Music / folk
‘There aren’t any shoulds in folk’ – Bowker and Morse release fresh take on trad
Bowker and Morse have put out a video to accompany their song A Quiet Place, taken from their eponymous EP released in May.
The a cappella singers take inspiration from the English folk tradition but refresh it to reflect themes that resonate with a contemporary audience.
Bristol24/7 caught up with the pair at their Tuesday night singaround to chat sea shanty battles, folk’s role today and the meaning behind their music.
is needed now More than ever
The George and Dragon in Redfield is packed for the Pride singing special, but Lizi Morse says that’s not unusual:
“Since starting this session just over a year ago, we’ve regularly had people queueing out the door to get in. It was the most popular event they’ve had in this pub.”
She namechecks acclaimed folk artists Nick Hart and Anna Cornish who she set up the session with, as well as Radio 2 Folk Award nominees Jimmy Aldridge and Sid Goldsmith who were instrumental in sparking a fresh singing scene in Bristol.
Morse thinks its popularity lies in the simple beauty and buzz of sharing with community.
“It’s about having a go, not about being good. It’s about participating, and doing it because you love it,” she says.
“And it’s really good for your health. When the whole pub sings together, you can feel it vibrating in your bones and calming the nervous system.”
Morse singing with Anna Cornish in 2022 – photo: Lizi Morse
Both Morse and her musical partner, Josh Bowker, came to folk in their 30’s and identify as ‘kitchen table singers.’
But now they’ve hit their stride, as listeners to the new EP can attest. It’s a twist on the tradition in which their voices turn and dance about each other, weaving explorations of feminism, land rights and empowerment.
With this crystal clear musical offering they’ve come a long way from the sea shanty world they cut their teeth in. Morse was singing with Cornwall’s Aggie Boys Choir and Bowker in The Longest Johns when their crews met outside a public toilet in Falmouth for a shanty-off.
“We met as playful rivals,” laughs Morse. “We were the young faces in our shanty bands. I was an honorary boy, I wore a moustache.”
Things progressed when they both sought out singing opportunities in Bristol.
“Jimmy and Sid’s session at The Star was where we got to know each other. Then I got Josh in on a project I was doing. We sang a song he’d written, and thought, we’re actually alright at singing together, aren’t we?! We could have another go at this.”
Cut to the present, and their six-track EP of self-penned songs was recorded in one day at well-known Bristol engineer Ben Capp’s studio.
“I’m really pleased with it,” says Bowker. “I feel like it covers a wide breadth of topics and it fulfils my desire to create something that feels like trad folk but isn’t.”
His writing often takes him to unexpected places.
“Alot of the stuff that I listen to is kind of protest in nature, but my songs tend to stick the protest in round the back, sneak it in beautified by other things,” he says.
“Often I set out to write a song about trees or whatever. Then because that protest narrative is so much part of who I am, it naturally comes out.”
The Longest Johns performing at Harbour Festival in 2013. Bowker was a founding member but left the band in 2016 – photo: The Longest Johns
The EP’s opener, The Hare, was inspired by Nick Hayes’ Book of Trespass.
“It’s all about the right to roam and the fact the hare has no borders,” explains Bowker, revealing his hare tattoo.
“From the start I knew where I was heading with that one. But some of the others start out quite innocuously and end up like we’ve something to say – just like so many other trad songs that have all sorts of beautiful imagery, but then also have a message.”
Working with contemporary subjects is part of their mission to make the scene inclusive.
“We want to make the folk tradition something that everyone can identify with. Some of the old narratives are exclusionist or downright nasty to some groups of people,” says Bowker.
“We want to politely and gently steer the tradition way from that.”
“A lot of trad was written during a time where bigotry, homophobia and racism was just the norm – so there is that issue with the canon,” says Morse.
“There’s stuff in there that’s just not OK. That’s partly why Josh and I write new songs – we want to create things that sound of the tradition but we’re writing to a contemporary, progressive mindset. I think there’s room for both because singing has always been universal.”
“I love the fact that folk means people, or of the people,” continues Bowker. “In that respect, I feel like folk is really important, and we need to keep a folk scene alive, to keep it flowing from the old,” he says.
“We shouldn’t completely sever ourselves from the tradition, because it’s whole beauty lies in the fact that it’s always been there as a unifying factor of the common people.
“Folk by its nature is accessible: it’s come one, come all, and it’s promoting the voices and needs of people.”
That inclusive element is one they encourage at the George and Dragon.
Folk gives people a voice, say Bowker and Morse, who want to encourage anyone and everyone to attend the George and Dragon singaround; their Pride was packed to the rafters – photo: Ursula Billington
“We want everybody to always feel welcome,” stresses Morse. “There aren’t any shoulds in folk. Mostly I would like people to know that they can have a go – if you really like singing, then just do it.
“Singing is for everyone, it’s just gorgeous. We want to see as many different people here as possible.”
“I feel like it’s our responsibility to keep opening up the floor to women and people from the queer community and global communities and all communities,” adds Bowker, “To come and join in the singing, like people have done from all over the world, from everywhere, forever. Everybody sings.”
The pair recording their EP at Ben Capp’s studio – photo: Bowker and Morse
Listen to the Bowker and Morse EP at bowkerandmorse.bandcamp.com/album/bowker-morse
See them play live at Shambala Festival in August, or at Wander Gather’s seasonal allotment gathering in Bristol.
Main photo: Paul Blakemore
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