eliza carthy

Eliza Carthy, daughter of Martin Carthy and Norma Waterson, is the most impressive and engaging performer of her generation. Not only an inventive, innovative singer and fiddle-player, she is a musical conceptualist who treats the bequest of the folk tradition with respect and knowledge - and, sometimes, with refreshing irreverence.

"The one indisputable young star of British folk." The Times (2006)


ELIZA CARTHY DREAMS OF BREATHING UNDERWATER TSCD571 link to shop

Winner of two Mercury Award nominations, three BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards and numerous other accolades, Eliza Carthy is easily the most impressive and engaging folk artist of her generation.

She has performed and recorded with a diverse array of artists including Paul Weller, Rufus and Martha Wainwright, Joan Baez, Nick Cave and Peter Gabriel. And yet, while traditional music is her lifelong love, Eliza had always planned to stay with the songwriting thing she started eight years ago with "Angels & Cigarettes", her only album for a major label. And a good thing for us that she did. Years in the making, "Dreams of Breathing Underwater" showcases a much more mature songwriting and performing talent - lyrically, musically and stylistically.

The overall spirit of "Dreams of Breathing Underwater" is one of coherent diversity. A chamber orchestra, Mariachi brass, grunge guitar, good-time jazz, sensual Edi Reader harmonies as well as Eliza’s inventive fiddle and earthy vocals provide some of the musical highlights of this highly original album. Early reviews point to "Dreams of Breathing Underwater" as being THE album of the modern folk movement.

tscd571 eliza carthy dreams
tscd571 eliza carthy dreams of breathing underwater

• “… Eliza delivers a fizzing firework display full of colourful narratives and big characters… sends you home whistling. It’s quite a party" redstarredstarredstarredstar Mojo Magazine

• "It’s a fizz-bang jamboree bag of an album exploding with ideas, unexpected tangents and corking story songs." fRoots

• "Vocally and lyrically, this is Carthy’s strongest album. Add a beautifully designed CD package ..and you have one of the most startlingly original albums of the past year" Dirty Linen

"From the ethereal wonder of Lavenders .......the experimentation works. Tha fact that it works is partly due to the musicianship...it can also be put down to Eliza's magnificent voice - one of the finest you will ever hear. Dreams of Breathing Underwater is a brilliant album that deserves applause. This album shows just why she is one of music's, and not just folk's, most important and innovative artists." BBC Online

• "Her most sophisticated album yet and one destined to win her a whole new set of admirers – the care and invention on display is striking." redstarredstarredstarredstarredstar Observer Music Magazine

• "The twice-Mercury-nominated singer’s eighth solo album might just be her boldest, most varied, most wild adventure yet. First up is Follow The Dollar which packs a solid rock punch. Rows Of Angels has a hip-hop vibe. Mr Magnifico is a riot of mariachi horns and Lavenders is washed with ravishing contemporary atmospherics. This is the work of a wonderful artist who refuses to stand still."
redstarredstarredstarredstar ½ stars The Sun

• "It’s effortlessly confident, wildly varied and almost impossible to categorise. Magnificent."
redstarredstarredstarredstar The Guardian

more press reviews at the foot of the page

1 Follow The Dollar
2 Two Tears
3 Rows of Angels
4 Rosalie
5 Mr Magnifico
6 Like I Care (Wings)
7 Lavenders
8 Little Bigman
9 Simple Things
10 Hug You Like A Mountain
11 Oranges And Seasalt

eliza carthy dreams of breathing underwater

Eliza Carthy tenor guitar, ukelele, violin, one-row melodeon, piano, singing

Ben Ivitsky singing,rowing, acoustic and electric guitar, noises, Stylaphone, triangle, 5 string viola, viola, cajon/Moog, percussion, trombone
Barnaby Stradling
bass guitar
Willy Molleson drums, drumtrak machine, cajon/Moog, vocals
Barney Strachan organetta, singing, drumtrak machine
John Spiers melodeon, singing
Jon Boden violin, concertina, singing, banjo
Conrad Ivitsky double bass, vocals
Donald Hay drums, percussion
Tim Matthew narrator, violin
Toby Shippey trumpet
Martin Green piano accordion, keyboard
Marcus Britton trumpet
Tim Lane trombone
Olivia Furness tenor saxophone
Greg Ivitsky alto saxophone, vocals
Joe Peat bass guitar

