I first came across Steve Tilston at the Castle pub in Bradford. Not because he was playing but via an excellent cover performed by Bella Gaffney (who insists that her phrasing is the correct one! I must admit I always hear her version not matter who is playing it.) It has been widely covered, with as version even appearing on Fairport Convention’s album ‘Jewel in the Crown’.
Steve is one of our most celebrated songsmiths, widely recognised within the world of folk and contemporary music; the words, arrangements and subtle, quite superb guitar playing could be no one else. He is the writer of the classic songs ‘The Slip Jigs and Reels, Here’s to Tom Paine (also covered by Fairport), The Naked Highwayman and the award-winning The Reckoning.
Born in Liverpool and raised in the Midlands, Steve made his recording debut in 1971 with the classic ‘An Acoustic Confusion’ and has been turning out quality albums ever since. He is also a published author. Steve’s first novel All for Poor Jack is an historical tale set in Bristol and the New World, full of colourful characters. It’s a mighty good read and has been enjoyed by the likes of Bob Dylan no less!
Here is one of my absolute favourites, recorded in Otley. The King of the Coiners tells the story of “King” David Hartley. The Cragg Vale Coiners, sometimes the Yorkshire Coiners, were a band of counterfeiters, based in Cragg Vale, near Hebden Bridge. They produced fake gold coins in the late 18th century to supplement small incomes from weaving.The Coiners obtained real coins from publicans, sometimes on the promise that they could “grow” the investment by smelting the original metals with base ores. They removed the coins’ genuine edges and milled them again, collecting the shavings. The coins were only slightly smaller. They then melted down the shavings to produce counterfeits. Designs were punched into the blank “coins” with a hammer and a “coining kit”.
