Guardian Music — (Rooksmere)Despite the title, this is not just an album of carols but a varied selection of (mostly) wintry songs performed by a four-piece that features two celebrated veterans of the English folk scene. Ashley Hutchings and Simon Nicol were found... more info

WFMU's Beware of the Blog — In a half hour, I heard two radically different but excellent female singers. Irene Trudel played Sandy Denny singing a demo of "Who Knows Where The Time Goes," which Denny sang in completed form on Fairport Convention's Unhalfbrickling in 1969..... more info

Guardian Music — (Folk Police)It starts with gently edgy backing and sturdy vocals from Fay Hield, and then suddenly the traditional favourite Spencer the Rover is transformed, with a startling, epic wash of sound in which trumpets are matched against pedal steel gui... more info

WFMU's Beware of the Blog — Really ace footage of these two bands playing on Ainsdale beach in 1971 near Southport, England. More at this youtube channel, but I chose this particular clip for the jaunty lil jig Maddy Prior does toward the end. more info

Guardian Music — You don't have to head to Britain's cities to find a clued-up crowd – there are some unlikely pockets of cool, from Anstruther to Frome and Nettlebed to Barrow-in-FurnessAnstruther, FifeThe small seaside village of Anstruther, 50 miles north of Edi... more info

Guardian Music — (Fellside) Hedy West was one of the great American stars of the 60s folk revival. Born in Georgia, the daughter of a union organiser who worked with mining communities, she sang mining songs, epic narrative ballads, children's songs and country tunes... more info

Brooklyn Vegan — British folk troubadour Richard Thompson, an original member of the pivotal folk rock group Fairport Convention, one half of a more intimate duo with his now-ex-wife Linda Thompson, and a prolific solo artist, is going on an extensive North... more info

Guardian Music — Cherry Hinton Hall, Cambridge"I don't know if sex is allowed at Cambridge. Is it?" Thousands of fans in foldable chairs and floral headbands cheer their reply."Oh good," Richard Thompson says, before launching into Johnny's Far Away, his 2007 ode to ... more info

Guardian Music — (Temple Records)Founded over 40 years ago in the Glasgow suburb of Battlefield, this band is one of the great institutions of the Scottish music scene. They are famous for their experiments, mixing pipes and fiddle with guitar, piano, whistle and cit... more info

Totally Fuzzy — The Swedish experimental pop outfit Fredrik grew out a collaboration between multi-instrumentalist Fredrik and singer Lindefelt, both of whom also worked together in an indie electronic duo named the LK. As Fredrik, they carved out a genre-bending s... more info