Heather MacLeod singing
Eddie Reader singing
Sarah Roberts singing
Emma Smith singing

Robert McFall string arrangements, violin
Claire Sterling violin
Brian Schieles viola
Su-a Lee cello
Tom Lyne double bass

Paul Sartin oboe
Gideon Juckes tuba
Micky Marr bass guitar
David 'Demus' Donnelly bass guitar

The Love Boat, featuring The Bevvy Sisters - Heather MacLeod, Kaela Rowan and Lindsay Black singing
and Mr McFalls Chamber


ELIZA CARTHY ROUGH MUSIC TSCD554 link to shop

‘Rough Music’ is a step on from the multi-award winning ‘Anglicana’, and is a powerful, vital, multi-layered collection full of dark rhythms in Eliza’s vision of English Traditional Music for the new millennium. Her backing band, The Ratcatchers, includes her long time collaborator Ben Ivitsky, and two of the fastest rising stars of the folk scene, Jon Boden and John Spiers.

The album features dense arrangements of traditional songs showcasing Eliza’s incomparable voice as well as spirited, highly original performances of English instrumental music. Billy Bragg’s ‘King James Version’ and Eliza’s own ‘Mohair' complete the unique blend of old and new.

The title notwithstanding, there is nothing rough about the quality of the music – Eliza has taken the name of the album from an age-old custom and she explains it…..

“Rough Music is in the Book of Days on October 28th and is described as a form of community punishment practiced all over England. If a man were seen to be (say) beating his wife, or ‘allowing himself to be hen-pecked’ it says here, he could expect to receive a concert of Rough Music. Basically if they thought you had been naughty (it doesn’t say how or if they proved this) all the men, women and children of the village would go round to your house in the middle of the night, call out your name and proceed to bang pots, pans, tin lids and buckets or whatever came to hand, to bring your crimes to attention and drive you out. When my family moved to North Yorkshire at the beginning of the seventies there was a case of a man being driven from our area by this method. However, we’ve tried to make the album a bit nicer than that."

tscd554 eliza carthy rough music

• "Top 10 Folk Album of the Year 2005" Mojo

"An instant winner. Great singing, rousing instrumentals, fabulous album. A Best Album of the Year." Daily Telegraph

• "Rough Music feels fearless, certain and solid, putting all of Carthy’s many and varied skills into service. She can do it just by being brilliant." redstarredstarredstarredstar Sunday Times

• “One of the brightest stars in the folk firmament. Eliza’s exquisite voice and fiddle playing make this a vibrant take on centuries-old tradition.” redstarredstarredstarredstar The Sun

• “Singer and violinist Eliza Carthy is one of the figureheads of the English folk revival and this album demonstrates why – compelling music.” redstarredstarredstarredstar Evening Standard

• “..the 29-year-old’s rawest collection to date. ..her voice lies at the centre of Rough Music’s most powerful moments." redstarredstarredstarredstar Mojo

more press reviews at the foot of the page

1 Turpin Hero
2 King James Version
3 Cobbler's Hornpipe
4 Gallant Hussar
5 Upside Down (Double Lead Through + Highland Mary + Dear Tobacco)
6 Mohair
7 The Unfortunate Lass
8 Scan Tester's Country Stepdance + Lemmy Brazil's No.2
9 Maid On The Shore
10 Mr McCusker & Mr McGoldrick's English Choice
11 Tom Brown
Eliza Carthy fiddle, singing, guitar

The Ratcatchers:
John Boden fiddle, singing, double bass, guitar, concertina, percussion
Ben Ivitsky viola, singing, guitar, low whistle, hurdy-gurdy
John Spiers melodeon, singing, one-row accordion, bandoneon

Heather Macleod singing
Mattie Foulds snare & lemon drums
Fay Hield singing
Mary Hampton singing
Lorna MacDonald bass trombone
Willy Molleson singing


ELIZA CARTHY ANGLICANA TSCD539 link to shop

Eliza Carthy's return to Topic Records, with a great new traditional album re-affirming her as one of the most important artists of her generation. As the title suggests, Anglicana is an expression of Englishness (as Eliza feels it), "with people who were around at the time, no border checkpoints, nobody pushed out, just what it is".

