Coordinates: 54°57′N 1°36′W / 54.95°N 1.60°W / 54.95; -1.60

Gateshead
Gateshead Waterfront
Gateshead  Gateshead shown within Tyne and Wear
Population	78,403 (2001 Census) [1]
OS grid reference	NZ2460
Metropolitan borough	Gateshead
Metropolitan county	Tyne and Wear
Region	North East
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	GATESHEAD
Postcode district	NE8-NE11
Dialling code	0191
Police	Northumbria
Fire	Tyne and Wear
Ambulance	North East
EU Parliament	North East England
UK Parliament	Gateshead
List of places: UK • England • Tyne and Wear

Gateshead is a town in Tyne and Wear, England, and is the main settlement in the Metropolitan Borough of Gateshead. Historically a part of County Durham, it lies on the southern bank of the River Tyne opposite Newcastle upon Tyne and together they form the urban core of Tyneside. Gateshead town centre and Newcastle City Centre are joined by seven different bridges across the Tyne, including the landmark Gateshead Millennium Bridge. The town is becoming increasingly well known for several examples of iconic architecture such as the Sage Gateshead, the Angel of the North, and the Baltic Centre for Contemporary Art.

History[link]

There has been a settlement on the Gateshead side of the River Tyne, around the old river crossing where the Swing Bridge now stands, since Roman times.

Theories of the derivation of the name 'Gateshead' include 'head of the (Roman) road' or 'goat’s headland', as the River Tyne at this point was once roamed by goats.

The first recorded mention of Gateshead is in the writings of the Venerable Bede who referred to an Abbot of Gateshead called Utta in 623. In 1068 William the Conqueror defeated the forces of Edgar the Ætheling and Malcolm king of Scotland (Shakespeare's Malcolm) on Gateshead Fell (now Low Fell and Sheriff Hill).

During medieval times Gateshead was under the jurisdiction of the Bishop of Durham. At this time the area was largely forest with some agricultural land. The forest was the subject of Gateshead's first charter, granted in the 12th century by Hugh du Puiset, Bishop of Durham.

The earliest recorded coal mining in the Gateshead area is dated to 1344.^{[citation needed]} As trade on the Tyne prospered there were several attempts by the burghers of Newcastle to annex Gateshead. In 1576 a small group of Newcastle merchants acquired the 'Grand Lease' of the manors of Gateshead and Whickham. In the hundred years from 1574 coal shipments from Newcastle increased elevenfold while the population of Gateshead doubled to approximately 5,500. However, the lease and the abundant coal supplies ended in 1680. The pits were shallow as problems of ventilation and flooding defeated attempts to mine coal from the deeper seams.

Gateshead Quays across the River Tyne at night - Gateshead Millennium Bridge and the Sage Gateshead

William Hawks, originally a blacksmith, started business in Gateshead in 1747, working with the iron brought to the Tyne as ballast by the Tyne colliers. Hawks and Co. eventually became one of the biggest iron businesses in the North, producing anchors, chains and so on to meet a growing demand. There was keen contemporary rivalry between 'Hawks' Blacks' and 'Crowley's Crew'. The famous 'Hawks' men' including Ned White, went on to be celebrated in Geordie song and story.

Throughout the Industrial Revolution the population of Gateshead expanded rapidly; between 1801 and 1901 the increase was over 100,000. This expansion resulted in the spread southwards of the town.

In 1854, a catastrophic explosion on the quayside destroyed most of Gateshead's mediaeval heritage, and caused widespread damage on the Newcastle side of the river.

Robert Stirling Newall took out a patent on the manufacture of wire ropes in 1840 and in partnership with Messrs. Liddell and Gordon, set up his headquarters at Gateshead. A worldwide industry of wire-drawing resulted. The submarine telegraph cable received its definitive form through Newall's initiative, involving the use of gutta percha surrounded by strong wires. The first successful Dover-Calais cable on 25 September 1851, was made in Newall's works. In 1853, he invented the brake-drum and cone for laying cable in deep seas. Half of the first Atlantic cable was manufactured in Gateshead. Newall was interested in astronomy, and his giant 25-inch (640 mm) telescope was set up in the garden at Ferndene, his Gateshead residence in 1871.

In 1831 a locomotive works was established by the Newcastle and Darlington Railway, later part of the York, Newcastle and Berwick Railway. In 1854 the works moved to the Greenesfield site and became the manufacturing headquarters of North Eastern Railway. In 1909, locomotive construction was moved to Darlington and the rest of the works were closed in 1932.

Sir Joseph Swan lived at Underhills, Kells Lane from 1869–83, where his experiments led to the invention of the electric light bulb. The house was the first in the world to be wired for domestic electric light.

