Magna Carta are renowned for their gentle ballad style and mythical
subject matter. Although never purely a folk band, they managed to
successfully bridge the gap between folk and folk-rock. The band was
originally formed in London in May 1969 by Chris Simpson (b. 13 July
1942, Harrogate, North Yorkshire, England; guitar/vocals), Lyell Tranter
(b. Australia; guitar/vocals), with Glen Stuart (vocals) added to the
line-up shortly afterwards. The trio released albums for Fontana Records
and Vertigo Records, enjoying particular success with 1970's Seasons
before Tranter returned to Australia. Davey Johnstone (guitar/vocals)
joined the line-up as his replacement, recording Songs From Wasties
Orchard and In Concert with the band before leaving to work with Elton
John and Kiki Dee.
Simpson and Stuart were then joined by Stan Gordon (guitar), recording
and releasing the much-lauded Lord Of The Ages (texts from this album
and Seasons were used as part of the English syllabus in several
European countries). Graham Smith (bass), who had played on the sessions
for Lord Of The Ages, was also added to the line-up but shortly
afterwards both he and Gordon left. There followed a period of much
change and upheaval as Simpson and Stuart added a new rhythm section,
but Glen Stuart did not feel comfortable with the new direction. This
short-lived set-up soon gave way to Simpson and Stuart being joined by
Tommy Hoy.
5 February 1950, Glasgow, Scotland; guitar, vocals, ex-Natural Acoustic
Band), before Stuart left to run a pet shop in Richmond, Surrey. Nigel
Smith (bass) joined in time to help record 1976's Putting It Back
Together. In 1977 Hoy's former bandmate in the Natural Acoustic Band,
Robin Thyne (b. 1 November 1950, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, England), joined
the band, along with Lee Abbott (b. 21 January 1950, Gravesend, Kent,
England; fretless bass, vocals). Soon afterwards, Pick Withers (drums)
was added. Withers stayed only briefly, leaving to join Dire Straits.
Amid much acrimony Thyne and Hoy left in 1979 to form Nova Karta. Tom
McConville.
6 November 1950, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, England; fiddle) appeared on the
Live In Bergen release, before the line-up changed again to include Al
Fenn (b. Alastair Fenn, 9 March 1947, Chingford, Essex, England; guitar,
vocals), and George Norris (b. 30 December 1945, Cowes, Isle Of Wight,
England; guitar/vocals). Between 1980 and 1982, Doug Morter (guitar) was
added to the line-up, together with a variety of drummers, including
Paul Burgess (b. 28 September 1950, Stockport, Cheshire, England). The
1981 release, Midnight Blue, contained "Highway To Spain", a popular
track on radio station playlists around the world. Norris, Burgess and
Morter all left, the latter moving on to the Albion Band.
Chris Simpson's solo release, Listen To The Man, came out during this
period and featured backing from Abbott, Linda Taylor (b. 28 June 1953,
Halifax, West Yorkshire, England; guitar/vocals), and Willie Jackson (b.
18 February 1954, York, England; guitar). Between 1984 and 1986, Simpson
and Taylor went to the Middle East to run a music club, before returning
home to re-form Magna Carta. By 1986 the extremely fluid line-up now
included, in addition to Simpson, Taylor and Abbott, Gwyn Jones
(keyboards), John Carey (fiddle), Paul Burgess (drums), and Simon
Carlton (lead guitar). In 1988, One To One was released on the Tembo
label.
Jones left the band the same year. In 1990, Simpson and Taylor married,
and, with the semi-retirement of Lee Abbott, they continued to play as
Magna Carta as a duo, as well as with a larger line-up for extensive
touring. The 1992 Dutch release, Heartlands, was followed by a sell-out
tour of Holland. The duo has continued to maintain a busy live schedule,
and over the years have toured over 150 different countries. Several
live albums appeared over the course of the decade, in addition to the
reissue of the band's 70s albums on CD, but no new recordings were
forthcoming until 2001's Seasons In The Tide.
Encyclopedia of Popular Music
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