to late-1930s.

Original Martin OMs from approximately 1929 to 1931 are extremely rare and sell for high prices. Many guitarists believe that the OM—a combination of Martin's modified 14-fret 000 body shape, long scale (25.4") neck, solid headstock, 1-3/4" nut width, 4-1/8" maximum depth at the endwedge, and 2-3/8" string spread at the bridge—offers the most versatile combination of features available in a steel-string acoustic guitar. Many contemporary guitar makers (including many small shops and hand-builders) design instruments on the OM pattern.

The change in body shape and longer neck became so popular that Martin made the 14-fret neck standard on almost all of its guitars and the rest of the guitar industry soon followed. Classical guitars, which were evolving on their own track largely among European builders, retained the 12-fret neck design.

Dreadnought
Martin's second major innovation of the period 1915–1930 was the dreadnought guitar. Originally devised in 1916 as a collaboration between Martin and a prominent retailer, the Oliver Ditson Co., the dreadnought body style was larger and deeper than most guitars. In 1906, the Royal Navy launched a battleship that was considerably larger than any before it. From the idea that a ship that big had nothing to fear (nought to dread), it was christened HMS Dreadnought (1906). Martin borrowed this name for their new, large guitar. The greater volume and louder bass produced by this expansion in size was intended to make the guitar more useful as an accompaniment instrument for singers working with the limited sound equipment of the day. Initial models produced for Ditson were fan-braced, and the instruments were poorly received.

In 1931, Martin reintroduced the dreadnought with X-bracing and two years later gave it a modified body shape to accommodate a 14-fret neck, and it quickly became their bestselling guitar. The rest of the industry soon followed, and the "dreadnought" size and shape became one of the "standard" acoustic guitar shapes, iconic for its use in a wide variety of musical genres.

Archtop
Martin also developed a line of archtop instruments during the 1930s. Their design differed from Gibson and other archtops in a variety of respects–the fingerboard was glued to the top, rather than a floating extension of the neck, and the backs and sides were flat rosewood plates pressed into an arch rather than the more common carved figured maple. Martin archtops were not commercially successful and were withdrawn after several years. In spite of this, during the 1960s, David Bromberg had a Martin F-7 archtop converted to a flat-top guitar with exceptionally successful results, and as a result, Martin has issued a David Bromberg model based on this conversion (no longer in production). This and other conversions of Martin F-size guitars later became the basis for the Martin "M"-sized guitars (also known as the 0000 size). The original production models of this size in the 1970s were the M-36 and the M-38. After a hiatus, the M-36 is once again in regular production.

During this time, Martin also continued to make ukuleles, tiples, and mandolins.

The 1960s
During the late 1960s, Martin manufactured hollow-body electric guitars similar to those manufactured by Gretsch. Martin's electric guitars were not popular and the company has since produced only acoustics. They also reinstated the famous D-45 in 1968.

During the 1960s, many musicians, including Clarence White and Eric Thompson preferred Martin guitars built before World War II to more recent guitars of the same model. The prewar guitars had a different internal bracing pattern consisting of scalloped braces (the later ones were tapered rather than scalloped), with the x-brace forward-shifted to about an inch of the soundhole, producing better resonance, and tops made from Adirondack red spruce rather than Sitka spruce. After 1969, the rosewood components, including the backs and sides of some models, were changed from Brazilian rosewood to Indian rosewood, due to restrictions on the sale of Brazilian rosewood. The D-28s and D-35s (introduced in the mid-1960s to make use of the more narrow pieces of wood, by using a three-piece back design) are now very sought-after on the vintage guitar market, fetching sums in the neighborhood of $50,000–$60,000. The same models from the early 1970s, with Indian Rosewood backs and sides, generally sell for less than $2,500.

Stinger Guitars
From 1985 to 1996 Martin produced a line of solid body electric guitars and basses under the brand name Stinger. These were modeled after Fender guitars and were made in Korea. The guitars were shipped to the Martin factory where they were inspected and given a final setup before being sent on to the distributors.

Recent events
Martin opened its "Custom Shop" division in 1979. Martin built its 500,000th guitar in 1990, and in 2004 they built their millionth guitar. This guitar is entirely hand-crafted and features more than 40 inlaid rubies and diamonds. It is worth an estimated $1 million. As of 2007, Martin employed 600 people.

In October 2009, a Martin D-28 that was played by Elvis Presley in his last concert was purchased at auction for $106,200.

In an effort to attract customers from the growing mid-level guitar market Martin introduced their first guitar constructed with laminated wood in 1993 with the D1 series that had laminated wood sides and a solid wood back. Since then they have also introduced an even less expensive DX series using printable HPL (high pressure laminates) as well as laminated "durabond" necks and yet maintain high tonal quality, built at their own factory in Mexico.

In January 2018, Martin announced it would release a D-45 John Mayer signature model. The model was unveiled on the winter NAMM Show.

In support of the imprisoned Kurdish singer Nûdem Durak, Roger Waters sent her his black Martin guitar he had played during the Us + Them Tour.

On June 21, 2020, the 1959 Martin D-18 E, modified to be plugged into an amplifier and played by Kurt Cobain during Nirvana's 1993 MTV Unplugged appearance, sold at auction for $6,010,000 a record sale price for any guitar.

On August 1, 2020, a D-18 owned and used by Elvis Presley from December 1954 to May 1955, sold at an auction by Gottahaverockandroll for US$1,320,000, the highest price ever paid for a non modified acoustic guitar.

Martin clinicians
In 2018 Martin hired Greg Koch as a Martin guitar ambassador. Koch now does clinics demonstrating Martin guitar models.

title: C. F. Martin & Company


text:
Siberian thrush

The Siberian thrush (Geokichla sibirica) is a member of the thrush family, Turdidae. The genus name Geokichla comes from Ancient Greek geo-, "ground-" and kikhle, " thrush". The specific sibirica is Latin for Siberia.

It breeds in taiga in Siberia. It is strongly migratory, with most birds moving to southeastern Asia during the winter. It is a very rare vagrant to western Europe. It is very secretive.

The Siberian thrush is similar in size to the song thrush. It is omnivorous, eating a wide range of insects, earthworms and berries.

The male Siberian thrush is a dark blue-grey above and below, with a white stripe above the eye. The lower belly and flanks are white. The female is a much browner bird, with a buff stripe above the eye.

