John Roberts & Tony Barrand is the pairing of English folk singers John Rob… Read Full Bio ↴John Roberts & Tony Barrand is the pairing of English folk singers John Roberts and Tony Barrand, both resident in America. The duo are also members of the four-man act Nowell Sing We Clear.
Widely acclaimed for their lively and entertaining presentations of English folk songs, Roberts and Barrand have performed at major festivals, colleges, clubs and coffeehouses throughout the United States, Canada, and their native Britain. They sing the ballads and songs of the sea, of rural pursuits, of social and sociable situations, of industrial toil and strife, and much more, typically arranging their material thematically to better illustrate the lives and the social history of the people who made and sang the songs. Their songs are punctuated with tales, monologues, dances and tunes, giving a more complete appreciation of the wealth, diversity, and vitality of the English folk tradition.
Roberts and Barrand met at Cornell University in 1968, as fellow graduate students in psychology. They discovered that they shared a common interest in folk song, and started performing together the following year. Unaccompanied two-part singing was always a primary staple of their repertoire, and the stark harmonies of their well-balanced voices soon brought them to the attention of the folk music community. They also draw upon a variety of instrumentation: Roberts is a leading exponent of both Anglo and English concertina, as well as being a fine banjo and guitar player; Tony Barrand is a skilled percussionist, on drums, bones and spoons.
Both are active in the folk dance arena as well as in song. Barrand is a well-known Morris and clog dancer, and his teaching is in demand across the United States. His book, Six Fools and a Dancer, was as the definitive work on Morris Dance in the United States. Roberts, an able dancer himself, is more often found providing the music on concertina. When not singing or dancing (and often when he is), Tony Barrand teaches folklore and aesthetics via the University Professors Program at Boston University; Roberts is a freelance music engraver and desktop publisher.
In their many years together as a professional team, Roberts and Barrand have recorded with a number of companies including Swallowtail, Front Hall, Folk Legacy, National Geographic, and, most recently, Golden Hind. These recordings include a critically-acclaimed album of authentic sea shanties, an album of drinking songs recorded live in a Chicago tavern, An Evening at the English Music Hall, and four albums of songs from their celebrated Christmas pageant, Nowell Sing We Clear. Their release in August '92 was a program of English folk songs entitled A Present from the Gentlemen. They have also recorded a selection of the songs that the composer Percy Grainger collected in Lincolnshire during the early years of this century, to be released as "Heartoutbursts" in 1998.
Other releases include Naulakha Redux (1997), Twiddlum Twaddlum (2003).
Widely acclaimed for their lively and entertaining presentations of English folk songs, Roberts and Barrand have performed at major festivals, colleges, clubs and coffeehouses throughout the United States, Canada, and their native Britain. They sing the ballads and songs of the sea, of rural pursuits, of social and sociable situations, of industrial toil and strife, and much more, typically arranging their material thematically to better illustrate the lives and the social history of the people who made and sang the songs. Their songs are punctuated with tales, monologues, dances and tunes, giving a more complete appreciation of the wealth, diversity, and vitality of the English folk tradition.
Roberts and Barrand met at Cornell University in 1968, as fellow graduate students in psychology. They discovered that they shared a common interest in folk song, and started performing together the following year. Unaccompanied two-part singing was always a primary staple of their repertoire, and the stark harmonies of their well-balanced voices soon brought them to the attention of the folk music community. They also draw upon a variety of instrumentation: Roberts is a leading exponent of both Anglo and English concertina, as well as being a fine banjo and guitar player; Tony Barrand is a skilled percussionist, on drums, bones and spoons.
Both are active in the folk dance arena as well as in song. Barrand is a well-known Morris and clog dancer, and his teaching is in demand across the United States. His book, Six Fools and a Dancer, was as the definitive work on Morris Dance in the United States. Roberts, an able dancer himself, is more often found providing the music on concertina. When not singing or dancing (and often when he is), Tony Barrand teaches folklore and aesthetics via the University Professors Program at Boston University; Roberts is a freelance music engraver and desktop publisher.
In their many years together as a professional team, Roberts and Barrand have recorded with a number of companies including Swallowtail, Front Hall, Folk Legacy, National Geographic, and, most recently, Golden Hind. These recordings include a critically-acclaimed album of authentic sea shanties, an album of drinking songs recorded live in a Chicago tavern, An Evening at the English Music Hall, and four albums of songs from their celebrated Christmas pageant, Nowell Sing We Clear. Their release in August '92 was a program of English folk songs entitled A Present from the Gentlemen. They have also recorded a selection of the songs that the composer Percy Grainger collected in Lincolnshire during the early years of this century, to be released as "Heartoutbursts" in 1998.
Other releases include Naulakha Redux (1997), Twiddlum Twaddlum (2003).
The Truth From Above / Masters in This Hall
John Roberts & Tony Barrand Lyrics
We have lyrics for these tracks by John Roberts & Tony Barrand:
The Land The world it sits and watch them die What is the…
We have lyrics for these tracks by John Roberts:
I Every time I think of you It always turns out good Every…
Six In the middle of the night Six strings down On…
This Is Goodbye This is the moment This is the day When I send all…
The lyrics are frequently found in the comments by searching or by filtering for lyric videos
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MOPPABOSSNZ
Thank you for the work you do Tony your music brings me much joy god bless you
nudeone34
John Roberts & Tony Barrand's voices are a cure all...!! the best voices & personalities in all genres of music.
Susanna J. Sturgis
Just heard John Kirkpatrick & co. singing this on the radio and am thrilled to find NSWC's version. :-)
oakroom48
Thank you so much. I have always enjoyed your wonderful performances so much. Happy Christmas! :-)
john lawrence
Really lovely,beautiful singing and such rousing music, from an olde limey ,from across the pond !
Nancy Benefiel
In our house, Christmas has always been Nowell Sing We Clear. Happy Holidays, everyone
KarenSDR
@MrBenfitt I could say exactly the same thing. We've fans of Nowell Sing We Clear for thirty years, and have all their CDs. But we've never seen them in person. I've often said if they ever come within 500 miles of where we live, I'd go. But in the meantime, these videos are a special treat. It took me months to learn all the words to this song, but I finally did, and we often sing it while snowshoeing :-)
JosMorn1
LOVE, LOVE, LOVE!!
Amanda Witman
Lovely!
Jeanne Kennedy
Wonderful. Wonderful. John M K