I remember sitting in a freezing rented cottage out in somewhere lost Suffolk, madly in love with my much missed and cherished partner, when we heard on the radio that Sandy had died. I just sat and wept and still do all these years later. Too long and forever the vinyl is is stuffed up in the loft. Yep, that says it all for one of life's under achievers late in life. Clearly she touched a lot of hearts and still does. What a voice and so much talent. I never met or saw Sandy, but I loved her as much as I loved the women in my own life. Those of us who survive and have these memories reminds me of the wonderful times, which would have been tangibly less without the Sandy's of this world. I was very fond of Dave Cousins voice and lyrics at that time, yet have no recollection of him sharing his thoughts on Sandy Thank you so much for this download.
I agree but you have to be in the mood for this kind of music like rock or rap or classical! Young people will like you one minute and f*ck you off the next
This should have millions of views! Sandy is a musical heavy weight. I’m 65, and had the privilege of seeing the heart of the Rock era take place in front of my eyes (and ears!). I’m Irish born but Canadian raised (just 90 min from Detroit! In the 60’s and 70’s! - sooo lucky!) I was a huge Fairport fan! As well as the MC5 and the Allman Brothers - I was a total “equal opportunity” listener. I ended up having 40 year career in the Canadian music industry, from performer to festival owner to radio DJ. I totally loved this! Thanks for the post! Peace
Like many,I first heard Sandy’s duet with Robert Plant on the “Battle of Evermore” I’ve never heard a more beautiful voice before or since.Some of her songs moved me to tears,and always will.R.I.P. beautiful Sandy.❤️
It isn't just her (Magical) voice, but also the songs she has written. I mean "Who Knows Where The Time Goes" - Is one of the Most Poetic, Wise and Mystical songs ever! In just a few Verses and Chords she somehow manages to Capture and Portray something of that deepest of questions that dwells at the heart of us all.
And, I might add, a very good guitar player. Playing and singing a song you have written yourself (and pulling it off) is a hallmark of real talent, dedication, and ability.
I was born long after she had died, but she was the first ever female voice who totally and utterly impressed me...my father used to listen to her a lot when I was really young...she is one of the people who made me start singing and get into music and far too few people know of her today. Thank you so much for sharing this really beautiful documentary, which so lovingly describes her without shaming her for who she was... She remains my No 1 voice idol...
You are correct in your statement. Although folk my age remember her, she has been, to all intent and purpose, 'ghosted' by the music industry, which has allowed her to totally slip from our conciousness. Hopefully folk will now start posting stuff they have of her. Have a GREAT life.
There's no sense to be made of this loss. So many angelic and beautiful souls, leave too soon. Every moment is sacred & precious. Not fade away Sandy. RIP
I engineered the audiobook of record producer Joe Boyd, which he narrated. During a break, I asked him about the first time he'd heard Sgt. Peppers. He told me he had been out at a pub with Sandy, and they went back to her place (she was living at her parents' house) to listen to it being played on (I think) Radio Belgium. So as not to wake her parents, they huddled in the coat closet, covered in coats to dampen the sound. They listened to the entire record that way. There's no real point to this story, just thought I'd share. Sounds like a great memory.
I love that story. I had a patient who was a personal friend of Sandy. I have a friend that had lunch with Joe. I love Joe’s production work, so there you go!
I have always been in awe of her many gifts. Such utterly moving and powerful music. And she could play numerous instruments, compose unforgettable songs and sing them with that voice that cannot be forgotten. I wonder where she would have gone had she not died too young.
I fell in love with Sandy Denny’s music in middle school/ high school in the early 80’s as I was growing up and becoming a then folk singer songwriter myself. I hung around the local library in Saratoga Springs, NY and checked out record albums to take home to borrow more so than books. This was my first hearing and I knew then immediately what an amazing musician she was. Her impact is so great. I am still astonished how she is not a bigger deal in the overall music world. She is a big deal in my world. I sang “Who Knows Where the Time Goes” and “Listen, Listen” quite often at Caffe Lena open mics as a teen. I was fortunate to have made acquaintances with Maartin Allcock and purchase his collection of her songs in a songbook. It is one of my most-prized possessions. Thank you so much the post of this documentary. I am grateful to the makers as well. Yours in music, Mary
Thank you so much for this long overdue masterpiece! Sandy Denny was the finest female vocalist ever. My hope for a renaissance as new generations discover her beauty and magic. The voice of an angel. I'll never forget meeting Sandy and Fairport after their concert in Trenton, NJ @ Trenton War Memorial Theater. 1974, a group of friends and I, in my metallic chrome 69 Dodge Dart Swinger, drove around and around the theater after the concert. We were so amped, the concert was so awesome! The band was in top form. We saw the band leaving the venue & going to their limo. I stopped the car in the middle of the street & we all got out & gushed WE LOVE YOU SO MUCH! YOU ARE SO GREAT! THANK YOU! THANK YOU!!! Sandy, so beautiful, with her arms full of roses, and the band were so gracious and amazing! We were so awed, we asked the band, can we buy you a cup of coffee? We were 17 years old (we couldn't buy them a drink) the band said, no we've got to get traveling. I will always have that picture in my mind & will keep it with mine. So grateful for Sandy and Fairport Convention!
Have you listened to Sandy's' Early Home Recordings'? If not then you need to give it a listen. Her singing on that is for me far supierior to anything she sang with the Strawbs/Fairport/ Fortheringay or her post '68 recorded solo stuff. Particualy her later period stuff that was well over produced by her husband Trevor Lucas!
I worked in the CD department of an electronics store back in the late 90s, I put on a copy of Unhalfbricking one day because the cover intrigued me, I fell in love with that voice immediately. R.I.P.
I was introduced to SD via Fairport Convention. Warm, lovely voice and incredible songwriter. “Who Knows Where the Time Goes” will play at my memorial service.
...Having been born in 1957, I certainly remember "the voice" and the folk movement. I was sad to hear of her struggles passing away but I read many "geniuses" encounter such. Thank you for the documentary.
Sandy was a class act. It is often forgotten that she was the ONLY guest vocalist to appear on a Led Zeppelin album, singing with Robert on "The Battle Of Evermore". LZ knew how brilliant she was. Her work with Fotheringay was as compelling as her stint with Fairport Convention. Along with Nick Drake, Sandy still remains in a field of one. Nobody has managed to replicate her and her music.
