The 50th issue of FolkWorld – it certainly does fill me with some pride.
Looking back at our humble first issue in 1997, with its 35 CD reviews and 5 articles, it is quite incredible that FolkWorld is still going, and has now at sometimes more than 300 CD reviews in a single issue. I would estimate that FolkWorld will have reviewed around 8,000 CDs over the years, all still accessible on the FolkWorld site.
FolkWorld remains a labour of love, and I have to give credit to the incredible FolkWorld team, who put so much time and effort into contributing to the magazine in their free time. Nobody gets paid anything for their contributions, in fact, some of us end up “out of pocket”, as postage and the website do have to be paid.
The biggest credit and thanks go to Tom Keller, operational editor in chief, without whom FolkWorld would probably not exist any more, and who is dedicating plenty of his time (day and night) into putting your magazine together. Tom took over when I had to step back, as FolkWorld editor plus day job plus bringing up a family proved too much for me. I am so delighted to have seen the magazine grow, and still to be able to contribute to this magazine, having become the mag's kidz music expert.
So here's to the next 50 issues – who knows if in issue 100 we will still have CD reviews or whether CDs have ceased to exist? Or will they celebrate maybe a small come-back – like vinyl which apparently has recently become popular amongst some teenagers?
All the best, Michael
Photo Credits:
(1) Cass Meurig,
(2) Andy Irvine
(by Walkin' Tom);
(3) Ana Alcaide
(unknown).
