12. The UnthanksThe Songs And Poems Of Molly Drake
Again, this is me sneaking two lots of musicians in, but The Unthanks are such lovely people and incredible musicians. They run singing courses, and I’ve sung on one with them, and it was so wonderful. They have such a fervour for sharing in the joy of songs. Molly Drake’s songs are so distinctive and delicate and imaginative, with such beautiful focuses, like ‘Soft-Shelled Crabs’, which talks about who we all are, and I love being able to hear roots in them that her son, Nick, took on in his own way. I saw The Unthanks singing these songs in London a few years ago, and Molly’s daughter Gabrielle Drake was there, who is an actor, and now looks after her brother and mother’s musical estates. She read her mother’s poetry and it was very moving thinking of Molly’s music being from such a recent time, but also feeling so timeless.
