Bill is taking an extended break from touring and recording at the moment, due to being very busy enjoying motherhood at home in Sunderland. Dominic is now a year old (born December 2003), and Bill and Chris are expecting a second baby in July 2005. Bill may take on some gigs from 2006 onwards but until then will not be touring.
In January 2005, Bill is recording some vocals for Karen Tweed's forthcoming solo album - more details here when we have them.
Bill was involved in a couple of tours and other projects in 2004. In May, a short tour in Japan (Tokyo and Nagoya) was very successful, performing as a double bill with David Munnelly and Gavin Ralston. In July, Bill performed at Rudolstadt Folk Festival in Germany, and Bill is featured on the festival's live CD Rudolstadt 2004 (HD20046) singing Brian Bedford's song "What am I Bid?" The CD is available from Rudolstadt's home page
In June, Bill recorded guest vocals for Japanese rock band Brahman's new album. Brahman are fans of Bill's CD's, and decided to do a cover of the first song on Bill's CD Two Year Winter, Eamon Friel's From My Window . The song sounds very different to Bill's gentle version, Brahman have very punk vocals and heavy electric guitars and drums, but it sounds great! Brahman's last album sold half a million copies in Japan, and we wish them every success. The album is called The Middle Way and is released on the Toy's Factory record label, CD code TFCC-86167
Of course, all Bill's own CD's are available from Brick Wall Music by mail order, apart from the Faire Winds Live CD which is now sold out, sorry. See Mail Order for more information on ordering CD's.
In the meantime, if you'd like to see and hear a bit more of Bill, here are three website links for you to try out:
Click Here to listen to Bill's August 2003 appearance on Radio 4's Woman's Hour.
Click Here to watch Bill's live session on Radio 3's Andy Kershaw show, recorded in August 2002.
Click Here to go to the BBCi Folk & Country's review of Two Year Winter, which was the site's "Album of the Week" in August 2003. There are downloadable Real Audio clips of From My Window and The Story of Our Darling Grace.
Bill's latest album, Two Year Winter was released in July 2003. You can read the reviews, and find out more about the album on the Two Year Winter page. It is available direct from Brick Wall Music by mail order, and is also being distributed by Proper Music Distribution
Musicians featured on the album include Miranda Sykes (double bass, harmony vocals), Sarah Wright (flute, whistle, harmony vocals), Dave Wood (guitar), Stewart Hardy (fiddle), Paul Jayasinha (flugelhorn, 'cello), and Keith Angel (percussion). Despite all these musicians, the feel of the album is fairly delicate and acoustic, with the instrumentation of Panchpuran but the folky quality of Turn to Me. Two Year Winter is named after one of two tracks Bill has co-written with Anne Hills. Bill and Anne first started working together in October 2002 when, along with Aoife Clancy, they toured in the USA as The Faire Winds.
Two Year Winter continues to get airplay on a variety of national and local radio stations, including Radio 2's Bob Harris, Mike Harding and Desmond Carrington shows, and Radio 3's In Tune and Late Junction Shows. We'll keep this page updated with any radio interview and session dates.
Like Bill's first and second albums, Turn to Me and Panchpuran, Two Year Winter is released by Compass Records in America, Canada, Australia, Japan and Benelux. Compass are doing a brilliant job in selling Bill's CD's and getting them onto international radio stations, and the first song, Eamon Friel's From My Window has been licensed from Compass by Japanese Airline JAL for their in-flight radio station.
The Faire Winds
The first UK Faire Winds tour was a success, taking in 15 dates including arts centres, venues and Bromyard Folk Festival in September 2003. We hope you managed to catch one of the concerts, and would like to say a big thank you to The Arts Council of England for supporting the tour and making it all possible. The Faire Winds are Bill, Anne Hills and Aoife Clancy, and they are continuing to work together, touring in the USA (and possibly the UK) in summer 2004.
Three singers from three countries, all renowned solo artists in their own right, The Faire Winds are: Bill Jones, Anne Hills, a singer-songwriter from Michigan now living in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, who has toured extensively both solo and in collaborations with artists including Tom Paxton and Michael Smith. Aoife Clancy, formerly lead singer with Irish-American group Cherish the Ladies, is originally from Tipperary, Ireland, but has lived in Boston for eleven years. Aoife's third album, Silvery Moon, was released in October 2003 on the Appleseed record label.