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“The music evokes the past in an extraordinary way. The public own it now, and it has a kind of magic to it.” The story of Meet On The Ledge, Fairport Convention’s most stirring, emotive anthem
Fairport Convention's Meet On The Ledge has become the band's defining anthem, a song traditionally used to close their annual Cropredy Convention festival with a mass singalong from thousands of fans. First released in 1968 on the group's second album, What We Did On Our Holidays, the track has taken on a deeper, almost hymn-like significance over the decades, particularly as a tribute to departed friends and bandmates, giving it lasting emotional resonance for both the group and their audience.
The article traces how the song, written when its author was still a teenager, grew from a modest album track into a communal touchstone performed annually to around 15,000 attendees at the Cropredy festival in Oxfordshire. It reflects on how the song's meaning has evolved with time and loss within the Fairport Convention family, with the band and fans describing it as something the public now feels ownership of, carrying a near-magical ability to evoke the past.
In short
- Meet On The Ledge is Fairport Convention's signature, most emotive song.
- Released in 1968 on What We Did On Our Holidays.
- Closes their Cropredy festival each year as a mass singalong.
Explained simply
Fairport Convention is a British folk-rock band formed in the 1960s that remains active today. "Meet On The Ledge" was released on the band's second album in 1968, written by one of the members whilst still a teenager, though it was initially just a minor album track.
The song became central to Cropredy Convention, an annual festival in Oxfordshire established by the band, where it is performed each year as a mass singalong attended by around 15,000 people. Over the decades, as members of Fairport Convention and their circle passed away, the track evolved into an almost hymn-like tribute to departed friends and bandmates.
What began as an obscure track on an album has become something audiences feel ownership of as much as the band itself. The song carries what people describe as a magical quality in evoking the past and creating connection among thousands who sing it together year after year.