It is built on the solid foundations of the traditional music of the country of her birth. There is no question that she has absorbed much of the great qualities of that tradition, but she is not interested in producing pastiche or sterile re-construction. She is one of the few people who can take this wonderful music and perform it in a totally convincing contemporary style - both true to its sources and firmly relevant to today's values. This is what traditional music in the twenty-first century is all about!

• "Brilliant updating of the English folk tradition .. proper music, not museum art – her voice has never sounded fuller" redstarredstarredstarredstarredstarThe Independent

• Surely the best album of its type so far this century" fROOTS

• "faultless" www.Amazon.co.uk

• "Best folk album of the year" Mojo

Nominated for BBC Radio 3 World Music Album of the Year

more press reviews at the foot of the page

tscd539 eliza carthy anglicana
1 Worcester City
2 Just As The Tide was Flowing
3 Limbo
4 Little Gypsy Girl
5 No Man's Jig + Hanoverian Dance + Three Jolly Sheepskins
6 Pretty Ploughboy
7 Bold Privateer
8 Dr McMBE
9 In London So Fair
10 Willow Tree

Eliza Carthy fiddle, piano, vocals
John Spiers melodeon
John Boden fiddle
Donald MacDougal guitar
Barnaby Stradling acoustic bass
Donald Hay drums & percussion
Ben Ivitsky viola
Tim van Eyken melodeon, guitar, harmonica
Norma Waterson vocals
Maria Gilhooley vocals
Will Duke concertina
Dan Quinn melodeon
Tom Salter electric guitar
Martin Carthy guitar
Martin Green piano accordion
Heather Macleod vocals
Mary Macmaster vocals


ELIZA CARTHY RED TSCD493 link to shop

Red presents original compositions with contemporary beats.

'If this is the future of British folk music, it is in good hands.' - Mojo
'Audaciously Brilliant.' - The Observer
Album of the Year. - Folk Roots
Mercury Music Prize Album of the Year

tscd493 eliza carthy, red
1 Accordion Song: Accidental Saturday Night Kitchen Mix
2 10,000 Miles
3 Billy Boy / The Widdow's Wedding
4 Time in the Son
5 Stumbling On
6 Stingo / The Stacking Reel
7 Greenwood Laddie / Mrs Capron's Reel / Tune
8 Walk Away
9 Adieu, Adieu
10 Russia
Call Waiting
11 Red Rice
Eliza Carthy fiddle, singing, one-row accordion, keyboards
Martin Green piano accordion, keyboards
Barnaby Stradling electric & acoustic bass, percussion, Moog
Sam Thomas drums, percussion, Moog 
Ed Boyd acoustic guitar
Olly Knight electric guitar
Shack & Paul programming
Lucy Adams backing vocals
Rory McLeod harmonica
Andy Thorburn guest keyboards


ELIZA CARTHY RICE TSCD494 link to shop

Rice looks afresh at British - and other - traditional musics.

