Monthly Exclusive - Lauren MacColl: Half a Lifetime Ago

Hello,

We’re very lucky to have the wonderful Lauren MacColl for this month’s club exclusive. Lauren has recorded a beautiful EP and we can’t wait for you to hear it.

LAUREN MACCOLL - HALF A LIFETIME AGO

1 Machine without horses/Why care not for my love?

2 Flight of the eaglets

3 The lass that made the bed for me

4 Banks of allan water

“ In the December of 2004, as a wide-eyed 19 year old fiddle player from the Highlands, I found myself on the stage of Union Chapel in the heart of London playing solo in the BBC Radio 2 Young Folk Award Final. I'd entered on a whim after seeing a flyer pinned on a college notice board - ‘Do you want to meet like-minded musicians from across the UK?’ it read. And I did. The wider folk scene outwith Scotland always intrigued and appealed to me, and many of those I shared the stage with that evening went on to become both friends and huge musical inspirations.
It’s 20 years since that evening, a night which was to become a major spring board for the one thing I wanted to do - play and create music with other people. I was hugely supported by both the BBC and Folkworks who organised the award in the coming years and cherish memories of early gig opportunities at folk festivals all over.
In this mini EP for the Hudson Club I’ve chosen to revisit the material I played that night, and reflect on how my playing has changed, grown and been influenced over the years. These are tunes I’ve always loved, the old traditional material that ignited a passion for something I’m proud to still call my job 20 years later. For me, it’s half a lifetime ago. But the tunes are the thread through the many musical experiences I’ve had since.
In the new year I’m doing some special one-off shows as a retrospective on some of the music that followed on from the award, up to my most recent solo album Hear. Maybe I’ll see you along the way….”