A striking identification feature of both sexes in flight is the black band on the white underwings, a feature shared with the scaly thrush.

title: Siberian thrush


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Ralph McTell

Ralph McTell (born Ralph May; 3 December 1944 ) is an English singer-songwriter and guitar player who has been an influential figure on the UK folk music scene since the 1960s. McTell is best known for his song "Streets of London" (1969), which has been covered by over two hundred artists around the world.

McTell modelled his guitar style on American country blues guitar players of the early 20th century, including Blind Blake, Robert Johnson and Blind Willie McTell. These influences led a friend to suggest his professional surname. An accomplished performer on piano and harmonica as well as guitar, McTell issued his first album in 1968 and found acclaim on the folk circuit. He reached his greatest commercial success in 1974 when a new recording of "Streets of London" became a No. 2 hit on the UK Singles Chart. Another of his notable compositions is "From Clare to Here", a ballad about Irish emigration. In the 1980s, he wrote and played songs for two TV children's programmes, Alphabet Zoo, which also featured Nerys Hughes, followed by Tickle on the Tum, featuring Jaqui Reddin. He also recorded Keith Hopwood's and Malcolm Rowe's theme song to Cosgrove Hall's adaptation of The Wind in the Willows.

Biography
McTell's mother, Winifred (née Moss), was born in Hammersmith, London. During the Second World War she was living in Banbury, Oxfordshire, with her sister Olive when she met Frank May. They married in 1943 while Frank was home on leave from the army. Winifred moved to Croydon, Surrey, and McTell was born on 3 December 1944 in Farnborough, Kent. He was named after Ralph Vaughan Williams – Frank had worked as the composer's gardener before the war. A second son, Bruce, was born in 1946. Frank was demobilised, but after a year or so at home, he walked out on his family in 1947.

Winifred was left to support herself and bring up the boys unaided. She told McTell's biographer, "I remember Ralph saying to me quite soon after Frank left us, 'I'll look after you, Mummy'. I guess he'd got used to Frank being away all his short life." But despite their father's desertion and the consequent poverty, Ralph and Bruce May had a happy and fulfilled childhood in Croydon.

McTell's love of music surfaced early. He was given a plastic mouth organ and his grandfather, who played the harmonica, taught and encouraged him. The brothers spent many contented summer holidays at Banbury with their uncle and aunt and their grandparents. Banbury and north Oxfordshire figured throughout McTell's life. Later, he recalled those childhood summers in his song "Barges".

Influences
Other childhood experiences shaped McTell's songwriting. A young Irishman and his family were the Mays' upstairs neighbours. Needing a father figure, McTell greatly valued the young man's friendship, which later inspired the song "Mr. Connaughton". Similarly, "Mrs. Adlam's Angels" recalls his Sunday school teacher: "I loved the ceremonial and the music," he says, "you can hear the influence of hymn tunes in my song structures."

In 1952, two youths attempted to break into a Croydon warehouse: one, Derek Bentley, surrendered to the police but the other, sixteen-year-old Christopher Craig, shot and killed a police officer. Yet at the trial, Bentley was sentenced to death. "My mum knew the Bentleys," McTell recalls. "I was about eight, but even then I could see the horror and injustice of executing a teenager for a murder he didn't commit." Many years later, McTell expressed that sense of injustice in the song "Bentley & Craig".

Teens
After passing his 11-plus school examination, McTell attended the John Ruskin Grammar School. He hated his time there, and despite being a very bright pupil, he did not do well academically. Many of his fellow pupils were from wealthier backgrounds, and though having many school friends, he felt he didn't fit in.

Musically, his tastes tended towards being an outsider as well. He was captivated by skiffle and American rock'n'roll. Acquiring an old ukulele and a copy of The George Formby Method, he played his first chord. He later recalled, "I was thunderstruck – it was like magic!" Soon, he mastered skiffle classics such as "Don't You Rock Me, Daddy-O", and by his second year at school, he formed a skiffle band.

By the age of 15, McTell was very anxious to leave grammar school and the British Army looked like a way out, so in 1959 he enlisted in the Junior Leaders Battalion of The Queen's Surrey Regiment. Army life proved far worse than school. After six months, he bought himself out and resumed his education at technical college, passing several O level exams and an A level exam in art.

In 1963, McTell was working on a building site, and it is of this time that he wrote, in the mid-1970s, "From Clare to Here". "There was an Irish gang on the site, and the craic, as they call it, relieved the stress of the hard work. I was working with an Irishman called Michael, as so many of them are. And I said to him, 'It must be very strange to be here in London after the place you come from.' And he responded by saying, 'Yes, it's a long way from Clare to here.'"

Discovering African American music
At college, McTell became interested in the beatnik culture that flourished in the 1950s and early 1960s. Besides reading the works of writers such as Jack Kerouac and Allen Ginsberg, he discovered African American music – jazz, blues and R&B. Inspired by musicians such as Jesse Fuller, Ramblin' Jack Elliott, Robert Johnson and Muddy Waters, he bought a guitar and practiced assiduously.

He and a group of like-minded friends became habitués of London's Soho jazz clubs and regularly went down to Brighton to "...sit on the beach looking windswept and interesting," as McTell put it. Soon he was spending much of his time away from Croydon, supporting himself with temporary work in factories, laundries and hotels.

During his travels, McTell met musicians who were destined to remain lifelong friends, among them Jacqui McShee (later to gain fame in the band Pentangle), Martin Carthy and Wizz Jones. He was persuaded to join a bluegrass-influenced band called the Hickory Nuts, who performed all over England and, despite playing in some dire places for pin money early on, ended up with decent fees and respectable crowds in venues such as Croydon's Fairfield Halls.

Busking
By now, McTell had begun travelling abroad, busking around Europe with his guitar. He spent time in France and visited Belgium and Germany. Other trips took him to Italy and through Yugoslavia ("I felt a madness there, even then" ) to Greece.

Paris was a city that McTell revisited frequently. Late in 1965 he and a friend from Croydon took a room in a cheap hotel on the Left Bank, earning their rent by busking cinema queues. After braving a bitterly cold Paris winter, McTell met a young American, Gary Petersen, who had studied with the legendary guitarist Reverend Gary Davis. "There was a great anticipation every time I got to play with (Petersen)", McTell recalled. "Each time I learned something new, and through him I learned how to play ragtime properly."

