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Review: Billy Bennington ‘The Barford Angel

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Veteran VT152CD 

In 1973, Topic Records put out an LP of instrumental music from this region – English Country Music from East Anglia (1) – which proved to be highly influential for the burgeoning scene of musicians and enthusiasts dedicated to promoting the idea that England had a vibrant tradition of music-making, which could be celebrated in just the same way as it was in Scotland and Ireland. The LP comprised music from four performers, one of whom was Billy Bennington, dulcimer player from Barford. I have reviewed this album previously (2) and don’t propose to revisit that ground here. Suffice to say that the LP certainly showed that East Anglia was a place where, in the 1970s, a few traditional performers could still be found. In 1987, a full LP of Billy Bennington’s music – The Barford Angel – was released on the tiny East Anglian Life label (3), further demonstrating Billy’s virtuosity on the instrument. In 2005 Veteran reissued the LP on compact disc, adding the tracks from the Topic LP too, to create a vibrant musical portrait of this dulcimer virtuoso. 

Billy Bennington was born in Barford in 1900, an area of several ‘dulcimore’ players, a tradition which seems to have emanated out of Norwich, which was also noteworthy for makers of the instrument. He took lessons from local musician and band leader Billy Cooper after 1912 – whose son, also Billy Cooper, was also a prominent player, (4) and in the years after the First World War Billy teamed up with Billy Cooper junior and fiddler Walter Baldwin (5) to play in pubs all over Norfolk. From then on Billy fulfilled the role of local musician, whilst working as a gardener, developing an ornate but precise style of playing. These recordings were made towards the end of his life – he died in October 1986, a year after the bulk of the recordings were made – but his talents seem to have been in no way diminished by his age. 

What we have here is over an hour of Billy’s repertoire: the social dances – hornpipes, polkas, schottisches and waltzes – marches and a couple of popular song tunes from his younger years. Hornpipes are well represented: a slightly unusual, rolling version of the ubiquitous Flowers of Edinburgh, (mistitled Yarmouth Hornpipe on the Topic LP), a sprightly medley of the local perennial favourites Yarmouth Hornpipe and Sheringham Breakdown, as well as the equally well-known Sailor’s Hornpipe (containing a snippet of Flowers of Edinburgh along the way), all at a moderate, assured pace. Schottisches are also well represented, illustrating how commonplace this couple dance was in these rural communities: Herbert Sadd’s Schottische, a rather florid and complex version of the tune more commonly known as Mountain Belle Schottische, and which came from the highly-regarded local player of that name, followed by an untitled Schottische and yet another unnamed, which track then nicely changes tempo into a Step Dance. 

Polkas are equally well represented, with the wonderful Gay Ladies Polka and also two others which have been taken up by musicians locally, and played as a set – Pony Trot Polka and On the Green, the latter with its improvised section. Here are the originals in all their glory. Likewise a slow and stately version of the somewhat hackneyed Redwing, starting on the second strain of the tune, and none the worse for that. Also the song Going to the Derby, making an effective polka, and which Katie’s Quartet reworked as ‘BB’s’ (6) It’s easy to see the extent to which Billy Bennington was such an influence on younger performers, and the worth of these recordings in that respect. 

The solitary jig, Rose Cottage, was named by Billy for his cottage and he comments that it was used for the Norfolk Long Dance (one of many, often untitled, tunes that local musicians had for the purpose). Billy once again gives an unhurried, assured performance. Waltzes are evident in the form of two distinct tunes called Dulcie Bell. The first is the ‘usual’ tune of this name, also played by Billy Cooper (junior) and probably written by his father, ‘Old Cooper’. (7) It certainly lives up to its name, with its Edwardian elegance and charm. Much the same could be said of the other, Dulcie Bell 2, which appeared on the Topic LP as ‘Dulcie Belle’ and for which Billy didn’t have a name. There are also two marches – a favourite type of tune – the Sousa-composed On Parade and The Gunner’s March, used, as Billy describes, for the Military Two-Step. 

An unusual item is the tour de force performance of the American string band favourite The Chicken Reel. Where Billy got it from is unknown, but here is proof that the cross-Atlantic exchange of tunes was not a one-way flow in the early Twentieth Century (as exemplified also by the popularity of such tunes as Redwing and Whistling Rufus). There is also the dulcimer party-piece The Bells of St Mary’s, and the rest of the running time comprises popular songs of the earlier Twentieth Century, When Johnny Comes to Town, Lovely Lucerne, Obidiah, I Like to Say Good Morning and the sublime My Beloved Cornelia, with its effective mandolin mimicry. 

In all, here we have a wonderful musical portrait of an extraordinary rural musician, a man who operated within the loose borders of tradition, but whose virtuosity took this music to a high level indeed. The CD is subtitled ‘Norfolk dulcimer and dialect’, and what we also get are several spoken passages as introductions to tunes, with wonderful – and sometimes hilarious – anecdotes about Billy’s life and experiences as a musician, all adding to the richness of the listening experience. This is, possibly unsurprisingly, the only full album dedicated to an East Anglian dulcimer player. (8) For that reason alone it is essential for anyone’s music collection, but it is much more than just a historical document: it is a vibrant aural portrait of a wonderful musician. 