'If this is the future of British folk music, it is in good hands.' - Mojo
'Audaciously Brilliant.' - The Observer
Album of the Year. - Folk Roots
Mercury Music Prize Album of the Year

tscd494 eliza carthy, rice
1 Blow the Winds / The Game of Draughts
2 The Snow It Melts the Soonest
3 Picking Up Sticks / The Old Mole / Felton Lonnin / Kingston Girls
4 Miller & the Lass
5 Herring Song
6 Mons Meg
7 Tuesday Morning
8 Haddock & Chips
9 The Americans Have Stolen My True Love Away
10 Zycanthos Jig / Tommy's Foot / Quebecois
11 The Sweetness of Mary / Holywell Hornpipe / Swedish
12 Benjamin Bowmaneer
13 Commodore Moore / The Black Dance / A Andy O
Eliza Carthy fiddle, viola, piano, djembe, singing
Saul Rose melodeon, one-row accordion, singing
Ed Boyd acoustic guitar, bouzouki
Eleanor Waterson singing
Lucy Adams feet, clogs, singing
Billericay Fontenot guitar, singing
Thorngumbold Fontenot singing


ELIZA CARTHY & THE KINGS OF CALICUTT TSCD489 link to shop

The Kings of Calicutt join Eliza Carthy in a buoyant selection of songs and tunes.

'The ideas are incessant, the technique superb and the energy irresistible.'
- Folk Roots

tscd489 eliza carthy, kings of calicutt
1 Trip:Trip to Fowley / Cuckold Came Out of the Amery / Indian Queen
2 Whirly: Whirly Whorl
3 Bonaparte's: Bonaparte's Retreat
4 Tractor: Little Bear / Wobbly Cat / Upton Stick Dance
5 Mother: Mother, Go Make My Bed / Flower of Swiss Cottage
6 Mr Walker: Good Morning, Mr Walker
7 Sea: Holm Band Tune / Dave Roberts' Tune / Jemima's Jig
8 Sheffield: Sheffield Park / Polly Bishop's Slip Jig / Roger De Coverley
9 Fisher: Fisher Boy
10 Storyteller: If You Will Not Have Me, You May Let Me Go / The Pullet / The Storyteller
Eliza Carthy fiddle, viola, mandolin, singing, the other wah
The Kings are:

Andi Wells drums
Barnaby Stradling bass
Saul Rose melodeon, singing
Maclaine Colston hammered dulcimer, singing, snare, wah


ELIZA CARTHY HEAT LIGHT & SOUND TSCD482 link to shop

The most accomplished and adventurous debut album the British folk scene has witnessed in more than 20 years, Heat Light & Sound declares Eliza Carthy's talent as a singer and fiddler in songs and tunes from the British tradition.

'A superbly assured debut album.' - The Observer
'The future of British folk music.' - Mojo

1 Cold, Wet & Rainy Night / The Grand Hornpipe
2 Cumberland Waltz / Petit Homme / Miss Bowls'
3 What a Beau Your Granny is / Stone Steps
4 Ten Thousand Miles / Bacca Pipes
5 Clark Saunders
6 Stamps for the Dog
7 Peggy
8 Blind Fiddler
9 Lady Barnsley's Fancy / Trip to Cartmel / Hardy's Crow
10 By Then
11 Sheath & Knife
12 Jacky Tar
Eliza Carthy vocals, fiddle, monster and five string fiddle
Dylan Clarke double bass, vocals, percussion
Martin Ellison melodeon
James Fagan bouzouki, vocals
Thorn Fontenot triangle
Olly Knight electric guitar
Dan Plews guitar
Barnaby Stradling bass guitar
Sam Thomas drums, percussion, vocals
Jock Tyldesley fiddle
Hazel Wrigley keyboard


Press Reviews

TSCD 5571 "Dreams of Breathing Underwater"

"One of the albums of the year" Independent on Sunday

" With every listen, something new rises from the mix." redstarredstarredstarredstar The Times

redstarredstarredstarredstar Financial Times

"A folk phantasmagoria of a record." redstarredstarredstarredstar Sunday Times

"She flexes musical muscles that are unlike any you’re likely to encounter anywhere else…wonderful vocal arrangement…Simple Things – one of the most passionate love songs ever written." All Music Guide

"The whole CD, from the album artwork to arrangements oozes faded glamour - and with their wit and lyricism, not to mention addictively vibrant imagery and music, Eliza's offerings evoke the spirit of her aunt Lal's most clever and articulate songs - a beautifully sinister seaside postcard of an album"
English Dance and Song