In 1835, Gateshead was established as a municipal borough within the historic County Durham. By 1889 it had been made a county borough, but in the same year one of the largest employers, Hawks, Crawshay and Company, closed down and unemployment has since been a burden. Up to the Second World War there were repeated newspaper reports of the unemployed sending deputations to the council to provide work. The depression years of the 1920s and '30s created even more joblessness and the Team Valley Trading Estate was built in the mid-1930s to alleviate the situation.

In 1974, following the Local Government Act 1972, the County Borough of Gateshead was merged with the urban districts of Felling, Whickham, Blaydon and Ryton and part of the rural district of Chester-le-Street to create the much larger Metropolitan Borough of Gateshead.

In the past decade, Gateshead Council has begun developing plans to regenerate the town, with the long-term aim of making Gateshead a city.^[2] The most extensive transformation thus far has occurred in the Quayside, with almost all the structures there being constructed or refurbished in this time.

Geography[link]

The town of Gateshead is situated in the North East of England in the ceremonial county of Tyne and Wear, and within the historic boundaries of County Durham. It is located on the southern bank of the River Tyne at a latitude of 54.57° N and a longitude of 1.35° W. Gateshead experiences a temperate climate which is considerably warmer than some other locations at similar latitudes as a result of the warming influence of the Gulf Stream (via the North Atlantic drift). It is located in the rain shadow of the North Pennines and is therefore in one of the driest regions of the United Kingdom.

Red: Pre-1974 County Borough of Gateshead
Blue: ONS urban sub-division of Gateshead
Green: Metropolitan Borough of Gateshead

One of the most distinguishing features of Gateshead is its topography. The land rises 70 metres from Gateshead Quays to the town centre and continues rising to a height of 160 metres at Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Sheriff Hill.^[3] This is in contrast to the flat and low lying Team Valley located on the western edges of town. The high elevations allow for impressive views over the Tyne valley into Newcastle and across Tyneside to Sunderland and the North Sea from lookouts in Windmill Hills and Windy Nook respectively.^[4][5]

The Office for National Statistics defines the town as an urban sub-division which largely shares the same boundaries as the historic pre-1974 County Borough of Gateshead.^[6][7][8] However, the administrative divisions of the larger Metropolitan Borough of Gateshead do not correspond to these borders, meaning the town is almost entirely indistinguishable from surrounding areas in regards to local governance.^[9]

Unofficially speaking, the town of Gateshead typically refers to the urban area directly to the south of Newcastle City Centre as well as various surrounding suburbs. Felling, Heworth, Pelaw and Bill Quay, in a separate ONS urban sub-division and not part of the historical County Borough, are sometimes considered to be within the town of Gateshead due to their closeness to the town centre and because they are in the same contiguous urban area.

Given the proximity of Gateshead to Newcastle, just south of the River Tyne from the city centre, it is sometimes referred to as being a part of Newcastle. Gateshead Council and Newcastle City Council teamed up in 2000 to create a unified marketing brand name, NewcastleGateshead, to better promote the Tyneside conurbation. A resident of Gateshead outside the North East of England would most likely say they are from Newcastle, as it is largest and most recognized city in the region. Within the North East however, they would usually state that they live in Gateshead or more specifically give their neighbourhood within the town, such as Deckham or Dunston.

Districts[link]

Trinity Centre Car Park in Gateshead town centre (now demolished)

The town of Gateshead consists of the following districts. Some of them were once separate settlements that were absorbed by encroaching urban sprawl, while others consist entirely of retail, industrial and housing estates. Many of these areas overlap each other and their boundaries are by no means official or fixed.

• Gateshead Quays
• Gateshead town centre
• Salt Meadows
• Sunderland Road
• Windmill Hills
• Bensham
• Teams
• Saltwell
• Birtley
• Mount Pleasant
  

  

  Terraced houses in the Bensham district
• Deckham
• Carr Hill
• Sheriff Hill
• Beacon Lough
• Wrekenton
• Eighton Banks
• Low Fell
• Leam Lane
• Felling
• Harlow Green
• Chowdene
• Team Valley
• Lobley Hill
• Dunston
• Metro Centre

Economy[link]

Gateshead is the home of the MetroCentre, the largest shopping centre in the European Union. The Team Valley Trading Estate, initially the largest and still one of the largest purpose built commercial estates in the United Kingdom is located in Gateshead.

Architecture[link]

Angel of the North

JB Priestley, writing of Gateshead in his "An English Journey" (1934) said that "no true civilisation could have produced such a town", adding that it appeared to have been designed "by an enemy of the human race". This dismal impression, typical of the author's view of industrial towns, has proved influential in defining the popular image of Gateshead. Much, however, has changed since his time.

The Sage Gateshead

William Wailes the celebrated stained-glass maker, lived at South Dene from 1853-60. In 1860, he designed Saltwell Towers as a fairy-tale palace for himself. It is an imposing Victorian mansion in its own park with a romantic skyline of turrets and battlements. It was originally furnished sumptuously by Gerrard Robinson. Wailes sold it to the corporation in 1876 for use as a public park, provided he could use the house for the rest of his life.

