THIS year sees Fairport Convention mark their 50th anniversary and the band are marking the occasion by doing what they do best - touring the country and playing live.

Next week the tour will take them to Burnley Mechanics and the Lowry, Salford Quays, and, as band member Chris Leslie explained it will be very much a celebration.

“The shows do pay tribute to the past 50 years,” he said. “The band has got such a big back catalogue so in a sense that happens on every tour.

“But this year we have just released our new album 50:50 at 50 so we have brought in some new stuff from the album into the show and also got some past material that we’ve not had in the set for a while.”

Chris is the ‘new boy’ in the band - this year’s his 20th in the line-up.

“I think I’ve just about found my place on stage with the band,” he laughed. “It’s amazing that the band has had such momentum for so long.

“For me the whole thing has been an absolute joy.

“I was a big friend with the band before I joined them and before that I loved the band anyway

“It started when I was at school really. My older brother was bringing home albums and I heard Liege and Lief (voted the most influential folk album of all time buy Radio 2 listeners) and hearing that, something struck a chord in me. I just loved the approach Fairport took and it fired me up to take on that kind of music little thinking I’d be in the band.

“My approach has always been to take every day as it comes and be thankful for it, I’m always grateful when I wake up and that way you don’t start pre-empting anything or stop things that might happen. But I’d never have dreamed I’d be part of the band for 20 years.”

Chris believes that one of the reasons for Fairport’s success has been the way members in the band have been given space to get involved in other projects along the way. Chris himself performs with Feast of Fiddles and also St Agnes Fountain.

“I think that’s a big strength,” he said. “When you go off and do something else you have different experiences which you can then bring back when you meet up again.

“Also I think there’s only so much that you can put out with a band, you do need to get out and do other things. sometimes.

“But for all of us, Fairport is at the heart of what we do.”

Chris has become the band’s multi-instrumentalist playing everything from whistle to banjo.

“When I joined the band I was mainly a fiddle player,” he said. “I’ve always loved different but instruments but in terms of taking them out on a stage probably, I’d really only played fiddle and a little mandolin.

“But I felt I had to create my own space in the band so I’ve spent the last 20 years experimenting with stuff.”

The band’s special guest on the current tour is Sally Barker known to TV viewers for finishing runner-upon The Voice and to folk fans for her work with the Poozies and more recently Fotheringay.

Fairport Convention, Burnley Mechanics, Tuesday, February 14, details from 01282 664400 and the Lowry, Salford Quays, Sunday, February 19, details from 0843 208 6000