Steve Tilston
What a way to celebrate 40 years as a professional musician, Steve won this year’s radio 2 Folk Award for best original song with the title track form his most recent album The Reckoning. Hebden resident and Trades Club regular Steve Tilston is one of our most celebrated song-smiths; widely recognised within the world of folk and contemporary music: the words, arrangements and subtle, quite superb guitar playing could be no one else.
The writer of the classic songs The Slipjigs and Reels, Here’s to Tom Paine and The Naked Highwayman, has turned author. Steve has recently published his first novel – full of colourful characters All for Poor Jack is an historical tale set in Bristol and the “New World”.
In 2007 Steve was given the boxed-set treatment by Free Reed, the company behind the Richard Thompson anthology; Reaching Back: the Life and Music of Steve Tilston features classic, rare, previously unreleased and new recordings and is a timely celebration of an eventful career; comprising five CDs including tracks contributed by fellow musicians and admirers. In 2009 his early career was highlighted in a book Bristol Folk, the story of Bristol’s powerhouse folk & blues scene in the 1960s & 70s.
Born in Liverpool and raised in the Midlands, Steve made his recording debut in 1971 with the classic An Acoustic Confusion and has been turning out quality albums ever since. Life by Misadventure, And So It Goes, Solo Rubato and Such and Such all featuring first-class song-writing, quintessentially English in style and typically Tilston, marking him out as one of this country’s finest writers and guitarists.
He joined an illustrious band of guitarists including Martin Simpson, Michael Messer and Wizz Jones, when he was invited to contribute to the Guitar Maestro series of DVDs; a combination of live studio performance and interviews, revealing the real passion behind these talented musicians…If anyone ever deserved the moniker Guitar Maestro, it’s Steve Tilston!
Current collaborations see him teaming up with Yorkshire alt-country band The Durbervilles and a new trio with Keith Warmington and Stuart Gordon, with whom he is appearing at Folk Roots.
A celebrated artist in Britain and abroad, winning accolades in Europe, Australia and the USA, his songs have been recorded by Fairport Convention, Dolores Keane, The House Band, Peter Bellamy, North Cregg, Bob Fox and John Wright. Here’s to Tom Paine is the adopted theme song for the Tom Paine Society of America and has featured in Bruce Springsteen’s live set. His music has also featured regularly on radio and TV and on the Trades Roots: Live at the Trades Club CD
Website Steve Tilston
You Tube Steve Tilston The Reckoning ... plus Becky Unthank