The brutalist Trinity Centre Car Park, which was designed by Owen Luder, dominated the town centre for many years until its demolition in 2010. A product of attempts to regenerate the area in the 1960s, the car park gained an iconic status due to its appearance in the 1971 film Get Carter, starring Michael Caine. An unsuccessful campaign to have the structure listed was backed by Sylvester Stallone, who played the main role in the 2000 remake of the film.^[10][11] The car park was scheduled for demolition in 2009, but this was delayed as a result of a disagreement between Tesco (who plan to re-develop the site) and Gateshead Council.^[12] The council had not been given firm assurances that Tesco would build the previously envisioned town centre development which was to include a Tesco mega-store as well as shops, restaurants, cafes, bars, offices and student accommodation.^[13][14] The council effectively used the car park as a bargaining tool to ensure that the company adhered to the original proposals and blocked its demolition until they submitted a suitable planning application.^[13] Demolition finally took place in July-August 2010.

The Derwent Tower, another well known example of Brutalist architecture, was also designed by Owen Luder and stands in the neighbourhood of Dunston. Like the Trinity Car Park it has been ear-marked for demolition and has also failed in its bid to become a listed building.^[15]

The council has recently sponsored the development of the Gateshead Quays cultural quarter. The development includes the Gateshead Millennium Bridge, erected in 2001 which won the James Stirling Prize for Architecture in 2002. The Baltic Centre for Contemporary Art has been established in a converted flour mill. The Sage Gateshead, a Norman Foster-designed venue for music and the performing arts opened on 17 December 2004. Gateshead also hosted the Gateshead Garden Festival in 1990, rejuvenating 200 acres (0.81 km²) of derelict land (now mostly replaced with housing).

Gateshead is also home to a number of public art works, including the Angel of the North, one of Britain's largest sculptures, measuring 20 metres high with a 54 metre wing span. Designed by Antony Gormley it was erected in 1998. It is visible from the A1 to the south of Gateshead, as well as from the East Coast Main Line.

Other public art include works by Richard Deacon, Colin Rose, Sally Matthews, Andy Goldsworthy and Gordon Young.

Sport[link]

Gateshead International Stadium regularly holds international athletics meetings over the summer months. It is also host to rugby league fixtures, and the home ground of both Gateshead Thunder Rugby League Football Club and Gateshead Football Club. Both clubs have had their problems: Gateshead F.C. were controversially elected out of the Football League to make way for Peterborough United in the 1960s, whilst Gateshead Thunder lost their place in Super League as a result of a takeover (officially termed a merger) by Hull. Both Gateshead clubs continue to ply their trade at lower levels in their respective sports, thanks mainly to the efforts of their supporters. The Gateshead Senators American Football team also use the International Stadium, as well as this is was used in the 2006 Northern Conference champions in the British American Football League. Gateshead Miners are Gateshead's first and only Aussie Rules Football team and compete in the Aussie Rules UK National League.

Transport[link]

Go North East buses at Gateshead Interchange

Tyne and Wear Metro stations at Gateshead Interchange and Gateshead Stadium provide direct light-rail access to Newcastle Central Station, Newcastle International Airport, Sunderland, Tynemouth and South Shields.

Gateshead Interchange is the busiest bus station in Tyne and Wear and was used by 3.9 million bus passengers in 2008.^[16]

National Rail services are provided by Northern Rail at Dunston and MetroCentre stations. The East Coast Main Line, which runs from London to Edinburgh, cuts directly through the town on its way between Newcastle Central and Chester-le-Street stations. There are presently no stations on this line within Gateshead, as Low Fell, Bensham and West Gateshead stations were closed in 1952, 1954 and 1965 respectively.^[17]

Several major road links pass through Gateshead, including the A1 which links London to Edinburgh and the A184 which connects the town to Sunderland.

Various bicycle trails traverse the town, most notably the recreational Keelmans Way (National Cycle Route 14), which is located on the south bank of the Tyne and takes riders along the entire Gateshead foreshore.^[18][19] Other prominent routes include the East Gateshead Cycleway, which connects to Felling, the West Gateshead Cycleway, which links the town centre to Dunston and the MetroCentre, and routes along both the old and new Durham roads, which take cyclists to Birtley, Wrekenton and The Angel of the North.^[20][21][22]

Religion[link]

Christianity has been present in the town since at least the 7th century, when Bede mentioned a monastery in Gateshead. A church in the town was burned down in 1080 with the Bishop of Durham inside. St. Mary's Church was built near to the site of that building, and was the only church in the town until the 1820s. Undoubtedly the oldest building on the Quayside, St Mary's has now re-opened to the public as the town's first heritage centre, Gateshead Heritage @ St Mary's.

