Seth Lakeman

Born in Frome, Somerset, in 1977 and raised in Buckland Monachorum, Devon, Seth Lakeman developed an early family-based musical practice with his brothers Sean and Sam. First active with The Lakeman Brothers and later as part of Equation in the 1990s, he went on to pursue a solo career centered on English folk rooted in West Country traditions, with prominent fiddle playing, the tenor guitar, narrative ballads and songwriting that draws on both local legend and the British folk repertoire. After The Punch Bowl (2002) he gained wider notice with Kitty Jay (2004), an album inspired by Dartmoor that was nominated for the Mercury Prize in 2005, before broadening his approach on Freedom Fields (2006) and Poor Man’s Heaven (2008), where the balance between acoustic and folk-rock elements was strengthened. His discography continues with Hearts & Minds (2010), Tales from the Barrel House (2011), Word of Mouth (2014), Ballads of the Broken Few (2016), The Well Worn Path (2018), A Pilgrim’s Tale (2020), Make Your Mark (2021) and Somerset Sessions (2023). In parallel he has collaborated with Cara Dillon, Robert Plant, Van Morrison and Public Service Broadcasting, while remaining a fixture on the British folk and folk-rock scenes.