Rose Simpson | |
|---|---|
_(cropped).jpg) Rose Simpson in 1970 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Rosemary Simpson |
| Born | (1946-11-22)22 November 1946 (age 78)[1] Otley,Yorkshire,England |
| Occupation(s) | Singer, musician |
| Instrument(s) | Bass guitar, vocals, violin, percussion |
| Years active | 1968–1971 |
Rose Simpson (born 22 November 1946) is an English former musician. Between 1968 and 1971, she was a member of theIncredible String Band, with whom she sang and played bass guitar, violin and percussion among other instruments. She later becameLady Mayoress of theWelsh town ofAberystwyth.
Simpson was born inOtley,Yorkshire. By the mid-1960s, she was studying at theUniversity of York, where she was president of the mountaineering club. She metRobin Williamson andMike Heron in 1968 when the Incredible String Band were performing there, and travelled down to London with Williamson.[2]
She soon began performing with the band. According to the band's producerJoe Boyd, "the day Robin proposed thatLicorice join the group, Mike went out and bought Rose an electric bass. 'Learn this,' he said, 'you're in the group now, too.'"[3] Later,Steve Winwood asked her to play bass on a track of his, but Boyd declined the invitation. "I wasn't a competent enough musician, and Joe knew it. Joe put him off, but I was grateful," she later said.[4] She also sang and played violin, percussion, guitar, organ, mandolin and recorder.
She left the group in 1971, planning to take up sound engineering, but instead starting a family.[3] She later worked in various jobs, including theProbation Service.[5]
In 1994, as the partner of aLiberal Democratcouncillor who was the Mayor, she took on the largely honorary role of Lady Mayoress ofAberystwyth inWales, an event which received wide publicity.[6] During that period of her life, she lived in the Welsh village ofLlanon, in a house on the main A487 coast road.
She gained aPhD degree in German Literature at theUniversity of Aberystwyth, and has lectured there on the work of 1930s authorsIna Seidel andVicki Baum. She was awarded the Postgraduate Teacher Award in 2014.[7]
As of 2019, she lived inTotnes,Devon. Her memoir of her time in the Incredible String Band was published in 2020.[8]
Simpson, Rose.Muse, Odalisque, Handmaiden. A Girl's Life in The Incredible String Band. Strange Attractor Press, London. 2020. ISBN 9781907222672.