Many of the Anglican churches in the town date from the 19th century, when the population of the town grew dramatically and expanded into new areas.^[23] The town presently has a number of notable and large churches of many denominations.^[24]

The Bensham district is home to a community of Haredi Jews consisting of about 500 families and is referred to as Little Jerusalem by its non-Jewish residents. Within the community is the Gateshead Yeshiva, the largest Yeshiva in Europe, and other Jewish educational institutions with international enrolments. Following the holocaust, the area became home to the largest Orthodox Jewish education complex in postwar Europe and the most significant outside of the United States and Israel.

Islam is practiced by a small minority of people in Gateshead and there is a Kurdish Mosque located in the Bensham area.

In the 2001 Census, more than 10% of people residing in the wider Metropolitan Borough of Gateshead stated that they practiced no religion.

Famous residents[link]

• Eliezer Adler - Founder of Jewish Community.
• Marcus Bentley - Narrator of Big Brother
• William Booth - Founder of the Salvation Army
• Catherine Booth - William's daughter. Known as 'La Marechale' she founded the Salvation Army in continental Europe
• Mary Bowes - 'The Unhappy Countess' Author and celebrity
• Ian Branfoot - Football manager
• Andy Carroll - Footballer
• Frank Clark - Footballer and Manager
• David Clelland - Labour politician and M.P.
• Joseph Cowen - Radical politician
• Steve Cram - Athlete Middle distance runner
• Emily Davies - Educational reformer and feminist. Founder of Girton College Cambridge
• Daniel Defoe - Writer and government agent
• Ruth Dodds - Prominent politician, writer and co-founder of the Little Theatre
• Jonathan Edwards - Athlete and television presenter
• George Elliot - Industrialist and M.P.
• Paul Gascoigne - Footballer
• Alex Glasgow - Singer/Songwriter
• Avrohom Gurwicz - Rabbi, Dean of Gateshead Yeshiva.
• Leib Gurwicz - Rabbi, former Dean of Gateshead Yeshiva.
• Jill Halfpenny - Actress
• Chelsea Halfpenny - Actress (Niece of Jill Halfpenny)
• David Hodgson Football manager.
• Sharon Hodgson - Member of Parliament
• Norman Hunter - Footballer. Member of 1966 World Cup winning England squad.
• Don Hutchison Footballer
• Brian Johnson - AC/DC Frontman
• Tommy Johnson Footballer, ex Celtic.
• Howard Kendall - Footballer and Manager
• John Thomas Looney - Shakespeare scholar
• Gary Madine - Sheffield Wednesday Footballer
• Lawrie McMenemy - Soccer manager/Pundit
• Robert Stirling Newall - Industrialist
• Bezalel Rakow - Communal rabbi
• John William Rayner - Flying ace and war hero
• James Renforth - Oarsman
• Sir Robert (Bobby) Robson - Football Player/Manager, notably for England, across Europe, and Newcastle United
• William Shield - Master of the King's Musick
• Christina Stead - Australian novelist
• John Steel - Drummer, The Animals
• Steve Stone - Footballer
• Sir Joseph Swan - Inventor of the electric light bulb
• Chris Waddle - Footballer
• William Wailes - Stained glass maker
• Taylor Wane - Adult entertainer
• Robert Spence Watson - public benefactor
• Sylvia Waugh - Author of the 'Mennyms' series for children
• Chris Wilkie Born in Gateshead, plays guitar in the internationally successful band Dubstar.
• Peter Wilson Born in Gateshead, played for Gateshead F.C, captained Australia.
• Thomas Wilson - Poet/school founder
• (William) Robert Wood - (migrated to Australia 1963) - activist and Senator

Tourism[link]

A article in the Daily Telegraph stated that a woman was denied entry into England at some time prior to 2007 for giving her reason for visiting as wanting to go to Gateshead. "British visa officials ruled this as "not credible".^[25] The research into Britain's confused immigration policies was taken up by Steve Boggan in The Guardian in a piece dated 23 January 2007, which expressed incredulity at the ignorance of London officials, echoed by Newcastle-Gateshead tourism heads.^[26]

See also[link]

• Gateshead F.C.
• Little Theatre Gateshead
• Quayside

References[link]

External links[link]

• Gateshead Council Local government web site
• Gateshead Heritage @ St Mary's Heritage Centre website
• Images of Gateshead - [4]
• Friends of Red Kites - Details about the reintroduced kites in the Derwent Valley, Gateshead
• Saltwell Park Community Portal Gateshead News and events from Saltwell Park

Arieb Azhar is a Pakistani pop singer.^[1] His most famous hit is Husn-e-Haqiqi. He has made appearances in Coke Studio's Season 2 and Season 3.

