Fairport Convention - What We Did On Our Holidays (1969)

What We Did on Our Holidays is the second album release by the band Fairport Convention and was the first to feature Sandy Denny, whose "haunting, ethereal vocals gave Fairport a big boost", according to Allmusic's reviewer. The album also showed a move towards the dolk rock for which they became noted, including tracks later to become perennial favourites such as "Fotheringay" and the song traditionally used to close live concerts, "Meet on the Ledge".

Following the departure of Judy Dyble, the band conducted auditions for a replacement singer, and Sandy Denny became the obvious choice. Simon Nicol has said "it was a one horse race really...she stood out like a clean glass in a sink full of dirty dishes".

The album has been described by author Ritchie Unterberger as "a near-ideal balance between imaginative reworkings of traditional folk songs ... quality covers of contemporary folk-rock singer-songwriters, some quite obscure ... and original folk-rock material by various members".h Simon Nicol as cited the album as his favourite.

The cover features a sketch of the band performing, described in the album credits as "from a blackboard assaulted by Fairport Convention" and the reverse of the original sleeve a photograph of the band performing. The Island Masters 1990 re-release IMCD 97 also features a portrait of Sandy Denny.

In the USA, the album was released by A&M Records (SP-4185), containing an identical track listing but featured new cover art, and was retitled "Fairport Convention."

Personnel:
Sandy Denny (vocals, guitar)
Ian Matthews (vocals, percussion, guitar)
Richard Thompson (guitar, piano, accordion, vocals)
Ashley Hutchings (bass, background vocals)
Simon Nicol (guitar, harp, dulcimer, background vocals)
Martin Lamble (drums, percussion, violin, footsteps)
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Marc Ellington (background vocals on 11.)
Paul Gosh (background vocals on 11.)
Andrew Horvitch (background vocals on 11.)
Bruce Lacey
Claire Lowther (cellon on 03.)
Kingsley Abbott (coins on 04. + background vocals on 11.)
Peter Ross (harmonica on 13.)

Tracklist:
01. Fotheringay (Denny)
02. Mr Lacey (Hutchings)
03. Book Song (Matthews/Thompson)
04. The Lord Is in This Place...How Dreadful Is This Place (Hutchings/Thompson/Denny)
05. No Man's Land (Thompson)
06. I'll Keep It With Mine (Dylan)
07. Eastern Rain (Mitchell)
08. Nottamun Town (Traditional)
09. Tale in Hard Time (Thompson)
10. She Moves Through the Fair (Traditional)
11. Meet on the Ledge (Thompson)
12. End of a Holiday (Nicol)
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13. Throwaway Street Puzzle (Hutchings/Thompson)
14. You're Gonna Need My Help (Morganfield)
15. Some Sweet Day (F.Bryant/B.Bryant)

ARMU 2323
ARMU 2323 (zippyshare)