When she was alive she never got that much recognition at all.In fact she became so unconfident with herself and she became more self reckless.Which eventually killed her.
Robert Plant's collaborations with Alison Kraus offer some consolation. That man can harmonize like an angel with the right woman. And he has the good sense to know it.
Praise Sandy Denny. I am pleased to see here that every single comment that I have noticed here, is making a full effort to be sufficient praise. It baffles me how Sandy Denny could possibly have not understood the extent of her power and influence. It may be that the record companies had hopes of getting more sales. I also cant get how anyone who produces such resources ever even considers what a critic says about it. Who knows. I hope the few pennies that trickle up at least to some Sandy's friends through buying records can make up for the planets and castles and precious jewels which I am unable to pay. Furthermore, I am of the metalhead community, and it is rare that I praise folk musicians, even those of great merit. Thank you.
Best 'rockumentary' I've seen in ages. I hope it helps to generate Sandy's richly deserved rediscovery and for the uninitiated to appreciate her awesome talent.
Though a lot of people still don't know her, she'll never be forgotten; every year you can discover new fans of her. Sandy's singing is more than a legacy; it'll be in this world for many more years, just like classical music (Beethoven etc.) is! And Sandy is singing in heaven now and sensitive folks may hear that.......enuff said! Mr. RNB
Really? I've loved her music for 20 years and in that time I think ONE desert island discs guest has chosen ONE of her songs. She's hardly famed like Dylan even in her own country. Every time it seems like she's going to get some recognition the momentum just stops. Much as it did in her life, I believe. Weird.
I saw Fairport Convention at Dacorum College Hemel Hempstead in 1969. They performed tracks from What We Did On Our Holidays. Sandy Denny was superb. To date it is the most perfect gig I have been too and I’ve seen some of the biggest bands in the world.
That band with, of course, Richard Thompson, the young drummer, Martin (?) who died in that traumatic car accident, was terrific. On "Unhalfbricking", Swarb guests and adds a lot too. Great band, great interpreters of some not well known Dylan and Joni Mithcell songs, as well "Who Knows Where the Time Goes"...
I love her songwriting.. Wonderful songs about time, seasons and change. Always loved her, and i was a baby when she left this world. Whenever it gets cold I put on No End and drift away xx
Beautiful voice and what a loss...she may not have known how much she was loved by fan's here in america as I was hooked after hearing her the first time and always watched and waited for more record's as time went by...the internet has been so incredible as I found ton's of stuff I had no knowledge of or access so nirvana for an old feller like me...I still miss Sandy ..what a Lady..
Love seeing the great Sandy Denny get her due. Just wish she was still here and I can’t believe there’s no actual film footage of her with the original Fairport Convention line up.
Joni Mitchel i was a lot into and still today then came Sandy with her tone and grandiloquence in songs to whom i already been attached too, only few have this capacity to transform our life like over the distance, to reach ourselfs and give a special feeling in our hearts and chills. Sandy's not forgoten.
@Greg C246 - yes indeed - I spoke to MC in the street at Sidmouth a few years ago - an absolutely lovely man - and a very sad one atm having just lost his wife Norma.
Living in West London in the ‘70s and seeing all my favourite bands at the Hammersmith Odeon or The Rainbow I thought mistakenly it would only be a matter of time I’d get to see Sandy in concert sooner or later. I can still remember that sinking feeling I experienced when reading in the music press in 1978 that Sandy had passed away. Life can be oh so cruel sometimes. Still her legacy lives on.
I had the incredible luck to see her perform live in a small "coffeehouse " under the student union building at my small New Jersey college. She opened for Randy Newman! Five years later she was gone. Loved her...great loss.
Sandy Denny possessed the voice of life and death, perhaps best exemplified in Fairport Convention's A Sailor's Life and Fotheringay's Banks of the Nile, two epic songs mourning the loss of her lover due to tragic circumstances. Even her classic composition Who Knows Where the Time Goes that speaks of being warm with her lover, also has sad undertones about how life is fleeting and questioning why it has to be that way. It is as if there was always something unfulfilled in her and for which nothing in this world could ever satisfy. The emotional depth in her voice is too unnerving for most people, but she will always have a smaller fanatical following of devotees, myself included. I think she came off best in a group setting where she enjoyed a sense of belonging that helped redirect her natural inclination towards melancholy into a more positive outlook on life.
I first discovered Sandy Denny in 1975 when Rising For The Moon came out. I was blown away by her beautiful & unique voice..her hauntingly captivating lyrics..& her extraordinary musicianship! I can’t understand why certain people said that album wasn’t that special..because I was so mesmerized by it..I had 2 keep playing it over & over! It had some awesomely beautiful songs on it..& my all-time favorite song on that album is One More Chance..which displayed Sandy Denny’s voice so beautifully along with her incredible lyrics & the phenomenal musicianship of the band..especially Jerry Donahue’s fantastic guitar playing on that song! I will always be the BIGGEST fan of Sandy Denny & I will cherish her music 4 the rest of my life!!!
I loved sandy from the beginning both as a person and that incredible voice. Once sitting on a boat on the Norfolk broads alone with a glass of wine and listening to her. Heaven
Luckily I spent many an hour listening to her at her prime, in the Country Club, with Fairport. Wonderful moments I shall never forget. I always have time for Sandy.
The greatest non classical female voice (pace Dusty) to have emerged from England. The voice of my childhood and simply artistically and technically unparalleled. Utter beauty and artistic truth.
One of the greatest. Musicians world wide should take inspiration from such a complete artist like her. Composer, songwriter, singer. She was fantastic. We lost her too soon
Sandy was gifted, obviously a genius. I consider her the greatest female vocalist of all time. I was forty one before i came across her. I had never heard of her but i quickly became hooked on her. The power of her voice is off the scale. Her ability to go from the highest to the lowest octave and back again all the while being pitch perfect is unmatched in my opinion. There is a melancholy quality to her song writing that resonates with me. She was of course a brilliant song writer, brilliant piano player and guitarist. The first time i heard her recording of Green grow the laurels i had an out of body experience. Sandy's biggest problem was that everyone around her knew she was a genius but she never thought that she was actually any good.