Arieb's musical journey started as a child when he discovered that when he expressed himself vocally, people would pay attention. Because both his parents were involved in television and theatre he was exposed at an early age to different musical expressions. According to him the early folk and classical music he listened to influenced his later love for traditional music. He picked up the guitar in his teens as a simple acoustic accompaniment for his voice. During this period of his life he was greatly influenced by the humanist poetry of Faiz and Sheikh Ayaz, and by the humanist and revolutionary music and poetry of Latin America, and he often performed and sang for left wing student functions and political rallies in Karachi and interior Sindh.

At the age of 19 he went off to Croatia, just as it was breaking away from Yugoslavia, and spent the next 13 years of his life there. In the city of Zagreb, Arieb was exposed to Balkan and gypsy music and his musical discoveries led him to perform on the streets, in pubs and clubs, concert halls, and festivals, with musicians from Croatia, Bosnia, Macedonia, Bolivia and Ireland. He was one of the founders of the band "Shamrock Rovers" with whom he recorded two albums of a unique interpretation of Celtic music.

Finally in 2004 he returned to Pakistan in order to immerse himself in the local music. According to him, "I felt I needed to reconnect with my roots in order to continue my musical journey. In spite of (or perhaps because of!) social repression of all kinds, the street schooling that artists go through in Pakistan is very intense, and only the most dedicated artists can survive. Here one is forced to be highly self-critical and brutally honest about oneself. And those who survive this process become great musicians!"

Always nurturing a love for poets of the Sufi and humanist tradition, Arieb has now found an expression that he can proudly call his own. He recorded an album with IC records in Karachi, by the name of Wajj, which includes the immortal lyrics of Bhulleh Shah, Khwaja Ghulam Farid, and Mian Mohammad Baksh, as well as more contemporary lyrics by Sarmad Sehbai. The last track on the album is a Bosnian folk song also recorded with a rich orchestrated sound that uses both traditional and modern elements.

Arieb's music came into the limelight of the Pakistan music scene because of his input in seasons two and three of the celebrated Coke Studio project. He has toured around Pakistan and also performed at esteemed festivals such as the World Performing Arts Festival of Lahore, the Lok Sanjh Festival of Amritsar-India and the InMusic Festival of Zagreb-Croatia.

Arieb is currently finishing his next album, which, besides the well-known humanist poets of the sub-continent, will also incorporate contemporary poets such as Sheikh Ayaz, Arshed Bhatti and Akhtar Qayum. According to him, "True music is the union between the individual and the universal; a release, rapture, celebration, quest, lament of the human spirit. If I am able to touch that in moments of my life, I consider myself fortunate!"

He is listed in the artist section of Danka - Pakistan's Cultural Guide since 2010.^[2]

See also[link]

• Arieb Azhar's official homepage

References[link]

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Martin Simpson
Martin Simpson at Sidmouth Folk Week, 2010
Background information
Born	(1953-05-05) 5 May 1953 (age 59) Scunthorpe, Lincolnshire, England
Genres	Folk
Occupations	Singer, Songwriter
Instruments	Guitar, Banjo, Vocals
Labels	Topic, Red House, Compass
Website	www.martinsimpson.com

Martin Stewart Simpson is an English folk singer, guitarist and songwriter. His music reflects a wide variety of influences and styles, rooted in the British Isles, America and beyond.

Biography[link]

Martin Simpson was born in Scunthorpe, England. He took an early interest in music, learning to play the guitar and banjo and performing at local folk clubs. In 1970, he dropped out of John Leggott College^[1] to become a full-time musician.

In 1976 he recorded his first solo album Golden Vanity. In the same year he opened for Steeleye Span on their UK tour. Martin also toured and performed with folk singer June Tabor, who did not play an instrument herself. They would later record three albums together.

In 1985 he moved to Bloomington, Indiana and married American singer Jessica Radcliffe, and shortly afterwards they relocated to Ithaca, New York. During the decade he continued recording a mix of traditional and more contemporary material, including several entirely instrumental albums.

Notable work in the 1990s included work with Chinese pipa play Wu Man, with whom Simpson recorded a duet Music of the Motherless Child, a blend of European and Chinese traditions. In a similar vein was Kambara Music in Native Tongues with David Hidalgo from "Los Lobos" and violinist Viji Krishnan, a mix of Hindu and contemporary songs.

Not until 1999 did he record several of his own compositions on Bootleg USA. It was then, along with Jessica Racliffe, that he co-founded a record label called "High Bohemia". Perhaps suffering from homesickness, he visited the UK in 1994, recording Martin Simpson Live in Oxford. In 1999 he was a session musician for an album by Welsh singer Julie Murphy. The Bramble Briar (2001) was a turn to basics, a collection of English traditional folk songs.

2003 saw the release of Righteousness and Humidity, a set focusing almost exclusively on music from the Deep South, played on a variety of instruments and featuring Steeleye Span's Rick Kemp. This recording was a nominee for BBC folk awards album of the year in 2004. Simpson won the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards in 2004 in the category of Best Musician.^[2] This was followed in 2005 by Kind Letters in which he mines once again the rich seams of English folk music which proved so fruitful for The Bramble Briar.

