The Silkie

the English folk group

The Silkie were an English folk music group. Their name was derived from an Orcadian song "The Great Silkie of Sule Skerry", which they sometimes performed. They were briefly considered to be the English equivalent of Peter, Paul and Mary, with their common repertoire of Bob Dylan songs, and the original Australian folk group, The Seekers.

The four original members were all Hull University students who formed the group in October 1963. It consisted of Sylvia Tatler (vocals) (born 1 January 1945, Stoke on Trent, Staffordshire), Mike Ramsden (guitar and vocals) (born Michael John Ramsden, 21 June 1943, Totnes, Devon), Ivor Aylesbury (guitar and vocals) (born Ivor John Aylesbury, 4 October 1942, Carshalton, Surrey) and Kevin Cunningham (double bass) (born John Kevyn Cunningham, 13 August 1940, Bootle, Liverpool, Lancashire). who appointed Alistair Taylor as their manager. Their first single in June 1965, "Blood Red River", actually reached No. 14 on the Wonderful Radio London Fab 40, but it failed to make any impression on the UK Singles Chart. However, they followed this up with "You've Got to Hide Your Love Away" a Lennon–McCartney composition, which became their only chart hit.

They were helped by John Lennon, Paul McCartney and George Harrison to record a cover version of "You've Got to Hide Your Love Away" on 9 August 1965 at the IBC Studios at around the same time as The Beatles' own version was released on their album. Help! They then subsequently performed it on Top of the Pops on 16th September 1965. The song peaked at No. 28 in the UK Singles Chart and at No. 10 on the U. S. Billboard Hot 100 in the same year. In the autumn of 1966 the original Silkie lineup finally split when Aylesbury and Cunningham departed.

Mike Ramsden and Sylvia Tatler had married in January 1966, and they went on to perform as a duo version of The Silkie for a further 35 years, often appearing at their local pub, The Cott Inn at Dartington, Devon sometimes accompanied by their children. Ramsden guested as a vocalist on the album Western Flier, alongside the 20 year old keyboard player Mike Batt, recorded in 1969 by the proto psychedelic folk band Hapshash and the Coloured Coat. Mike received a kidney transplant in 1993, but died aged 60 on 17 January 2004 in Totnes, Devon, after a long battle with kidney disease. Sylvia died, aged 73, on 14 July 2018. A funeral wake was subsequently held at The Cott Inn to celebrate Mike and Sylvia's music. Aylesbury died in 2003 and Cunningham in 1993.