Lyell Tranter Glen Stuart Davey Johnstone Nigel Smith Tom Hoy Linda Simpson Pick Withers Lee Abbott John Carey Matt Barnhoorn Nick Hall Laurens Joensen
Magna Carta is a progressive rock/folk rock group, originally formed in London in April 1969.[1] Their first concert was on 10 May 1969, by Chris Simpson (guitar, vocals), Lyell Tranter (guitar, vocals), and Glen Stuart (b. Alastair Urquhart, vocals).[2]
Magna Carta (1969) was released as their debut album by Mercury, before their 1970 album, Seasons, reached number 55 on the UK Albums Chart, although thereafter Tranter returned to Australia.[1] The album was produced by Gus Dudgeon, arranged by later successful producer Tony Visconti, and the session musicians included organist Rick Wakeman, drummer Barry Morgan, jazz double bassist Spike Heatley and others. In 1971, Magna Carta performed at the Royal Albert Hall with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.[1]Davey Johnstone joined the line-up, recording Songs From Wasties Orchard (1971) and In Concert (1972) with the band, before leaving to work with Elton John, with whom he is still playing.[1]
Simpson and Stuart were then joined by Stan Gordon, recording and releasing Lord of the Ages (1973). Shortly afterwards, Graham Smith, who had played on the sessions for Songs From Wasties Orchard, replaced Gordon. This short-lived line-up, augmented by guest musicians, recorded Martin's Cafe in early 1974, but the album's release was delayed by a couple of years due to a dispute between the band's management and record company. The main duo was then joined by Tommy Hoy (ex-Natural Acoustic Band),[2] before Stuart left to run a pet shop in Richmond, Surrey.[1]
Nigel Smith joined in time to help record 1975's Putting It Back Together. In 1977, Hoy's former bandmate in the Natural Acoustic Band, Robin Thyne joined the band, along with Lee Abbott. Soon afterwards, Pick Withers was added. Withers stayed only briefly, leaving to join Dire Straits. Amid much acrimony, Thyne and Hoy left in 1979 to form NovaKarta. Tom McConville appeared on the Live In Bergen release, before the line-up changed again to accommodate Al Fenn and George Norris.[1]
Between 1980 and 1982, Doug Morter was added to the line-up, together with a variety of drummers, including Paul Burgess. The 1981 release, Midnight Blue, contained "Highway To Spain". Norris, Burgess, and Morter all left, the latter moving on to the Albion Band. Chris Simpson's solo release, Listen To The Man, came out during this period and featured backing from Abbott, Linda Taylor, and Will Jackson. Between 1984 and 1986, Simpson and Taylor went to the Middle East to run a music club, before returning home to re-form Magna Carta. By 1986, the line-up now included, in addition to Simpson, Taylor, and Abbott; Gwyn Jones, John Carey, Paul Burgess, and Simon Carlton. In 1988, One To One was released on the Tembo label, Jones left the band the same year.[1]
In 1990, Simpson and Taylor married, and, with the semi-retirement of Lee Abbott, they continued to play as Magna Carta as a duo, as well as with a larger line-up for extensive touring.[1]
The 1992 Dutch release, Heartlands, was followed by a tour of the Netherlands.[1] The duo continued to maintain a busy live schedule, and over the years toured many different countries. Several live albums appeared over the course of the decade, in addition to the reissue of the band's 1970s albums on CD.
In 2001, Seasons In The Tide was released on the Gold Circle label, although the label went bankrupt soon afterwards. In 2002, the DVD Ticket To The Moon was released, recorded at the Dutch island of Texel in 2001. Later that year, Magna Carta supported Fairport Convention on their Dutch theatre tour.
In 2006, Chris and Linda Simpson announced that their marriage was over.[citation needed]
In 2007, Magna Carta had already decided that they would disband in 2009, mainly in recognition of the deterioration of the Simpsons' relationship. In late 2008 they embarked upon a "farewell tour" of the Netherlands.
In early 2011, Midnight Blue was released in a double album package with the live album Live & Let Live. In September and October 2011, a new Magna Carta line up toured around 17 venues in the Netherlands.
