Thank you Rose, ISB is deep in my DNA and kept me joyful in my hippie teenage years...feel just the same now at 70. The songs will never leave me, when I first met my second wife we both new nearly all the words from the first four albums. It really was/is holy and magical music and I'll be forever grateful for your combined musical talents.
HELLO ROSE...I WAS LED TO THIS VIDEO TONIGHT...BACK IN 1968 (APPROX.) ON ONE OF MY TRIPS DOWN INTO CALIFORNIA, FROM AGE 16 ONWARDS, I WAS STAYING ON VALENCIA STREET IN THE MISSION DISTRICT OF SANFRAN ABOVE A STORE WITH SOME FLOWER CHILDREN IN THEIR COMMUNE - DURING THE DAYS I WAS THERE, I PLAYED INCREDIBLE STRING BAND ON THEIR RECORD PLAYER & MADE CANDLES TO PASS THE TIME...I WAS FROM VANCOUVER, CANADA, BUT I WAS BORN IN BRITISH SOMALILAND, WHICH HASN'T EXISTED AS A COUNTRY SINCE 1960...NOW JUST SOMALILAND/THE NORTHERN PART OF SOMALIA...I WAS THE ONLY CAUCASIAN CHILD BORN IN THAT AREA AT THAT TIME...MY DAD WAS FROM YORKSHIRE & AN AGRICULTURAL VETERINARIAN, SENT BY THE BRITISH GOVT. TO WORK ON THE HOOF & MOUTH DISEASE IN THE 50S. THEY WERE FRIENDS WITH SIR GERALD & LADY ALYS REECE WHO LIVED THERE, AS WELL, AT THE TIME. WE MOVED TO CANADA SOME TIME LATER AND I HAVE LIVED HERE IN THE VANCOUVER AREA FOR MOST OF MY LIFE...I LOVED THE SONGS OF THE STRING BAND THAT SPOKE OF 'JESUS', B/C NOT LONG AFTER MY FORAYS INTO CALIFORNIA (THERE WERE SEVERAL) I CAME TO A SAVING KNOWLEDGE OF CHRIST...AND HAVE CONTINUED IN MY WALK WITH HIM EVER SINCE...IT WAS THE BEST DECISION I HAVE EVER MADE...THANKYOU FOR DOING THIS BOOK LAUNCH VIDEO...ALL THE BEST...BLESSINGS 🙏;)
Wow! YT fed me this after my annual October Song ceremonial playing on the first day of this month. Great to see and hear you Rose, and you've still got the sweet smile. I'm still happy to call myself a hippy: I wanted to change the world then and I still do. It's got nothing to do with bangles and beads. Sounds funny to me that you take a step back from the ISB, you and Likky were an integral part of the band to me and I think to others. Mrs Thompson was my landlady too! Lots of Love and thanks for being great!
Enjoyable read, Rose. The soundtrack of our lives 1968/75 onwards. Drugs, cults, stream of consciousness music, naivety, trust, innocence. My goodness, why do we fear for our grandkids ? Played 'Hangman's Daughter' to my 12 year old grandaughter and explained the graphics, personalities. Fairytale stuff from a magic era. Thanks for the trip. Like you I escaped the scientology part!
Rose, I am reading your book on The ISB and it's absolutely WONDERFUL! The imagery, and the way you bring that time period and the events to life are fantastic. AND, I don't think you get enough credit for your bass playing, and in general, your musical contributions to ISB. Your voice is very nice! Ok, so the bass parts weren't complex per se, (intentional I'm sure), but considering you had little or no musical training makes it more amazing to me. As a song writer and composer (guitarist/singer), I know that Mike and Robin's songs/music can be tricky. There were a lot of twists and turns in rhythm and musical style. You pulled it off wonderfully! I'm loving your book and thank you SO much for writing it. By the way, I was in high school when you were in the band, and I had a BIG crush on you! lol (I hope you read this)! P.S. It's obvious you put a LOT of time, thought and effort into writing this book!
@David Evans You were lucky to have Licorice very close to you during that time. I congratulate you for having commented on some of your anecdotes with Licorice in the late seventies when Licorice was your girlfriend's neighbor at that time and some time later she moved to a little house in Hollywood Hills, LA. I would have loved to have heard her voice so sweet and so beautiful, the song "Old Songs And Cottages" that you liked so much !!!.
