Thanks to David Trinder for images
Personal Memories
Dave Cooper is a founder member of 70’s Folk Jazz group Dando Shaft. and created this video. Here he sings a version of the seminal Jackson C Frank song.
“I had a personal and mystical association with Jack. At the age of 17 he inspired me to write my first song “The Weary Road“. I spent the summer of ’65 (warm nights and groovy tunes) at the Barge Club in Kingston on Thames. Listening to Jack’s magical renditions. Like all maestro’s he was humble and had time for anyone. Sitting on the upper deck of the barge he taught me some guitar. How to hammer-on in G, and one night told me that “all great art seeks the poetic“. I remember seeing Paul Simon, Sandy Denny and Martin Carthy’s jaws hit the ground when Jack sang. The perfect high and lonesome voice.
Strangely our paths crossed again when In 68-69? Sue and I by chance saw an advert. His name in chalk, on a board outside the short lived ‘Jaguar’ folk cellar bar in Coventry. So we went in and found Jackson sitting on his own in a virtually empty bar. We shared a drink and a chat remembering the Barge Club.
Then we waited with him, alas no one came. No gig organiser or audience. Tragic and impossible to imagine! Sometime after eight we said our goodbyes and he walked off into the night. Bert Jansch loved his music. At Rob Armstrong’s house. About a year before he died he played me his version of “My Name is Carnival” as we shared memories of a true inspiring man. Without Jackson C. Frank no Dando Shaft” #coopz 2022
“From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia”
“Jackson Carey Frank (March 2, 1943 – March 3, 1999) was an American folk musician. Moreover he released his first and only album in 1965, produced by Paul Simon. However after the release of the record, he suffered a series of mental health issues. Eventually diagnosed with schizophrenia and depression that prevented him from maintaining his career.
He sadly spent his later life homeless and destitute, and died in 1999 from a combination of pneumonia and cardiac arrest. Although he only released one record, he has been cited as an influence by many singer-songwriters, including Paul Simon, Sandy Denny, Bert Jansch and Nick Drake. Rolling Stone journalist David Fricke called Jackson “one of the best forgotten songwriters of the1960s.”
His 1965 Album
Best-known track from the sessions, “Blues Run the Game“, was covered by Simon and Garfunkel, and later by Wizz Jones,[11] Counting Crows, John Mayer, Mark Lanegan, Headless Heroes, Colin Meloy, Bert Jansch, Eddi Reader, Laura Marling and Robin Pecknold (as White Antelope), while Nick Drake also recorded it privately.
It was also used in the 2018 film The Old Man & the Gun while “Milk and Honey” featured in the 2003 film The Brown Bunny. “Milk and Honey” was also covered by Fairport Convention, Nick Drake, and Sandy Denny, whom he dated for a while.
Though he never achieved fame during his lifetime, his songs have been covered by many well-known artists.”More on Wikipedia”
Leave a Reply