I saw the Fairports in 1971 in the Fairfield Halls, Croydon, when I was 15. How bloody marvellous was Miss Denny - I probably considered myself her greatest fan, though I’m sure I wasn’t the only one. I so wanted to be able to sing her like her (such a pipe dream). Who knows what she might have gone on to achieve had she lived beyond such a tender age? Who’s watching in 2024?
Sorry to be contrary but I was at that concert too in 1971. Sandy Denny had left Fairport in 1969, the concert I saw was after the Babbercombe Lee album came out; Pegg, Mattacks, Nichol and Swarbrick. I guess you must have seen her somewhere else. I saw Sandy Denny the year before at an Alexandria Palace festival, Richard Thompson was in her backing band, marvelous.
Sadly, Sandy Denny was just before my time. I first heard her beautiful voice when I was a child, hearing my brother playing the Led Zeppelin IV album and I asked who was the female singer on 'The Battle of Evermore'? I can remember my brother's reply "Sandy Denny. She died recently, after falling downstairs". Very sad. Took me another decade or more to discover the early Fairport albums. It is only in recent years that I bought all her solo albums, Fotheringay album and box sets, with the wonderful demo versions of her songs, without the overproduction that marred her studio solo albums. She blazed a trail for other female singer-songwriters to follow, and she influenced other great artists such as Natalie Merchant, Kate Bush, Julianne Regan and Beth Orton. US artist Alela Diane wrote the beautiful 'Song For Sandy' as a tribute on her recent 'Cusp' album.
Really pleased that I "discovered" her early on and have enjoyed her stunning talents for decades. This is a truly marvelous tribute to her and something she truly deserves.. . Thank you.
I first heard of Sandy during the ‘74 tour but first listened to her in 1977, when I bought Unhalfbricking w/that awful US cover (just glad to find FC discs in Sept 1977 in Atlanta)! Anyway, been listening to her ever since. Thank you so much for making this video available. I agree w/those who assert the Fotheringay album is horribly underrated & Trevor Lucas has been unfairly vilified. However I also recall that band had a very problematical high profile gig and went on tour with a young pianist who ended up drawing unexpected accolades, Elton John.
There have been many female vocalists with wonderful voices and I like others, until I first her Sandy! She is brilliant !Best ever! What a talent and a beautiful voice! I just wished she had more commercial success and recognition! LOve you Sandy!
Fairport Convention's album Liege and Leif with Sandy up front is possibly the best English folk rock (?) album ever. Can only urge anyone who has never heard it ! do yourself a favour look for it and listen now ! .
Who knows where the time goes? Gone for too long, Sandy, but we still love you and miss you as much now as then... I can only agree with the description, "Like a crystal vase in a sink full of dirty dishes"
@@Mtnfarmer55 All good most sadly underrated. Not many documentaries on Dusty Springfield or Mary Hopkin though of course these two were more commercially successful
For me Liege and Lief was when I stopped listening to Fairport, went with Fotheringale - saw them at the Roundhouse if I recall. The Swarbrick traditional fiddle took away from the magic place that What We Did On Our Holidays promised. The band was never the same. I was privileged to see her in The Country Club, on a regular basis. I dreamed better when listening to Sandy. The orginal Fairport were simply magic. I realised that they were special, but I did not realise I would never hear better.
I'm an American who only learned of Sandy first when I saw her name on the Led Zeppelin album. I was a Tolkien reader for years already, so The Battle of Evermore was not a mystery to me. But the voice on that song was. I felt that I should know who it was because it was as if Arwen was singing with Robert Plant on that song. Two years later I heard Matty Groves on the big sound system at ESS where I worked at the time and became a fan of British Folk Rock, and Sandy Denny. By the time I caught up, I learned that she had already left this world. The late 70s were tough on a lot of earlier bands. It would have been tougher for someone like Sandy. I wish Ian Anderson had snatched her up or something - just out of love. JT could have used a female voice in its choruses.
Chris Cullen. I agree up to a point. Pure & natural yet with depth. Within the folk genre itself there were others. There are another number of singers with that otherworldly quality if more sensual & earthy. Especially a lady now long gone sadly. Minnie Ripperton of course. More a soul jazz singer I'm aware but that voice is so ethereal & sexy. A 4 octave vocal range aswell as writing some classic songs she was a session singer to many artists in the 60s. Also Chaka Khan with her earlier output
I am now 67 and only found out last week that Sandy Denny had died in 1978, having spent my whole younger life singing 'Crazy Man Michael', Fotheringhay,' 'Who Knows Where the Time Goes' and others in my bar/restaurant in Spain..... I was 22 when l left England in 1978, and had a lot on my hands raising a business & a family - l retired a year ago after a hip replacement and started looking back through the archives, and was stunned to hear of her early death.😮Sandy Denny had absolutely been my role model in my late teens & right through my twenties & thirties - l just can't understand how l never knew that she had died. Must have been too far away & too wrapped up in my own world. R.I.P Sandy🙏
Extraordinary voice and wrote some beautiful songs. Sadly, right place, wrong time. Like fellow Island artist Nick Drake she will eventually be properly appreciated.
I hadn’t been aware that this was published back in 2006 - many thanks for sharing here. I was in tears long before the end; I don’t know what the (admirably unplayed) interview*ers* said & did, but they did a superb job of eliciting moving and diverse testimonies from all the interviewees. The TH-cam comments suggest this was posted here only in 2022; so, thanks again! Obviously some potential participants are “missing” for whatever reasons (see previous commenters for some clues). Despite my being a Strawbs fan finding them somewhat “dissed” wrt Sandy’s debut band, I think “Who Knows Where The Time Goes” (all versions) is over-rated, and (as it wasn’t mentioned in this documentary) I repeat my mantra that the Byfield demo of All Our Days is Sandy’s greatest song. I know there is the orchestral Rendezvous setting (plus rare other versions which I have not yet obtained), but as I write, this (maybe mawkish) illustration is still online: th-cam.com/video/qFL-QxvA_mk/w-d-xo.html . I had to view (from a distance) the house where this was recorded: which does not appear in this video, but some light Googling should reveal it. It is so special for reasons I can’t explain.
