Dave Cartwright

Dave Cartwright

Dave Cartwright is a British singer, songwriter, guitarist and author from Haslemere, born in 1943 and dying in 2015. He is associated with 1970s folk and singer-songwriter work, and is remembered particularly for his solo albums from that period.

Early life and first groups

Cartwright grows up in Amblecote in the West Midlands. In 1959 he forms his first rock and roll group, The Crossfires, playing lead guitar and singing. He later joins The Clippers, a Kidderminster group, before turning towards folk music in 1964.

Professional career

His folk club performances lead to a deal with Transatlantic Records in 1970, and he turns professional in 1971. He builds a career around solo recordings and live performance, and his 1970s albums become part of the work for which he is known.

Broadcasting and recordings

Cartwright also works as a music presenter on BBC local radio in the UK Midlands. He hosts two programmes, Rock'n'Roll-The Vintage Years and Folkus, an acoustic showcase, and both run for more than 13 years. He appears on the BBC daytime television programme Pebble Mill at One.

Later work and writing

Later in life, Cartwright issues his own recordings on the Luna label from his home studio in Worcestershire, while continuing to perform in the UK and Europe. He co-writes “A Letter To Syracuse” with Bill Caddick, and Christy Moore records the song on Prosperous. He also writes a biography of the Kidderminster singer-songwriter Clifford T. Ward, titled Bittersweet, which is voted third in Record Collector’s biography poll in the year it is published.