Martin Carthy may have influenced Bob Dylan and Paul Simon and become a British folk legend, but he has always been an easy-going, modest performer, and that wasn't going to change just because he is about to turn 70. He started solo, showing off his no-nonsense vocals and acoustic guitar playing with a song about transportation to Australia, followed by an unaccompanied story of female revenge written by Mike Waterson, and continued by switching between murder ballads, a finely played English dance tune and a burst of comic music hall, sounding as relaxed as if he were in a folk club. All that was lacking was a sense of occasion.
The second half provided just that, and opened with a 70s punk hero whom Carthy described as "cruelly under-estimated". Tom Robinson responded with a brave set that ranged from an angry Steve Knightley ballad to his own material, with his 1978 anthem Martin now transformed into a rousing birthday sing-along.
Next on was Eliza Carthy, showing off her impressive fiddle work as she accompanied her father on The Lofty Tall Ship. Finally, he was joined by Dave Swarbrick, the fiddle hero with whom he first worked in the 60s, for a glorious, revival of Byker Hill. Now, at last, there was the sense of nostalgia and emotion the evening required. Carthy told the story of how he and Dylan had used a samurai sword to break up a piano for firewood in Chalk Farm, back in the freezing winter of 1962. Then came Dylan's I Shall Be Released, dedicated to Ai Weiwei, and a final demonstration of Carthy's guitar skill with an exquisite solo treatment of The Harry Lime Theme.
