JOHNNY CAMPBELL at The Black Swan Folk Club

Event information

First time in at The Black Swan Folk Club for Johnny Campbell who has emerged onto the UK folk scene with self-penned material, delving deep into Northern English folk song and story.
The album From Hull & Halifax & Hell (2020) took him to The Faroes where he recorded a live album on Nolsoy. Since musical instruments hadn't arrived on the islands until the 19th century, this is perhaps the first time Northern English traditional song had been recorded on these islands.
The album earned him album of the week with Blues and Roots radio and reviews with the British folk press:
''The spirit of the folk clubs in their heyday runs in his veins'' Folking.com
''I defy anyone not to be galvanised by the total integrity of his exceptional rendition of (Ewan MacColl's) Moving On Song'' The Living Tradition
''A truly entertaining work. Lose yourself in the true folk experience'' Fatea Magazine
Since March 2020, Campbell hasn't relented, releasing three singles, Hard Times of Old England, Winter Hill Trespass and A Right to Roam.
The former received play on Ian Lynch's (Lankum) Fire Draw Near podcast and Winter Hill Trespass (2021) gained national press in The Guardian.
''Nobody else seems to be doing what Campbell is doing right now, and his passion and determination deserve recognition'' - Jon Wilks
A Right to Roam (2022) is a collaboration with Commoners Choir & Skelmanthorpe Brass Band which received the accolade of 'One of the Best Folk Songs of 2022' alongside contemporaries such as Eliza Carthy, Jon Boden, Angeline Morrison & more, chosen by Tradfolk who called him ''A Modern-Day Billy Bragg''.
2024 saw Campbell releasing True North, an album of Northern English traditional songs recorded on respective county summits and garnering press from Folk on Foot & BBC Radio 4 Open Country.
Richard Thompson declared True North as one of his albums of the year in 'My Year in Music' in UNCUT Magazine and he said ''I can't think of another project quite like this!''