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Almost all music has a folk origin: blues, jazz, rock and even so-called classical. As Big Bill Broonzy famously said - "all songs are folk songs; ain't never heard a horse sing!"
Arguably the first Kiwi to make a living with a mandolin, David spent some of his musical life playing bluegrass, but was performing in the folk boom as early as 1964.
He was playing in Europe and the UK in the 70s, dabbling in folk rock and pop in California in the 80s, and creating a country garden in the 90s and teaching children to read.
These days, kind of retired, he is free to pursue any of the musical paths he loves: song-writing, tuition, and performance with guitar, piano, banjo, mandolin, autoharp, dulcimer, even bass; playing jazz, folk, blues and originals. Or to just kick back and listen to Bach or Grappelli ...
A long-standing performer of NZ folk, Davey also maintains a love affair with US old-time music nurtured since Doc Watson's LPs first made it to these shores. A natural entertainer since his debut on radio aged six, David thinks radio is the perfect performance medium.
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Podcasts
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Sandy Denny
Around the time of her birthday, we honor Sandy every year. For 2020, we have a close listen to her masterpiece Who Knows Where The Time Goes.
Duration: 00:58:37 | Date: 5 January, 2020
Shona Laing
Our greatest female pop rock hitmaker has a strong voice, good fingerpicking and some genuine folk roots.
Duration: 00:58:23 | Date: 20 December, 2020
Aoife O'Donovan
The Irish-American songwriter and folk artist has an impressive catalogue, with lots of collaborations.
Duration: 00:57:54 | Date: 6 December, 2020
Sam Amidon
A folk artist with NuFolk arrangements, Sam hails from Vermont, and he’s breathing new life into the old songs.
Duration: 00:55:50 | Date: 29 November, 2020
Blind Folk
We listen to some influential musicians who have amazed us with their playing and singing despite their visual impairment.
Duration: 00:57:18 | Date: 15 November, 2020
Gillian Welch
With her partner David Rawlings, Gillian has built a repertoire that sits perfectly at the place where folk song meets country music.
Duration: 00:58:31 | Date: 22 November, 2020
Paul Metsers
An expat Kiwi has become one of the UK’s most loved songwriters.
Duration: 01:01:04 | Date: 8 November, 2020
Joni at 77
Around her 77th birthday, we trace Joni Mitchell’s artistic life, realising an hour can hardly hope to cover this musician’s brilliant work.
Duration: 00:59:41 | Date: ,
Rainbow Folk
We play the songs of artists who have blazed a trail for rainbow community rights just by being themselves.
Duration: 00:55:44 | Date: 25 October, 2020
Jon Hooker
The Christchurch guitarist Jon Hooker has a self-released solo album that makes some fingerpickin’ good listening.
Duration: 00:54:13 | Date: 18 October, 2020
Dervish
The Irish group Dervish celebrate 30 years of music with a great collection of Irish folk songs
Duration: 00:58:23 | Date: 11 October, 2020
Nic Jones
We explore the great playing and rich repertoire of the English folk singer, on whom the English Folk Dance and Song Society conferred its Golden Badge.
Duration: 00:58:13 | Date: 4 October, 2020
300th
Davey cruises down a musical memory lane for his 300th show
Duration: 00:56:53 | Date: 27 September, 2020
The Boundary Riders
We play Rachel Dawick’s extraordinary folk drama which dips into 19th century NZ with a new take on the stories of our past.
Duration: 00:59:08 | Date: 20 September, 2020
Te Wiki O Te Reo Maaori
Every year we play a selection of folk and acoustic music by artists performed for the most part in te reo
Duration: 00:56:45 | Date: 13 September, 2020
Modern Folk - Part 2
Duration: 00:56:19 | Date: 6 September, 2020
Modern Folk Part 1
For nearly a century, musicians have been reinventing the folk tradition, or writing songs with one foot firmly planted in that tradition and yet one eye clearly turned towards the future.
Duration: 00:58:19 | Date: 30 August, 2020
Shirley Collins MBE
In her 80s, the First Lady of Anglo-American folk has surprised us all after a long silence with two new albums.
Duration: 00:56:39 | Date: 23 August, 2020
The Modern Griot
The bardic tradition of the griots of West Africa has entered a new phase, captivating lovers of world folk music, young and old.
Duration: 00:59:41 | Date: 16 August, 2020
Boucher & McNeill
Gillian Boucher, fiddler, and Bob McNeill, singer and guitarist, have formed a folk duo well worth listening to, and are touring in anticipation of the release of a new album.
Duration: 00:57:15 | Date: 9 August, 2020
Live Folk
Kiwis are getting out and about, and so are musicians. Going to live music has always been special the world over, with audience rapport inspiring great performances
Duration: 00:57:39 | Date: 2 August, 2020
Diarmuid Cahill
An Irish singer and songwriter who practised medicine and chased his music in New Plymouth has an album of originals, made in Ireland with some excellent musicians.