In 1966, McTell met another émigré to Paris, a student from Norway named Nanna Stein. The pair soon became inseparable. Back in England, they lived in a caravan in Cornwall. McTell and Wizz Jones were regular performers on the Cornish circuit, especially at The Folk Cottage in Mitchell. It was Jones who suggested the stage name "McTell", "after Blind Willie McTell, whose 'Statesboro Blues' we both loved".

Cornwall captured McTell's heart – a place whose "unique spirit got to me" – and the county has always remained a place for him to retreat to. By the end of 1966, he and Stein were expecting their first child. They married on 30 November in Norway and returned to live in Croydon with Winifred. Their son, Sam, was born on 21 January 1967.

After an unrewarding spell at teacher training college, McTell decided he had to try to make it full-time in music. As well as his vocal and instrumental talents, he was developing as a songwriter and was in demand in folk clubs and festivals.

Record deal
During 1967, McTell landed a deal with Transatlantic Records and by the end of the year was recording his first album. Arranged by Tony Visconti and produced by Gus Dudgeon, the album, Eight Frames a Second, was released early in 1968. It came to the attention of the BBC and was featured on radio programmes including Country Meets Folk in August and John Peel's Top Gear. The release of the album meant more live work so McTell's brother Bruce became his manager and booking agent.

His second album Spiral Staircase, recorded for Transatlantic in late 1968, included the first recording of "Streets of London", which was recorded in one take by McTell on guitar and vocals.

The third album, My Side of Your Window, released in 1969, became Melody Maker magazine's Folk Album of the Month. In July, McTell had appeared at Cambridge Folk Festival for the first time and at the end of the year headlined at Hornsey Town Hall.

Into the 1970s
By 1970, "I'd got a family," McTell recalled in an interview, "and found I had a musical career, somehow." He was getting extensive radio play, and the audiences at his concerts were growing.

By May, he was sufficiently successful to fill the Royal Festival Hall in London. In August, McTell played the huge Isle of Wight Festival alongside Jimi Hendrix, Joan Baez, and Leonard Cohen.

Bruce May had bowed out and McTell was now being managed by impresario Jo Lustig. In October 1970, McTell sold out the Royal Festival Hall again and the album Revisited was released. This remixed compilation was originally intended to introduce McTell to American record-buyers but was released in the UK. It has still not been released on cd, even though all the other Transatlantic albums have been remastered.

Ralph and Nanna's daughter Leah was born on 9 February 1971.

You Well-Meaning Brought Me Here was released on the Famous label in 1971. Among the highlights of this fourth studio album was "The Ferryman", inspired by the Herman Hesse book Siddhartha. That year also saw McTell's first tour in the United States.

Initially, Paramount Records had been McTell's American label but had not been supportive, and he later signed with Warner Bros. Records. While in the US, McTell hung out with the British folk-rock band Fairport Convention, establishing a lifelong professional relationship as well as personal friendships.

Paramount put a new recording of "Streets of London" on the US release of You Well-Meaning Brought Me Here, and, in April 1972, issued it as a single in the Netherlands, where it charted, climbing slowly to No. 9 in May.

McTell's fifth album, Not Till Tomorrow, was produced by Tony Visconti, and released on Reprise in 1972. His UK concert tour played to packed houses and he met one of his guitar heroes, the Rev Gary Davis. By the end of the year, he'd parted company with Jo Lustig and his brother Bruce was again managing his career.

Although living in Putney, southwest London, Ralph and Nanna bought a derelict cottage in Cornwall during 1972.

The Royal Albert Hall
During 1973, McTell undertook two major tours. The spring tour culminated in a sell-out concert at London's Royal Festival Hall on 5 May, whilst the winter tour was completed in front of a full house at London's Royal Albert Hall on 30 January 1974. By the end of the year, McTell was in the studio with Visconti again working on his next album. Released early in 1974, Easy won critical acclaim. It was promoted by lengthy tours of Britain and Europe with Danny Thompson and Mike Piggott as backing musicians. Despite the civil unrest and violence in Northern Ireland, the tour included concerts in the province – in fact, McTell continued to play there regularly throughout 'the Troubles'.

The hit and the band
McTell re-recorded "Streets of London" with bassist Rod Clements and backing vocalists Prelude. Released as a single (recorded on the Reprise label) on 7 December 1974, it rocketed up the charts to No. 2 in the first week of 1975, became a worldwide million-seller, and won McTell the Ivor Novello Award.

In early 1975, McTell released the album Streets..., which sold strongly and spent twelve weeks in the album charts. Backing musicians on the album included Lindisfarne's Rod Clements, Fairport Convention's Dave Pegg and Jerry Donahue, and Maddy Prior from Steeleye Span, who inspired McTell to write the song "Maddy Dances". He decided to tour with a band to promote the album, but the experiment was not a success. That tour, he recalls, "became a nightmare." It was time for a break. McTell went to America with his family where he spent time relaxing and writing. Refreshed, he returned to the UK.

During 1976, McTell topped the bill at Montreux Jazz Festival and played another sold-out concert at The Royal Albert Hall. This was followed by his first tour of Australia and the far east. At McTell's insistence, local buskers were given free tickets for the flagship concert at Sydney Opera House.

Ralph and Nanna's son Tom was born on 7 September 1976.

McTell's eighth album, Right Side Up, was released late in 1976 and the year ended with a packed-out Christmas concert in Belfast where he got standing ovations both before and after the show.

The concerts at the Royal Albert Hall and Sydney Opera House had both been recorded and in 1977, Warner Bros. Records released the live album Ralph, Albert and Sydney.

During the year, McTell met John 'Jonah' Jones, a popular figure on London's music scene. It was the start of a close friendship that lasted until John's death in 2003. After tours in the US and Britain, McTell again appeared at Cambridge Folk Festival.

Quieter times
Ralph and Nanna's son Billy was born on 19 April 1978. Professionally, it was a quieter year and Ralph spent time with his family in their homes in London and Cornwall.

In March 1979, McTell played The Royal Festival Hall accompanied by Dave Pegg and Dave Mattacks of Fairport Convention, and Nigel Smith and Mike Piggott.