The first time I heard Sandy was on the Bumpers sampler [Island records, price twenty nine shillings and eleven pence], the track in question being Fotheringay's 'The Sea'. Next up was a gig at the University of East Anglia circa 1971 at the time of that the North Star Grassman and the Ravens was released. Next up would have been Norwich City tech, a solo gig when 'Sandy' was released. I met her briefly and she kindly signed my albums. Tickets for that gig were 40p, a fare chunk of my pocket money at the time. I still have those LPs and I still listen to her stuff regularly. My favourite track is 'Late November' especially if I'm feeling a bit sorry for myself, as you do, HA!
A whole lotta great history and storytime.. bits and pieces.. history… love and loss.. how much she gave.. deep feels.. how much more she has to give… 💚💛🎼🧡♥️ A lot of great info between the critics and opinions.. xo
Once she had written and sung "Who Knows Where The Time Goes" she was playing catch up with herself. She was a troubled soul, but what an evocative voice. When she hits the long notes I well up, never fails. She is gone but never forgotten.
So interesting and great to hear her wonderful voice. Another performance at U of B while I was there but somehow missed. Wish I could get that back again.
I was very pleased to come across this 2006 documentary about Sandy Denny. To this day I remain shocked and saddened about Sandy's early death at the age of only 31. We all wonder what could have been had she been able to survive the strains and demands on her from the unsentimental music business. I think that the lovely Gerry Conway expresses it best: "She was very loyal to the people she was working with..... It was very important for her to have people around her she liked and trusted...." This is why , when she made her solo albums the musicians playing on it were mostly her friends from Fotheringay and Fairport Convention. I think that Martin Carthy is right when he says that managers needlessly got in her way by pushing her too hard to go solo. Fotheringay was clearly developing into something great, when Sandy left. Staying in Fotheringay with her husband Trevor, being part of the band and make solo-albums in between is not mutually exclusive. Alas, all this what if won't bring Sandy back. What we can be grateful for is Sandy's impressive body of work, whether as a member of Fairport Convention, Fotheringay or as a solo-artist. I am still struggling who to call the greatest female songwriter/singer: Sandy Denny or Joni Mitchell.
@@crapitoutjim2616 Of course, but I'm not a "purist". An artist doesn't need to be the writer of a particular piece in order to perform it perfectly. Sandy was no Richard Thompson. His original songs are almost uniformly spectacular but his singing leaves a lot to be desired. His guitar playing, on the other hand, can transform a traditional ballad into sheer heaven.
![The Legend Lives on// A music revolution [Bob Marley] Full history.](/img/n.gif)
I remember sitting in a freezing rented cottage out in somewhere lost Suffolk, madly in love with my much missed and cherished partner, when we heard on the radio that Sandy had died. I just sat and wept and still do all these years later. Too long and forever the vinyl is is stuffed up in the loft. Yep, that says it all for one of life's under achievers late in life. Clearly she touched a lot of hearts and still does. What a voice and so much talent. I never met or saw Sandy, but I loved her as much as I loved the women in my own life. Those of us who survive and have these memories reminds me of the wonderful times, which would have been tangibly less without the Sandy's of this world.
I was very fond of Dave Cousins voice and lyrics at that time, yet have no recollection of him sharing his thoughts on Sandy
Thank you so much for this download.
Sandy Denny is still one of the preeminent voices in any genre to come out of Britain. She is not forgotten, never forgotten.
I agree but you have to be in the mood for this kind of music like rock or rap or classical! Young people will like you one minute and f*ck you off the next
She never had such great accolades bestowed on her in her time on earth.Why does it take decades to give her huge credit now ????????
@@nw8000 Right that’s human nature.
@@alfching2499 Is that one of her songs? Sounds great!
@@alfching2499 The audience of that time was more fickle that it is now
This should have millions of views! Sandy is a musical heavy weight. I’m 65, and had the privilege of seeing the heart of the Rock era take place in front of my eyes (and ears!). I’m Irish born but Canadian raised (just 90 min from Detroit! In the 60’s and 70’s! - sooo lucky!)
I was a huge Fairport fan! As well as the MC5 and the Allman Brothers - I was a total “equal opportunity” listener.
I ended up having 40 year career in the Canadian music industry, from performer to festival owner to radio DJ.
I totally loved this!
Thanks for the post!
Peace
Like many,I first heard Sandy’s duet with Robert Plant on the “Battle of Evermore”
I’ve never heard a more beautiful voice before or since.Some of her songs moved me to tears,and always will.R.I.P. beautiful Sandy.❤️
Beautifully duet! I couldn’t agree more.
Oh yes: it's heartbreaking and a pity Sandy's gone sooo young...and her songs are drawing my tears...😢
agree
It isn't just her (Magical) voice, but also the songs she has written. I mean "Who Knows Where The Time Goes" - Is one of the Most Poetic, Wise and Mystical songs ever! In just a few Verses and Chords she somehow manages to Capture and Portray something of that deepest of questions that dwells at the heart of us all.
she did this other song called "Nothing More" w/ a group called Fotheringay following Fairport Convention. love it just as much as W.K.W.T.G.
And, I might add, a very good guitar player. Playing and singing a song you have written yourself (and pulling it off) is a hallmark of real talent, dedication, and ability.
Sandys voice has a magic that is extremly rare. Incomparable.
I was born long after she had died, but she was the first ever female voice who totally and utterly impressed me...my father used to listen to her a lot when I was really young...she is one of the people who made me start singing and get into music and far too few people know of her today. Thank you so much for sharing this really beautiful documentary, which so lovingly describes her without shaming her for who she was... She remains my No 1 voice idol...
You have excellent taste, my dear.
You are correct in your statement. Although folk my age remember her, she has been, to all intent and purpose, 'ghosted' by the music industry, which has allowed her to totally slip from our conciousness.
Hopefully folk will now start posting stuff they have of her.
Have a GREAT life.
Great comment, and likewise I was weened on music like this
Check out Lisa Hannigan if you haven’t already.
@@bid84 I will, thanks for the tip!
Her voice was magical. In 44 years, no one has replaced her. No one ever will.
Judy Collins did, basically.
@@nonenoneonenonenone I completely disagree, No offense to Judy Collins but she and Sandy Denny are in such different camps.
Agree with you completely！
Fairport Convention, with Sandy totally blew me away. I still have those CDs, fifty years later.
Eva Cassidy had a beautiful voice too. Unfortunately, she is gone too.