In 2007 Simpson released Prodigal Son. The 2008 BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards voted it as best album. The fRoots critics poll voted it as the 7th best new album of 2007. It is a mixture of traditional songs and Simpson originals, the highlights of which possess a distinctly southern American flavor. Jackson Browne, Kate Rusby and Kellie While guest star here. In December 2007 he performed on Later... with Jools Holland.

Simpson has written guitar instruction books and recorded DVD guitar tutorials. His career came full circle in 2003 when he teamed up with June Tabor again. In 2004 he surprised everyone by performing at a gig in Nettlebed, Oxford, where he played banjo all evening, without touching a guitar. A readers' poll of the magazine Acoustic Guitar voted him as number 12 in the world in 2005. Martin is now married to Kit Bailey, the daughter of the singer Roy Bailey, with whom Martin occasionally performs. Martin and Kit now live in Sheffield and have a young daughter, Molly. Along with Martin Taylor, Simon Mayor, Doyle Dykes, Gordon Giltrap and Julie Ellison, he writes for the magazine Acoustic.

Performances of note to the general public include a 2007 appearance on Jools Holland's BBC show and a half hour set at The Proms on 20 July 2008 broadcast on BBC4.^[3]

Awards and Recognition[link]

He has been nominated 23 times in the 11 years of the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards, including nine times consecutively as Artist of The Year, which he has won twice. His album Prodigal Son was named album of the year in 2008 and a song from that album, "Never Any Good" was named best original song of the year.

Martin Simpson is regarded by many as one of the most skilled folk guitarists currently playing on the British and American folk scene.

Instruments of Note[link]

While best known as an acoustic guitarist, Martin originally started out as a banjo player, and also plays the electric guitar. Martin's main performance instruments are:

• Paul Reed Smith Angelus - Martin currently endorses PRS acoustic guitars, and his signature model is available to purchase
• Stefan Sobell Martin Simpson Signature Model - for many years, Martin's main performing guitars were made by British luthier Stefan Sobell, and his signature model can be purchased to special order

Martin is also known have owned and played many guitars by a number of renowned American luthiers including Ervin Somogyi, Jeff Traugott and Bill Tippin.

Discography[link]

Solo albums[link]

• Golden Vanity (1976)
• Special Agent (1981)
• Grinning In Your Face (1983)
• Sad or High Kicking (1985)
• Nobody's Fault But Mine (1986)
• The Pink Suede Bootleg (Limited Edition Cassette - 1987)
• Leaves of Life (1989) - instrumentals.
• When I Was On Horseback (1991)
• A Closer Walk With Thee (1993)
• Smoke and Mirrors (1995)
• Cool and Unusual (1997) - mainly British traditional ballads.
• Bootleg USA (1999)
• The Bramble Briar (2001)
• Righteousness and Humidity (2003) - collection of American blues, played on acoustic and steel guitar, and banjo.
• Kind Letters (2005)
• Prodigal Son (2007)
• True Stories (2009)
• Purpose + Grace (2011) (UK chart peak: #106)^[4]

Live[link]

• Live (recorded 1994, Oxford) (1997)
• 61 Highway (1999)

Collaborations[link]

Martin and Jessica Ruby Simpson.

• True Dare or Promise (1987)
• Red Roses (1995)
• Band Of Angels (1996)

Martin Simpson and Wu Man

• Music for the Motherless Child (1996)

Martin Simpson, David Hidalgo and Viji Krishnan

• Kambara Music in Native Tongues (1998)

Martin Simpson, Jessica Radcliffe and Lisa Ekstrom.

• Beautiful Darkness (2001)

Other compilations

• The Collection (1992)
• The Definitive Martin Simpson (2005)

Martin Simpson as session musician[link]

• Hot Vultures: The East Street Shakes (1977)
• Hot Vultures: Up The Line (1979)
• June Tabor: A Cut Above (1980)
• June Tabor: Abyssinians (1983)
• June Tabor: Aqaba (1988)
• Albion: Lark Rise To Candleford (1980)
• John & Mary: The Weedkiller's Daughter (1993)
• Julie Murphy: Black Mountain Revisited (1999)
• Chris Leslie: The Flow (2002)
• June Tabor: An Echo of Hooves (2003)
• June Tabor: At The Wood's Heart (2005)
• Roy Bailey: Sit Down and Sing (2005)
• Cara Dillon: After The Morning (2006)
• Various Artists: Rubber Folk (2006) (Beatles Tribute)
• Lorne MacDougall: Hello World (2010)

Role in the Albion Band[link]

DVDs[link]

• Acoustic Guitar Instrumentals - Martin Simpson Vol 1 (1993)
• Instrumentals 2 (2005)
• Martins 4 (2005) - Martin Carthy, Martin Simpson, Martin Taylor and Juan Martin.
• In Concert At The Freight and Salvage (Berkeley, California) (2005)
• Guitar Maestros - Martin Simpson (2006)

Book[link]

• Cool and Unusual: Creative Fingerstyle Guitar Solos (2000).