McTell had written a number of new songs and went into the studio with backing musicians including Richard Thompson, Dave Pegg and Simon Nicol. The resulting album, Slide Away The Screen was released by Warner Bros. Records.

The recording contract with Warner Bros. Records expired in 1980 so McTell and Bruce May set up Mays Records as an 'own brand' label. It would be a year or more until they had an album to release but McTell continued to tour.

During 1981, McTell, Dave Pegg, Dave Mattacks and Richard Thompson formed an impromptu band called The GP's. They performed half-a-dozen concerts but contractual restrictions meant the band could not be developed further.

The first release on Mays Records was the 1981 single "England", a song later adopted as the theme for a television travelogue presented by comedian Billy Connolly, a long-standing friend of McTell. Mays Records' first album release was Water of Dreams, which featured "Bentley & Craig", the song that led to McTell's support of the campaign to grant Derek Bentley a posthumous pardon.

Television
In 1982, McTell's career took an unexpected change of direction. Granada Television commissioned Alphabet Zoo, a series of children's programmes built around songs written and performed by McTell. Although initially reluctant to accept the offer, the fact that one of his heroes, Woody Guthrie, had composed dozens of songs for children, convinced him it was worthwhile. The first series, broadcast in 1983, was a success. A second series followed and Mays Records released two albums of the material – Songs From Alphabet Zoo and Best of Alphabet Zoo.

During 1983, McTell presented his own music series on BBC Radio 2. His guests included Billy Connolly, Georgie Fame, Simon Nicol with Dave Swarbrick, and Mike Harding.

In 1984, McTell fronted another children's TV programme, called Tickle on the Tum, again built around his songs. McTell featured in three series alongside guests including John Wells, Willie Rushton, Kenny Lynch, Penelope Keith and Nerys Hughes. Mays Records released The Best of – Tickle on the Tum in 1986. The first series was released on DVD by Revelation Films in 2010.

McTell was still playing concerts between his television commitments and he toured during 1984 at home and in Canada and the United States. After composing the music for a Skol lager advertising campaign, he decided to concentrate on his musical career and turned down further television work.

Commercialism
Bruce May negotiated a deal with Telstar Records, a company that pushed its products heavily with major advertising and hyping campaigns. McTell was persuaded to record an album that mixed his own material and 'classic songs' such as "Penny Lane", "Morning Has Broken" and "Scarborough Fair". The result, At the End of a Perfect Day, released late in 1985, was one of McTell's least satisfactory recordings. It was "a totally commercial venture and a miserable failure," he said later; "...while I was reluctant to do it, the possibility of getting the kind of back-up that Telstar were offering was too good to miss."

The next year McTell was back on form with Bridge of Sighs. Released on Mays Records in 1986, the album gathered together a lot of hitherto unfinished songs. It included "The Girl from the Hiring Fair" (originally written for Fairport Convention, and in whose core repertoire it remains to this day), and "The Setting", influenced by Seán Ó Faoláin.

Homage
As well as tours in his own right, McTell secured a prestigious support slot in 1987 opening the shows on The Everly Brothers' UK tour.

After tours in Europe, the US and Australia, McTell was back in the studio in February 1988 to record the album Blue Skies Black Heroes. Released on his own Leola Music label, the album was a homage to the blues and ragtime musicians who had so influenced his playing.

"Nearly all my guitar heroes are black, American, usually blind and most of 'em dead," McTell said. All the tracks on Blue Skies Black Heroes were recorded as live takes, four with Danny Thompson on bass. The follow-up tour that summer saw McTell on the road with a veritable arsenal of guitars.

1988 also saw the release of a compilation album, The Very Best of Ralph McTell. Issued by Start, it was McTell's first album to appear on CD.

McTell was a regular visitor to, and occasional performer at, Fairport Convention's annual music festival in the village of Cropredy, near Banbury. The location inspired him to pen the ballad "Red and Gold" about the English Civil War, which has become another staple of Fairport's repertoire.

At the end of 1988, Bruce May ceased to be McTell's manager, the post being taken by Mick McDonagh.

Castle compilations
In 1989, McTell signed a deal with the label Castle Communications to produce a compilation of his love songs. For contractual reasons, some songs had to be re-recorded in Dave Pegg's Woodworm Studio in Barford St. Michael. The resulting album, A Collection of His Love Songs, was subtitled 'Affairs of the Heart'.

To support the album's release, McTell undertook an extensive tour in the autumn and early winter. The tour was well-supported with PR material and was managed on the road by John 'Jonah' Jones.

The next year, 1990, Castle released Stealin' Back, another collection of McTell's blues and jug band numbers.

In 1991, McTell shared the billing with Donovan on a tour of Germany. He also toured in his own right in the UK.

A second Castle compilation was released in 1992 to celebrate McTell's 25 years of recording. Silver Celebration featured a selection of tracks including "The Ferryman", "From Clare to Here" and "Streets of London". A very extensive Silver Celebration tour occupied much of the year, again managed by 'Jonah' Jones.

Castle had by now obtained the rights to the Transatlantic catalogue, and released a "Best of" CD with 24 tracks from McTell's earliest albums. Castle subsequently licensed the early McTell back-catalogue to other labels, resulting in the release of several CD compilations under such titles as The Best of Ralph McTell or Streets of London.

The Boy with a Note
McTell completed a major project when in 1992, the BBC commissioned and broadcast The Boy with a Note – 'an evocation of the life of Dylan Thomas in words and music'. It was re-recorded and released on McTell's Leola label as an album. McTell is very proud of this ambitious piece. "Two or three years went into that," he said. "It's grown-up work."

During 1993, McTell toured Australia and the Far East, and back home he undertook The Black And White Tour. Road Goes on Forever Records released The Complete Alphabet Zoo, presenting the songs from the two television series in alphabetical order. McTell and Mick McDonagh parted company.

In 1994 McTell took part in a concert at the Royal Albert Hall to commemorate the life of Ken Woolard. Ken was the founder of Cambridge Folk Festival and McTell assembled a band, Good Men in the Jungle, to play at that summer's festival. He also celebrated his fiftieth year by giving up smoking.

Slide Away The Screen was released as a CD by Road Goes on Forever Records with three previously unreleased songs added.