There's no sense to be made of this loss. So many angelic and beautiful souls, leave too soon. Every moment is sacred & precious. Not fade away Sandy. RIP
I can't understand how she isn't better known. Her voice lives inside of the listener like no other voice ever has.
I engineered the audiobook of record producer Joe Boyd, which he narrated. During a break, I asked him about the first time he'd heard Sgt. Peppers. He told me he had been out at a pub with Sandy, and they went back to her place (she was living at her parents' house) to listen to it being played on (I think) Radio Belgium. So as not to wake her parents, they huddled in the coat closet, covered in coats to dampen the sound. They listened to the entire record that way.
There's no real point to this story, just thought I'd share. Sounds like a great memory.
Yes, I love and understand your story, you are an intimate piece of music history and thank you for that lovely piece of memory!
I love that story. I had a patient who was a personal friend of Sandy. I have a friend that had lunch with Joe. I love Joe’s production work, so there you go!
@@dr.buzzvonjellar8862 Engineering his audiobook was like having a private reading!
Wow. Thanks for sharing!!!
read the book called White Bicycles
I have always been in awe of her many gifts. Such utterly moving and powerful music. And she could play numerous instruments, compose unforgettable songs and sing them with that voice that cannot be forgotten. I wonder where she would have gone had she not died too young.
Sandy had a voice I could listen to all day and not grow tired of hearing her. RIP you beautiful, talented lady.
I fell in love with Sandy Denny’s music in middle school/ high school in the early 80’s as I was growing up and becoming a then folk singer songwriter myself. I hung around the local library in Saratoga Springs, NY and checked out record albums to take home to borrow more so than books. This was my first hearing and I knew then immediately what an amazing musician she was. Her impact is so great. I am still astonished how she is not a bigger deal in the overall music world. She is a big deal in my world. I sang “Who Knows Where the Time Goes” and “Listen, Listen” quite often at Caffe Lena open mics as a teen.
I was fortunate to have made acquaintances with Maartin Allcock and purchase his collection of her songs in a songbook. It is one of my most-prized possessions.
Thank you so much the post of this documentary. I am grateful to the makers as well.
Yours in music,
Mary
Thank you so much for this long overdue masterpiece! Sandy Denny was the finest female vocalist ever. My hope for a renaissance as new generations discover her beauty and magic. The voice of an angel. I'll never forget meeting Sandy and Fairport after their concert in Trenton, NJ @ Trenton War Memorial Theater. 1974, a group of friends and I, in my metallic chrome 69 Dodge Dart Swinger, drove around and around the theater after the concert. We were so amped, the concert was so awesome! The band was in top form. We saw the band leaving the venue & going to their limo. I stopped the car in the middle of the street & we all got out & gushed WE LOVE YOU SO MUCH! YOU ARE SO GREAT! THANK YOU! THANK YOU!!! Sandy, so beautiful, with her arms full of roses, and the band were so gracious and amazing! We were so awed, we asked the band, can we buy you a cup of coffee? We were 17 years old (we couldn't buy them a drink) the band said, no we've got to get traveling. I will always have that picture in my mind & will keep it with mine. So grateful for Sandy and Fairport Convention!
Thank you for making this documentary. May it be the first of many to pay tribute to Sandy's great talent. RIP Sandy Denny.
Her phrasing and her purity give me shivers.
Yes, every time I listen to her.
Have you listened to Sandy's' Early Home Recordings'? If not then you need to give it a listen. Her singing on that is for me far supierior to anything she sang with the Strawbs/Fairport/ Fortheringay or her post '68 recorded solo stuff. Particualy her later period stuff that was well over produced by her husband Trevor Lucas!
I worked in the CD department of an electronics store back in the late 90s, I put on a copy of Unhalfbricking one day because the cover intrigued me, I fell in love with that voice immediately. R.I.P.
When Autopsy switches from 5/4 it just captivates me
I was introduced to SD via Fairport Convention. Warm, lovely voice and incredible songwriter. “Who Knows Where the Time Goes” will play at my memorial service.
Unbelievable song , so beautiful 🎸
Mine, too ❤️
Not even her best song by a country mile!
@@emmettmckenna4565 Name some that are better. She was 18 or 19 when she wrote that song.
I was lucky enough to see her live three times after my intro to Fairport in 1972. A female singer/songwriter beyond compare.
A little taste of heaven on earth I'm sure!!
one great voice, such power, managed to see her live just before she died, unforgettable
Thank you for helping us to remember her greatness!
...Having been born in 1957, I certainly remember "the voice" and the folk movement. I was sad to hear of her struggles passing away but I read many "geniuses" encounter such. Thank you for the documentary.
Sandy was a class act. It is often forgotten that she was the ONLY guest vocalist to appear on a Led Zeppelin album, singing with Robert on "The Battle Of Evermore".
LZ knew how brilliant she was. Her work with Fotheringay was as compelling as her stint with Fairport Convention.
Along with Nick Drake, Sandy still remains in a field of one. Nobody has managed to replicate her and her music.
When she was alive she never got that much recognition at all.In fact she became so unconfident with herself and she became more self reckless.Which eventually killed her.
Incredible person and voice
I totally agree.
Robert Plant's collaborations with Alison Kraus offer some consolation. That man can harmonize like an angel with the right woman. And he has the good sense to know it.
It’s not forgotten it’s the main reason most people know who she is
Praise Sandy Denny. I am pleased to see here that every single comment that I have noticed here, is making a full effort to be sufficient praise. It baffles me how Sandy Denny could possibly have not understood the extent of her power and influence. It may be that the record companies had hopes of getting more sales. I also cant get how anyone who produces such resources ever even considers what a critic says about it. Who knows. I hope the few pennies that trickle up at least to some Sandy's friends through buying records can make up for the planets and castles and precious jewels which I am unable to pay. Furthermore, I am of the metalhead community, and it is rare that I praise folk musicians, even those of great merit. Thank you.
Best 'rockumentary' I've seen in ages. I hope it helps to generate Sandy's richly deserved rediscovery and for the uninitiated to appreciate her awesome talent.
I fell in love when I listened to her voice, she was really fantastic.
