Show of Hands’ inspired frontman Steve Knightley, hailed as one of England’s finest songwriters, sets

out on a UK tour this month in support of his debut live solo album Live

in Somerset.

The month long 24-date tour comes to Hitchin on Sunday 6th

February at Hitchin Folk Club (01462

812391).

 His

special guest will be fellow Devon musician Jim Causley, the rich-voiced, award-nominated former frontman of

the band Mawkin:Causley.

Live in Somerset was recorded at The David Hall in the village

of South Petherton – a former 19th

century Congregational church. Says Knightley: “The David Hall was the perfect

acoustic space in which to capture the live sound.”

Pete Wheeler of Petherton Arts Trust said:  “It was a tremendous coup for the Hall and

sold out very quickly. We always look forward to Steve’s performances and for

him to choose to record his first live solo album in our company was a great

compliment.”

Live in Somerset,

due to be released at the end of January, 

follows on from Knightley’s stunningly sparse solo album Cruel River (2007) and Track of Words Retraced (2009) which revisited  and “deconstructed” his first solo album of a

decade earlier.

The 11-track album melds stand-out Knightley originals and

new songs with his unique take on some traditional folk songs  including The

Oakham Poachers , Banks and Braes, All Things Are Quite Silent and the Dick Gaughan/Brian

McNeill penned John Harrison’s Hands,

about the 18th century English clockmaker who invented the  revolutionary marine chronometer.

Also included are Knightley’s captivating Hook of Love , new song Now You Know , a knee jerk reaction to

our loss of “real” communication Stop

Copying Me and the short but achingly poignant Informed (Coming Home). Intriguingly , he also seques  the Show of Hands standard Country Life with Springsteen’s raw lament

to a lost spouse Downbound Train. Song samples from the album can be found at

www.showofhands.co.uk

Knightley won the Best

Original Song accolade at the 2010 BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards for the topical

title track of Show of Hands’ last studio album, Arrogance Ignorance and Greed, a  heartfelt tirade against bankers and bonuses,

MPs and expenses, which not surprisingly continues to resonate with most of the

population!  Together with his long-term

musical partner and dazzling multi instrumentalist Phil Beer, Knightley also won the Best Duo title.

Steve, whose “Songbook 4” was recently published, is a savvy

wordsmith. He writes most of the material for the increasingly popular Show of

Hands including classics like Country Life and Roots, both also nominated

for Best Original Song at previous BBC Folk Awards. A skilled musician, he also

plays numerous instruments from guitar to mandocello and South American cuatro.

Meanwhile,

special guest Jim Causley will also be

releasing a new album for the tour. Dumnonia

is his third solo album and is a collection of lesser known Devon gems, both

traditional and contemporary. He is joined on the album by fellow Devon folk

artists including Nick Wyke and Becki Driscoll and the Dartmoor Pixie Band. (Dumnonia refers to the ancient Celtic kingdom comprising present day

Cornwall, Devon, Dorset and most of Somerset.)

 

“One of

England’s greatest singer songwriters” - Mike Harding, BBC Radio 2

“Knightley dares

to tackle subjects other songwriters leave well alone – his best songs are bleak,

witty and finely observed” -The Guardian

“A folk legend” – BBC Music

“Touching emotional literacy” –

Daily Telegraph