About Oysterband
Oysterband is a British folk rock and folk punk band formed in Canterbury around 1976.
The band formed in parallel to Fiddler's Dram, and under the name "Oyster Ceilidh Band" played purely as a dance band at first. The name Oyster comes from the group's early association with the coastal town of Whitstable, Kent, known for the quality of its oysters. Their first album, released under the Oyster Ceilidh Band name, was Jack's Alive on the Dingles record label. Subsequent albums, as "Oyster Band" were released on the band's own Pukka Music label: English Rock 'n' Roll: The Early Years 1800–1850 and Lie Back and Think of England, followed by 20 Golden Tie-Slackeners and Liberty Hall.
The line-up of the band changed over these albums. The first recorded line-up was:
When Chris Wood left the band to go travelling in Canada, he was replaced on bass guitar by returning founder member Ian Kearey. Cathy Lesurf subsequently left to join Ashley Hutchings' Albion Band, and Will Ward also departed so that by the time they recorded Lie Back and Think of England, the personnel had settled down to John Jones, Ian Kearey, Alan Prosser, Chris Taylor and Ian Telfer. For the album Step Outside they added Russell Lax on drums. Step Outside mixed self-penned songs, often with a political theme, with reworkings of traditional standards such as "Hal-an-Tow".
After the 1987 release Wide Blue Yonder Kearey left the band to be replaced by Chopper . Subsequent albums included Ride, Little Rock to Leipzig and the June Tabor collaboration Freedom and Rain. Following this the band changed its name to Oysterband. Drummer Lee Partis replaced Russell Lax for 1992's Deserters before Holy Bandits in 1993 propelled the band to the forefront of a booming folk rock scene alongside bands such as The Levellers.
In the 1990s, the band adopted a more overtly political stance, recording the harder The Shouting End of Life and collaborating with Chumbawamba to record "Farewell to the Crown", released as the B-side of the "Tubthumping" single. But recent releases Deep Dark Ocean, Here I Stand, Rise Above and Meet You There have seen the band return to a softer, more melodic sound, while recent tours under the banner The Big Session have seen the band offer exposure to several young, emerging folk musicians like Dan Donnelly, The Handsome Family, as well as veterans such as June Tabor. James O'Grady regularly appeared on the Oysters' albums and tours in the last few years.
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