Jim Causley (born 1980) is a British

folk Folk or Folks may refer to: Sociology *Nation *People * Folklore ** Folk art ** Folk dance ** Folk hero ** Folk horror ** Folk music *** Folk metal *** Folk punk *** Folk rock ** Folk religion * Folk taxonomy Arts, entertainment, and media * Fo ...

singer, songwriter, and musician from

Devon Devon ( ; historically also known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel to the north, Somerset and Dorset to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Cornwall to the west ...

who specializes in the

traditional A tradition is a system of beliefs or behaviors (folk custom) passed down within a group of people or society with symbolic meaning or special significance with origins in the past. A component of cultural expressions and folklore, common examp ...

songs and music of the

West Country The West Country is a loosely defined area within southwest England, usually taken to include the counties of Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Somerset and Bristol, with some considering it to extend to all or parts of Wiltshire, Gloucestershire and ...

. Journalist Colin Irwin has called him "the finest singer of his generation".

Biography

Causley hails from the village of Whimple in

East Devon East Devon is a local government district in Devon, England. Its council is based in the town of Honiton, although Exmouth is the largest town. The district also contains the towns of Axminster, Budleigh Salterton, Cranbrook, Ottery St M ...

, Causley was born in

Exeter Exeter ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and the county town of Devon in South West England. It is situated on the River Exe, approximately northeast of Plymouth and southwest of Bristol. In Roman Britain, Exeter w ...

and is a relative of the Cornish poet

Charles Causley Charles Stanley Causley CBE FRSL (24 August 1917 – 4 November 2003) was a Cornish poet, school teacher and writer. His work is often noted for its simplicity and directness as well as its associations with folklore, legends and magic, especi ...

. Described by

Mojo Magazine ''Mojo'' (stylised in all caps) is a popular music magazine published monthly in the United Kingdom, initially by Emap, and since January 2008 by Bauer. Following the success of the magazine '' Q'', publishers Emap were looking for a title that ...

as "the finest singer of his generation", Causley grew up in an area rich in traditional music; his home village in the heart of

Cider Cider ( ) is an alcoholic beverage made from the Fermented drink, fermented Apple juice, juice of apples. Cider is widely available in the United Kingdom (particularly in the West Country) and Ireland. The United Kingdom has the world's highest ...

Country with its thriving

wassailing The tradition of wassailing (also spelled wasselling) falls into two distinct categories: the house-visiting wassail and the orchard-visiting wassail. The house-visiting wassail, which traditionally occurs on the twelfth day of Christmastide ...

tradition and its close proximity to

Sidmouth Sidmouth () is a town on the English Channel in Devon, South West England, southeast of Exeter. With a population of 13,258 in 2021, it is a tourist resort and a gateway to the Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site. A large part of the town has ...

and

Dartmoor Dartmoor is an upland area in southern Devon, South West England. The moorland and surrounding land has been protected by National Park status since 1951. Dartmoor National Park covers . The granite that forms the uplands dates from the Carb ...

folk festival A folk festival celebrates traditional folk crafts and folk music. This list includes folk festivals worldwide, except those with only a partial focus on folk music or arts. Folk festivals may also feature folk dance or ethnic foods. Handicra ...

s. After studying Performing Arts and Jazz & Popular Music at Exeter College, Causley went on to study Folk and Traditional Music at the

University of Newcastle upon Tyne Newcastle University (legally the University of Newcastle upon Tyne) is a public university, public research university based in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. It has overseas campuses in Singapore and Malaysia. The university is a red brick un ...