The sound quality is excellent and the CD booklet contains much information and several photographs, as is usual with Veteran releases. There really isn’t anything lacking; it’s a highly recommended album, available at the time of writing as both CD and download from Veteran. 

Chris Holderness May 2026

Notes: 

1. English Country Music from East Anglia Topic 12TS229, 1973 

2. Reviewed in the January 2026 newsletter 

3. Billy Bennington The Barford Angel East Anglian Life EAL-1, 1987 

4. Billy Cooper (junior) can be heard on English Country Music Topic TSCD607, 2000, Heel and Toe: Veteran VT150CD, 2005, and ‘I Thought I Was the Only One!’ Dulcimer Playing in East Anglia Veteran VTDC12CD, 2015. The LP version of the first was reviewed in the newsletter for December 2025, the second was reviewed recently in another newsletter; a review from 2015 of the latter can be found at mustrad.mainlynorfolk.info 

5. Not to be confused with Shipdham fiddler Walter Bulwer, as sometimes happens due to the similarity of the name. Walter Baldwin was a blacksmith in Hingham who was regarded as a fine fiddler. He was never recorded. His image can be seen in the photo of the ‘Hingham Minstrels’: see Chris Holderness: The Devil’s Box in the East: Traditional Fiddle Playing in Norfolk and Suffolk, 2024, at eatmt.org.uk 

6. Recorded on Katie’s Quartet Old Hat Music OH3CD, 1996 

7. Billy Cooper’s version of Dulcie Bell can be heard on TSCD607 and VT150CD, as above 8. More players, and more material by Billy Bennington, can be heard on VTDC12CD, as above.

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The Larks They Sang Melodious: Sing-Song in a Suffolk Pub XTRA 1141

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Blaxhall Ship has a long association with traditional music, one that continues to this day. As
such it has gained iconic status in this region, and deservedly so. In truth, though, in the early and middle years of last century it was probably no busier in this respect than many other
Suffolk hostelries such as Butley Oyster, Snape Crown and Eastbridge Eel’s Foot, to name a
few where recordings were made (1), or for that matter Sutton Windmill in Norfolk.(2) A great many East Anglian pubs are remembered as ‘singing pubs’, and presumably this was the case all over rural and urban Britain in the days when such activity was commonplace. Be that as it may, The Ship has received much attention from collectors over the decades (3), giving us a vivid picture of what went on in the place.

From the booklet, by Karl Dallas

The record under review brings us to 1973, a time when the company in the pub had become somewhat different from previous decades. The Folk Revival flourishing at this time, there was much interest in the older traditional music and many such recordings were being issued, including of several singers included here. (4). Not all of these would have been released by the time this session was recorded, but some performers were becoming well-known as tradition bearers. What we have here then, in The Larks They Sang Melodious, is a recording of a night – Friday, 16th November, 1973 – when the older locals were rubbing shoulders with denizens of nearby Leiston Folk Club and other interested ‘revivalists’. A period of transition perhaps, and very different from the recordings made by Peter Kennedy in the 1950s and Neil Lanham in the early 1960s. (5) The recording was made by Karl Dallas and Adam Skeaping, with all but one track the only ‘take’ (the exception being when the tape ran out). I don’t propose to compare this disc with the recent recording made for the 50th anniversary, which I have to admit I haven’t yet heard – another time perhaps! – but rather just to have a look at what was on offer in 1973, at the time of a musical situation in transition.

The record kicks off with a faded-in track of Tony Hall singing Donkey Riding. I’m not sure this was the wisest choice – it’s a rather underwhelming start, although the track does get going eventually, and this is not to denigrate Tony’s performance, lively as it is. What follows is a selection from the old boys – Cyril Poacher, Bob Hart, Percy Webb, Percy Ling, Geoff Ling and Bob Scarce – interspersed with the younger singers Tony Hall, Bill Horne, Rosemary Bisset, Vic Harrup and Linda Walker. It’s interesting to note that all of the material by the younger singers is staunchly traditional, whereas that by the older ones varies from traditional to more recent music hall, sentimental and popular (of sometime ago) songs, a fair reflection of the mix of material they chose to perform. The subtitle of the LP is accurate enough: there are only two brief instrumental tracks, Fred List’s Pigeon on the Gate and Steve Pallant’s The Foggy Dew, and sadly no step dancing, despite the former tune being a stalwart to accompany it.