Fantastic to see this, I've wished for years that the women of the ISB had bigger voices in the chronicles of the 60s. Haven't watched the video yet but I'm certain that their perspectives will be some of the most important as we re-evaluate the hippy movement and try to learn the lessons we can from it. Much love, peace and success to all involved.
Wow! Just happened to find this now! Great to see Rose , to hear her memories, and will definitely search out her book! Thank you, Rose! I always felt the ISB led me into an enchanted Garden of Timeless Beauty and Joy! 🙏🏽💗🪷🌷
It is a pleasure to finally meet you. What a delightful memory. Amazing years indeed. Your reminisce also brought me back to treks through the Cairn Gorm and the people I’d meet who taught me String Band songs. Thank you very much for your work on the memoir.
Hello Rose! So happy to see you and look forward to your book! I had the privilege of seeing and meeting you and the rest of the band in Montreal, during the intermission we talked, clothes! Not music, as I was dressed as much like you as my sewing machine and budget would permit- I was "in love" with Robin- your lifestyle and of course your inimitable music! I listen to you, still, never stopped, I am still trying to save for replacement CDs- my budget never allowed me to collect all your music but, it's timeless...I was and still am a hippie- I must say I am surprised to see you looking so "classic" so lovely still just not what I expected- a Victorian nightshirt- that's still me- guess I better grow up and buy some decent clothes! But like Donovan, I love My Jeans- ! Wonderful to see you and your memoir- of course! Your life was "incredibly" interesting- girly question, how do you keep your hair so thick and lovely- I really admire your cushions, do you sew? Hugs, namaste from A Forever Fan in Canada ( do you have any of your clothes? Do you laugh at them? Would you laugh at me for yearning for them and I guess looking like a fool- I hate the way people dress now- maybe your grandkids dig your clothes?! Wonderful to hear from you and another book about Joe Boyd and everybody who held it all together- ( do you make jewelry- I love the way you've hung your necklaces up- that seems "hippie" - do you think it strange that I still ( when I go out) love those clothes, do I look like a bag lady? I agree about no "guru" - I was very young and too naive, too gullible- I later met a very BAD therapist....court case- you were clearly smarter...
Such a humble, intelligent and beautiful Rose, the best on any bush. I saw you guys at the Bardney folk festival and was immediately smitten by the lovely Rose and the great music that accompanied her. Thank you so very much for the charm you put into the band and into many lives including mine, bless you always xx
Finished the book which was a magical trip, watched Rose on the documentary--such a lovely woman now as way back then --still listening to the ISB music after fifty odd years , saw them on 25th February 1970, and of course the songs have no ending and live on with all us fans.
Rose, I saw you (The lncredible String Band) in 1969 at the Guthrie Theatre, in Minneapolis, Minnesota. You were wonderful! Sadly, Licorice McKenchie is sadly gone/missing. But the lncredible String Band remains one of my favorites still!
Rose, I've known of The Incredible String Band for years and years but, unfortunately, for one reason or another I never had the opportunity to hear the music. Until recently, I wouldn't have known anything about them at all. But recently I've been checking it all out here on UA-cam and I really do like a lot of the songs. I've also been checking out the history of the band and it's good that the two guys are still around today like yourself. As for Likki, I hope that (wherever she is now) she's happy. I read that there were unconfirmed reports that she is still alive and well, but I imagine that after all these years of non-communication that we should fear the worse. Rose, I ordered your book online today and it will be delivered to me in Ireland over the next week or two. By all accounts it's a good read, and I am eagerly looking forward to adding it to my growing collection of biographies of musicians and poets. I hope you are keeping well and safe as the world (hopefully) nears an end to this awful pandemic. God bless you.
It was a real delight to hear details of Mary Stewart's home in Balmore. I spent a wonderful half an hour chatting with Mary on a bench in Milngavie's pedestrian precinct some 12 years back when I still lived in Scotland. She was still going up to Findhorn at that time and looked great (very colourful). She usually attended Robin's gigs at the Milngavie Fraser Centre each year when he came up in October/November regularly. I have a friend, Sue in Milngavie who kept me informed about Mary. Unfortunately last I heard she was walking with a pronounced stoop. I was dismayed to hear this. I wonder if she is still alive... I do hope so.