"What an accomplished work it is.There is no disguising the power and commitment of the lady. Loud, smart, sassy and musically fun".redstarredstarredstarredstarredstar Rock’n’Reel

"English folk’s finest transcends categories – a shape shifter of an album packed with musical and lyrical intrigue – led by Eliza’s rich, supple voice" redstarredstarredstarredstar Uncut

"This is a far bolder, more accomplished Carthy, tackling grander themes, drawing on broader terms of reference – exquisitely, colourfully and entertainingly natural. Daily Telegraph

"Her boldest undertaking stylistically, lyrically and instrumentally – Carthy has created a landmark album.redstarredstarredstarredstar 1/2 The Australian

"Eliza Carthy's second album is a riot of a record. This album is still resolutely anchored in a rich heritage of English songwriting. Carthy is boldly carving out a space all her own." Observer Review

"With Dreams of Breathing Underwater Eliza Carthy has achieved something so many strive for in folk, and so few achieve, creating something entirely original and of its time that, somehow, still belongs to everyplace and everytime." Toby Venables: Moving Tone News

"There is adhering to tradition, and then there is building upon it, and Carthy continues to do the latter with the sureness of someone practically born to make music." Journal Sentinel online

"That voice helps make reams of Breathing Underwater as sonorous as anything by British folk rocker Linda [or Richard] Thompson. The cumulative impression is of something at once strangely ancient, warmly familiar and eccentrically contemporary." GuideLive.com

“Dreams of Breathing Underwater continues this gutsy journey by hitching the wild romantic soul and unmistakable harmonies of English folk to indigenous roots music from elsewhere, such as blues, Balkan gipsy music, flamenco and salsa. This is no noble undertaking in world fusion but something more freewheeling… Modern folk has undergone a massive upheaval since Carthy first began recording but this exhilarating record proves she remains its boldest ambassador.” Claire Allfree, Metro

• "A strong suite of [in the main] self-penned songs rich in drama and feeling. A broad and ambitious palette. A ‘Top of the World Album" redstarredstarredstarredstar Songlines

• "It’s Midas touch time for Eliza Carthy – this is truly her moment. Whatever Carthy turns her hand to seems to soar." HMV Choice

• "Her best work yet" Metro Magazine

• "Carthy’s artistry glues it all together with supreme confidence, in the process creating her boldest record yet." Word

redstarredstarredstarredstar The Scotsman

TSCD 554 "Rough Music"

• “The album is an unqualified success. The joy that was had in the playing this music rings through in every note." Penguin Eggs

• “Spontaneous – the vocals are exquisite – It’s as good as traditional singing gets, as is the musicianship." Dirty Linen magazine

• “An album of boundless warmth, verve and spirit" fROOTS

• “CD OF THE WEEK - Eliza Carthy is sassy, cool and exciting. Her new CD confirms her as a singer of power and distinction. Rough Music is an early contender for folk CD of 2005. What an achievement it would be if it could turn out to be rather more than a great album for a small public.” The Telegraph

• “Eliza continues to go her own way, and do it very, very well indeed." Sing Out

• “The classy sound of traditional folk played perfectly" BBC Nottingham

• “She has the courage of her convictions..she is fabulous” Metro

• “With attack by the truckload and confidence shining through in the multi-layered arrangements, there’s an earthy and intoxicating sense excitement and enjoyment in the performances." Time Out

• “It’s wonderful” The Observer

• “Full English indeed" HMV Choice

• “A beautiful album, recorded in the Scottish Borders but quintessentially English in its content and performance, this is a moving, articulate expression of the young Carthy’s love of her native song. And she’s a gorgeous fiddler too. With her band The Ratcatchers, they have created huge soundscapes of vocal harmony and dense instrumental colour." Scotland on Sunday

• “Spontaneous, focused and brilliantly played - a triumph. The instrumentals in particular are real rockers, often slipping dreamily from a more muscular quartet sound into more ambient corners. With its singularity of purpose and the band's rich and supple performance, this is Carthy's best album to date."
redstarredstarredstarredstarredstar A "Top of the World" selection Songlines


