Jim Moray At Stoller Hall, Manchester

Should you care to look back over the past two decades of British folk music, one musician in particular stands out for having a singular, idiosyncratic vision that has rarely wavered in style and substance. Jim Moray may have garnered initial attention for his digitally-driven approach to traditional music, but reflecting on his seven albums and numerous production credits it’s clear that imagination and invention are the real cornerstones of his work. The cinematic vision of albums such as Skulk (2012), Upcetera (2016), and his game-changing debut Sweet England (2003) show just how far the old songs can be taken. His arrangements of traditional songs such as ‘Gilderoy’, ‘Horkstow Grange’ and ‘Fair Margaret and Sweet William’ are regarded as amongst the classics of the folk genre, while his treatment of the ballad ‘Lord Douglas’ has become a must-learn for fingerstyle guitarists.