Ian Campbell Folk Group
This highly respected British folk group were formed in Birmingham, West Midlands in 1956 and were originally called the Clarion Skiffle Group. With his parents, Campbell had moved from his home town of Aberdeen, Scotland to Birmingham in 1946. The original line-up was Ian Campbell (b. 10 June 1933, Aberdeen, Scotland; guitar/vocals), his sister Lorna Campbell (b. 1939, Aberdeen, Scotland; vocals), Dave Phillips (guitar) and Gordon McCulloch (banjo). In 1958, they became the Ian Campbell Folk Group. McCulloch departed in 1959 and was replaced by John Dunkerley (b. 1942; banjo/guitar/accordion) who remained until 1976. In 1960, Dave Swarbrick (b. 5 April 1941, London, England; fiddle/mandola) joined, remaining until 1966. Issued in 1962, it is notable that Ceilidh At The Crown was the first ever live folk club recording to be released. In 1963, the group were signed to Transatlantic Records and Brian Clark (guitar/vocals) joined the line-up as a replacement for Phillips. Clark also became a long term member, staying until 1978. 
By now Ian had taken a place at university as a mature student, but the group still had bookings to honour, so Ian and Lorna recruited various session players including Aiden Ford (b. 1960; banjo/mandola), and Colin Tommis (b. 1960; guitar) who stayed for 18 months, touring Scandinavia. In 1984, Neil Cox (guitar) was added, and the group were booked by former bass player Mansell Davies to play dates in Canada. Cox then left, and the group of Ian, Lorna, Neil, and Aiden played occasionally for special dates. An album recorded in Denmark in 1977 has never been released because there was no group to promote it. The sessions included Luke Kelly of the Dubliners, Dave Swarbrick and Martin Carthy. Many of Ian Campbell's songs are often thought of as traditional, but those such as The Sun Is Burning have been covered by countless others, including Simon And Garfunkel. 
During the early '60s, the group had appeared on television programmes such as the 'Hootenanny Show', 'Barn Dance' and 'Hullabaloo'. In addition, they regularly played to full houses in concert at venues such as the Royal Albert Hall, and the Royal Festival Hall in London. In 1964, they were invited to perform at the Newport Folk Festival in the USA. In 1965, they became the first group outside of the USA to record a Bob Dylan song. Their version of The Times They Are A-Changin' reached the UK Top 50 in March 1965. The group added bass player Mansell Davies in 1966, but he emigrated to Canada three years later. He later became an organizer of the big Canadian festivals such as Calgary. After Swarbrick's departure in 1966, the group worked with George Watts (flute), who appeared on only two albums: New Impressions and The Ian Campbell Folk Group which was recorded in Czechoslovakia. Unfortunately, due to the prevailing political climate of the time, with the Russians marching into Czechoslovakia, the record was never released outside the country, and the group did not receive royalties. Watts left in 1968, but a year earlier the group took on bassist Dave Pegg, who remained with them for three years until joining Fairport Convention. In 1969, Andy Smith (banjo/mandolin/guitar/fiddle) joined, leaving in 1971. That same year, Mike Hadley (bass) joined the ever changing line-up, leaving in 1974. ADAM'S RIB was a suite of 12 songs written by Ian for his sister Lorna. The songs dealt with the different crises points in a woman's life. John Dunkerley left the group, owing to ill health, in 1976, and died the following year from Hodgkinson's Disease, aged just 34. During this same period, Brian and Lorna were divorced, and the group folded in 1978.