Incredible video Rose - I only just stumbled upon it on UA-cam. Lovely to hear you talk about ISB and Mike and Robin. I wish told us a little more about Licorice though. I'm sure you have written about her in the book, which I shall be reading as soon as I can get my hands on it.
Marvellous book, Rose. Frank but never mean-spirited, which reveals your kindness - there were occasions where you would have been forgiven for a smidgen of vengeance! I saw you at the Whitla Hall in Belfast - a spellbinding gig. Stay well. X
thank you dear rose. lovely share. long loved the band, deep heart and soul connection. first saw you at woodstock, then the next year in western ny. finally met robin in '87, and last spoke with him at some length by phone in 2006. i'm a older dancer, still dancing. look forward to reading the book. love you. 🌲🌾🌼🌎💞🌀✨
Walltz of the New Moon and The Water Song played in my head for years. I saw ISB at Lincoln Center after a busy day in Central Park sometime around 1970. The audience danced in the aisles while calling for Licorice. I recently purchased an original 5 album set after not listening since I stopped playing vinyl. Brings back memories of a different place and time.
Thanks to your excellency for long awaited commentary. I met Mike and Robin in a motel swiming pool in 1974. Malcom whas elsewhere detained. It it's not often that yanks can meet up with political royalty who has overseen a Welsh town. Great to know you're srill in communicato.
Really interesting chat. What legendary times to have lived and worked creatively through. Not many people can say they have played their instruments at Woodstock! Cheers
Dear Rose Simpson. As an old hippie, I'm ofcourse one of the dedicated fans of ISB. In this provincial danish in which town grew up in, there was a couple of ways you could distinguish between the true and rigtheous hippies and all the fakes...Were you an acid head and did you like the Incredible String Band! I have recently read your wonderful and very well written memoir and it's really an amazing, honest and very brave memoir. Nice to get rid of all the glitter and incense and delve into the gritty and sometimes gray everyday life of a band of very different personalities but all stars! Sad thing with the whole Scientology thing but a lot of hippeis went in that direction. Gave freedom up for some kind of ideology and often a strong leader. Sad but true. Anyway, a great book and you are a very skilled writer. Thanks!
Really nice to see this - I rented student digs and then a cottage from her as a newlywed (our silver wedding this year, struggling to get my head around the timeline, she's looking so well). She was a somewhat more buttoned-up legal secretary at the time, only found out about her history because of the local newspaper being ridiculous as it too often was.
I didnt come across ISB until about 8 yewrs ago it was just by chance i saw the video Half remarkable Question and became hooked. I did see Robin in Sheffield and im 64 fiund you later in life and enjoyed your video. I also wonder what became of Licorice thats an interesting story in itself
Enjoying Ms. Simpson's memoirs right now. She has a fascinating perspective on that time. There's a wonderful interview on UA-cam with Clive Palmer that has a similar take on Robin Willliamson and Mike Heron's relationship- "chalk and cheese" is the phrase he used. I also recommend Joe Boyd's excellent memoirs, White Bicycles. Ms. Simpson's an evocative writer. Incidentally, she was a splendidly creative bass player, too!
They were great in the world of classic rock. There are others that were much more popular and sucked on them without people knowing. I love ISB and Likky's absence. We miss you!. And rose, congratulations on your book
Rose, I want to read your book SO MUCH... but where I live they don't seem to sell it in any of the nice bookstores I've tried. Listening to you talking about your life in the Incredible String Band was so precious and I hope we meet someday.... maybe. Thank you for that beautiful song at the end, with all those photos of you, Mike, Robin and Likky, it was truly a gift to me seeing all your happy faces so young and free. To everyone else, I wish we all lived near each other. it's so lonely being a young hippie in a modern world where i constantly receive stares and ridicule. I loved reading all the comments under this video. I hope you are all well wherever you are, kindred spirits....
p.s. I asked Mary about the time you describe so well in your video above. All she related to me that I recall is that Likky never did the washing up of the dirty dishes the band left in the sink. (I did wonder afterwards did she perhaps expect Likky to do it because she was female? But those were the times when this was very definitely thought the right and proper thing of course and I couldn't fault her for that.)
love the idea for a book about the Joe boyd production company! Always wondered....he had had Syd's early Floyd, you guys, Fairport, Drake.....what a scene!
The criticism of Robin seems to be built on misunderstanding. It’s her view and she’s perfectly entitled to it, but it was never about accessing something that’s not available to “ordinary people”. Quite the opposite, actually. It’s about accessing something that is available to everyone, but not realised by everyone. Rose is a lovely woman, but she clearly threw herself into something she didn’t really buy into, something that didn’t really interest her. She was a straight living with hippies. It must’ve been tough to deal with it at times. Like being a foreigner in a country whose language you haven’t learned.
When you read the book, though, it's clear that Rose was very enthusiastic about and tuned into what the band was about in their pre-Scientology days. And she writes with a lot of respect about Robin's brilliance -- less so about his temperament. (She was Mike's girlfriend, after all, so it makes sense that she often ended up backing him up in the clashes between those two men and their very different personalities, just as Licorice backed Robin.) It's a lovely book and Rose had a lot of the same idealism that fueled the community I grew up in, where everyone practiced Transcendental Meditation. Her descriptions of that world-changing time helped me understand my own parents' journey a bit better.
Here's something else I just found (subsequent to the post directly above). It's a pretty harrowing story told by a man who convincingly purports to be Likky's ex-husband from the U.S., and it's quite upsetting; it starts at 22:55 of the video. ua-cam.com/video/ksMT5OFNhSI/v-deo.html
I'm glad to have read the book and it is written clearly and fearlessly. For all that, it's not an enjoyable read. Certainly there is not only 'one truth to be told' but I just can't reconcile how uplifting ISB were for me, with the self-absorbed selfishness of the Hippiedom RS recounts - wherein 'personal freedom' seems to be a lowest common denominator state of not caring about anyone else or taking responsibility for any harm done to anyone else while pursuing self-interest. It's uncanny how this form of 'Libertarianism' morphed so effortlessly into the Right-Wing Libertarianism that now engulfs the World - from the ISB to Donald Trump via Margaret Thatcher, now that really is a bad trip!
Comes across as rather cold hearted, sounds jealous of one of the others. Lets be honest she was lightly talented and both the girls were little more than eye candy. Sensible to steer clear of that scientology nonsense though, seems to have destroyed Lickky.
Rose Simpson comes across as not a very likeable person in the book. She casually tosses out information about the tragic deaths of Mike's Sister and the murder of Iris from Witchseason as events that don't really matter.Tra la la la la.... Mike must have been devastated and so too, Iris's family and to have their untimely demises so trivialised . Perhaps it would have been better not to have mentioned their deaths at all.... I prefered ISB without either of the talentless girls.
The Whole Worlds A Stage, And All The Worlds Leaders, ( Simply Puppets ) "Playing Multiple Different Roles" These "Musicians", Are Nothing More Than "Magicians". ( Which We're Also Playing Their Roles As Well ) ,..My Father Actually Met, All Of The Members Of This Particular Band, At A University In Manchester [ England ] They Are / Were All [ The Whole Band ] Members [ Including My Father ] Of The "Church Of Scinctology" ( Created By A Guy Called L. Ron. Hubbard. )
![Lp. Сердце Вселенной #60 РОЖДЕНИЕ ЛОЛОЛОШКИ [Финал] • Майнкрафт](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/YoR0pAV9FVQ/mqdefault.jpg)
Thank you Rose, ISB is deep in my DNA and kept me joyful in my hippie teenage years...feel just the same now at 70. The songs will never leave me, when I first met my second wife we both new nearly all the words from the first four albums. It really was/is holy and magical music and I'll be forever grateful for your combined musical talents.
It’s the same for me. They have been a guiding force for me for 55 years as they channel a more pure reality.
HELLO ROSE...I WAS LED TO THIS VIDEO TONIGHT...BACK IN 1968 (APPROX.) ON ONE OF MY TRIPS DOWN INTO CALIFORNIA, FROM AGE 16 ONWARDS, I WAS STAYING ON VALENCIA STREET IN THE MISSION DISTRICT OF SANFRAN ABOVE A STORE WITH SOME FLOWER CHILDREN IN THEIR COMMUNE - DURING THE DAYS I WAS THERE, I PLAYED INCREDIBLE STRING BAND ON THEIR RECORD PLAYER & MADE CANDLES TO PASS THE TIME...I WAS FROM VANCOUVER, CANADA, BUT I WAS BORN IN BRITISH SOMALILAND, WHICH HASN'T EXISTED AS A COUNTRY SINCE 1960...NOW JUST SOMALILAND/THE NORTHERN PART OF SOMALIA...I WAS THE ONLY CAUCASIAN CHILD BORN IN THAT AREA AT THAT TIME...MY DAD WAS FROM YORKSHIRE & AN AGRICULTURAL VETERINARIAN, SENT BY THE BRITISH GOVT. TO WORK ON THE HOOF & MOUTH DISEASE IN THE 50S. THEY WERE FRIENDS WITH SIR GERALD & LADY ALYS REECE WHO LIVED THERE, AS WELL, AT THE TIME.
WE MOVED TO CANADA SOME TIME LATER AND I HAVE LIVED HERE IN THE VANCOUVER AREA FOR MOST OF MY LIFE...I LOVED THE SONGS OF THE STRING BAND THAT SPOKE OF 'JESUS', B/C NOT LONG AFTER MY FORAYS INTO CALIFORNIA (THERE WERE SEVERAL) I CAME TO A SAVING KNOWLEDGE OF CHRIST...AND HAVE CONTINUED IN MY WALK WITH HIM EVER SINCE...IT WAS THE BEST DECISION I HAVE EVER MADE...THANKYOU FOR DOING THIS BOOK LAUNCH VIDEO...ALL THE BEST...BLESSINGS 🙏;)
Thank you Rose. The music you made with the ISB has been a constant and golden thread throughout my life. Go well…
Had this very well written book this Christmas and as someone who's life was brightened by ISB enjoyed it very much . Thankyou Rose .
Wonderful. Rose is such a graceful, intelligent, insightful woman. So glad I found this. Delightful!
Wow! YT fed me this after my annual October Song ceremonial playing on the first day of this month. Great to see and hear you Rose, and you've still got the sweet smile. I'm still happy to call myself a hippy: I wanted to change the world then and I still do. It's got nothing to do with bangles and beads. Sounds funny to me that you take a step back from the ISB, you and Likky were an integral part of the band to me and I think to others. Mrs Thompson was my landlady too! Lots of Love and thanks for being great!
Enjoyable read, Rose. The soundtrack of our lives 1968/75 onwards. Drugs, cults, stream of consciousness music, naivety, trust, innocence. My goodness, why do we fear for our grandkids ? Played 'Hangman's Daughter' to my 12 year old grandaughter and explained the graphics, personalities. Fairytale stuff from a magic era. Thanks for the trip. Like you I escaped the scientology part!
Rose, I am reading your book on The ISB and it's absolutely WONDERFUL! The imagery, and the way you bring that time period and the events to life are fantastic. AND, I don't think you get enough credit for your bass playing, and in general, your musical contributions to ISB. Your voice is very nice! Ok, so the bass parts weren't complex per se, (intentional I'm sure), but considering you had little or no musical training makes it more amazing to me. As a song writer and composer (guitarist/singer), I know that Mike and Robin's songs/music can be tricky. There were a lot of twists and turns in rhythm and musical style. You pulled it off wonderfully! I'm loving your book and thank you SO much for writing it. By the way, I was in high school when you were in the band, and I had a BIG crush on you! lol (I hope you read this)! P.S. It's obvious you put a LOT of time, thought and effort into writing this book!
Licorice was my friend in the early 1980s. She was the sweetest girl I ever knew.
@David Evans You were lucky to have Licorice very close to you during that time. I congratulate you for having commented on some of your anecdotes with Licorice in the late seventies when Licorice was your girlfriend's neighbor at that time and some time later she moved to a little house in Hollywood Hills, LA. I would have loved to have heard her voice so sweet and so beautiful, the song "Old Songs And Cottages" that you liked so much !!!.
Fantastic to see this, I've wished for years that the women of the ISB had bigger voices in the chronicles of the 60s. Haven't watched the video yet but I'm certain that their perspectives will be some of the most important as we re-evaluate the hippy movement and try to learn the lessons we can from it. Much love, peace and success to all involved.
Wow! Just happened to find this now! Great to see Rose , to hear her memories, and will definitely search out her book! Thank you, Rose! I always felt the ISB led me into an enchanted Garden of Timeless Beauty and Joy! 🙏🏽💗🪷🌷
I saw the Incredible String Band at Birmingham town hall probably 1969/70 thought it was magical and often listen to the songs and reminisce
I was there for that gig. Magical.
It is a pleasure to finally meet you. What a delightful memory. Amazing years indeed.
Your reminisce also brought me back to treks through the Cairn Gorm and the people I’d meet who taught me String Band songs.
Thank you very much for your work on the memoir.
Hello Rose! So happy to see you and look forward to your book! I had the privilege of seeing and meeting you and the rest of the band in Montreal, during the intermission we talked, clothes! Not music, as I was dressed as much like you as my sewing machine and budget would permit- I was "in love" with Robin- your lifestyle and of course your inimitable music! I listen to you, still, never stopped, I am still trying to save for replacement CDs- my budget never allowed me to collect all your music but, it's timeless...I was and still am a hippie- I must say I am surprised to see you looking so "classic" so lovely still just not what I expected- a Victorian nightshirt- that's still me- guess I better grow up and buy some decent clothes! But like Donovan, I love My Jeans- ! Wonderful to see you and your memoir- of course! Your life was "incredibly" interesting- girly question, how do you keep your hair so thick and lovely- I really admire your cushions, do you sew? Hugs, namaste from A Forever Fan in Canada ( do you have any of your clothes? Do you laugh at them? Would you laugh at me for yearning for them and I guess looking like a fool- I hate the way people dress now- maybe your grandkids dig your clothes?! Wonderful to hear from you and another book about Joe Boyd and everybody who held it all together- ( do you make jewelry- I love the way you've hung your necklaces up- that seems "hippie" - do you think it strange that I still ( when I go out) love those clothes, do I look like a bag lady? I agree about no "guru" - I was very young and too naive, too gullible- I later met a very BAD therapist....court case- you were clearly smarter...
Such a humble, intelligent and beautiful Rose, the best on any bush. I saw you guys at the Bardney folk festival and was immediately smitten by the lovely Rose and the great music that accompanied her. Thank you so very much for the charm you put into the band and into many lives including mine, bless you always xx
Finished the book which was a magical trip, watched Rose on the documentary--such a lovely woman now as way back then --still listening to the ISB music after fifty odd years , saw them on 25th February 1970, and of course the songs have no ending and live on with all us fans.
Rose, I saw you (The lncredible String Band) in 1969 at the Guthrie Theatre,
in Minneapolis, Minnesota. You were wonderful! Sadly, Licorice McKenchie
is sadly gone/missing. But the lncredible String Band remains one of my
favorites still!
Just wonderful , thanks Rose.
Rose, I've known of The Incredible String Band for years and years but, unfortunately, for one reason or another I never had the opportunity to hear the music. Until recently, I wouldn't have known anything about them at all. But recently I've been checking it all out here on UA-cam and I really do like a lot of the songs. I've also been checking out the history of the band and it's good that the two guys are still around today like yourself. As for Likki, I hope that (wherever she is now) she's happy. I read that there were unconfirmed reports that she is still alive and well, but I imagine that after all these years of non-communication that we should fear the worse.
Rose, I ordered your book online today and it will be delivered to me in Ireland over the next week or two. By all accounts it's a good read, and I am eagerly looking forward to adding it to my growing collection of biographies of musicians and poets. I hope you are keeping well and safe as the world (hopefully) nears an end to this awful pandemic. God bless you.
Thank you. The Increds were, and still are very important to me.
It was a real delight to hear details of Mary Stewart's home in Balmore. I spent a wonderful half an hour chatting with Mary on a bench in Milngavie's pedestrian precinct some 12 years back when I still lived in Scotland. She was still going up to Findhorn at that time and looked great (very colourful). She usually attended Robin's gigs at the Milngavie Fraser Centre each year when he came up in October/November regularly. I have a friend, Sue in Milngavie who kept me informed about Mary. Unfortunately last I heard she was walking with a pronounced stoop. I was dismayed to hear this. I wonder if she is still alive... I do hope so.
I love this. What a delightful holiday treat!
Thanks for the extra insights Rose, I just got your book for my birthday at the end of October and i'm looking forward to reading it.
Thank you rose, so lovely to see you again. I'm a fan from ireland and a friend of dr strangley strange. Love the book, its excellent.
