![The Copper Family](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/20/The_Copper_Family.png)
The Copper Family are a family of singers of traditional, unaccompanied English
folk song
Folk music is a music genre that includes #Traditional folk music, traditional folk music and the Contemporary folk music, contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be c ...
. Originally from
Rottingdean
Rottingdean is a village in the city of Brighton and Hove, on the south coast of England. It borders the villages of Saltdean, Ovingdean and Woodingdean, and has a historic centre, often the subject of picture postcards.
Name
The name Rottingde ...
, near
Brighton
Brighton () is a seaside resort and one of the two main areas of the City of Brighton and Hove in the county of East Sussex, England. It is located south of London.
Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze A ...
,
Sussex
Sussex (), from the Old English (), is a historic county in South East England that was formerly an independent medieval Anglo-Saxon kingdom. It is bounded to the west by Hampshire, north by Surrey, northeast by Kent, south by the English ...
,
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
, the nucleus of the family now live in the neighbouring village of
Peacehaven
Peacehaven is a town and civil parish in the Lewes district of East Sussex, England. It is located above the chalk cliffs of the South Downs approximately six miles () east of Brighton city centre, on the A259 road. Its site coincides with th ...
. The family first came to the attention of folklorists in the late nineteenth century and received wider attention during the
folk revival
The American folk music revival began during the 1940s and peaked in popularity in the mid-1960s. Its roots went earlier, and performers like Josh White, Burl Ives, Woody Guthrie, Lead Belly, Big Bill Broonzy, Billie Holiday, Richard Dyer-Benn ...
of the 1960s.
They have a unique style of harmonised
a capella
''A cappella'' (, also , ; ) music is a performance by a singer or a singing group without instrumental accompaniment, or a piece intended to be performed in this way. The term ''a cappella'' was originally intended to differentiate between Rena ...
singing, which is in stark contrast to the typical style of solo singing found among English folk singers.
It is unknown whether this style is a remnant of something that was once popular, or if it is a unique phenomenon.
Unlike many
traditional singers, the family wrote down their own songs.
Their unusual singing style has been passed down through several generations along with their huge repertoire of local songs.
History
The Copper family has lived in
Rottingdean
Rottingdean is a village in the city of Brighton and Hove, on the south coast of England. It borders the villages of Saltdean, Ovingdean and Woodingdean, and has a historic centre, often the subject of picture postcards.
Name
The name Rottingde ...
since the sixteenth century, where they have worked as farm bailiffs, publicans, policemen and occasionally as soldiers.
The songs are thought to have been passed down for hundreds of years; George Copper, born in Rottingdean in 1784, was a celebrated singer in the village. Some of the songs which remain in the family, including "The Shepherd of the Downs" (
Roud 1215) were taught by George Copper to his grandson James ‘Brasser’ Copper (1845–1924), who passed them on.
Rudyard Kipling
Joseph Rudyard Kipling ( ; 30 December 1865 – 18 January 1936)''The Times'', (London) 18 January 1936, p. 12. was an English novelist, short-story writer, poet, and journalist. He was born in British India, which inspired much of his work.
...
, who lived in Rottingdean, was familiar with the family and mentioned them in
Rewards and Fairies
''Rewards and Fairies'' is a historical fantasy book by Rudyard Kipling published in 1910. The title comes from the poem "Farewell, Rewards and Fairies" by Richard Corbet, which was referred to by the children in the first story of Kipling's ...
(1899).
Discovery
![James Brasser Copper](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/18/James_Brasser_Copper.png)
In 1898, the family were approached by
Kate Lee, one of the founders of the Folk Song Society (later the
English Folk Dance and Song Society
The English Folk Dance and Song Society (EFDSS, or pronounced 'EFF-diss') is an organisation that promotes English folk music and folk dance. EFDSS was formed in 1932 when two organisations merged: the Folk-Song Society and the English Folk Dan ...
). James 'Brasser' Copper (1845–1924) and his brother Thomas (c.1847–c.1936) sang songs to Kate Lee as she plied them with whiskey. 'Brasser' wrote the songs down, some of which were published in the inaugural volume of the
Journal of the Folk Song Society in 1899,
and the two brothers were made honorary members of the society. Vic Gammon notes in the leaflet accompanying the society's archive CD ''Come Write Me Down'' that both the collecting of songs and their unaccompanied singing were less common than is often imagined at this time and that Lee, a singer herself, knew she had found something special when she encountered the Coppers.