Duration: 00:51:44 | Date: 26 July, 2020
Kiwi Bluesmen
We continue our Made In NZ theme with trad and original performances from eight blues exponents, from the 70s to modern times
Duration: 00:56:00 | Date: 19 July, 2020
Antipodean Serenaders
Continuing an all NZ artists’ July, we delight in the nearly century-old music played by three NZers who love old-timey and ragtime...
Duration: 00:58:57 | Date: 12 July, 2020
The Titirangi Folk Club
Since the virus did for NZMMonth, we’re having another month of NZ folk in July, starting with performances from the vigorous folk club in Western Auckland...
Duration: 00:56:01 | Date: 5 July, 2020
Mixtape 7
A pot pourri of songs of all shapes and sizes heard during the big Rahui and shared with the world
Duration: 00:56:50 | Date: 28 June, 2020
Peggy Seeger
The sister of Pete and Mike is no less renowned for her service to the Anglo-American folk tradition and is a good songwriter, too. She is now an honorary Kiwi, and we wish her a happy birthday with a special programme.
Duration: 00:57:24 | Date: 21 June, 2020
Black Lives Matter
With the world in turmoil because of racism and injustice, we explore the incomparably rich heritage of black folk song and music, without which popular music as we know it would not exist.
Duration: 00:58:13 | Date: 14 June, 2020
Acoustic Confusion Two
Davey plays the music of some important Kiwi folk artists from the 80s to the present day.
Duration: 00:57:38 | Date: 31 May, 2020
NZ Women Folk
A programme of songs by Kiwi women artists, part of our NZ Music Month series.
Duration: 00:57:41 | Date: 24 May, 2020
NZMM Waiata Tangata
Davey searches for the folk roots of the brilliant repertoire of Māori music in te reo and in English.
Duration: 00:57:05 | Date: 10 May, 2020
NZMM_Come All Ye
We launch into NZ Music Month with a programme of Kiwi singers and songs. Thanks to those who generously shared their music, we have enough for over two months!
Duration: 00:57:18 | Date: 3 May, 2020
Quarantine Mixtape 2
Duration: 00:53:03 | Date: 24 April, 2020
Quarantine Mixtape1
Still working from home, Davey comes up with a varied programme of songs to enjoy during these unusual times.
Duration: 00:49:34 | Date: 12 April, 2020
Isolation Blues
As NZ goes into lockdown, musicians everywhere are making music from home, their song titles reflecting, by and large cheerfully, their isolation blues.
Duration: 00:58:07 | Date: 5 April, 2020
Biographies
Folk songs have long been a great way of telling life stories in miniature - from trad to modern, from the famous to the ordinary citizen.
Duration: 00:54:56 | Date: 19 March, 2020
Kate Wolf
The beloved songwriter sings her easy listening country folk songs on a special Folk Music Hour for Women's Day.
Duration: 00:59:06 | Date: 15 March, 2020
Vietnam
The songs associated with war have always been creative. We mark the beginning of the US war 55 years ago.
Duration: 00:57:21 | Date: 8 March, 2020
Folk at WOMAD
We play some of the acoustic and folkier acts coming to WOMAD in New Plymouth in March
Duration: 00:58:09 | Date: 1 March, 2020
Laura Marling
The popular UK songwriter and singer is a keenly anticipated guest at WOMAD in March.
Duration: 00:58:04 | Date: 23 February, 2020
Black History Month
We observe Black History Month with folk blues from four artists who have done so much to give acoustic blues a global reach. Indeed, three of them have toured NZ and delighted audiences here.
Duration: 00:58:09 | Date: 16 February, 2020
Smith and McClennan
Scot Emily Smith and Kiwi Jamie McClennan, partners in life and music, have a debut duo album out with some very good originals.
Duration: 00:58:51 | Date: 9 February, 2020
Duos
Duration: 00:57:18 | Date: 2 February, 2020
Pete Seeger 1919-2014
Our annual tribute to the doyen of folk entertainers is a live concert from his golden age, not unlike his Auckland Town Hall performance in the mid-60s.
Duration: 00:58:52 | Date: 26 January, 2020
Mixtape 6
We launch into 2020 with a mixture of great singing and playing, including stuff Davey heard in the holidays.
Duration: 00:56:48 | Date: 19 January, 2020
Summer Folk
There's heaps of great folk music up and down the country this summer. Here's a taste of some of these talented visitors.
Duration: 00:54:53 | Date: 12 January, 2020
Our Native Daughters
Four important women of colour reclaim the banjo for the African American folk tradition, and turn in a powerful set. This episode played earlier in 2019 and is repeated now in observation of Martin Luther King Day.
Duration: 00:58:26 | Date: 5 January, 2020