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Robin Williamson | |
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 Williamson performing in 2009 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Robin Duncan Harry Williamson |
| Born | (1943-11-24)24 November 1943 (age 81) Edinburgh,Scotland |
| Genres | Folk,folk rock,psychedelic folk,classical,celtic |
| Occupation(s) | Singer, songwriter |
| Instrument(s) | Vocals, guitar, harp, violin, flute, keyboards, mandolin, gimbri, banjo, bass |
| Years active | 1963–present |
Robin Duncan Harry Williamson (born 24 November 1943) is a Scottish multi-instrumentalist, singer, songwriter, and storyteller who was a founding member ofthe Incredible String Band.
Williamson lived in theFairmilehead area of Edinburgh and attendedGeorge Watson's College before leaving at the age of 15 to become a professional musician. He performed in local jazz bands with Gerard Dott (later to be a member of the Incredible String Band) before turning to traditional music as a singer and guitarist. By 1961 he had met and begun sharing a flat withBert Jansch, and in 1963 they travelled to London to play the metropolitan folk circuit.[1] By 1965 he had returned to Edinburgh and formed a duo withClive Palmer,[2] specializing in fiddle and banjo arrangements of traditional Scottish and Irish songs.Joe Boyd signed them toElektra Records in 1966, by which time they had hired a third member,Mike Heron. As resident band at Clive's Incredible Folk Club in Glasgow, they called themselvesthe Incredible String Band.
Between 1966 and 1974 the Incredible String Band, now led by Williamson and Heron, released some 13 albums.[3] The group also included Williamson's girlfriendLicorice McKechnie.
Williamson released his first solo album,Myrrh, in 1971 when still a member of the Incredible String Band. After the band split up in 1974, he began living in Los Angeles and, for a while, turned his attention to writing, co-writing anespionage novel,The Glory Trap. Many of his albums are released by his label, Pig's Whisker Music.
By 1976 he had returned to music, forming the Merry Band withSylvia Woods (Celtic harp), Jerry McMillan (fiddle), and Chris Caswell (flutes, and wire-strung harp). They toured extensively for three years throughout the US, Canada, and Europe, and released three albums:Journey's Edge,American Stonehenge, andA Glint at the Kindling.[4]
After the breakup of the Merry Band, Williamson returned to the UK and started to tour as a solo act, offering sets dominated by traditional stories set to song. Releases of this period includeSongs of Love and Parting andLegacy of the Scottish Harpers. He has also written a tutorial book of English, Welsh, Scottish, and Irish fiddle tunes as well as one for the penny whistle .
Williamson's live album withJohn Renbourn,Wheel of Fortune (1995), was nominated for a Grammy Award, as was the Incredible String Band albumHangman's Beautiful Daughter in 1968.[5]).
In the late 1990s he took part, with Palmer and Heron, in a reformed Incredible String Band. Williamson left the band some time around the start of 2003. The reformed band disbanded again in 2006.
Williamson resumed his solo career on record with a series of albums forECM:The Seed-at-Zero (2000),Skirting the River Road (2002),The Iron Stone (2006),[6] andTrusting in the Rising Light (2014). As well as his own words these albums featured material from Dylan Thomas, William Blake, and Walt Whitman.
Williamson was introduced toScientology in the 1968-1969 period. In a 1979 interview, he stated:
It's actually a very practical philosophy. It enables you to live slightly better, get on with your fellows slightly better and feel a bit happier about things. That's the reason that I'm interested in it – it's very useable and practical. I've been rather romantic and spiritually inclined. It's probably been helpful to me because of its practicality.[7]
*NB.The Wise and Foolish Tongue is a reprint ofThe Craneskin Bag, but without many of the illustrations.
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