Sand in Your Shoes was recorded at Woodworm, by now relocated in Barford St Michael near Banbury. The album came out on the Transatlantic label during 1995.

McTell performed his song "Bentley & Craig" at a special service for Derek Bentley held in Croydon cemetery with the Bentley family. Bentley's sister Iris died before he was pardoned and, at her request, McTell performed at her funeral a few years later.

In 1995 McTell performed songs from The Boy with a Note at the Year of Literature Festival in Swansea, in South Wales.

Tickety Boo
In 1996, McTell presented BBC radio's coverage of Sidmouth Festival and toured the UK, Europe, and the US.

McTell's long-standing sound engineer, Gordon 'Doon' Graham, had captured many of McTell's concert performances on the desk, and an album of live material from 1976 to 1995 was released on Leola as Songs for Six Strings Vol II.

Early in 1997, McTell began his association with Tickety Boo, the company which produced Billy Connolly's 'World Tour of...' television series. "In The Dreamtime", the song played over the closing credits to Billy Connolly's World Tour of Australia, later featured on McTell's album Red Sky.

In the same year, McTell was the subject of a major feature in The Independent newspaper. An authorised biography of McTell, entitled Streets of London, was published by Northdown Publishing. McTell's concert at Croydon Town Hall was filmed, and released on videocassette as Live at the Town Hall by Leola in 1998.

By now, Leola had taken most of McTell's management arrangements in-house. Two sell-out concerts in London's Purcell Room were recorded by McTell's tour manager and sound engineer, Donard Duffy, and released on Leola as a two-CD set. Entitled Travelling Man, the double album came out in time for McTell's 1999 spring tour. A two-page feature about McTell appeared in The Guardian newspaper in May 1999.

New century
McTell had been busy writing during the previous couple of years and the result was Red Sky. Recorded at Woodworm and released in 2000 on the Leola label, the album contained 19 listed tracks plus "Tickety-boo" as an instrumental hidden track.

McTell's output was not restricted to songs, however. He had been working on an autobiography for some years and the first volume, entitled Angel Laughter, was published by Heartland Publishing in 2000.

To promote Angel Laughter, McTell undertook a tour of bookshops and libraries.

In 2001, McTell undertook a special tour of the UK. Billed as 'The National Tour', it gave McTell a chance to present concerts featuring his newly acquired National Steel resonator guitar. Two live recordings from the National Tour made their way onto the 2002 Leola album National Treasure.

On Sunday 22 February 2002, McTell appeared to a sellout audience at Liverpool's Empire Theatre. The event was marked as a tribute to the late George Harrison who had died the previous November. The date would have been George's 59th birthday. McTell appeared alongside Steve 'Cockney Rebel' Harley, Darren Wharton (Thin Lizzy), Sir Paul McCartney and many others to raise £36,000 for the 3 main cancer charities.

Heartland published Summer Lightning, the second volume of McTell's autobiography, in 2002. Another highlight of the year was the Lifetime Achievement Award for Songwriting presented to McTell at the annual BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards. By then, McTell had written and recorded well over 200 songs.

McTell had been touring extensively at home and abroad for many years so in 2003 he decided to take a break from the road. He split the year between his London and Cornwall homes and spent the time writing, travelling and spending time with his grandchildren.

Early in 2004, McTell co-headlined on Steeleye Span's tour of Australia and New Zealand as well as touring in the UK, Ireland and continental Europe.

McTell appeared at the fortieth Cambridge Folk Festival (the performance was broadcast on BBC Four television) and also played at the fiftieth Sidmouth Festival. He made a guest appearance at Fairport's Cropredy Convention in August.

The Journey
McTell celebrated his 60th birthday with a concert at London's Royal Festival Hall in November 2004. The entire show was filmed and released on DVD in 2005 as The London Show.

Leola published Time's Poems – The Song Lyrics of Ralph McTell towards the end of 2005. Dedicated "to Woody Guthrie, the man who started it all for me", Time's Poems contains "...all the songs I could find in notebooks, on scraps of paper and old tapes, on records and CDs".

In 2006, McTell's 'Walk Into The Morning' tour was a sellout success.

For his 'up close' tour in September 2006, McTell performed a set billed as 'Dylan, Guthrie and The Country Blues', featuring his covers of songs by Woody Guthrie, Bob Dylan and black American blues artists such as Big Bill Broonzy. He also recorded an album of the material, titled Gates of Eden. McTell described the music on this CD as "…the beginning of my own journey… these songs are almost sacred to me".

A boxed set of four CDs (accompanied by an extended essay on McTell's songs by Paul Jenkins) was released in October 2006. Compiled by David Suff from recordings made between 1965 and 2006, The Journey was promoted with several radio interviews and a major tour that included two 'gala' concerts at London's Union Chapel. The box set's packaging was designed by John Haxby, who also took the cover photograph.

A solo tour of Australia early in 2007 was followed by 'The Journey Continues' tour in the UK. In August 2007, Sanctuary Records recognised the 40th anniversary of McTell's first recording contract by re-releasing his three Transatlantic albums as CDs with bonus tracks.

As Far As I Can Tell
In October 2007, McTell released an 'audio book' titled As Far As I Can Tell. The three CDs included readings from the autobiography interspersed with new recordings of the songs they inspired. The As Far As I Can Tell treble CD was promoted by a tour that included a concert at St Mary's church in Banbury, a location that featured in the first volume of autobiography.

A compilation CD comprising McTell's own selection of songs, including the 'hit' version of "Streets of London", was released in December 2007 on the Highpoint label as The Definitive Collection.

During 2008, McTell combined the two volumes of his autobiography into a single volume under the title As Far As I Can Tell for publication to coincide with his autumn tour. The new edition featured additional chapters illustrated by photos from the May family album.

On 9 October 2008, McTell appeared on BBC1 TV's nationally broadcast magazine programme The One Show in a pre-recorded package about the song "Streets of London". The interview was filmed in Paris and conducted by Myleene Klass.

The appearance on The One Show was the springboard for two 'official' McTell internet videos. Made by Leola Music Ltd and published on YouTube, the videos featured McTell talking about his work and about "Streets of London", with concert footage shot at the Institute of Contemporary Arts.

The Institute of Contemporary Arts concert footage was released during 2008 as a full-length DVD titled McTell on The Mall.

