1. Ralph McTell was born on Ralph May; 3 December 1944 and is an English singer-songwriter and guitar player who has been an influential figure on the UK folk music scene since the 1960s.
72 Facts About Ralph McTell
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Ralph McTell modelled his guitar style on American country blues guitar players of the early 20th century, including Blind Blake, Robert Johnson and Blind Willie Ralph McTell.
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An accomplished performer on piano and harmonica as well as guitar, Ralph McTell issued his first album in 1968 and found acclaim on the folk circuit.
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Ralph McTell reached his greatest commercial success in 1974 when a new recording of "Streets of London" became a No 2 hit on the UK Singles Chart.
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Ralph McTell recorded Keith Hopwood's and Malcolm Rowe's theme song to Cosgrove Hall's adaptation of The Wind in the Willows.
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Ralph McTell's mother, Winifred, was born in Hammersmith, London.
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Ralph McTell was given a plastic mouth organ and his grandfather, who played the harmonica, taught and encouraged him.
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Ralph McTell hated his time there, and despite being a very bright pupil, he did not do well academically.
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In 1963, Ralph McTell was working on a building site, and it is of this time that he wrote, in the mid-1970s, "From Clare to Here".
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At college, Ralph McTell became interested in the beatnik culture that flourished in the 1950s and early 1960s.
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Ralph McTell was persuaded to join a bluegrass-influenced band called the Hickory Nuts, who performed all over England and, despite playing in some dire places for pin money early on, ended up with decent fees and respectable crowds in venues such as Croydon's Fairfield Halls.
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Ralph McTell spent time in France and visited Belgium and Germany.
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In 1966, Ralph McTell met another emigre to Paris, a student from Norway named Nanna Stein.
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In October 1970, Ralph McTell sold out the Royal Festival Hall again and the album Revisited was released.
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Ralph McTell and Nanna's daughter Leah was born on 9 February 1971.
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Ralph McTell re-recorded "Streets of London" with bassist Rod Clements and backing vocalists Prelude.
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Ralph McTell decided to tour with a band to promote the album, but the experiment was not a success.
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Ralph McTell went to America with his family where he spent time relaxing and writing.
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Ralph McTell and Nanna's son Tom was born on 7 September 1976.
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Ralph McTell and Nanna's son Billy was born on 19 April 1978.
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Professionally, it was a quieter year and Ralph McTell spent time with his family in their homes in London and Cornwall.
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In March 1979, Ralph McTell played The Royal Festival Hall accompanied by Dave Pegg and Dave Mattacks of Fairport Convention, and Nigel Smith and Mike Piggott.
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Ralph McTell had written a number of new songs and went into the studio with backing musicians including Richard Thompson, Dave Pegg and Simon Nicol.
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In 1982, Ralph McTell's career took an unexpected change of direction.
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Ralph McTell's guests included Billy Connolly, Georgie Fame, Simon Nicol with Dave Swarbrick, and Mike Harding.
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In 1984, Ralph McTell fronted another children's TV programme, called Tickle on the Tum, again built around his songs.
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Ralph McTell featured in three series alongside guests including John Wells, Willie Rushton, Kenny Lynch, Penelope Keith and Nerys Hughes.
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Ralph McTell was still playing concerts between his television commitments and he toured during 1984 at home and in Canada and the United States.
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The next year Ralph McTell was back on form with Bridge of Sighs.
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Ralph McTell was a regular visitor to, and occasional performer at, Fairport Convention's annual music festival in the village of Cropredy, near Banbury.
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In 1989, Ralph McTell signed a deal with the label Castle Communications to produce a compilation of his love songs.
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In 1991, Ralph McTell shared the billing with Donovan on a tour of Germany.
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In 1994 Ralph McTell took part in a concert at the Royal Albert Hall to commemorate the life of Ken Woolard.
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Ken was the founder of Cambridge Folk Festival and Ralph McTell assembled a band, Good Men in the Jungle, to play at that summer's festival.
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Ralph McTell celebrated his fiftieth year by giving up smoking.
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Bentley's sister Iris died before he was pardoned and, at her request, Ralph McTell performed at her funeral a few years later.
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In 1995 Ralph McTell performed songs from The Boy with a Note at the Year of Literature Festival in Swansea, in South Wales.
