''Gladys' Leap'' is the fourteenth studio album by Fairport Convention originally released in August 1985. It was recorded in April and May 1985 at Woodworm Studios, Barford St. Michael, Oxfordshire, UK. It was produced and engineered by

Simon Nicol Simon John Breckenridge Nicol (born 13 October 1950) is an English guitarist, singer, multi-instrumentalist and record producer. He was a founding member of British folk rock group Fairport Convention and is the only founding member still in the ...

Dave Mattacks David James Mattacks (born 13 March 1948) is an English rock and folk drummer. Best known for his work with Fairport Convention, Mattacks has also worked both as a session musician and as a performing artist. Apart from playing the drums, he ...

and

Dave Pegg Dave Pegg (born 2 November 1947) is an English multi-instrumentalist and record producer, primarily a bass guitarist. He is the longest-serving member of the British folk rock band Fairport Convention and has been bassist with a number of folk ...

and the assistant engineers were Tim Matyear and Mark Powell. The album features the first contributions to a Fairport album by founding member Richard Thompson since '' Rosie'' in 1973. Thompson wrote the opening track "How Many Times" and played lead guitar on "Head in a Sack". The title comes from Gladys Hillier, who was a postwoman for

Cranham Cranham is a residential area of east London, and part of the London Borough of Havering. It is located east-northeast of Charing Cross and comprises an extensive built-up area to the north and a low density conservation area to the south sur ...

, a village near Stroud in

Gloucestershire Gloucestershire ( abbreviated Glos) is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn and the entire Forest of Dean. The county town is the city of Gl ...

, England. As a short-cut, to save a two-mile walk, she used to jump a three feet (~ 1 metre) wide stream on her round. In 1977 the

Ordnance Survey Ordnance Survey (OS) is the national mapping agency for Great Britain. The agency's name indicates its original military purpose (see ordnance and surveying), which was to map Scotland in the wake of the Jacobite rising of 1745. There was a ...

agreed to name the spot in her honour, and in 2005 a footbridge was built across the stream. Fairport heard the story, and named the album in Gladys' honour.

Track listing

;Side one (The Folkside) # "How Many Times" ( Richard Thompson) - 3:29 # "Bird from the Mountain" (

Ralph McTell Ralph McTell (born Ralph May, 3 December 1944) is an English singer-songwriter and acoustic guitar player who has been an influential figure on the UK folk music scene since the 1960s. McTell is best known for his song " Streets of London" (19 ...

) - 4:51 # "Honour and Praise" (John Richards) - 5:21 # " The Hiring Fair" (Ralph McTell,

) - 5:53 ;Side two (The Backside) # Instrumental Medley '85 - 5:08 ## "The Riverhead" (

) ## "Gladys' Leap" (Dave Pegg) ## "The Wise Maid" (Traditional; arrangement by

and Dave Pegg) # "My Feet are Set for Dancing" ( Cathy Lesurf, arranged by Bill Martin) - 4:01 # "

Wat Tyler Wat Tyler (c. 1320/4 January 1341 – 15 June 1381) was a leader of the 1381 Peasants' Revolt in England. He led a group of rebels from Canterbury to London to oppose the institution of a poll tax and to demand economic and social reforms. Wh ...

" (Ralph McTell, Simon Nicol) - 5:36 # "Head in a Sack" (Dave Whetstone) - 4:23

Personnel

;Fairport Convention *

- vocals, electric & acoustic guitars *

- bass guitar, mandolin, bouzouki, double bass, vocals *

- drums, drum machine, keyboards, percussion ;Additional personnel *

Ric Sanders Richard Sanders (born 8 December 1952) is an English violinist who has played in jazz-rock, folk rock, British folk rock and folk groups, including Soft Machine and Fairport Convention. Biography Sanders' first experience with a professiona ...

- violin ("Bird from the Mountain", "The Hiring Fair", Instrumental Medley) * Richard Thompson - electric guitar ("Head in a Sack") * Cathy Lesurf - vocal ("My Feet Are Set for Dancing") *Harold Wells - spoken intro to "Bird from the Mountain"

References

External links

Fan site with trivia and reissue details
{{Authority control 1985 albums Fairport Convention albums Albums produced by Simon Nicol