Steeleye Span are an English folk-rock band, formed in 1969 and still active today. Along with Fairport Convention they are amongst the best known acts of the British folk revival, and were among the most commercially successful, thanks to their hit singles "Gaudete" and "All Around My Hat". The band's name is a character in the song Horkstow Grange. They had three Top 40 albums. They achieved a certified gold record with sales of "All Around My Hat".
Throughout their long history, Steeleye Span have seen many personnel changes but has maintained a strong continuity of tradition. Their typical album is a collection of mostly traditional songs with one or two instrumental tracks of jigs and/or reels added; the traditional songs often include some of the Child ballads. In their later albums there has been an increased tendency to include music written by the band members, but they have never got completely away from traditional music, which draws upon pan-British traditions.
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“To me, however, the question of the times resolved itself into a practical question of the conduct of life. How shall I live? We are incompetent to solve the times. Our geometry cannot span the huge orbits of the prevailing ideas, behold their return, and reconcile their opposition. We can only obey our own polarity.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)