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In 1996, Ralph McTell presented BBC radio's coverage of Sidmouth Festival and toured the UK, Europe, and the US.
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An authorised biography of Ralph McTell, entitled Streets of London, was published by Northdown Publishing.
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Ralph McTell had been busy writing during the previous couple of years and the result was Red Sky.
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Ralph McTell had been working on an autobiography for some years and the first volume, entitled Angel Laughter, was published by Heartland Publishing in 2000.
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In 2001, Ralph McTell undertook a special tour of the UK.
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On Sunday 22 February 2002, Ralph McTell appeared to a sellout audience at Liverpool's Empire Theatre.
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Ralph McTell had been touring extensively at home and abroad for many years so in 2003 he decided to take a break from the road.
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Early in 2004, Ralph McTell co-headlined on Steeleye Span's tour of Australia and New Zealand as well as touring in the UK, Ireland and continental Europe.
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Ralph McTell appeared at the fortieth Cambridge Folk Festival and played at the fiftieth Sidmouth Festival.
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Ralph McTell celebrated his 60th birthday with a concert at London's Royal Festival Hall in November 2004.
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In 2006, Ralph McTell's 'Walk Into The Morning' tour was a sellout success.
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Ralph McTell recorded an album of the material, titled Gates of Eden.
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In October 2007, Ralph McTell released an 'audio book' titled As Far As I Can Tell.
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On 9 October 2008, Ralph McTell appeared on BBC1 TV's nationally broadcast magazine programme The One Show in a pre-recorded package about the song "Streets of London".
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Ralph McTell embarked on his most extensive UK tour for many years in October 2008, visiting thirty venues throughout England.
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Ralph McTell released his first downloadable album in July 2009, titled Streets of London and Other Story Songs, comprising twelve tracks from his back-catalogue.
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Ralph McTell joined Fairport Convention onstage during their set later the same evening.
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In October 2009, Ralph McTell was honoured by the UK Parliament's All Party Folk Music Group at a special award ceremony in the House of Commons, to celebrate his lifetime's contribution to folk music.
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Ralph McTell kept an online diary of the album's progress which described assembling the material, the recording sessions and preparing for release.
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On 21 November 2010, Ralph McTell released a seasonal song, "The Things You Wish Yourself", as a download-only single.
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Ralph McTell was invited to record his own interpretation of a Bob Dylan song for the BBC Radio 2 celebration of Dylan's 70th birthday in May 2011.
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Ralph McTell embarked on a 36-date UK autumn tour in September 2011, culminating in a concert at London's Cadogan Hall on 11 December.
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The spring of 2014 saw Ralph McTell touring the Celtic nations of the British Isles, and the release of a CD compilation of Celt-themed songs, Celtic Cousins.
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Later in the year, Ralph McTell marked the centenary of the start of the first world war with a four-song EP, The Unknown Soldier.
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Ralph McTell celebrated his 70th birthday with a concert at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, London, on 7 December 2014.
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In 2015, Ralph McTell played more than 30 solo shows over the year.
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Towards the end of the year, Ralph McTell started a recording project with one of his earliest performing partners, Wizz Jones.
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McTell's fifty years as a recording artist was marked by Martin Guitars with a 'signature' Ralph McTell guitar, built to McTell's specification and marketed as the Martin RM50.
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Ralph McTell played a special show at the Royal Albert Hall in May 2016.
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Ahead of his solo autumn tour, Ralph McTell invited applicants to submit recordings of original music, from which Ralph McTell would select performers to open for him in an 'open mic' format at the shows.
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Since 2014, Ralph McTell had played an annual benefit concert for the UK homeless charity, Crisis at Christmas, and in 2017 Ralph McTell invited The Crisis Choir to sing Streets of London with him at his Palladium concert.
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Ralph McTell recorded his song with The Crisis Choir and guest vocalist Annie Lennox, for release in the lead up to Christmas.
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In September 2018, Ralph McTell made his debut on BBC's music show Later.
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On 8 June 2024, Ralph McTell was a special guest for Richard Thompson, on the final night of his UK tour, at the Royal Albert Hall.
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Ralph McTell appeared as a client, along with music therapist Matthew, in BBC' The Repair Shop, in April 2025, to repair a leather life-size figure of Kenny the Kangaroo, which is referenced in the Best Of Alphabet Zoo Music For Pleasure from 1983.