Cyril Poacher

Cyril Poacher gives us his favourite The Nutting Girl and later Slap-Dab, from the music hall, in his usual confident and somewhat droll delivery. Bob Hart is featured with the sentimental White Wings, and Percy Ling with I’ll Come Back My Little Sweetheart, of similar sentiment. Both are assured performances, as are Geoff Ling’s very declamatory Maggie May and Among My Souvenirs. He also gives us a fine Green Bushes. Men comfortable with material they have performed countless times in such surroundings. The same could be said for Percy Webb’s chuckle-raiser The Master’s Servant, a much-loved ribald piece that crops up a lot in East Anglia. Finally from amongst the old boys there are two performances from Bob Scarce, born in 1885, the last ones from him, as he died shortly after the recordings were made, and before the record was released. He gives us the title song (which had to be recorded twice, as the tape ran out) and the sentimental A Boy’s Best Friend is His Mother. Of Bob Scarce’s style, Karl Dallas in the booklet notes, comments: “Though his breath was clearly failing, he was a fine singer nevertheless…Bob’s tonality is unconventional by modern standards…but it is consistent. We ran out of tape the first time he sang the song and when he recorded it again later the same evening I found he was singing it in exactly the same key as before: his pitching was that accurate.” In all, a solid and representative selection from these seasoned old gents, as might be expected, given their experience and the familiarity of the surroundings.

Bob Hart
Bob Scarce

So, what of “the folkies, traddies, clubbies, call ‘em what you will”, of Karl Dallas’ description,
who make up the rest? Just about all were local and many were regulars at the Everyman Folk Club in Leiston. Bill Horne gives us an assured, guitar-accompanied All For Me Grog, pretty much as The Dubliners recorded it, and Vic Harrap The Rigs of the Time, a version of which, as the booklet notes point out, was collected in Norfolk, from ‘Charger’ Salmons in Sutton Windmill. 6) The aforementioned Tony Hall gives us Donkey Riding and Bungay Roger, in his inimitable way and to his own melodeon accompaniment, which in itself is very different from the styles of the older players, such as Fred List, included here. (The same could be said of Steve Pallant and his The Foggy Dew). Finally there are two very effective performances from female singers, Rosemary Bisset with The Bold Dragoon and Linda Walker with Sweet Primroses. Solid fare all round from a typical folk club evening, from some talented performers.

Percy Webb

All seems to have run along smoothly, the old and the newer, held together by chairman Clive Woolnough, a “27-year-old bricklayer who lives in a council house in nearby Chillesford.” As a listening experience, I am not fully convinced that it all sits completely comfortably together, although the different styles are not really that jarring. On first listening I was inclined to dismiss it as evidence of a decaying tradition, diluted to an extent, and perhaps only really noteworthy for including the last recordings of Bob Scarce, but subsequent listenings have induced me to revise that opinion somewhat. There have been fewer and fewer occasions when the ‘tradition’ has been continuing – with whatever loose definition serves that term – but it carried on, and endures still to an extent. Undoubtedly the old boys appreciated the attention bestowed on them by the younger performers and enthusiasts, in what appear to be very good-natured evenings. Karl Dallas makes the interesting point in the LP notes: “An interesting thing about The Ship, however, is the way in which a new generation of ‘revival’ singers (are) more consciously aware of their traditions than the ‘old boys’ of the pub” and that the younger singers are “more deliberately using folk music as a means of striking down new roots.” Much of the material on this disc supports that observation.

Space precludes a discussion about the extent to which folk clubs have veered away from the ‘tradition’ in general, as the music becomes divorced from its original roots, community and purpose. Suffice to say that what we have with The Larks They Sang Melodious is an interesting aural ‘snapshot’ of a time when there were still enough older generation traditional singers in the environs of Blaxhall Ship to constitute singing company enough to produce such a recording, as well as a number of enthusiastic and talented ‘revivalists’, embracing the tradition from ‘outside’, who were very keen to perform alongside the old boys in an evening of conviviality.

Chris Holderness, March 2026

NOTES

  1. Neil Lanham’s recordings: Songs From the Company of the Butley Oyster (NLCD3) and
    Songs From the Singing Tradition of Snape Crown (no number) – both: The Helions
    Bumpstead Gramophone Company. Also Good Order! Traditional Singing and Music
    from The Eel’s Foot     (Veteran VT140CD) – 1930s/40s recordings
  2. East Anglia Sings (Snatch’d From Oblivion SFO 005) – BBC recordings from Eastbridge
    Eel’s Foot and Sutton Windmill, 1947
  3. Saturday Night in a Suffolk Pub (Folktrax 036) – Peter Kennedy’s recordings, 1953; The
    Barley Mow     (Topic TSCD676D) – includes Peter Kennedy’s film of The Ship; Songs From
    the Idiom of the People of Blaxhall     – Neil Lanham’s 1960s recordings; The Helions
    Bumpstead Gramophone Company (no number)
  4. Bob Hart: Songs from Suffolk (Topic 12TS252) 1973; Various: Flash Company (Topic
    12TS243) 1974 – includes Bob Hart and Percy Webb; Cyril Poacher: The Broomfield
    Wager     (Topic 12TS252); The Ling Family: The Singing Tradition of a Suffolk Family
    (Topic 12TS292) 1977 – slightly later recordings by Keith Summers
  5. As No 3, above
  6. Included on No 2, above
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