Sam Carter

In the ten years since winning Best Newcomer at the 2010 BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards, Sam Carter has earned a reputation for vivid, narrative-driven songwriting and captivating live performances. Having made a spell-binding appearance on Later… with Jools Holland in 2012, Sam has gone on to tour the world, sharing stages with some of the finest guitarists and songwriters, including Nic Jones, Martin Simpson, Richard Thompson, and Chris Wood.

Following the release of his last album How The City Sings, Sam embarked on an extensive album release tour with his most ambitious live line-up to date, including shows with Folk Award-winning fiddler Sam Sweeney and pianist Neil Cowley (Adele, Neil Cowley Trio). Alongside a busy solo touring schedule, he continued to break new ground with his work in Folk Award-nominated electro-folk band False Lights, who released their second album Harmonograph to wide acclaim in early 2018. In demand as a session player, Sam was enlisted for a string of festival dates with Eliza Carthy’s Wayward band and for a national tour with Bella Hardy.

In late 2019, Sam joined the ensemble for the touring folk theatre show ‘Rising Up: Peterloo 2019’, arranging and performing songs written by the Young’uns’ Sean Cooney alongside Lucy Farrell (Furrow Collective) and Jim Molyneux (Four Square, Kitty MacFarlane).

Spring 2020 was due to see Sam embark on a national tour to support the release of his thrilling new album Home Waters. Recorded in a converted church in rural Northumberland, Home Waters captures the full force of Sam Carter’s heartfelt songwriting. Featuring the specially assembled Home Waters String Quartet, the album’s rich emotional landscapes are exquisitely illustrated by producer Ian Stephenson’s cinematic string arrangements. Images of overwhelming floods, rising tides, and conflict-stricken seas sit alongside tales of love and loss, alluding to the search for a sense of belonging and stability in unfamiliar territory.

‘Sam Carter is a brilliant guitarist and songwriter who combines the observational with social comment and personal reflection’ - Songlines

‘A singer who can hold the audience spellbound all by himself’ - R2