After another tour in the Netherlands,[when?] the band returned to the studio to record a new album, The Fields of Eden (2015).
In December 2019 they announced their final concert, after 50 years [3]
Discography
Studio albums
Magna Carta (1969)
Also issued as This is Magna Carta and Times of Change
Reissued with three additional tracks as Rings Around the Moon (2000)
Reissued as Ticket to the Moon (2005)
Heartlands (1992)
Seasons in the Tide (2001)
The Fields of Eden (2015)
Live albums
In Concert (1972)
Live in Bergen (1978)
Live Two by Four At The Melusina (1980)
State of the Art (1993)
Live at the BBC (1995)
Live at Grassington (1999)
Evergreen (2000)
Forever (2000)
A Touch of Class (2002)
Ticket to the Moon (DVD) (2002)
Compilation albums
Spotlight on Magna Carta (1977)
Old Master & New Horizons (1991)
Milestones (2CD) (1994)
Las Tierras del Viento (1995)
Limited Edition (1996)
Seasons + Wasties Orchard (1999)
Lord of the Ages + Martin's Cafe (1999)
Where to Now? (2000)
Magna Carta Gold (2003)
Ages and Seasons (2003). Features 4 complete albums: "Seasons", "Songs From Wasties Orchard", "Lord Of The Ages" and "Martin's Cafe".
In Tomorrow (2005)
Backroads (2006)
Airport Song (DVD) (2006)
Deserted Highways of the Heart... (2007)
Tomorrow Never Comes, The Anthology 1969-2006 (2CD) (2007)
Written in the Wind (2CD) (2008)
Other releases
Chris Simpson - Listen to the Man (1984)
Paul Stewart - That's the Way it Goes (2006)
Related Research Articles
Liquid Tension Experiment (LTE) is an American instrumental progressive metal supergroup founded by Mike Portnoy in 1997. The band initially released two albums, between 1998 and 1999. An extension of their second regular album, with the absence of John Petrucci was released in 2007 under the name "Liquid Trio Experiment".
Jan Akkerman is a Dutch guitarist. He first found international commercial success with the band Focus, which he co-founded with Thijs van Leer. After leaving Focus, he continued as a solo musician, adding jazz fusion influences.
Iain Matthews is an English musician and singer-songwriter. He was an original member of the British folk rock band Fairport Convention from 1967 to 1969 before leaving to form his own band, Matthews Southern Comfort, which had a UK number one in 1970 with their cover of Joni Mitchell's "Woodstock". In 1979, his recording of Terence Boylan's "Shake It" reached No. 13 on the US charts.
Misty in Roots are a British roots reggae band formed in Southall, London, in the mid 1970s. Their first album was 1979's Live at the Counter Eurovision, a record full of Rastafarian songs. The Counter Eurovision, held in Brussels, was organised as an alternative to the cheesy and conservative pop of the established Eurovision proper – a 'bread and circuses’ extravaganza in the eyes of many on the left. The album was championed by BBC Radio 1 DJ John Peel, helping to bring roots reggae to a white audience. At this early stage, the band was a collective with five lead singers and various musicians, though by the time of the second album proper the band had slimmed down to just three members. Along with Steel Pulse, Aswad, Matumbi, Cimarons and Black Slate, Misty in Roots were one of the most popular British reggae bands of the late 1970s.
The Natural Acoustic Band were a British acid-folk band, formed in 1969 in Milngavie, Glasgow, Scotland. There were a number of personnel changes throughout the band's history, but the best known line up was:
The Chameleons are an English rock band formed in Middleton, Greater Manchester, in 1981. The band's classic line-up consisted of bassist and vocalist Mark Burgess, guitarists Reg Smithies and Dave Fielding, and drummer John Lever.
David William Logan Johnstone is a Scottish rock guitarist and vocalist, best known for his long-time collaboration with Elton John as a member of the Elton John Band.
Andrew Fairweather Low is a Welsh guitarist and singer. He was a founding member and lead singer of 1960s pop band Amen Corner, and in recent years has toured extensively with Roger Waters, Eric Clapton and Bill Wyman's Rhythm Kings.
Mark Burgess is an English singer, bassist and songwriter, best known as the frontman of post-punk band the Chameleons.
