Dust in the Sun by Jon Loomes is presented as a ‘lost’ English folk album, recorded in the long hot summer of 1976.

According to the press blurb: “A troubled artist made a remarkable folk album whose creation was beset by difficulties. Almost immediately, the label collapsed into insolvency. A pressing plant fire destroyed almost the entire original run, after which the album slipped into rumour and half-memory, after which the album slipped into rumour and half memory. Dust in the Sun was long thought lost forever. Miraculously, a single copy arrived into the present day, and the album has now been reissued to mark its fiftieth anniversary.”

This is an all an elaborate scene-setting fiction, of course. Unlike yours truly I doubt Loomes was even old enough to be spending the summer of ’76 tearing around the streets on a chopper bike, let alone recording long lost folk albums.

What the album does do, however, is authentically capture the ambience and repertoire of some of the great folk albums of that era, with an affectionate nod to artists such as Martin Carthy and Nic Jones.

There’s plenty of tried and tested classics from the Trad. Arr. repertoire that seasoned folk fans will be more than familiar with (‘Bonnie Bunch of Roses’, ‘Maid on the Shore’ ‘The Female Drummer’ et al). Yet in spite of the luridly tongue-in-cheek nature of the album’s back-story there is a sincerity and a passion behind Loomes’ interpretations that immediately brings the songs, and their vivid story-telling, to life.

https://jonloomes.bandcamp.com/track/bonnie-bunch-of-roses

Add in some authentic period production, some beautiful accompaniment to Loomes’ vocals and guitar (Rachel Crowther – bass; Tom Kitching – fiddle; Trolsynx – side drum; Rakoczy – English pipes; recorder, concertina; Gill Loomes-Quinn – Dulcimer; and Becky Turner – Uillean pipes) and you have the makings of a genuinely compelling folk album. And for those who are intrigued to find out more about the album’s fictional back-story, there’s even an accompanying novel.

Released: June 2026 https://jon-loomes.com/home