. It was during this time that he began gaining a reputation as talented singer on the wider UK folk scene. Causley released his debut album, ''Fruits of the Earth'', on WildGoose Records in 2005. Noted for his rich, fruity bass voice and cheeky stage presence, Causley guested with

Martyn Wyndham-Read Arnold Martyn Wyndham-Read (born 23 August 1942, Crawley, Sussex, England) is an English folk singer, who was a collector and singer of Australian folk music. He lived and worked in Australia from 1958 to 1967 and was subsequently a regular vis ...

on his ''Song Links 2'' ( Fellside Records) album which linked English traditional songs with their American variants. In 2006 Causley was nominated for a BBC Radio 2 Folk Award under the Horizon Award (best newcomer) category and in 2007 his vocal trio, The Devil's Interval, were nominated for the same award again. With The Devil's Interval, Causley has toured with Waterson–Carthy as part of their annual Frost and Fire tour for six consecutive years and in 2006 collaborated with them on their album '' Holy Heathens and the Old Green Man'' (

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 ...

). The Devil's Interval also released their debut album in that year, ''Blood & Honey'' (WildGoose Records), to good reviews and a cover article in ''

fRoots ''fRoots'' (pronounced "eff-Roots", originally ''Folk Roots'') was a specialist music magazine published in the UK between 1979 and 2019. It specialised in folk and world music, and featured regular compilation downloadable albums, with occas ...

'' magazine. After graduating from university, Causley returned home to Devon and since then he has worked with Scottish fiddle player

John McCusker John McCusker (born 15 May 1973) is a Scottish folk musician, record producer, and composer. McCusker was a member of the Battlefield Band in the 1990s and worked as a band member and producer for folk singer Kate Rusby. He has produced and ...

in his Under One Sky project uniting the English and Scottish traditions and also toured and recorded with Essex instrumental quartet Mawkin as Mawkin:Causley,

David Rotheray David Rotheray (born 9 February 1963) is an English rock and pop musician, best known for being the lead guitarist for The Beautiful South. Rotheray was born the last of five children. His parents were both intellectuals and had met through th ...

The Beautiful South The Beautiful South were an English pop rock group formed in 1988 by Paul Heaton and Dave Hemingway, two former members of the Kingston upon Hull, Hull group the Housemartins, both of whom performed lead and backing vocals. Other members stayin ...

fame alongside

Eleanor McEvoy Eleanor McEvoy (born 22 January 1967) is an Irish singer-songwriter. She composed the song "Only a Woman's Heart", title track of '' A Woman's Heart'', the best-selling Irish album in Irish history. Early life and beginnings McEvoy's life as ...

and Bella Hardy for Rotheray's 'Life of Birds' album and tours,

Michael Morpurgo Sir Michael Andrew Bridge Morpurgo ('' né'' Bridge; 5 October 1943) is an English book author, poet, playwright, and librettist who is known best for children's novels such as '' War Horse'' (1982). His work is noted for its "magical storytelli ...

Show of Hands Show of Hands is an English acoustic roots/ folk duo formed in 1986 by singer-songwriter Steve Knightley (guitars, mandolin, mandocello, cuatro) and composer and multi-instrumentalist Phil Beer (vocals, guitars, violin, viola, mandolin, mando ...

for their Arrogance, Ignorance & Greed as well as their 'Centenary; Word & Music of the First World War' albums and

Kate Rusby Kate Anna Rusby (born 4 December 1973) is an English folk singer-songwriter from Penistone, West Riding of Yorkshire, England. Sometimes called the "Barnsley Nightingale", she has headlined various British folk festivals, and is one of the be ...

for her 20th anniversary album & tour among others. 2013 saw the release of perhaps Causley's most celebrated works to date; ''Cyprus Well'', an album of his settings of poems by his relative, the Cornish poet

named after and recorded in the late poets house, Cyprus Well in Launceston,

Cornwall Cornwall (; or ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is also one of the Celtic nations and the homeland of the Cornish people. The county is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, ...