Recordings and performances
'Brasser' had two sons, John (c.1879–1952) and Jim (1882–1954). Jim, who wrote a further volume of songs in 1936, had two children – Joyce (1910–2006) and Bob (1915–2004). In 1950, Jim and Bob were invited to sing on an episode of the
BBC Radio
BBC Radio is an operational business division and service of the British Broadcasting Corporation (which has operated in the United Kingdom under the terms of a royal charter since 1927). The service provides national radio stations covering th ...
programme ''Country Magazine'' and, over the next few years, the BBC would record them further, even producing a feature ''The Life of James Copper'', broadcast in September 1951.
John's son was Walter Ronald, known as Ron (c.1913–1979). Together, Jim, John, Ron and Bob sang at the
Royal Albert Hall
The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington, London. One of the UK's most treasured and distinctive buildings, it is held in trust for the nation and managed by a registered charity which receives no govern ...
and wider public attention followed the broadcast of a six-part television series ''Song Hunter'', presented by
Alan Lomax
Alan Lomax (; January 31, 1915 – July 19, 2002) was an American ethnomusicologist, best known for his numerous field recordings of folk music of the 20th century. He was also a musician himself, as well as a folklorist, archivist, writer, sch ...
and featuring Jim, Bob and Ron. Bob wrote several books about the family and its songs, beginning with the widely acclaimed ''A Song For Every Season'' in 1971. The accompanying 4-LP set (now a collector's item) found Bob and Ron singing alongside Bob's daughter Jill and son John, bringing a further generation into the family tradition. The death of Ron was followed by the introduction of Jill's husband Jon into the core line-up, and some of Bob's grandchildren began to appear with the group. The six grandchildren (Jill's children Mark, Andy and Sean Barratt, and John's children Ben, Lucy and Tom Copper) now also appear independently as The Young Coppers, singing the same family repertoire.
At the age of 87, Bob Copper travelled to
New York
New York most commonly refers to:
* New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York
* New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States
New York may also refer to:
Film and television
* '' ...
to meet
Pete Seeger
Peter Seeger (May 3, 1919 – January 27, 2014) was an American folk singer and social activist. A fixture on nationwide radio in the 1940s, Seeger also had a string of hit records during the early 1950s as a member of the Weavers, notably ...
, and a programme featuring their conversation, songs and views on their family traditions and on folk music in general was broadcast on Radio 4 in 2002.
Legacy
![Copper family memorial tablets](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/91/Copper_family_memorial_tablets.jpg)
Various recordings of the family's singing have been made since the 1950s and some are still available, notably the aforementioned ''Come Write Me Down'', which comes with two booklets full of biographical detail. In the 1980s, Bob Copper published the book ''Across Sussex with Belloc'' in which he retraced the route across Sussex of
Hilaire Belloc
Joseph Hilaire Pierre René Belloc (, ; 27 July 187016 July 1953) was a Franco-English writer and historian of the early twentieth century. Belloc was also an orator, poet, sailor, satirist, writer of letters, soldier, and political activist. H ...
and the characters of Belloc's novel ''
The Four Men: a Farrago''. Bob Copper died in 2004, a few days after receiving an
MBE Mbe may refer to:
* Mbé, a town in the Republic of the Congo
* Mbe Mountains Community Forest, in Nigeria
* Mbe language, a language of Nigeria
* Mbe' language, language of Cameroon
* ''mbe'', ISO 639 code for the extinct Molala language
Molal ...
. In an obituary by Ken Hunt in ''
The Independent
''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...
