Norma Waterson - An Introduction to Norma Waterson (2018)

Norma Waterson began her career in music in the 1960s with various family members eventually seeing the family name The Watersons becoming the group name. The band were first heard on record in 1964 on the Topic anthology New Voices, followed by the classic Frost and Fire LP, a calendar of Ritual and Magical songs in 1965.

This new Topic Records release, An Introduction to Norma Waterson draws entirely from her distinguished Topic career. It opens appropriately with 'Seven Virgins' from Frost & Fire, The Watersons' spellbinding debut album proper. The folk scene was largely underground in 1965 and the idea of preserving traditional song had become something of a mission for some performers but there was nothing academic about The Watersons approach to the forgotten songs they unearthed and revived. It was vibrant and fun and The Watersons sounded like nobody else.

The same might be said of any of the selections presented here, all essentially family affairs where the predominant voice is Norma's. Songs are drawn from Norma's catalogue of material from both her solo recordings as well as material from The Watersons, Waterson:Carthy and collaborations with Oliver Knight and her daughter Eliza Carthy. Tracks include 'When First I Came To Caledonia', 'Once In A Blue Moon' and 'Song For Thirza' which originally featured on Shining Bright: The Songs of Lal & Mike Waterson a tribute to the extraordinary 1972 album Bright Phoebus.

Norma was awarded an MBE in 2003 for the commitment and contribution to music and in 2016 also saw Norma receive a life time achievement award at the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards