Monday 12 May 1969

Folk This
It All Comes Round Again
John Tams
The Reckoning
Muckram Wakes
A Map Of Derbyshire
The Red Lion
A Bit Of A Song And Dance
New Victory Band
One More Dance And Then
Kate Rusby
Hourglass
Salisbury Folk
From The Penguin Book Of English Folk Songs
The Old Hat Concert Party
Sunday 13th May 1969
Seth Lakeman
Kitty Jay
Kitty Jay Lyrics
Freedom Fields
Freedom Fields Lyrics
The White Hare
The New St. George
The Hard Times Of Old England
Prince Heathen
Frost And Fire
Bright Phoebus
History and Companion
Morning Way
Spindle
Polly On The Shore
Western Approaches
Damien Barber and The Demon Barbers
The North Star Grassman and the Ravens
Cropredy's Like That
The Garden of Jane Delawney
Nic Jones
Penguin Eggs
The Noah's Ark Trap
Bandoggs
Bandoggs: The Record
Shirley Collins
Anthems In Eden
Shelagh McDonald
Stargazer
Music From The Unbroken Circle
Gryphon
Glastonbury Carol
Mr Fox
Mr. Fox : The Album
Tiny Tin Lady
The Sound of Requiem
martha tilston
ropeswing
Moseley Folk Festival 2006
Moseley Folk Festival 2006: The Folks
Witness
ROOTS
Countrylife
Countrylife II
The Falmouth Packet / Haul Away Joe
The Setting / Mary From Dungloe
From Clare To Here
A Gift From A Flower To A Garden
1952 Vincent Black Lightning
Coope, Boyes & Simpson
Christmas Truce / Kerstbestand 1914
Passchendaele Suite
A Garland of Carols
Fire and Sleet and Candlelight
Anne Briggs
Anne Briggs : Sing A Song For You
Oak
Welcome to Our Fair Plus
Make it Folky!
A Place Called England
Ragged Heroes
Dancing at Whitsun
The Lark In The Morning
Thomas The Rhymer
Gaudete
Carthy and Swarbrick
What Time Is It Eccles?

Mothers. May 1969

Fairport Convention 1969  Unhalf outtake

...returning from a gig in Birmingham in the early hours of the 12th May, 1969, the band's van crashes killing drummer Martin Lamble ((2nd right, above) and Richard Thompson's girlfriend Jeannie Franklin. Ashley Hutchings was hospitalised for two months with acute facial injuries

Martin Lamble, drummer with Fairport Convention, was killed when the band’s van crashed on the M1 in the early hours of the morning as they returned from this gig at Mothers club in Birmingham (13th). Ashley Hutchings and Richard Thompson are injured while designer Jeannie Franklin (Thompson’s girlfriend) is also killed. Roadie Harvey Bramham, who had fallen asleep at the wheel, is later prosecuted for “dangerous driving” and serves a prison term.

Simon Nicol Remembers

" In May 1969 we'd played at Mothers in Birmingham, a nice gig. Sandy had been picked up by Trevor Lucas of Eclection (they were an item) so she wasn't in the van but the rest of us were. Our road manager and sound guy, Harvey Bramham, did most of the driving although I'd do a bit to relieve him. On this particular gig, he'd been feeling peaky all day, quite unwell.

Harvey held it together most of the way back, as far as Mill Hill on the M1 motorway. I had a bad migraine so I wasn't in a seat; I was stretched out on the floor with a blanket over my head trying to sleep off this terrible headache.

When I woke up, the van was doing things which didn't involve the wheels being in contact with the ground: when it stopped moving, I was the only one left in it. All the gear had gone out of the back and all the people had gone out through the windows and doors. It was about half-three in the morning. We'd gone down an embankment beside near the Scratchwood service area.

Everyone was spread out: some moving as they came to; some not moving at all. The emergency services rescued us pretty quickly. Jeannie Franklyn, Richard's girlfriend, was dead by the time the ambulance arrived. At the hospital, they weren't able to bring Martin Lamble back to life.

Ashley looked terrible – his face was smashed up and, as with any scalp or face wound, he was covered in blood. Richard had broken his shoulder and Harvey had gone through the windscreen and ended up ninety feet away in a very bad state. I was extremely fortunate in that I had no serious injuries, just bruises and mild concussion.

That was a big watershed, I think. In the aftermath, we thought a lot about what to do, whether to call it a day. It had been fun while it lasted but it took a definite effort of will to continue. It had given us a lot but now it had taken away a lot: was it worth it if it was going to cost people their lives? Martin was only 18 or 19 years old. He would have gone on to have been so much more than just another drummer, another musician: there was something very special about him.

Even though Sandy had not been present at the accident, she was devastated. When she visited us the day after in hospital they nearly had to admit her too because she was so distressed. I remember she was very upset about Martin for ages.

We all felt psychologically traumatised as well as being damaged physically. But by the time Ashley's face was back together and Richard's bones were healing, we'd decided to rebuild the band and carry on.

I believe the crash hung over the band in unseen ways. I think it was one of the unspoken reasons for the next big change, when Ashley decided to leave the band later that year after we had recorded Liege & Lief and relaunched the band to some fanfare and acclaim. Whatever the upfront reasons about musical differences and wanting to concentrate on traditional material, I think the accident was the underlying reason why Ashley felt he couldn't continue with us. "

Fairport Convention 1969 Unhalf outtake

Fairport Convention [click for larger image]
Richard Thompson, Sandy Denny, Simon Nicol, Martin Lamble, Ashley Hutchings

from the  Fairport Convention
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