Judy Dyble - Tribute

Judy Dyble - Tribute

by Pete Clemons

'Isnt life strange, a turn of the page' once lamented The Moody Blues. On Friday I was excitedly ordering a copy of the forthcoming Dyble Longdon album from Burning Shed. On Sunday morning it was announced that Judy Dyble had passed away.

Her end must have happened quite quickly because, only a week before, Judy had mentioned a tattoo she'd acquired and how it was no bigger than a freckle. I realised immediately what this was for as my wife still wears her pin dot sized inking. Judy was also joking about the radio waves to come. But sadly, I guess, it was not to be.

During the late 1960s and early 1970s there is no doubt that Judy hung out with the good and the great from the music world. Additionally, she was involved in some iconic albums from that period.

But for me it will be Judy's more recent output that will resonate as equally as her more illustrious past glories. You only have to listen to 'Harpsong' to fully understand Judy's joy of rediscovering music once again. That particular epic was an outpouring of emotion which reflected a potted history of her life.

Being a Mother never ends. But the day to day tasks tend to ease up. And this extra time had Judy searching for her voice once more. She attended a couple of Fairport Convention celebrations and came away on a high.

Judy then hooked up with Astralasia's Marc Swordfish who provided her with a way back into the music scene. Marc, whose background was dance and trance, would lay down the backing music that Judy initially found strange. But after much thought and inspiration managed to provide the lyrics to. This collaboration produced three albums.

Next up was a musical partnership with Alistair Murphy that proved pivotal to the next step of Judy's journey to completely re-discovering her voice. I suspected that the link up came about via Tim Bowness. So I asked Tim how that came about who kindly provided me with the following information.

'Yes, Alistair came to Judy via me. In 2009, Judy got in touch with me asking to produce an album for her. She liked No-Man, but she really liked California, Norfolk an album I’d made with Peter Chilvers. At that point I was working a lot with Alistair and he was a big fan of Judy’s voice, so I got him involved. From the off, I had a strong idea of how I wanted the album to sound (basically, the mature JD revisiting the musical soundscapes of her late 1960s beginnings) and the process of making the album was an enjoyable one'.

Not only did Alistair Murphy co-write most of Judy's future music that included the albums 'Talking with Strangers' – which saw Judy work again with Ian Macdonald and Robert Fripp - 'Flow and Change' and 'Earth is Sleeping' he also oversaw two live releases. Additionally, Alistair put together the Band of Perfect Strangers, a group of extraordinarily good musicians who put Judy on the road again and who, skilfully, gave Judy the space to be herself.

The Band of Perfect Strangers, whose core members included Mark Fletcher, Jeremy Salmon, Phil Toms, Steve Bingham, were just the most sympathetic fit for Judy and performed together at over 30 gigs.

In between all of this time Judy also found time to record and perform live with Andy Lewis, Summer Dancing 2017, and Sand Snowman, Severn Sisters Seven Seas 2018. I am not entirely certain but a gig I saw at Union Chapel, in support of Summer Dancing, may well have been the debut outing for that particular band. Judy also found time to work with Jackie McAuley and reform Trader Horne for a couple of sensational gigs.

Sand Snowman aka Will Kearney remembers Judy as being 'kind and supportive and delightfully witty to. I remember us both panicking in the backstage of the 100 club and debating as to who was the more reluctant performer'. I mentioned to Sand that, to me, Judy never came across as confident despite her gigs being wonderful affairs. Sand replied 'The interesting thing is that her innate sensitivity was communicated perfectly by that quality, and it really exposed her spirit and that of the song in a way that a more confident or performance conscious artist would probably miss. Her gigs were an absolute delight'.

My sincere condolences to her family and friends who, I have no doubt, will greatly miss Judy very much. And, of course, her passing will also be felt keenly by her musical family. But, judging by the outpouring of tributes, Judy will also be missed by her fans in listener land.

I am certain that the forthcoming Dyble Longdon album titled, 'Between a Breath and a Breath', will add greatly to her legacy. And I for one, look forward to its release. I guessed an album may be a possibility when I once noticed David at one of Judy's gigs. But that was a few years ago now. And as time went on I feared an album may never happen. David Longton has already alluded to challenging moments in its creation. I can only imagine. As such, huge credit must therefore go to David for the albums completion.