A Sailor and his True Love: Traditional Singing from the Blaxhall Ship
Preorder Available Now
Alvar Smith. Local and family songs from the Blaxhall Ship. A selection of ballads, old songs and comic songs learnt from his grandfather Arthur Smith (featured on the 1955 recording of singing in the Ship), his uncle Bob Scarce, Cyril Poacher, Bob Hart and others. Recorded with a live audience at Sheffield’s New Musical Traditions Club. (VT164CD)
This album was recorded live at the New Musical Traditions Club in Sheffield’s Kelham Island on the 9th November 2025. An afternoon recording session was held with a small invited audience, ahead of the evening concert, and recordings from both sessions can be heard here. Nothing is ever straightforward, and arriving at the venue to discover it was cleaning day at the brewery on the other side of a stud wall wasn’t the best start to proceedings, nor was the impromptu firework display outside by residents eager to use up their stash from the week before. However, thanks to all involved, what results is a set of recordings that showcase the true range of Alvar’s repertoire, placed in its natural setting – in front of an enthusiastic, capacity audience. It was a pleasure to hear Alvar in such good voice, as it was to spend time in his company over the long weekend when this album was made. I hope listeners will agree that Alvar is an outstanding singer, and a gem to be treasured from the long lineage of traditional singers from East Suffolk.
Launch Events:
Launch concerts featuring Alvar Smith, Mossy Christian and special guests will feature at festivals over the summer, including:
Chippenham Folk Festival (Wiltshire) – Sunday 24th May
Sidmouth Folk Festival (Devon) – Early August
Whitby Folk Week (North Yorks) – Late August
More TBA
Release Info: Pre-order is now open and runs until the release date on the 24th of May, then available to buy from the same links.
CD (£12.99) – Duplicated CD in 4 panel digipack case with booklet – purchase here
Digital Download (£9.95) – Includes three bonus tracks and PDF booklet – download here