Gladys' Leap


Gladys' Leap is the fourteenth studio album by Fairport Convention, released in August 1985. It was recorded in April and May 1985 at Woodworm Studios, Barford St. Michael, Oxfordshire, UK. It was produced and engineered by Simon Nicol, Dave Mattacks and Dave Pegg and the assistant engineers were Tim Matyear and Mark Powell. The album features the first contributions to a Fairport album by founding member Richard Thompson since Rosie in 1973. Thompson wrote the opening track "How Many Times" and played lead guitar on "Head in a Sack".
The title comes from Gladys Hillier, who was a postwoman for Cranham, a village near Stroud in Gloucestershire, England. As a short-cut, to save a two-mile walk, she used to jump a three feet wide brook, a tributary of Painswick Stream, on her round. In 1977 the Ordnance Survey agreed to name the spot in her honour and in 2005, when Hillier was 88, a footbridge was built across the stream. Fairport heard the story, and named the album in Gladys' honour.

Track listing

;Side one
  1. "How Many Times" - 3:29
  2. "Bird from the Mountain" - 4:51
  3. "Honour and Praise" - 5:21
  4. "The Hiring Fair" - 5:53
;Side two
  1. Instrumental Medley '85 - 5:08
  2. # "The Riverhead"
  3. # "Gladys' Leap"
  4. # "The Wise Maid"
  5. "My Feet are Set for Dancing" - 4:01
  6. "Wat Tyler" - 5:36
  7. "Head in a Sack" - 4:23
;2001 CD reissue bonus tracks from the 1982 Cropredy festival
  1. "Angel Delight" – 4:32
  2. "Polly On the Shore" – 5:15
  3. "Lucky Old Sun" – 5:36

Personnel

;Fairport Convention
;Additional personnel