Michael Chapman to Release Live At Folk Cotttage, Cornwall 1967

Tree House Records will release on August 25, 2014 Michael Chapman’s album Live At Folk Cotttage, Cornwall 1967. Previously unreleased, these are the earliest known recordings of British folk guitar hero Michael Chapman. “The album I had no idea I had made!” says Chapman.

TreeHouse44 worked diligently with Michael Chapman, being allowed full access to his private archive, to produce a unique album that captures the earliest stages in the career of this outstanding artist.

Michael Chapman turned professional as a musician, when he walked into a Cornish pub and offered to play a gig in return for shelter from the rain outside. These “lost” recordings were made eight months later as he played a show at Folk Cottage, Mitchell near Newquay in Cornwall on Good Friday, March 24th , 1967.

The Folk Cottage was created in 1963. The former granite-built farm workers’ building had secured its reputation as an essential venue on the folk circuit, with several talented local folk artists such as John The Fish and Brenda Wotton performing there as well as a haven for artists such as Wizz Jones and Ralph McTell.

At the time, Chapman was being billed as “exciting new blues artist” and that is echoed in some of the material captured in these recordings (“Baby Please Don’t Go”, “Parchman Farm” and “Kansas City”) but there is also the odd surprise in store for Chapman fans, including a cover of Buddy Holly’s “That’ll Be The Day” as well as three original instrumentals that highlight the emergence of Chapman’s innovative and instantly recognizable guitar style that is known today.

“I just played whatever I could think of at the time? I had no idea then that I could actually write songs myself,” recollects Chapman.

The album was recorded by Folk Cottage regulars Lionel Rigby and Dave James using an AKG D119 microphone hung over a rafter and hooked up to a Ferrograph 5AN open reel tape machine. These recordings capture the quintessence of a live show at a crucial time in the chronology of Michael’s career; just 8 months since he turned professional and within two years of the release of “Rainmaker“, his debut album on Harvest/EMI.

With the exception of editing out some re-tuning of guitars, the producers have preserved the performance in its entirety. The tapes were mixed and re-mastered at Rimshot Studios by Mike Thorne.

“Live at Folk Cottage, Cornwall 1967” will be available as a limited edition vinyl double album and CD.

Buy Live At Folk Cotttage, Cornwall 1967