Antic Café is a Japanese pop rock band formed in 2003 and signed to Sony Music Japan. Their visual image is oshare kei, and they describe their music as "Harajuku Dance Rock". The group has released six full-length albums, two compilation albums, and four EPs. On September 1, 2009, the band announced that after their live show on January 4, 2010 at the Nippon Budokan, they would suspend activities and put the group on hiatus, however they stated they will not disband. In 2012, after a two-year break, the team announced the resumption of activities. In June 2018, the band announced the departure of all members but Miku and a hiatus beginning in January 2019. On September 16th, 2024, they announced their return, with a re-recorded version of a song, plus the announcement of a 2025 tour, with all members returning except for Bou.
Colin Bass is an English musician, singer, songwriter and record producer. Since 1979, he has been a member of the British progressive rock band Camel, who, after a ten-year hiatus due to the ill health of bandleader Andrew Latimer, returned to active touring in 2013. From 1984 to 1992, he was also a core figure in the pioneering World Music group 3 Mustaphas 3. He has also made two solo albums under his own name and three albums recorded in Indonesia under the name Sabah Habas Mustapha. The title track of the first, "Denpasar Moon", became a hugely popular song in Indonesia in the mid-1990s and has been covered by over 50 Indonesian, Malaysian, Japanese and Filipino artists. As a record producer he has worked with a diverse range of international artists including: the Klezmatics (USA), SambaSunda (Indonesia), Daniel Kahn & the Painted Bird (USA) Krar Collective (Ethiopia), Etran Finatawa (Niger) and 9Bach (Wales) amongst others. As a guest artist he has appeared on albums by a number of internationally acclaimed artists including top Malian singing star Oumou Sangare, playing on all tracks of her 1993 Ko Sira album.
Paul Burgess is an English rock drummer, notable for his association with a wide range of British rock and folk-rock bands. In addition to extensive session work, he has been a member of 10cc, Jethro Tull, Camel, Magna Carta, and The Icicle Works.
Robert Eugene Steinhardt was an American musician best known for his work with rock band Kansas, for which he was co-lead singer, violinist and MC along with keyboardist Steve Walsh, from 1973 to 1982 and from 1997 to 2006. He and Steve Walsh were the only original members of the band not from Topeka.
Andrew Jonathan Roberts is an English musician, guitarist and singer-songwriter, perhaps best known for his 37-year partnership with singer Iain Matthews in the English folk rock band, Plainsong.
Ronald George Arthur Chesterman was an English musician. He is best known as the original double bass player with the Strawberry Hills Boys, starring Dave Cousins on guitar, dulcimer, banjo and vocals, Tony Hooper on guitar and vocals and Ron himself on double bass. They kept that name from 1964 when they formed until June 1967, when they were giving a concert and needed to put the name of the band on stage, so they became The Strawbs. Later, after he left the band, he became a county archivist in Chester.
Nic Potter was a British bassist, composer and painter, best known for his work with the group Van der Graaf Generator in the 1970s.
Rick Wakeman is an English keyboardist, composer and songwriter, most known as the keyboard player for progressive rock group Yes. His solo albums have sold over 50 million copies.
Songs from Wasties Orchard is a 1971 studio album released by Magna Carta on Vertigo Records. It features Davey Johnstone, vocals, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, mandolin, sitar, harpsichord & cymbals; Chris Simpson, vocals, acoustic guitar & percussion; Glen Stewart, vocals, lyre & wine glass.
Pink Floyd bootleg recordings are the collections of audio and video recordings of musical performances by the British rock band Pink Floyd, which were never officially released by the band. The recordings consist of both live performances and outtakes from studio sessions unavailable in official releases. In some cases, certain bootleg recordings may be highly prized among collectors, as at least 40 songs composed by Pink Floyd have never been officially released.
K² is a progressive rock band from Los Angeles, California. The band is composed of bassist/keyboardist Ken Jaquess, keyboardist Ryo Okumoto, drummer Doug Sanborn, electric violinist Yvette Devereaux, singer Shaun Guerin, guitarist Allan Holdsworth and guitarist John Miner.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