Though a lot of people still don't know her, she'll never be forgotten; every year you can discover new fans of her. Sandy's singing is more than a legacy; it'll be in this world for many more years, just like classical music (Beethoven etc.) is! And Sandy is singing in heaven now and sensitive folks may hear that.......enuff said! Mr. RNB
I'm so glad they made this while John Renbourn was still alive so his observations could be recorded. Brilliant musician.
Sandy Denny unsung? She's like easily the most famous folk singer of all time! A total legend.
Only in England. Unfortunately.
@@jimmcintyre720 She's not forgotten and is still loved in Italy too.
Really? I've loved her music for 20 years and in that time I think ONE desert island discs guest has chosen ONE of her songs. She's hardly famed like Dylan even in her own country. Every time it seems like she's going to get some recognition the momentum just stops. Much as it did in her life, I believe. Weird.
@@LH-kr4od I mean, great as she was, she hardly contributed as much as Dylan...not really a fair comparison.
@@BenLubin She had a much better voice than Dylan.
I saw Fairport Convention at Dacorum College Hemel Hempstead in 1969. They performed tracks from What We Did On Our Holidays. Sandy Denny was superb. To date it is the most perfect gig I have been too and I’ve seen some of the biggest bands in the world.
That band with, of course, Richard Thompson, the young drummer, Martin (?) who died in that traumatic car accident, was terrific. On "Unhalfbricking", Swarb guests and adds a lot too. Great band, great interpreters of some not well known Dylan and Joni Mithcell songs, as well "Who Knows Where the Time Goes"...
Martin Lamble. So much potential lost!
I love her songwriting.. Wonderful songs about time, seasons and change. Always loved her, and i was a baby when she left this world. Whenever it gets cold I put on No End and drift away xx
Beautiful voice and what a loss...she may not have known how much she was loved by fan's here in america as I was hooked after hearing her the first time and always watched and waited for more record's as time went by...the internet has been so incredible as I found ton's of stuff I had no knowledge of or access so nirvana for an old feller like me...I still miss Sandy ..what a Lady..
Love seeing the great Sandy Denny get her due. Just wish she was still here and I can’t believe there’s no actual film footage of her with the original Fairport Convention line up.
But we DO have footage of Fotheringay, which is something, at least
Put "WHITE DRESS (LIVE) - FAIRPORT CONVENTION" in the search bar.
@@TorkG8 It's breathtaking...all one minute something. But that's not the original line up from the late '60's. It's from '75 Stillpeerlesss though!!!
@@deborahrobertson8606 Yeah, sorry to disappoint, I had just watched it though and wanted to share with someone. 🤭
@@TorkG8 You haven' disappointed! That fragment is so precious. It eclipses countless hours of other artists. Many thanks !
Joni Mitchel i was a lot into and still today then came Sandy with her tone and grandiloquence in songs to whom i already been attached too, only few have this capacity to transform our life like over the distance, to reach ourselfs and give a special feeling in our hearts and chills. Sandy's not forgoten.
Martin Carthy,a wise sentient man,and a gift to music.His daughter Eliza,is an awesome talent.
@Greg C246 - yes indeed - I spoke to MC in the street at Sidmouth a few years ago - an absolutely lovely man - and a very sad one atm having just lost his wife Norma.
Living in West London in the ‘70s and seeing all my favourite bands at the Hammersmith Odeon or The Rainbow I thought mistakenly it would only be a matter of time I’d get to see Sandy in concert sooner or later. I can still remember that sinking feeling I experienced when reading in the music press in 1978 that Sandy had passed away. Life can be oh so cruel sometimes. Still her legacy lives on.
I love you for posting this, she is my favorite singer of all time
I had the incredible luck to see her perform live in a small "coffeehouse " under the student union building at my small New Jersey college. She opened for Randy Newman! Five years later she was gone. Loved her...great loss.
Sandy Denny possessed the voice of life and death, perhaps best exemplified in Fairport Convention's A Sailor's Life and Fotheringay's Banks of the Nile, two epic songs mourning the loss of her lover due to tragic circumstances. Even her classic composition Who Knows Where the Time Goes that speaks of being warm with her lover, also has sad undertones about how life is fleeting and questioning why it has to be that way. It is as if there was always something unfulfilled in her and for which nothing in this world could ever satisfy. The emotional depth in her voice is too unnerving for most people, but she will always have a smaller fanatical following of devotees, myself included. I think she came off best in a group setting where she enjoyed a sense of belonging that helped redirect her natural inclination towards melancholy into a more positive outlook on life.
I first discovered Sandy Denny in 1975 when Rising For The Moon came out. I was blown away by her beautiful & unique voice..her hauntingly captivating lyrics..& her extraordinary musicianship! I can’t understand why certain people said that album wasn’t that special..because I was so mesmerized by it..I had 2 keep playing it over & over! It had some awesomely beautiful songs on it..& my all-time favorite song on that album is One More Chance..which displayed Sandy Denny’s voice so beautifully along with her incredible lyrics & the phenomenal musicianship of the band..especially Jerry Donahue’s fantastic guitar playing on that song! I will always be the BIGGEST fan of Sandy Denny & I will cherish her music 4 the rest of my life!!!
I loved sandy from the beginning both as a person and that incredible voice. Once sitting on a boat on the Norfolk broads alone with a glass of wine and listening to her. Heaven
Definitely sounds like heaven!
This has been a wonderful memory documentary. I loved Sandy Denny.
She moves through the fair is still a classic that have loved since day 1 X
Luckily I spent many an hour listening to her at her prime, in the Country Club, with Fairport. Wonderful moments I shall never forget. I always have time for Sandy.
The greatest non classical female voice (pace Dusty) to have emerged from England. The voice of my childhood and simply artistically and technically unparalleled. Utter beauty and artistic truth.
One of the greatest. Musicians world wide should take inspiration from such a complete artist like her. Composer, songwriter, singer. She was fantastic. We lost her too soon
oh joy of joys! Thanks a million for uploading this.
If God ever invented anything sweeter than Sandy's voice, he kept it for himself.
never heard this voice before she is so pure to folk music beautiful sorry i missed her in life
Still love you Sandy. Gone, but, will never be forgotten, unlike 86 year old me. So sad you dies so young and so tragically. January, 2023.
