Frank Hinchliffe (1923 - 15 March 1995) was an English

folk singer Folk music is a music genre that includes traditional folk music and the contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be called world music. Traditional folk music has b ...

and

farmer A farmer is a person engaged in agriculture, raising living organisms for food or raw materials. The term usually applies to people who do some combination of raising field crops, orchards, vineyards, poultry, or other livestock. A farmer m ...

. The folklorist Ian Russell described him as one of the finest traditional English singers "heard since the advent of sound recording." He was born in either Fulwood,

Sheffield Sheffield is a city in South Yorkshire, England, whose name derives from the River Sheaf which runs through it. The city serves as the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire a ...

or Holme,

West Yorkshire West Yorkshire is a metropolitan and ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and Humber Region of England. It is an inland and upland county having eastward-draining valleys while taking in the moors of the Pennines. West Yorkshire came into exi ...

, to Mary and Bill Hinchliffe, and grew up on Clough Fields Farm in nearby

Crosspool Crosspool is a suburb of the City of Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, located west of the city centre. The suburb falls within the Crookes ward of the City of Sheffield. It is a middle class residential area''"Approach To Urban Sociology" ...

. He worked on the farm he had grown up on then at 18 worked for the Water Board working at the local reservoirs, although he continued to farm for much of his life. Frank Hinchliffe3

Hinchliffe's repertoire consisted of around 140 songs and local carols, included the Child Ballads " Barbara Allen" and " Edward", all of which came from his parents, father-in-law, and other older local singers. A 1973 interview with Hinchliffe is available in the Reg Hall Collection via the

British Library Sound Archive The British Library Sound Archive, formerly the British Institute of Recorded Sound; also known as the National Sound Archive (NSA), in London, England is among the largest collections of recorded sound in the world, including music, spoken word a ...

. In 1976 he was recorded by Mike Yates and Ruairidh and Alvina Greig. In 1977 his album ''In Sheffield Park'' was released. Ian Russell described him as one of the finest traditional English singers "heard since the advent of sound recording." Hinchcliffe performed at the National Folk Festival at

Sutton Bonington Sutton Bonington () is a village and civil parish lying along the valley of the River Soar in the Borough of Rushcliffe, south-west Nottinghamshire, England. The University of Nottingham has a site just to the north of the village: Sutton Boni ...

in 1978, 1987, and 1990. In 1982, he retired from work as a result of

rheumatoid arthritis Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a long-term autoimmune disorder that primarily affects joints. It typically results in warm, swollen, and painful joints. Pain and stiffness often worsen following rest. Most commonly, the wrist and hands are invol ...

, which he struggled with for the rest of his life. He died in 1995 aged 71 from an undiagnosed cancer.

Discography

* ''In Sheffield Park: Traditional Songs from South Yorkshire'' (1977)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hinchliffe, Frank 1923 births 1995 deaths People from Fulwood, Sheffield English folk singers