Fingerstyle acoustic maestro Clive Carroll first met John Renbourn almost by accident. Studying at a London music conservatory, Clive decided to go home to his parents’ house one weekend and noticed that Renbourn was playing at his local folk club. He seized the opportunity, contacted the organiser and asked if he could open the show as support.
“So I turned up armed with some Elizabethan lute galliards, some Joe Pass-influenced numbers and some original pieces as well,” he tells us. “I met John briefly before I started, but what I didn’t realise was that he came up and listened to my entire set.”
By the end of the night, John and Clive realised they shared a lot of musical tastes, specifically medieval/ Renaissance music, jazz and some contemporary classical music. It became the basis for a friendship and touring partnership that lasted until Renbourn’s death in 2015. Since then, the occasional Renbourn piece had found its way into Clive’s setlist, but now his enthusiasm for his late mentor’s music has expanded into a CD and tour.
Looking back, how much of a bonus was your formal classical training?
“Well, I found that college was a
