'Keepsakes' band:
Sam Carter - songs, singing, guitars
Matt Ridley - double bass
Sam Nadel - drums
Sam Sweeney - violin
Kit Massey - piano & violin
Ayanna Witter-Johnson - 'cello
Charlie Stock - viola
Management - Terry O'Brien: terry@playpen.fsbusiness.co.uk
Press - Will McCarthy: will@willmccarthy.com
Ahead of the Davy Graham tribute gig at Cecil Sharp House, Saturday 28th November:
'Lumpy's Lullaby' live - supporting Martin Simpson at Twickenham Folk Club:
Influences
Nic Jones, Martin Simpson, Elliott Smith, Low, Neil Young, John Martyn, Pierre Bensusan, Tom Waits, Dick Gaughan, Nick Cave, Steve Baughman, Chris Wood, Martin Carthy, Richard Thompson, Jose Gonzalez, Iron & Wine, Nick Drake and loads of other stuff.
'The finest English-style finger-picking guitarist of his generation' Jon Boden
'Gorgeous earthy tone.' Neil Cowley (Neil Cowley Trio)
'Sam has got soul! What a guitarist. And a beautiful story teller.' Luke, Nizlopi
'Sam Carter plays his guitar like a harp.' Time Out
Sam Carter is a precocious young singer and guitarist from Rutland, East Midlands. Since moving to London in 2004 he has been busily honing his craft as a writer and performer. Sam has studied guitar with Martin Simpson and supported Bellowhead on their ‘Matachin’ album launch tour, which led Bellowhead lead singer Jon Boden to hail him as ‘the finest English-style finger-picking guitarist of his generation’.
In addition to this, Sam is a former Emerging Artist In Residence at the Southbank Centre, where he collaborated with a wealth of talented musicians and artists including Nitin Sawhney, Riz MC (star of ‘Shifty’), Nathan ‘Flutebox’ Lee and the London Philharmonic Orchestra.
Sam is an independent artist and has two releases to date, both self-released under ‘Captain Records’ - Here In The Ground EP (2008) and Keepsakes (2009) available on CD from HMV, Amazon and other online retailers. Keepsakes is available for download from iTunes and Amazon. Both CDs are also available from www.samcartermusic.co.uk
Praise for ‘Keepsakes’:
'He's intriguing both because he's an excellent guitarist and an original, distinctively English singer-songwriter, specialising in well-observed songs - and his debut album lives up to expectations.' The Guardian
'Keepsakes is a surefire collectible' Independent
Virtuosity is not supposed to be rewarded in English folk music, for the reason that virtuosity is a vanity. But thankfully the virtuosity of Carter's guitar playing does not obscure the careful narratives of his songs. So let's briefly reward Carter anyway and then observe how his gravely observed songs and light voice are what we're really listening to... ...there's real talent budding here.' Independent on Sunday
‘There’s a cinematic quality to his writing enhanced by clever arrangements and the album’s melancholic intimacy indicates a talent developing quickly’ Mojo
‘Sam Carter is a sophisticated blender of ancient and modern’ Uncut
‘An English acoustic virtuoso... there’s a thread of bittersweet romanticism and cold realism that’s occasionally reminiscent of John Martyn, and like Martyn, his guitar parts may be complex and musically intricate but they serve the songs. Fans of acoustic music rejoice, the UK 's proud tradition of folk singer-songwriters is in safe hands.’ Guitarist
‘Deftly played and perceptively written, it's a unassuming but quietly persuasive affair that can only serve to bolster Carter's profile and reputation as it finds its way on to the folk albums of the year lists.’ netrhythms.co.uk
'I have a feeling, and I'm not alone, that Sam Carter is going to be huge. His excellent debut album Keepsakes displays talents of perception and a musical confidence that belies his age – it hardly seems fair that someone so young and with so much time to improve is already so damn good.' The Irish World
'Strong personalities rarely shine through when dealing with singer/songwriters. Many anesthetize their songs by trying to satisfy a record company request or anticipate the zeitgeist. Thankfully, Sam has avoided any poisonous pitfalls, and developed his own harmonically rich language that's unique to him and a gift to us.' David Kushar, spiralearth.co.uk
Great to speak to you at last, and to hear you unmiked tonight in Islington. Incidentally, don't know if you've ever tried to visit George Lowden in Northern Ireland - he's a great bloke and who knows, he might even build you an even more special guitar than the one you already have...
hey sam hope you enjoyed my record i gave you i am loving keepsakes very good songs and the show at the lemon tree was amazing good luck on the rest of the tour..........craig
Just wanted to say how much I love your new album - fantastic stuff. Great music, playing and lyrics. Looking forward to seeing you when you've headed down the A1 to Leicester (at the Musician)
Just wanted to say how great the Luminaire show was. The album is nice, but acoustic music in particular does explode into life when it's done live, and last night was no exception. I only wish I'd managed to drag along a few friends who would have enjoyed it - more fool them for missing it. Will try to catch your next London show, whenever that is, and perhaps say hello this time instead of lurking stageside...
great! cheers for adding me. just heard you on mike harding, thought were wickid :) so we looked you up.. flat as a pheasant ay? 'plucking' road chickens! love it. hope to see you round our way some time soon... workhouse festival maybe next year?? keep up the good work and all that jazz (sorry 'folk') x from the fair far away valleys of walesi x :) Han
Hi Sam, New songs sounding brilliant! Looking forward to the new album. Will come and see you in Nottingham (Karine is fab too!) and possibly Musician / Stables too.
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