Lal Waterson

With her death from cancer on September 4, 1998, England lost one of its truly great folk song interpreters in Lal Waterson (born Elaine Waterson). A founding member of the Watersons, a group she shared with her brother, Mike, and sister, Norma, Waterson played an important role in the resurgence of interest in traditional British folk songs for more than four decades. The London Times referred to her as "a plaintive voice that was one of the great glories of English folk music." Her brother-in-law, Martin Carthy, who replaced John Harrison in a re-formed version of the group in the mid-'80s, said "She used all the techniques of traditional song-making in her lyrics and she never sounded like a revival singer." ~ Craig Harris