A very talented beautiful legend 💕 A great pianist and guitar player with her crystal bell voice that reached Led Zeppelin too
Sandy was gifted, obviously a genius. I consider her the greatest female vocalist of all time. I was forty one before i came across her. I had never heard of her but i quickly became hooked on her. The power of her voice is off the scale. Her ability to go from the highest to the lowest octave and back again all the while being pitch perfect is unmatched in my opinion. There is a melancholy quality to her song writing that resonates with me. She was of course a brilliant song writer, brilliant piano player and guitarist. The first time i heard her recording of Green grow the laurels i had an out of body experience. Sandy's biggest problem was that everyone around her knew she was a genius but she never thought that she was actually any good.
Love Martin's enthusiasm for music. He's one the greatest musicians that this country has produced. Lovely, genuine, sincere man.
My favourite voice in all of music. Thanks for this great video.
What a voice, what a life, what a documentary! Bless you all
I saw the Fairports in 1971 in the Fairfield Halls, Croydon, when I was 15. How bloody marvellous was Miss Denny - I probably considered myself her greatest fan, though I’m sure I wasn’t the only one. I so wanted to be able to sing her like her (such a pipe dream). Who knows what she might have gone on to achieve had she lived beyond such a tender age? Who’s watching in 2024?
Sorry to be contrary but I was at that concert too in 1971. Sandy Denny had left Fairport in 1969, the concert I saw was after the Babbercombe Lee album came out; Pegg, Mattacks, Nichol and Swarbrick. I guess you must have seen her somewhere else. I saw Sandy Denny the year before at an Alexandria Palace festival, Richard Thompson was in her backing band, marvelous.
Sadly, Sandy Denny was just before my time. I first heard her beautiful voice when I was a child, hearing my brother playing the Led Zeppelin IV album and I asked who was the female singer on 'The Battle of Evermore'? I can remember my brother's reply "Sandy Denny. She died recently, after falling downstairs". Very sad. Took me another decade or more to discover the early Fairport albums. It is only in recent years that I bought all her solo albums, Fotheringay album and box sets, with the wonderful demo versions of her songs, without the overproduction that marred her studio solo albums.
She blazed a trail for other female singer-songwriters to follow, and she influenced other great artists such as Natalie Merchant, Kate Bush, Julianne Regan and Beth Orton. US artist Alela Diane wrote the beautiful 'Song For Sandy' as a tribute on her recent 'Cusp' album.
Sandy had a lovely voice. Loved her music. Magical .
I still miss Sandy. The voice of an angel, great songwriter, sensitive, powerful, unforgettable. 🙏
Such a beautiful sadness and melancholy in her voice.....
Really pleased that I "discovered" her early on and have enjoyed her stunning talents for decades. This is a truly marvelous tribute to her and something she truly deserves.. . Thank you.
I first heard of Sandy during the ‘74 tour but first listened to her in 1977, when I bought Unhalfbricking w/that awful US cover (just glad to find FC discs in Sept 1977 in Atlanta)! Anyway, been listening to her ever since.
Thank you so much for making this video available. I agree w/those who assert the Fotheringay album is horribly underrated & Trevor Lucas has been unfairly vilified. However I also recall that band had a very problematical high profile gig and went on tour with a young pianist who ended up drawing unexpected accolades, Elton John.
North Star Grassman is my favourite by far. Many haunting songs, images and lyrics.
Over intellectualizing music is a generally a game for people who mostly lack talent. Sandy Denny was a pure artist so none of that was necessary.
I am still listening to her! So sweet.
There have been many female vocalists with wonderful voices and I like others, until I first her Sandy! She is brilliant !Best ever! What a talent and a beautiful voice! I just wished she had more commercial success and recognition! LOve you Sandy!
Fairport Convention's album Liege and Leif with Sandy up front is possibly the best English folk rock (?) album ever. Can only urge anyone who has never heard it ! do yourself a favour look for it and listen now ! .
Incomparable ❤
Who knows where the time goes? Gone for too long, Sandy, but we still love you and miss you as much now as then...
I can only agree with the description, "Like a crystal vase in a sink full of dirty dishes"
Loved Sandy since I discovered her in 1984!
Please do a documentary like this on Kate Bush and Annie Haslam from Renaissance
Add Maddy Prior, Jacque McShee and Marie Brennan to that wonderful list.
Kate Bush mentions Sandy Denny in her song "Blow Away (For Bill)"
@@Mtnfarmer55 All good most sadly underrated. Not many documentaries on Dusty Springfield or Mary Hopkin though of course these two were more commercially successful
@@Mtnfarmer55 Totally agree
Sandy is the Queen. Back in 1970 at the University of Missouri I had some buddies who took LSD one night & listened to Matty Groves 57 times in a row.
Time well spent...I say
😂
For me Liege and Lief was when I stopped listening to Fairport, went with Fotheringale - saw them at the Roundhouse if I recall. The Swarbrick traditional fiddle took away from the magic place that What We Did On Our Holidays promised. The band was never the same. I was privileged to see her in The Country Club, on a regular basis. I dreamed better when listening to Sandy. The orginal Fairport were simply magic. I realised that they were special, but I did not realise I would never hear better.
I never heard of her, but I will honor her now. She is good.
I'm an American who only learned of Sandy first when I saw her name on the Led Zeppelin album. I was a Tolkien reader for years already, so The Battle of Evermore was not a mystery to me. But the voice on that song was. I felt that I should know who it was because it was as if Arwen was singing with Robert Plant on that song. Two years later I heard Matty Groves on the big sound system at ESS where I worked at the time and became a fan of British Folk Rock, and Sandy Denny. By the time I caught up, I learned that she had already left this world. The late 70s were tough on a lot of earlier bands. It would have been tougher for someone like Sandy. I wish Ian Anderson had snatched her up or something - just out of love. JT could have used a female voice in its choruses.
the only 3 humans on the planet ive heard sing like that,joni mitchell judy collins and her, beautiful depth and resonance in her voice
Chris Cullen. I agree up to a point. Pure & natural yet with depth. Within the folk genre itself there were others. There are another number of singers with that otherworldly quality if more sensual & earthy. Especially a lady now long gone sadly. Minnie Ripperton of course. More a soul jazz singer I'm aware but that voice is so ethereal & sexy. A 4 octave vocal range aswell as writing some classic songs she was a session singer to many artists in the 60s. Also Chaka Khan with her earlier output
@@richardingamells7213 Dont forget Joan Beaz too!
