Sam Lee: Mercury Prize 2012 Nomination

Sam Lee’s album Ground of Its Own has been nominated for the Mercury Prize's 2012 Albums of the Year. His album, released in July, has received much critical acclaim and Sam is starting to be seen as a pioneer in folk interpretation and transmission in Britain.

Ground of Its Own is the result of Sam’s several years of work collecting and learning folk songs from the Gypsy Traveller communities in England, Scotland and Ireland, including four years studying with Scottish traveller legend Stanley Robertson.  In his album, he has recorded songs that have never been available to the public before, maintaining their character and singing style, but with a contemporary twist.

Before the release of his debut album, Sam Lee was a trained visual artist and teacher. He also worked as promoter and live events producer through 2010 BBC Folk club of the year ‘The Magpie’s Nest’, now ‘The Nest Collective’. In 2011 he was the first folk artist to receive the Arts Foundation Award.

Besides his solo career, Sam Lee plays with his band ‘Sam Lee And friends’, known by their innovative folk, and he has also starred in the art film ‘The Gainsborough Packet’, directed by Matt Stokes.