References[link]

• Martin Simpson Home Page

Anaïs Mitchell
New Bedford Summerfest July 4, 2010
Background information
Born	(1981-03-26) March 26, 1981 (age 31)
Origin	Montpelier, Vermont, U.S.
Genres	Folk, Indie folk
Instruments	Guitar
Years active	2002–present
Labels	Righteous Babe Records
Associated acts	Bon Iver, Ani DiFranco
Website	Official Website

Anaïs Mitchell (English: /ɑːneɪˈs/; born March 26, 1981) is an American singer-songwriter.

Early life[link]

Anaïs Mitchell is the daughter of a novelist and a college professor. She began writing and performing songs at the age of seventeen. As a child she grew up on a farm in Addison County, Vermont, traveled to the Middle East, Europe and Latin America and later attended Middlebury College.^{[1] [2]}

Career[link]

On a single afternoon in 2002, Mitchell recorded her debut album The Song They Sang When Rome Fell.^{[citation needed]}

In 2003 Mitchell won the New Folk award at the Kerrville Folk Festival.^[1][3]

Her album, Hymns for the Exiled, was released on Chicago's Waterbug Records label in 2004.^[1] This recording attracted the attention of singer/songwriter, Ani DiFranco who signed Mitchell to the Righteous Babe Records label.^[2]

In 2006 Mitchell debuted a draft of her Hadestown "folk opera" which she wrote in collaboration with arranger Michael Chorney and director Ben T. Matchstick.^[4] A revised version of Hadestown was staged in 2007 and Mitchell's third album, The Brightness, was released on Righteous Babe Records that same year.^[5]

In 2008 Mitchell was nominated in the Contemporary Artist category of the third annual Folk Alliance awards show broadcast.^[6] In September that same year Righteous Babe Records released country e.p., a split vinyl/CD EP Mitchell recorded with Rachel Ries.^{[citation needed]}

In April 2009, Mitchell said she intended to release a recording of Hadestown. Mitchell lent her vocals to the song "Miss Independence", off of Burlington-based singer Myra Flynn's album "Crooked Measures".^[7]

Hadestown, a recording of Mitchell's folk opera was released on Righteous Babe records in March 2010 in the US (late April 2010 in the UK) and received favorable reviews.^[8][9] Her manager, Slim Moon, described it as "the story of Orpheus and Eurydice set in post-apocalyptic Depression-era America." The album includes guest appearances by Ani DiFranco, Greg Brown, Justin Vernon of Bon Iver, Ben Knox Miller of The Low Anthem, and The Haden Triplets (Petra, Rachel, and Tanya Haden).

Mitchell released an album called Young Man in America, on her Wilderland Records label in 2012.^[10]

Reception[link]

Mitchell has received favorable reviews on her musical style, sound and performance. An article in Acoustic Guitar magazine calls Mitchell "fearlessly emotive" and compares her to Dylan, Cohen, and Welch.^[11]

A review in No Depression magazine describes Mitchell as "girlishly sprite and brimming with innocence" and says that she "brings to mind the hippie-throwback charm of Victoria Williams and "80s pop star Cyndi Lauper".^[12]

Margaret Reges of Allmusic describes Mitchell as having "the earthiness of Shawn Colvin, the child-like bite of Joanna Newsom, and the urban jumpiness of Ani DiFranco"^[13]

Discography[link]

• The Song They Sang... When Rome Fell (2002)
• Hymns for the Exiled (2004) Waterbug Records
• The Brightness (2007) Righteous Babe Records
• Country E.P. (2008) Righteous Babe Records (with Rachel Ries)
• Hadestown (2010) Righteous Babe Records (with Ani DiFranco, Justin Vernon of Bon Iver, Greg Brown and Ben Knox Miller)
• Young Man in America (2012)

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Anaïs Mitchell

• Official website
• Boston Globe music review
• Sing Out! sound recording review of The Brightness by Rich Warren June 22, 2007.
• State of Mind Our Lady of the Underground: A Conversation with Anais Mitchell by Matt Bushlow March 2010.
• nthWORD Magazine Interview by Ryan O'Connor June 7, 2010
• NPR Music Review

This article may require cleanup to meet Wikipedia's quality standards. No cleanup reason has been specified. Please help improve this article if you can; the talk page may contain suggestions. (December 2007)

This biographical article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (April 2010)

Beth Hart
Beth Hart in 2011
Background information
Birth name	Beth Hart
Born	(1972-01-24) January 24, 1972 (age 40)
Origin	Los Angeles, California, United States
Genres	Blues rock, jazz fusion, soul, storyteller
Occupations	Singer, songwriter, musician, painter
Instruments	Vocals, piano,guitar,bass,cello, percussion
Labels	143 Records Lava Records Atlantic Records, Koch records mascot records
Website	BethHart.com

Beth Hart (born January 24, 1972) is an American singer who became famous with the hit "LA Song (Out of This Town)", which aired during Episode 17 of the 10th and final season of Beverly Hills, 90210.^[1]

Her musical influences include rock, blues, gospel, jazz, and classical.