McTell embarked on his most extensive UK tour for many years in October 2008, visiting thirty venues throughout England. The concert at Birmingham Town Hall was unusual because McTell, who rarely appears with a supporting act, shared the bill with The Dylan Project.

Story songs

McTell released his first downloadable album in July 2009, titled Streets of London and Other Story Songs, comprising twelve tracks from his back-catalogue.

McTell's summer 2009 festival appearances included a solo set at Fairport's Cropredy Convention on Saturday 15 August. He also joined Fairport Convention onstage during their set later the same evening.

In October 2009, McTell was honoured by the UK Parliament’s All Party Folk Music Group at a special award ceremony in the House of Commons, to celebrate his lifetime's contribution to folk music. This was only the second time such an award had been made, the previous recipient having been Tom Paxton.

In early 2010, McTell's Leola Music record label released Affairs of the Heart, a four-CD box set of love songs in a presentation package. In keeping with its theme, the album was released on Valentine's Day, 14 February. There were no previously-unrecorded songs among the fifty-six tracks on the set. Two tracks were specially re-recorded but the remaining fifty-four were digital remixes of previous recordings. Comedian Rory McGrath contributed extensive sleeve notes in the set's accompanying booklet. The sleeve design and set packaging concept were by designer Peter Thaine.

During 2010, McTell recorded an album of new songs, his first for ten years, and released in October as Somewhere Down the Road. He kept an online diary of the album’s progress which described assembling the material, the recording sessions and preparing for release. McTell’s UK autumn tour was branded with the same title.

On 21 November 2010, McTell released a seasonal song, "The Things You Wish Yourself", as a download-only single.

Tribute
McTell was invited to record his own interpretation of a Bob Dylan song for the BBC Radio 2 celebration of Dylan's 70th birthday in May 2011. Don’t Think Twice It’s Alright was also the title of McTell's own six-song tribute to Dylan, which was released as a downloadable EP.

McTell embarked on a 36-date UK autumn tour in September 2011, culminating in a concert at London's Cadogan Hall on 11 December. On the first night of the tour, McTell launched his new Songs For Six Strings boxed set.

In April and May 2012, McTell undertook a short tour of Australia. McTell's 2012 UK tour, branded “An English Heartbeat”, commenced in October, and saw the release of a CD of guitar instrumentals called Sofa Noodling. In an interview published ahead of his 2013 "One More for the Road" tour, McTell said, "It could be the last time I do a big tour... this is the beginning of slowing things down."

The spring of 2014 saw McTell touring the Celtic nations of the British Isles, and the release of a CD compilation of Celt-themed songs, Celtic Cousins. A high point of the tour was a performance of McTell's tribute to Dylan Thomas, The Boy With a Note, in Thomas's adopted home town of Laugharne in South Wales. Later in the year, McTell marked the centenary of the start of the first world war with a four-song EP, The Unknown Soldier.

McTell celebrated his 70th birthday with a concert at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, London, on 7 December 2014. A DVD of the concert was released in 2015.

About Time
2015 saw little sign of "slowing things down", as McTell played more than 30 solo shows over the year. Towards the end of the year, McTell started a recording project with one of his earliest performing partners, Wizz Jones. The resulting CD was released in June 2016 with the appropriate title About Time. McTell's fifty years as a recording artist was marked by Martin Guitars with a 'signature' Ralph McTell guitar, built to McTell's specification and marketed as the Martin RM50.

McTell played a special show at the Royal Albert Hall in May 2016. Billed as a 'Loyal Command Performance', the setlist was voted for by McTell's fans, and McTell performed the 20 songs that received the most votes. Summer highlights included McTell's first appearance at the Glastonbury Festival and a return to Fairport's Cropredy Convention. In the autumn McTell undertook an extensive tour of the United Kingdom and Ireland. The sixth and final CD of McTell's Songs for Six Strings boxed set was released during the tour.

Recent work
During 2017, McTell and Jones toured their About Time album, which was so well received that they recorded and issued a follow-up album, About Time Too. Ahead of his solo autumn tour, McTell invited applicants to submit recordings of original music, from which McTell would select performers to open for him in an ‘open mic’ format at the shows. McTell then chose one act to open his London Palladium concert in October.

Since 2014, McTell had played an annual benefit concert for the UK homeless charity, Crisis at Christmas, and in 2017 McTell invited The Crisis Choir to sing Streets of London with him at his Palladium concert. McTell also recorded his song with The Crisis Choir and guest vocalist Annie Lennox, for release in the lead up to Christmas. The song charted at No.94 in the Official Singles Chart (for downloads, CDs and streams), and at No. 1 in the Official Physical Singles Chart (for CD sales).

In September 2018, McTell made his debut on BBC's music show Later... with Jools Holland, on which he performed two songs, including the Bob Dylan-inspired "West 4th Street and Jones". In a short interview segment with Holland, McTell announced a new tour and album for 2019. The album, Hill of Beans, comprising 11 tracks including "West 4th Street and Jones", was released in September.

On 8 June 2024, McTell was a special guest for Richard Thompson, on the final night of his UK tour, at the Royal Albert Hall.

