Fairport Convention

With a career dating back to mid-’60s London, Fairport Convention are a British folk-rock institution whose impact on the movement is unparalleled. They hit their creative peak between 1969 and 1970 when singer/songwriter Sandy Denny and guitarist Richard Thompson briefly anchored the group’s consistently changing lineup. On the landmark albums Unhalfbricking and Liege and Lief—the latter recorded after a deadly tour van crash nearly ended their career in the spring of 1969—Fairport Convention shed their formative interest in California folk rock for an electrified style of traditional English music that’s both archaic and modern. The sound’s expansive influence has stretched across psychedelia, prog rock, indie folk, and particularly heavy metal. Led Zeppelin’s use of droning acoustic instruments and snaking rhythms are deeply indebted to Fairport Convention. After Denny’s and Thompson’s departures in 1969 and 1971, respectively (both would become legendary solo artists), the group gradually transformed into a kind of British folk version of the Grateful Dead. Anchored by cofounding guitarist Simon Nicol and bassist Dave Pegg, Fairport Convention have consistently produced well-crafted albums while playing shows and festivals, including the annual Cropredy Convention, for their devout fanbase.