Musical career[link]

While playing the Los Angeles clubs, she enlisted bassist Tal Herzberg and guitarist Jimmy Khoury. In 1993, Hart appeared on Ed McMahon's Star Search several times.

"Beth Hart and the Ocean of Souls" was recorded in 1993. It includes "Am I the One" (re-worked on later album Immortal (1996)) and a pop-rock cover of the Beatles' "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds."

Hart released her album Immortal with her band Beth Hart Band in 1996.^[2]

Her next album, Screamin' for My Supper (Atlantic, 1999), featured "LA Song (Out of This Town)," a top-5 Adult Contemporary Chart hit. At the same time, Hart was singing the lead role in "Love, Janis," an Off-Broadway musical based on Joplin's letters home to her mother.

Hart's Leave the Light On was released in 2003. European releases of the album include extras such as the ballad "Learning to Live" and a duet with Barry Hay, "I Don't Want to Be."

Hart released "Live at Paradiso" in 2005. The DVD version includes a bonus documentary covering "a day in the life" of Hart. She has also recorded with Born ("It Hurts"), Les Paul and Neal Schon ("I Wanna Know You"), and released a number of music video singles not available on CD, including "Shine," "Boogeyman," and "Setting Me Free."

Beth Hart's album 37 Days was released in Europe July 2007.

Hart did a song with Slash called "Mother Maria." That song is on the iTunes version of Slash's solo album, Slash.

Beth Hart is married and currently resides in Los Angeles. Her band includes lead guitarist Jon Nichols, bassist Tom Lilly, and drummer Todd Wolf. Her manager is David Wolff.

Beth's new single was released in May 2010, the track, "Learning to Live," is from an upcoming album of the same name and will be used as the theme song to "Losing It with Jillian" on NBC. this album marks Beth's first new American studio release since 2003.

In 2011 she worked with Joe Bonamassa, first providing vocals for the track "No Love On The Street" on his album Dust Bowl (March 2011). They also worked on an entire album of blues classics together, entitled Don't Explain(released on September 27, 2011).

Discography[link]

Albums[link]

• Beth Hart and the Ocean of Souls (1993, CD re-issued in 2009)
• Immortal (1996)
• Screamin' for My Supper (1999)
• Leave the Light On (2003)
• Live at Paradiso (2005, also available on DVD with documentary and extra songs)
• 37 Days (2007, also available on European-released 37 Days Live DVD with brief, b&w intros between numbers)
• My California (2010)
• Don't Explain (2011, with Joe Bonamassa)^[3]

Singles[link]

• "Run" (1996)
• "Immortal" (1996)
• "Summer Is Gone" (1996)
• "God Bless You" (1996)
• "Am I The One" (1996)
• "LA Song (Out of This Town)" (1999)
• "Delicious Surprise" (2000)
• "Leave The Light On" (2003)
• "World Without You" (2004)
• "Learning To Live" (2004) (Denmark single)
• "Hiding Under Water" (2005) (European Single)
• "Good As It Gets" (2007) (European Single)
• "Over You" (2007)
• "Like You (And Everyone Else)" 2010 (Scandinavia)
• "Learning To Live" 2010 (USA)
• "Life Is Calling" 2010 (Europe)
• "Love Is The Hardest" 2010 (Scandinavia)
• " Chocalate Jesus" 2011 (Europe)
• " I'll take care of you" 2011 (Europe)
• " Sister heroin" 2012 (England)
• " Take it easy on me" (England)

Other Collaborations[link]

• Provided backing vocals for "Haunted" on Deep Purple's 2003 album Bananas. Notably the first time singer Ian Gillan was backed by vocals other than his own.
• "I Wanna Know You" with Les Paul and Neal Schon, on the 2005 album American Made World Played by Les Paul & Friends^[4]
• "I Gotta Right To Sing The Blues" on the 2006 Toots Thielemans album One More For The Road.^[5]
• "It Hurts" (2007) duet with Born (Dutch musician), available on the re-release of his debut album At the end of the day^[6]
• "Mother Maria" (2010) duet with Slash, on the Download to Donate for Haiti project album.
• "No Love On The Street" (2011) performing vocals for Joe Bonamassa, on the album Dust Bowl (2011).^[3]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Beth Hart’s official web site
• Review of My California