Main albums released in UK

 * Eight Frames a Second Transatlantic 1968 (LP)
 * Spiral Staircase (Transatlantic LP, TRA 177, 1969)
 * My Side of Your Window (Transatlantic LP, TRA 209, 1969)
 * Revisited Transatlantic 1970 (LP) (Remixed compilation)
 * You Well-Meaning Brought Me Here (Famous Music LP, SFMA 5753, 1971)
 * Not Till Tomorrow (Reprise LP, K 44210, 1972)
 * Easy (Reprise LP, K 54013, 1974)
 * Streets... (Warner Bros. LP, K 56105, 1975)
 * Right Side Up (Warner Bros. LP, K 56296, 1976)
 * Ralph, Albert & Sydney Warner Bros. 1977 (LP) (Live album)
 * Slide Away the Screen (Warner Bros. LP, K 56599, 1979)
 * Water of Dreams (Mays Records LP, TG 005, 1982)
 * Songs from Alphabet Zoo Mays 1983 (LP)
 * Best of Alphabet Zoo Mays 1983 (LP)
 * At the End of a Perfect Day Telstar 1985 (LP)
 * The Best of – Tickle on the Tum Mays 1986 (LP)
 * Bridge of Sighs Mays 1986 (LP)
 * The Very Best of Ralph McTell Start 1988 (LP) (CD) (Compilation)
 * Blue Skies Black Heroes Leola 1988 (LP) (CD)
 * A Collection of His Love Songs Castle 1989 (Double LP) (CD) (Compilation)
 * Stealin' Back Castle 1990 (CD)
 * Silver Celebration Castle 1992 (CD) (Compilation)
 * The Boy with a Note Leola 1992 (CD)
 * Sand in Your Shoes Transatlantic 1995 (CD)
 * Songs for Six Strings Vol II Leola 1996 (CD) (Live)
 * Live at the Town Hall Leola 1998 (VHS) (Live)
 * Travelling Man Leola 1999 (Double CD) (Live)
 * Red Sky Leola 2000 (CD)
 * National Treasure Leola 2002 (CD)
 * The London Show Leola 2005 (DVD) (Live)
 * Gates of Eden Leola 2006 (CD)
 * The Journey – Recordings 1965–2006 Leola 2006 (4-CD Box set)
 * As Far as I Can Tell Leola 2007 (Treble CD) (Audiobook)
 * The Definitive Collection Highpoint 2007 (CD) (Compilation)
 * McTell on The Mall Leola 2008 (DVD) (Live)
 * Streets of London and Other Story Songs Leola 2009 (Download) (Compilation)
 * Affairs of the Heart Leola 2010 (4-CD Box set) (Compilation)
 * Somewhere Down the Road Leola 2010 (CD)
 * Don't Think Twice It's Alright Leola 2011 (Download)
 * Songs for Six Strings (1st - E) Leola 2011 (CD) (Live)
 * Songs for Six Strings (2nd - B) Leola 2012 (CD) (Live)
 * Sofa Noodling Leola 2012 (CD) (Instrumental)
 * Songs for Six Strings (3rd - G) Leola 2013 (CD) (Live)
 * Celtic Cousins Leola 2014 (CD) (Compilation)
 * Songs for Six Strings (4th - D) Leola 2014 (CD) (Live)
 * The Unknown Soldier Leola 2014 (CD) (EP)
 * Live at Troubador Festival 1997 Troubador Records 2014
 * 70th Birthday Concert Leola 2015 (DVD) (Live)
 * Songs for Six Strings (5th - A) Leola 2015 (CD) (Live)
 * About Time Leola 2016 (CD) (Ralph McTell and Wizz Jones)
 * Songs for Six Strings (6th - E) Leola 2016 (CD) (Live)
 * About Time Too Leola 2017 (CD) (Ralph McTell and Wizz Jones)
 * Hill of Beans Leola 2019 (CD)

Significant album reissues

 * Love Grows Mays 1982 – LP remix of Slide Away the Screen with different tracks
 * The Complete Alphabet Zoo Road Goes on Forever 1993 – CD with extra tracks
 * Slide Away the Screen and Other Stories Road Goes on Forever 1994 – CD with extra tracks
 * Streets... Leola 1995 – CD with extra tracks
 * Ralph, Albert & Sydney (Songs for Six Strings Vol 1) Leola 1997 – CD with extra tracks
 * Easy Leola 1999 – CD with extra tracks
 * Right Side Up Leola 2001 – CD with extra track
 * Water of Dreams Leola 2003 – CD with extra tracks
 * Eight Frames a Second Transatlantic 2007 – CD with extra tracks
 * Spiral Staircase Transatlantic 2007 – CD with extra tracks
 * My Side of Your Window Transatlantic 2007 – CD with extra tracks

Budget label compilations

 * Streets Of London Transatlantic 1975 (labelled as "Budget Priced" on sleeve)
 * The Ralph McTell Collection Volume 1 Transatlantic 1976 (labelled as "Special Price" on sleeve)
 * The Ralph McTell Collection Volume 2 Transatlantic 1976 (labelled as "Special Price" on sleeve)
 * Ralph McTell Pickwick 1978
 * The Ralph McTell Collection Pickwick 1978 (Double LP of tracks from Transatlantic releases)
 * Best Of Alphabet Zoo Music For Pleasure 1983
 * A Collection Of His Love Songs Castle Communications 1989 (Double LP)

Other albums featuring significant contributions by McTell

 * Just Guitars (various artists), CBS 1984 (LP) (live)
 * Tickle on the Tum: Stories and Songs (various artists), St Michael 1984 (Cassette)
 * Saturday Rolling Around (The GP's), Woodworm 1992 (CD) (live)
 * Musical Tour of Scotland (Billy Connolly), Tickety-Boo 1995 (CD)
 * One for Jonah (various artists) FooPoo 2004 (CD) (live)
 * Tickle on the Tum: The Complete Series One (various artists), Revelation Films 2010 (DVD)

title: Ralph McTell


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User talk:Groupe1155

UCL FSA 11 Group 1155

Introduction to philosophy: Mr. Thomas De Praetere

Thomas Guebels: 48390200 Damien Thomassin:20690200 Julien Fourny: 33870100 Baudouin Nyssen:19790200 Patrick Ayoub: 17990200 Kévin Vaneberg: 21040200 Gaël Boschmans:39220200

Summary of the assignment of Mr. De Praetere's philosophy course by Group 115.5 of the Applied Sciences Faculty of the Catholic University of Louvain La Neuve.

Introduction

The first thing we thought about freedom is: "when you are free you can do what you want…".

But this vision of freedom was contested with the apparition of “Rationalism”. Kant, a German philosopher (1724-1804) was one of the most prominent Rationalists. He lived at an epoch where Newtonian physics blew up the last conviction of Cartesianism. An Epoch with no end to fights between different theories. He proposed that a free act is an act who is not imposed by an external authority and not by personal interest.

Another opinion was Spinoza’s (1632-1677), born in Amsterdam from Jewish parents from Spain. Essentially influenced by Descartes he found in Cartesianism the environment adapted to demonstrate, in his eyes, the monism, which has fascinated him. In his book "The Ethic" he denounces the false freedom, which consists in believing one is free, by ignoring the existence of determinisms.

The XVIII century is the Lumiere's century, the century of political and religious critic, the century where one starts to talk about happiness on earth. In this century Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778) looks at the inequality between men. His work presents a proposition to create a fair, equitable and free society.

