Sydney Carter

Sydney Bertram Carter (6 May 1915 – 13 March 2004) was an English poet, songwriter, folk musician, born in Camden Town, London. He is best known for the song "Lord of the Dance" (1967), set to the tune of the American Shaker song "Simple Gifts", and the song "The Crow on the Cradle". Other notable songs include "Julian of Norwich" (sometimes called "The Bells of Norwich"), based on words of Julian of Norwich, "One More Step Along the World I Go", "When I Needed a Neighbour", "Friday Morning", "Every Star Shall Sing a Carol", "The Youth of the Heart", "Down Below" and "Sing John Ball".

Carter studied at Montem Street Primary School in Finsbury Park, Christ's Hospital school in Horsham, West Sussex and Balliol College, Oxford, graduating in history in 1936. A committed pacifist, he registered as a conscientious objector in World War II and joined the Friends' Ambulance Unit, serving in Egypt, Palestine and Greece.

Carter worked as a lyricist for Donald Swann's revues and musicals in the 1950s and in 1962 produced an album, Putting out the Dustbin, with Sheila Hancock. "Last Cigarette", a song from the album about failing to give up smoking became a minor hit.

In 1972, a collection of his poems, Love More or Less, was described in a review by Michael Grosvenor Myer in the EFDSS magazine English Dance and Song as the work of "an impressive spokesman for the believer in an age of general unbelief".

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