TSCD 539 "Anglicana"

• "her most majestic and mature solo album yet" fROOTS
• "Shining like a beacon – her glorious new album Anglicana. She’s returned to Topic with a superb collection of English songs gleaned from ancient recordings and dusty manuscripts, into which she’s breathed new life – her voice just gets better, now with a depth range and scope to tell the big ballads affectingly. This is traditional folk at its most atmospheric, performed with a feeling of spontaneity." Time Out
• "This immensely talented fiddle player and singer takes her inspiration from the stunning 20-volume – The Voice of the People series by Topic. The epic ballad In London so Fair puts her among the best of the new generation of British female folk singers. Bawdy, sexy and beautiful, just as good folk music should be." Morning Star
• "Bravura vocals and brilliant arrangements – she has come into her own as a mature but audacious interpreter of traditional music." Billboard
• "Carthy sings with pressing immediacy, her voice buoyed by surging acoustic arrangements." The Guardian
• "Brilliant – proper music, not museum art – her voice has never sounded fuller" redstarredstarredstarredstarredstar The Independent
• "The playing is immaculate, as is the singing. It’s a downright fine CD." BBC Radio Nottingham
• "Searing and adventurous" London Evening Standard
• "As remarkable for the vitality and originality of the settings as for the new maturity in her singing – magnificent" The Guardian
• "Confidence and power shine out of her, and it makes her music shine too" The Times
• "She has recorded ten stark pieces to draw you in with an irresistible pull – deploying the undeniably dramatic power of her incredible voice" Sunday Times
• "..her fiddle playing is of international stature…a singer of real lasting quality" All Music Guide
• "A compelling set, remarkable for the subtle dramatic settings and the new maturity in her singing
The Guardian
• "(Eliza Carthy) remains a phenomenon…a winner." The Observer
• "Album of the Year" Financial Times
• "A must-have album" Folk London
• "I have to say from the outset that this record is a delight in every sense of the word….Eliza Carthy is fulfilling every hope we had in her, producing fine traditional music with a modern approach, yet retaining the very essence that makes the songs and tunes so attractive." Living Tradition
• "Anglicana finds Carthy happily merging two sensibilities, one grounded in yesteryear and the other hailing the future – with pleasing results." Sing Out
• "She possesses a voice that takes you right in there – her choice of songs is impeccable. If this is the future of English folk song, buy me a front row seat now" BBC Radio 2 Folk & Acoustic reviews
• "Quite simply, this album is a masterpiece" Roots & Rhythm magazine
• "
You suddenly forget that you are listening to an album, because it sounds as if she were in your house, singing and playing – there is a sense of privileged revelation, of a valued invitation into an artist’s private sound space" The Guardian
• "The gig affirmed Carthy’s pre-eminence, established by her Mercury-nominated Anglicana album. The Independent" (referring to Cambridge Folk Festival 2003)
• "Just superb" Raymond Briggs


Others

• "First-rate. She knows her sources and absorbs them into her own music with complete confidence and, on this album, she cuts a connoisseur's swathe through a mother lode of English song. The result is a tour de force, both instrumentally and vocally. This disc is a testament of faith in the poetry and power of English folk song in the 21st century. A "Top of the World" choice." Songlines
• "Audaciously brilliant" The Observer
• "An international star of English Folk in the next century" The Times
• "The ideas are incessant, the technique superb and the energy irresistible" fROOTS
• "Eliza Carthy has probably made the best folk album of this year" (Red Rice) Uncut
• "Seriously impressive skills shine through" Daily Telegraph
• "What's brilliant about Eliza is that she's such a great mixture of past and present: totally dedicated to the tradition and simultaneously full of innovation." BBC Radio 2


see also The Watersons, Martin Carthy, Waterson:Carthy, Lal & Norma Waterson, Mike Waterson, Lal Waterson & Oliver Knight, Norma Waterson