. This album featured Causley mostly playing piano as opposed to accordion and also saw him collaborating with Julie Murphy of the Welsh band Fernhill alongside Welsh-Canadian harpist Ceri Owen-Jones and members of Cornish band Dalla as well as the Pete Berryman Trio. Much of the album Cyprus Well was used in the soundtrack to Cornish filmmaker Jane Darke's film ''The Poet'' about the life of Charles Causley, which first aired on BBC4 TV on Sunday 1 October 2017. In 2016 Causley released two albums; the first was '' Forgotten Kingdom'', his first ever album of entirely self-penned songs which was released on the Show of Hands label and featured a large cast of well regarded West Country musicians. The second album of 2016 was a commission by the Bodmin Moor Poetry Festival following Causley's work with the poems of Charles Causley on Cyprus Well the BMPF invited Causley to create a similar project with another Cornish poet whose centenary was that year; Jack Clemo a close friend of Charles Causley who was best man at his wedding. Jim worked with author and Clemo expert Dr Luke Thompson to create this album and enlisted the help of a small group of Cornish musicians plus a children's choir from the school near to where Clemo lived for two of the tracks. This album featured Causley's most piano-heavy and experimental works to date.

Discography

* Jim Causley – ''Fruits of the Earth'' (2005 WildGoose) * The Devil's Interval – ''Blood & Honey'' (2006 WildGoose) * Jim Causley – ''Lost Love Found'' (2007 WildGoose) * Mawkin:Causley – ''Cold Ruin'' (2008 Navigator) * Mawkin:Causley – ''The Awkward Recruit'' (2009 Navigator) * Jim Causley – ''Dumnonia'' (2011 WildGoose) * Jim Causley – ''Cyprus Well'' (2013 Folk Police Recordings)Jim Causley to release new album ‘Cyprus Well’ Folk Radio UK
/ref> * Jim Causley – '' Forgotten Kingdom'' (2015 Hands on Music) * Jim Causley & Luke Thompson – ''The Clay Hymnal: Poems of Jack Clemo'' (2016 WestWords Publishing) * Jim Causley & Friends – ''I Am The Song; Charles Causley's Poems for Children'' (2017 WildGoose) * The Band of Love – '' Folk Fever'' (2018 Universal/Island Records) * Jim Causley – ''Special Commissions EP'' (2018 Hrōc Music) * Jim Causley – ''A Causley Christmas!'' (2018 Hrōc Music) * Jim Causley – ''Live in Widecombe!'' (2019 Hrōc Music) * Jim Causley – ''Cyprus Well II'' (2020 Hrōc Music) * Jim Causley – ''Devonshire Roses'' (2020 Hrōc Music) * Jim Causley – ''Devonia'' (2021 Hrōc Music) * Jim Causley & Friends – ''Songs of Dartmoor'' (2023 Hrōc Music) * Jim Causley & Miranda Sykes - ''Baring-Gould Centenary 2024'' * Jim Causley – ''The Georgic'' (2025 Hrōc Music)

Guest appearances

* Various – ''Song Links II'' (2005 Fellside) * Waterson–Carthy – '' Holy Heathens and the Old Green Man'' (2006

) * Various Artists – ''The Mother of all Morris'' (2007 Talking Elephant) *

Jackie Oates Jackie Oates is an English folk singer and fiddle player. Life Jackie Oates was born in Congleton in Cheshire in 1983. At the age of 18, she moved to Devon to study English literature at Exeter University and was based in Devon until 2011, ...

– ''The Violet Hour'' (2008 Chudleigh Roots) *

Jim Moray Jim Moray (born ''Douglas Oates''; 20 August 1981) is an English folk music, English folk singer, multi-instrumentalist and record producer. Recording artist While studying classical composition at the Birmingham Conservatoire, Moray release ...