Jean-Paul Sartre (1905-1980) didn't know his father because he died when Sartre was a baby. But Sartre was very close with his great parents. It's in his grandfather’s library that he discovered his taste for reading and writing. He studied philosophy were he met a lot of persons who influenced him, like Paul Nizan and Simone de Beauvoir. In addition to philosophy Sartre was interested about politics and the revolution of the working class. Sartre explains his point of view in a complex language sometimes undecipherable; but in a very logical way: Thesis, Antithesis, Synthesis. Certain parts of his writing were not accepted by some people. For instance, the Pope indexed it in 1948.

Jean-Paul Sartre was one of the fathers of Existentialism; the existence comes before the essence. The Human Being is not good or bad it exists, and that’s all.

Argumentation

Freedom by Kant.

Kant assert that freedom is indispensable but also totally incomprehensible and uncertain as the existence of God. For him the freedom is the faculty of autonomy that every one possesses and which prevents us to be the toy of our feelings. This faculty allows everyone to impose to himself the respect of the duty. This means obey to the "moral" as such, and with no consideration for external goals and consequences. He also says that perceptible consequences of our choices are restrained by universal laws of nature (as the physics laws).

Freedom by Sartre

For Sartre the man has to choose. These choices are his freedom. The Human Being is condemned to choose all the time, even if his choice is to make none. But everyone has to be careful because choices may have an impact on all mankind. Thus choices have to be thought over.

Freedom by Spinoza Spinoza talks about liberty by discussing the Ethic; a man is free if he respects the Ethic. In short, the Ethic is the fact that we should not think about ourselves only anymore. But we have to act for the good of the community.

Freedom by Rousseau

Rousseau thought that we are all equal at birth, but inequality comes later, essentially because of social life. He says that to live in society we have to write rules which are against freedom. This is what he called the "social contract".

Counter-argumentation

Some of the authors we read say that the human being is condemned to be free.

But passional crimes also exist and physics rule are unavoidable. So the man is not totally free from Kant’s point of view.

Sartre says that the act builds the man, but all people are not born equal. At least physically, and this attribute may influence one's future choices.

The thesis of Rousseau is that in order to guaranty every human being's freedom, it is necessary to be submitted to a set of laws.

Some constraints are imposed to all society to manage the life of man kind. People are still free to get over it but at their own risk. Because of those barriers, human being is not totally condemned to be free. Someone can be influenced by this barrier (and it's the case in most of our choices).

To conclude the choices of everyone are taken with "The social contract" in mind so they are not totally free.

Our point of view about liberty.

This section is devised in 4 sub sections:

1) Freedom at birth

We think that we can’t talk about liberty before birth. Indeed before the embryo stage the human being is nothing. And “nothing” can not be free We are also thinking that everyone has a limited freedom because of his own social environment. So an unavoidable step for the human being in his way to his liberty is the acceptation of what he is. After this step he will be able to make choices in his own way and not in the ways someone thought him.

2) Religious freedom

There are 3 ways to approach religion. First live ones believe deeply and live with its rules. Second use God as an aid; and finally to be an atheist. Faced with this choice a man is free, so religion is not a hobble to liberty.

3) Political liberty

The political liberty is the freedom of action that every one possesses; governed by a certain numbers of laws. These laws were created by humans because every human is endowed with a moral-conscience. Every civilisation has understood that to live together it is necessary to write rules who refrain our liberty. Political liberty refers to the relation of the subject to the others, and not only to himself.

4) From moral to ethic

Furthermore we can say that it is necessary not to think only at a moral level, but to take an ethical perspective. My liberty doesn’t end anymore where the freedom of the others begins (Sartre); but takes it’s meaning in the commitments that I take towards the others.

Ties between the profession of engineer and the theme of liberty.

The engineer has, by nature, a rational vision. When a Cartesian spirit looks at philosophy it can be a difficult exercise. But every intellectual must think about it because without philosophy, his knowledge can be a great danger for mankind. Because the competencies of the engineer are essentially Scientific, let’s begin by the link between liberty and science. We are tempted to think that sciences has no limits, because when a limit appears scientists find a way to overcome it. But science is in direct relation with nature which is limited, so the liberty of the engineer depends on nature (like the degrees of liberty in physics).

The point of view of Kant is that an engineer is free only if he obeys to the moral. This mean that if he does what is just and not what is good for him. A good example is if someone asks an engineer to work on weapons Kant says an engineer is free only if he says no. This is typical of Kant and we don’t agree with it; for us an engineer is free to choose even if he says yes. But we agree that it is unethical.

Spinoza says that knowledge drags to freedom. And we can say that an engineer is one of the symbols of modern knowledge. So in Spinoza’s way, engineers are free no matter what happens.

In conclusion in his work, an engineer can’t use science without thinking. In fact he’s often in a good place to perform acts which might have important consequences. He is thus not free to do what he wants.

Conclusion

Freedom has always been subject to debate and of divergent opinion. The major-problem is to determine the difference between the imposed freedom and the one which we try to conquer every day.

Our first liberty is to be born. We can classify this freedom as imposed because a man is projected into life by two others persons. We would probably understand better this liberty, if we had had that choice at the beginning. Without that choice are we free or are we not more condemned to live?

Freedom seems to be a conquest which has to progress every day to satisfy everyone, but are we pleased by our existent liberty or will we search forever to obtain more?

Laws constrain the man without enslaving him, they are neutral, without preferences. Because the Law is for everybody, it ensures liberty. “Obeying self prescribed laws is Freedom”" (Rousseau). We are not able to renounce to our Freedom, renouncement is an act of liberty in itself.

We come to the world with a liberty which do not satisfy all people, but sometimes, it is necessary to abide by them and follow our route, being bound and condemned to be free.

title: User talk:Groupe1155


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User:Groupe1155

Hello, I just moved your paper back to your user talk. I imagine you're welcome to leave it there if you'd like--people have wide latitude in what to include on their user page or in their user talk page, but it's not an article so it shouldn't be in the main namespace. Otherwise, welcome to wikipedia. :-) It looks like you'll have plenty to contribute.  cheers,  Koyaanis Qatsi 14:22 Feb 19, 2003 (UTC)

title: User:Groupe1155