Folk music was so big in the early 60’s.
I am now 67 and only found out last week that Sandy Denny had died in 1978, having spent my whole younger life singing 'Crazy Man Michael', Fotheringhay,' 'Who Knows Where the Time Goes' and others in my bar/restaurant in Spain..... I was 22 when l left England in 1978, and had a lot on my hands raising a business & a family - l retired a year ago after a hip replacement and started looking back through the archives, and was stunned to hear of her early death.😮Sandy Denny had absolutely been my role model in my late teens & right through my twenties & thirties - l just can't understand how l never knew that she had died. Must have been too far away & too wrapped up in my own world. R.I.P Sandy🙏
I wanted to learn about her so much. Thanks for this
Extraordinary voice and wrote some beautiful songs. Sadly, right place, wrong time. Like fellow Island artist Nick Drake she will eventually be properly appreciated.
When there Dead it’s too Late.
I hadn’t been aware that this was published back in 2006 - many thanks for sharing here. I was in tears long before the end; I don’t know what the (admirably unplayed) interview*ers* said & did, but they did a superb job of eliciting moving and diverse testimonies from all the interviewees. The TH-cam comments suggest this was posted here only in 2022; so, thanks again! Obviously some potential participants are “missing” for whatever reasons (see previous commenters for some clues). Despite my being a Strawbs fan finding them somewhat “dissed” wrt Sandy’s debut band, I think “Who Knows Where The Time Goes” (all versions) is over-rated, and (as it wasn’t mentioned in this documentary) I repeat my mantra that the Byfield demo of All Our Days is Sandy’s greatest song. I know there is the orchestral Rendezvous setting (plus rare other versions which I have not yet obtained), but as I write, this (maybe mawkish) illustration is still online: th-cam.com/video/qFL-QxvA_mk/w-d-xo.html . I had to view (from a distance) the house where this was recorded: which does not appear in this video, but some light Googling should reveal it. It is so special for reasons I can’t explain.
The first time I heard Sandy was on the Bumpers sampler [Island records, price twenty nine shillings and eleven pence], the track in question being Fotheringay's 'The Sea'. Next up was a gig at the University of East Anglia circa 1971 at the time of that the North Star Grassman and the Ravens was released. Next up would have been Norwich City tech, a solo gig when 'Sandy' was released. I met her briefly and she kindly signed my albums. Tickets for that gig were 40p, a fare chunk of my pocket money at the time. I still have those LPs and I still listen to her stuff regularly. My favourite track is 'Late November' especially if I'm feeling a bit sorry for myself, as you do, HA!
Those were my favorite bands at the time.Many years later,I covered "Mattie Groves"rap/reggae style.Her voice was incredible.Thank you for this
Beautifully talented Sandy a sensitive soul that is so missed ,I love when Robert plant mentions her ..warms my heart .
Her double album Flight she recorded with Roger McGuinn and Roy Harper still has to be released,beyond the bootleg version.~Please reissue!
Speaking of "Like An Old Fashioned Waltz", "No End" is one of the best ending songs from any album.
Agree 100%
'No End' is a beautiful song, but I much prefer the solo piano version to the over produced album recording.
An extraordinary voice.
Who Knows Where the Time Goes is about my most favorite song in the world!
I would like to see a doc about PENTANGLE
Been a fan of Sandy since the 60s. Loved her voice and her music. Good docu, but no Richard Thompson, no Ashley Hutchings, no Simon Nicol? Why?
My uncle was a friend of hers and has told me many stories. Her last days were very sad.
Any musician who dies that young has to be significant !!!
A whole lotta great history and storytime.. bits and pieces.. history… love and loss.. how much she gave.. deep feels.. how much more she has to give… 💚💛🎼🧡♥️ A lot of great info between the critics and opinions.. xo
Once she had written and sung "Who Knows Where The Time Goes" she was playing catch up with herself. She was a troubled soul, but what an evocative voice.
When she hits the long notes I well up, never fails.
She is gone but never forgotten.
I like the weird High Vocals she contributed to the Led Zeppelin song Battle of Evermore, she sends the track over the edge
So interesting and great to hear her wonderful voice. Another performance at U of B while I was there but somehow missed. Wish I could get that back again.
Love love love there will never be another
I was very pleased to come across this 2006 documentary about Sandy Denny. To this day I remain shocked and saddened about Sandy's early death at the age of only 31. We all wonder what could have been had she been able to survive the strains and demands on her from the unsentimental music business.
I think that the lovely Gerry Conway expresses it best: "She was very loyal to the people she was working with..... It was very important for her to have people around her she liked and trusted...." This is why , when she made her solo albums the musicians playing on it were mostly her friends from Fotheringay and Fairport Convention.
I think that Martin Carthy is right when he says that managers needlessly got in her way by pushing her too hard to go solo. Fotheringay was clearly developing into something great, when Sandy left. Staying in Fotheringay with her husband Trevor, being part of the band and make solo-albums in between is not mutually exclusive. Alas, all this what if won't bring Sandy back. What we can be grateful for is Sandy's impressive body of work, whether as a member of Fairport Convention, Fotheringay or as a solo-artist. I am still struggling who to call the greatest female songwriter/singer: Sandy Denny or Joni Mitchell.
She sung so well. Easily one of the greatest vocalist to me. My favorite songs are “I’ll Keep it with Mine” and demos of “By the Time it gets Dark”.
Reynardine and Blackwaterside still do it for me. Also, She Moved Through the Fair. Shivers.
jabbermocky totally agree, however she didn't write 'She Moves Through The Fair'', it was a traditional song arranged by various musicians
@@crapitoutjim2616 Of course, but I'm not a "purist". An artist doesn't need to be the writer of a particular piece in order to perform it perfectly. Sandy was no Richard Thompson. His original songs are almost uniformly spectacular but his singing leaves a lot to be desired. His guitar playing, on the other hand, can transform a traditional ballad into sheer heaven.
'I'm a Dreamer' might be my favourite... but there are so many
the full band version of By the Time is EVERYTHING.
I love that Fotheringay record. And I love Trevor Lucas's voice. It's weird that he is so often dismissed.
He went back to Australia with his daughter.
Beautiful nothing else to say ❤
First live gig I attended was Fairport in 1968. Only rarely as moved by a performance since.