Ange Hardy

Ange is a folk singer, songwriter and recording artist from West Somerset, England. At the age of fourteen she ran away from a care home in Somerset, hitchhiked to Ireland, took on a new name, and lived rough on the streets of Dublin and Galway for months on end. This tale can be heard in one of her songs called ‘The Daring Lassie’. She has written many songs surrounding that story but this is the first song she had written about the journey. The Tickled Trout on the River Ribble is on the A59.

Shortly after winning FATEA Female Vocalist of the Year award in January 2014, she was referred to by veteran folk broadcaster Mike Harding as “one of the bright stars of the new wave of folk singers”. Her third studio album ‘The Lament of The Black Sheep’ was about stripping everything back to the roots and about exploring the surrounding soil. It remains a deeply personal album. The album cover is a photograph of her great-grandfather taken on the farm.

Whether she’s performing in a sold out theater or an intimate village hall, Ange brings a level of honesty and openness to the stage that is refreshing as it is disarming. Her focus on vocal harmony and her pitch-perfect vocal talent has led her toward a live-looping pedal; a digital tape-recorder at her feet that allows her to record and play back layers of vocal harmony live from the stage adding an extra dimension to an already captivating stage presence.

The Bow to The Sailor - The sea is powerful force and the call of a boat to a sailor even stronger; the need to seek employment, to provide, to protect and to fight. Sometimes the winds would blow and the men would have to sail away. There’s a strong sense of pride in the working man. Harmonies with violin, guitar in the background with percussion. The flute comes in between like the wind.

The Lament of The Black Sheep - A retelling of the classic nursery rhyme about an unfortunate black sheep who gives away the only thing he owns and is left cold and alone. The song looks at the tale from the perspective of the sheep. The song is sung as in a lullaby with a gentle guitar playing in the background. Harmonies.

The Gambler’s Lot - Years of sweat and hard labor in the hope that the inheriting generations would benefit from a sustainable life in rural Somerset and love for the land. What becomes of the land when you leave it? Refraining harmonies, guitar and the single voice. Touches of accordion.

The Daring Lassie – The story of running away from a care home in Somerset and hitchhiking to Ireland at the age of 14. She meets encouraging people but is bound for a rough life. Guitar, single voice and then an encouraging male voice replies. The violin, as it was taken, provides the background of the adventure. The flute joins in. Harmonies.

The Sailor’s Farewell – Reassuring his mother that he will be fine. If he could turn water to wine he would stay but he must go and may not return. Harmonies, guitar, violin and accordion.

The Wanting Wife - A story of a wife who sends her husband poaching and thieving in the quest for riches, only to realize that she was richer in his company. How often we miss the treasures we have! Ange’s voice with a male adding with what his saying would be. Harmonies. No instruments.

The Foolish Heir - The story of a false lover luring an unsuspecting maiden to a river on the promise of adventure, only to drown her on her own father’s land. With the promise of moving overseas unfulfilled this is the cry of the ghost now bound to the land she was so eager to escape. Song sounds that go with the tune then the guitar. The story begins.

The Woolgatherer – An absentminded profession but the heart is in the right place. Guitar. Single voice and harmonies.

The Lost soul - There was a moment toward the end of Ange’s teenage journey to Ireland where she knelt on Galway green and wept, prayed, apologized and lamented. She had gotten so much wrong and made so many mistakes. But it took the lessons she learnt on her pilgrimage to see them. It was all about laying her lost soul open. The song begins with moaning in sorrow, beautifully singing with added harmonies.

The Cull - This song was inspired by a cull protester she saw walking through Watchet dressed as a badger. For someone campaigning on a serious issue he looked like he was having quite a lot of fun. It struck her how easy it must be to get swept up in the spectacle of campaigning without really understanding the tragic and complex impact these issues often involve for everyone on the ground. Ange imagines the walk from the protest to the farmers land. The flute, like the pied piper, takes you on the walk. Listen to the adventure. A guitar adds the background.

The Tilling Bird - This is either a love song to a fine young girl or a song about a chicken. Perhaps it’s both. Ange leaves it to you to decide. She loves the imagery of both interpretations. Either way it’s about a relationship with the land. Chickens were often used to follow the plow and help to turn the soil. The Marsh Daisy is now one of the UK’s rarest breed of chicken. A guitar gently takes you along as you are being followed. Harmonies.

The Young Librarian - The Central Library in Bristol is said to be haunted. Libraries are full of ghosts; the eternal thoughts of souls long since departed but saved forever in the pages of a book. Ange, as a writer, takes comfort in knowing she’ll always leave part of herself behind... but was it ever really her choice? Classically set in a folk tune. Guitar and harmonies.

The Raising and The Letting Go - From the minute a child leaves the womb their mother is devoted toward raising them and eventually letting them go. The most loving thing a mother can do is to help their child toward independence and let them go with a smile. With my father not around that must have been so much harder for my mum. The spoons played by Jo May at the end of this song were made in Ban Naphia in Laos from the melted debris of the bombs dropped on them during the Vietnam War. An accordion plays its lonely tune and then the guitar enters. Single voice and then harmonies.

The Lullaby - Writing this album with a two-and-half year old Luke running under Ange’s feet was challenging. Luke was a baby when she released Bare Foot Folk but a toddler during this project, and the early mornings and late nights took a toll on them all! This was a song for him, though I’m sure many mothers, fathers and sisters will relate to the sentiment. As sung by the bedside, it requires no instruments. A voice and harmonies urging a little one to sleep.

In 2015, supported by public funding by the National Lottery through Arts Council England, Ange is researching, writing and performing a new body of folk music based on the life and work of the poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge. The new album ‘Esteesee’ will be released on October 4th, 2015. To find out more information about this artist go to:

http://www.angehardy.com/

Denise L. @DL7855