'' newspaper, Bob Copper was described as "England's most important traditional folk-singer". In ''
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'' obituary,
Michael Grosvenor Myer
Michael may refer to:
People
* Michael (given name), a given name
* Michael (surname), including a list of people with the surname Michael
Given name "Michael"
* Michael (archangel), ''first'' of God's archangels in the Jewish, Christian an ...
wrote "Towards the end of his life, Bob frequently expressed the greatest satisfaction that the family's fine tradition was safe for at least the next two generations". The present generations of the family continue to sing unaccompanied traditional songs and, in 2004 (repeated in 2006),
BBC Four
BBC Four is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It was launched on 2 March 2002 broadcast an hour-long programme
about the family, filmed during the last months of Bob's life. They are involved in
The Imagined Village
The Imagined Village is a folk music project founded by Simon Emmerson of Afro Celt Sound System. It is intended to produce modern folk music that represented modern multiculturalism in the United Kingdom and as such, featured musicians from a ...
project.
Bob Copper received the Gold Badge of the
English Folk Dance and Song Society
The English Folk Dance and Song Society (EFDSS, or pronounced 'EFF-diss') is an organisation that promotes English folk music and folk dance. EFDSS was formed in 1932 when two organisations merged: the Folk-Song Society and the English Folk Dan ...
in 1978, an honorary degree from
Sussex University
, mottoeng = Be Still and Know
, established =
, type = Public research university
, endowment = £14.4 million (2020)
, budget = £319.6 million (2019–20)
, chancellor = Sanjeev Bhaskar
, vice_chancellor = Sasha Roseneil
, ...
in 2000, and an
MBE Mbe may refer to:
* Mbé, a town in the Republic of the Congo
* Mbe Mountains Community Forest, in Nigeria
* Mbe language, a language of Nigeria
* Mbe' language, language of Cameroon
* ''mbe'', ISO 639 code for the extinct Molala language
Molal ...
four days before his death in 2004.
In 2009
Topic Records
Topic Records is a British folk music label, which played a major role in the second British folk revival. It began as an offshoot of the Workers' Music Association in 1939, making it the oldest independent record label in the world.M. Brocken, ...
included in their 70-year anniversary boxed set ''
Three Score and Ten
''Three Score and Ten: A Voice to the People'' is a multi-CD box set album issued by Topic Records in 2009 to celebrate 70 years as an independent British record label.
The album consists of a hardback book containing the seven CDs and a paper ...
'' ''Spencer the Rover'' by Bob & Ron from the album ''Come Write Me Down – Early Recordings of The Copper Family of Rottingdean'' as track two of the second CD in the set.
The family have been described as "the first family of English
roots music, vital to its history and a frame of reference for the new generation that is reviving a tradition of earthy, hard edged story based music".
Discography
*''Traditional Songs From Rottingdean'' (English Folk Dance & Song Society LP, 1963)
*''A Song For Every Season'' (Leader 4-LP box set, 1971)
*''A Song For Every Season'' (Leader LP, selections from the box set, 1971)
*''The Banks of Claudy'' (Folktrax LP, 1975)
*''Twankydillo'' (Folktrax cassette, 1975)
*''Sweet Rose in June'' (Topic LP, 1977)
*''Come All You Bold Britons'' (Folktrax cassette, 1983)
*''Adam and Eve'' (Folktrax cassette, 1983)
*''Coppersongs: A Living Tradition'' (English Folk Dance & Song Society LP, 1987)
*''Coppersongs 2'' (CD, 1995)
*''Coppersongs 3: The Legacy Continues'' (CD, 1998?)
*''Come Write Me Down'' (Topic CD, 2001)
See also
*The officia
Copper Family websiteDeep Rooted- YouTube channel run by members of the Copper Family with videos about their music and traditions
*
Music of Sussex
The historic county of Sussex in southern England has a rich musical heritage that encompasses the genres of folk, classical and rock and popular music amongst others. With the unbroken survival of its indigenous music, Sussex was at the forefront ...
*
List of traditional singers
A traditional singer, also known as a source singer, is someone who has learned folk songs in the oral tradition, usually from older people within their community.
From around the beginning of the twentieth century, song collectors such as Cecil ...
Notes
Further reading
* "Bob Copper – for the Sheer Joy of Singing"
adio interview transcript 2008. In ''Talking to Kinky and Karlheinz – 170 musicians get vocal on The Music Show'' ed. Anni Heino, 171–185. Sydney: ABC Books. .
External links
Official Copper Family websiteThe Young Coppers' page on Myspace.comTopic Records
{{Authority control
English folk musical groups
English folk singers
Show business families of the United Kingdom
People from Peacehaven
Topic Records artists