– ''Low Culture'' (2008 NIAG) * Bill Murray & Friends – ''Dow 'pon Ole Dartymoor'' (2008 Wren Music) * Mick Groves – ''Still Spinning'' (2008 Exe Records) *

– ''Under One Sky'' (2009 Navigator Records) * Ella Edmondson – ''Hold Your Horses'' (2009 Monsoon Records) *

– '' Arrogance Ignorance and Greed'' (2009 Hands on Music) *

– ''The Life of Birds'' (2010 Proper) *

Phil Beer Phil Beer (born 12 May 1953) is an English multi-instrumentalist, composer, producer, and one half of English acoustic roots duo Show of Hands. Biography Beer first began to play fiddle, guitar, and mandolin whilst still at school in Teignmout ...

– ''Box Set One'' (2010 Chudleigh Roots) *

– ''In Tune With the World: The Poetry of Seán Rafferty'' (2010 Brown Label) * The Woodbine & Ivy Band (2011 Folk Police Recordings) * Mawkin – ''Crow'' (2012 Good Form) *

The Imagined Village The Imagined Village is a folk music project founded by Simon Emmerson of Afro Celt Sound System. A reflection of modern United Kingdom multiculturalism, the music collective syncretizes diverse musical traditions while featuring musicians ...

– ''Bending the Dark'' (2012 Real World) *

– ''20'' (2012 Pure Records/Island Records) * Richard Trethewey – ''Dig Where You Stand'' (2012 self-release) * Gavin Davenport – ''The Bone Orchard'' (2013 Haystack) *

– '' Centenary: Words & Music of the Great War'' (2014 U.M.T.V.) * Maggie Duffy – ''Closer to Home'' (2015 PFRD Records) * Hannah Sanders & Ben Savage – ''Before the Sun'' (2016 Sungrazing) * Tony Dean – ''Last Orders'' (2016 Estate of Tony Dean) * Geoff Lakeman – ''After All These Years'' – 2016 * Chris Foster (folk singer) – ''Hadelin'' – 2017 * Owen Ralph - ''Chamber Folk'' (2018 Binnorie Records) * The Band of Love - ''Folk Fever'' (2018 Island/Universal Records)

Compilations

* Various – ''2006 BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards'' (2005 Proper) * Various – ''2007 BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards'' (2006 Proper) * Various – ''Folk Rising'' (2007 Proper) * Various – ''2009 BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards'' (2008 Proper) * Various – ''Folk Rising 2'' (2008 Proper) * Various – ''Beginners Guide to English Folk'' (2008 Nascente) * Various – ''2010 BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards'' (2009 Proper) * Various – ''2017 BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards'' (2017 Proper)

Awards and nominations

*2006 BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards – Horizon Award (best newcomer) *2007 BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards – Horizon Award – The Devil's Interval *2009 BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards – Best Group – Mawkin:Causley *2010 BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards – Best Group – Mawkin:Causley *2010 BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards – Best Traditional Song – Mawkin:Causley *2013

The Telegraph ''The Telegraph'', ''Daily Telegraph'', ''Sunday Telegraph'' and other variant names are often names for newspapers. Newspapers with these titles include: Australia * The Telegraph (Adelaide), ''The Telegraph'' (Adelaide), a newspaper in Adelaid ...

Top Ten Folk Albums of the Year (Cyprus Well) *2014 Spiral Earth awards – Male Singer of the Year winner *2016

– Top Ten Folk Albums of the Year (Forgotten Kingdom) *2017 BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards – Singer of the Year *2017

Gorsedh Kernow Gorsedh Kernow (Cornish Gorsedd) is a non-political Cornish organisation, based in Cornwall, United Kingdom, which exists to maintain the national Celtic spirit of Cornwall. It is based on the Welsh-based Gorsedd, which was founded by Iolo Mo ...

– The Mike Hartland Award for work which engages people in Cornish culture – The Clay Hymnal by Jim Causley

References

External links

Official Jim Causley Site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Causley, Jim 1981 births Living people People from East Devon District Alumni of Newcastle University People educated at Exeter College, Devon English folk singers English folk guitarists English male guitarists Musicians from Devon 21st-century British singers 21st-century British guitarists 21st-century British male singers