The Folk Passion Years

How a budding composer met some eager performers...

In the 1960s, the fortuitous meeting of composer John Lockley and lyricist Mike Colley led to the creation of a folk-rock oratorio, called A Folk Passion.  This became a staple for the 20th Century group, who took it everywhere on tour around the UK.  The Folk Passion was later recorded by Reflection, although not without problems...

1969:  The Easter Tour and Eeyore

John Lockley, composer, piano and occasional bass 1968-72, recalls:

The first performance of A Folk Passion by 20th Century was in Holy Trinity, Cambridge (opposite Eaden Lilley's) in February, 1969 (the première was by the church youth at Bramhall Methodist Church, on 12 January, 1969).  At this time, the group also offered its help to various churches for special events and services.  Over Easter 1969, the Cambridge University Twentieth Century Church Light Music Group went on tour to various places, including, if I remember correctly, Macclesfield.  At the end of the academic year in 1969 I left Cambridge, but just after finals I spent quite a time collating the group's music library, collecting together the many songs and poems that the society used.  I became a medical student at The London Hospital (now The Royal London Hospital), but continued to stay involved with 20th Century over performances of A Folk Passion.

Most of the old guard left at the end of the summer term 1969, and at the beginning of the next academic year the only thing that stopped the group collapsing was the prior existence of A Folk Passion; some of the players that had been recruited for the Easter tour stayed on. Notable among these were David Woodward and Pete Dobbs (Gonville and Caius).  With the new influx of people the group effectively reformed itself and took off in a slightly different direction.  This was the time when the name was changed simply to 20th Century.  It was also the time when the emphasis of the group became a little more evangelical.  In the middle and late 1960s there had been a very definite "social gospel" influence.  The new group was a more overtly Bible-based in orientation, although there was no strict code of beliefs for members, and on at least one occasion we worked with a drummer who quite openly told us that he had no particular Christian beliefs at all!  I was never quite sure why he wanted to be part of the band, but we needed a drummer and he was very good at it!

David Woodward, organ and guitar, 1969-72, recalls:

For touring purposes, 20th Century acquired a van to carry all the equipment.  It was a second-hand diesel box van of some antiquity, which I collected from a garage in Acre Lane, Brixton, the purchase having been arranged through Pete Eustace's father in 1969. As the van had no seats, we fitted two old church pews longitudinally in the back. The van was affectionately known as Eeyore, inspired by the registration plate, which contained the letters EYU (I cannot remember the numbers). I think it previously belonged to a paint company, and the name "Waller" seems to stick in my mind in this connection (the very faded company name that had been removed could still be read on the side).

Peter "Flute" Eustace, flute, 1969-72, recalls:

That garage in Acre Lane Brixton was called Escott and Co. and in fact belonged to my father; and it was he who had arranged the purchase for us, as he had taken the vehicle in part exchange for a new one.  Eeyore was a Commer B-Type 1-ton van, previously owned by E and W Waller of Balham, a company who made and installed exhibition stands.  The name was still on the side for several months after we took it over, and I remember my Dad being rather cross that we hadn't kept our promise to paint it out.  The side panels were promptly covered with Folk Passion posters and then, while the van was being stored at Polly Taylor's parents' place in Burgess Hill during a vacation, it was repainted in a rather lurid blue and green scheme, apparently the choice of Michael "Clem" Clements who had that kind of taste in colours!  The van's registration plate was in fact 258 EYU, which gave rise to the name Eeyore.

1971:  Icthyan Singers and Riding Lights

Vince Cross, vocals and keyboards, 1970-72 recalls:

When I arrived there was a mix of folk and some rock music.  We covered a lot of Sydney Carter and Joni Mitchell, wrote some of our own songs - now long forgotten and unrecorded - and of course we performed A Folk Passion.  There were maybe 25 people loosely involved in 20th Century at the time, and different teams were assigned to different projects.  So, while our musical style was centred in what you might nowadays call plugged-in folk music, we had a growing interest in rock music too.  When I joined in 1970, I started out as the "singer in the rock band", covering numbers by Cream, but eventually I graduated to singing A Folk Passion after Richard Bradshaw left Trinity.

My time was divided between 20th Century and the other Cambridge University Christian Music Group, the Ichthyan Singers, who were a quite separate outfit taking services on a similar basis to C20th, but singing traditional choral church music (rather well, we thought).  We were good enough to get the occasional radio broadcast, or or cathedral gig.  The standard of C20th gigs ranged from inspired to appalling, depending on the mix of people at the time.  But I think we were a valid and interesting model of DIY evangelism (is there any other kind?)  What I mean is that our hearts were in the right place, we prayed and thought about what we were doing very hard, and we usually kept our feet on the ground.  What the effects were on the listeners, I don't know - a longitudinal study would be fascinating!

At the same time, Riding Lights Theatre Company, who made a tremendous contribution to Christian drama for the next twenty years, were flexing their muscles in Cambridge under Murray Watts (I would think he arrived in Cambridge in 1971).  Geoffrey Stevenson, who was his partner in that project, now teaches at St. John's College Durham, and continues to reflect deeply and seriously about the interplay of Christianity and the media.  Murray Watts and Paul Burbridge eventually took Riding Lights on tour round the UK, where they have become nationally famous for their cutting edge, high-energy ensemble drama, both Christian and secular.  They set up a permanent base in Friargate, York in around 2000.  They have many published plays and collections of sketches.  Murray wrote the screenplay for the stop-motion animated film The Miracle Maker (Icon, S4C and Bible Society, 2000), which was a huge hit.

David Woodward, organ and guitar, 1969-72, recalls how June went decimal in February:

Mavis Watt decided to change her given forename from Mavis to June (her middle name) on 15th February, 1971 - the date that decimal currency was officially introduced in the UK.  Later, she changed her surname by marrying John Lockley.

John Lockley, composer, piano and occasional bass 1968-72, recalls:

By this time 20th Century had a van to carry the equipment, which had the registration plate EYU, and so had been promptly christened Eeyore.  We toured that year in the Eastbourne and London areas; in particular we gave memorable performances at St John's Ealing, on a number of occasions; also St Leonards' Shoreditch.  I remember being there the day Stravinski died (6 April, 1971).