Joe Stead (1981 Version) - The Sheffield Apprentice

I learned this song from the late, great Jon Rennard around about 1971, although it might have been a year or two earlier if he died in 1971. Jon had shown up by mistake at a gig I was playing in Newbury, Berkshire. It turned out he had got his dates wrong and had travelled down from Leeds in West Yorkshire a week early. He had nowhere to stay over night so I took him home where he taught me the Sheffield Apprentice. We became good friends until his tragic death about 2 years later in a car crash one Friday lunchtime in his home town of Leeds. I have vivid memories of staying with him in Leeds where I used his bed! He simply climbed out of the bedroom window, which happened to be a skylight, and proceeded to cross four terraced houses before tapping on the window of an unsuspecting lady friend who lived four doors down. It was a cold damp November evening and he was four stories up. Jon lived life to the full.

Category:

Music

Tags:

• Sheffield
• Traditional
• English
• Bandolin
• Philadelphia
• Television
• Jon
• Rennard
• Kimber's
• Men

[superleedsspec]

hi joe, Your good self and the other men of Kimber took my boy with his class from Christchurch, Halifax a few years ago and taught him a few shanties and i thank you all coz it was a great night at the Square Chapel! What was the shanty 'i wish i was a cabin boy aboard a man o war' song called?

all the best Joe, best wishes to yersen and the rest of the boys!

kieron

[banjostead]

@superleedsspec

The song is called 'Sam's gone away'. It's available on our album "Don't take the heroes" £12 including post and packing.

We are back at Square Chapel again next Feb (First Sat).

Thanks for the letter.

Joe

[namoo2]

fantastic...i do a version of this song too...it is on my my space site look up naomi bedford...your version is fantastic...some one came up to me at a justin currie gig recently and told me you did a version so i looked you up today...i LOVE it

naomi x

[banjostead]

Well great! Thanks very much!

Joe

[lemonostiftis]

really nice tune, and what a great voice he has

[banjostead]

Thanks, perhaps I'm just lucky.

Joe

[darthmagnum]

This is excellent stuff indeed - thanks for sharing!

[jeana1001]

I'm so pleased I found this video. I have the LP Brimbledon Fair where Jon Rennard sings this song; a great song.

Your information is slightly wrong. Jon and his mate Marsh were killed in a car crash on Thursday 29 July 1971 on Halcyon Hill in Leeds. The accident happened around teatime. It was a great loss to all of those who knew him on the Leeds folk scene and a great loss to folk music in general.

[namoo2]

i have just stuck up my version of the sheffield apprenitice on youtube...look up naomi bedford and you will find it if you should so fancy!!! nx

[lemonostiftis]

hey , is that you , you're singing?

cheers mate