Fantastic book
Great to hear your point of view
And a female point of view from that period and amazing band.! Thanks
Thanks for bringing back some great memories.
Incredible video Rose - I only just stumbled upon it on UA-cam. Lovely to hear you talk about ISB and Mike and Robin. I wish told us a little more about Licorice though. I'm sure you have written about her in the book, which I shall be reading as soon as I can get my hands on it.
Marvellous book, Rose. Frank but never mean-spirited, which reveals your kindness - there were occasions where you would have been forgiven for a smidgen of vengeance! I saw you at the Whitla Hall in Belfast - a spellbinding gig. Stay well. X
great memories of a great musical time
thank you dear rose. lovely share. long loved the band, deep heart and soul connection. first saw you at woodstock, then the next year in western ny. finally met robin in '87, and last spoke with him at some length by phone in 2006. i'm a older dancer, still dancing. look forward to reading the book. love you. 🌲🌾🌼🌎💞🌀✨
Thank you Rose. I would love to give you a hug.
Walltz of the New Moon and The Water Song played in my head for years. I saw ISB at Lincoln Center after a busy day in Central Park sometime around 1970. The audience danced in the aisles while calling for Licorice. I recently purchased an original 5 album set after not listening since I stopped playing vinyl. Brings back memories of a different place and time.
Thanks to your excellency for long awaited commentary. I met Mike and Robin in a motel swiming pool in 1974. Malcom whas elsewhere detained. It it's not often that yanks can meet up with political royalty who has overseen a Welsh town. Great to know you're srill in communicato.
That was such a joy to watch and listen to. Brought me back to when I saw ISB at Woodstock and at Princeton U. Rose was my favorite!
Your book is a magical treasure, Rose, and your literary voice is fantastic. Thanks so much for sharing.
Got the book, very glad I did. Great to have your perspective.
Really interesting chat. What legendary times to have lived and worked creatively through. Not many people can say they have played their instruments at Woodstock! Cheers
Really interesting to see. Looking forward to reading the book. Your idea for a book on all the people at Witchseason sounds fascinating too.
I had this book for Christmas. Wonderful story!
Thank you Rose, for telling about those times! We love you!
Oh, Rose, you still set my heart a-flutter. Still LOVE ISB
Dear Rose Simpson. As an old hippie, I'm ofcourse one of the dedicated fans of ISB. In this provincial danish in which town grew up in, there was a couple of ways you could distinguish between the true and rigtheous hippies and all the fakes...Were you an acid head and did you like the Incredible String Band! I have recently read your wonderful and very well written memoir and it's really an amazing, honest and very brave memoir. Nice to get rid of all the glitter and incense and delve into the gritty and sometimes gray everyday life of a band of very different personalities but all stars! Sad thing with the whole Scientology thing but a lot of hippeis went in that direction. Gave freedom up for some kind of ideology and often a strong leader. Sad but true. Anyway, a great book and you are a very skilled writer. Thanks!
The book arrived yesterday. A really interesting, honest and well written book about a fascinating band. Thanks very much.
Precious. Valuable. Special. Yes, magical. Imaginative. Influential. Benign. Thank you, Rose.
Thank you so much Rose - for this, your book and the music.
What a likeable person
Really nice to see this - I rented student digs and then a cottage from her as a newlywed (our silver wedding this year, struggling to get my head around the timeline, she's looking so well). She was a somewhat more buttoned-up legal secretary at the time, only found out about her history because of the local newspaper being ridiculous as it too often was.
Loved the ISB - nothing like them. My favourite was from their final album Hard Rope and Silken Twine - Ithkos.
Thank you so much for writing that glorious book Rose.
Wonderful book! Thank you, Rose.
i have just watched you singing Empty Pocket blues for the thousandth time , You was beautiful then and are now , Bless You Rose xx
Great to see you Rose!
I didnt come across ISB until about 8 yewrs ago it was just by chance i saw the video Half remarkable Question and became hooked.
I did see Robin in Sheffield and im 64 fiund you later in life and enjoyed your video.
I also wonder what became of Licorice thats an interesting story in itself
Lovely Rose you always make my heart sing.
Incredible! So interesting. Thankyou. R.
So very lovely, thank you. 🙏
Enjoying Ms. Simpson's memoirs right now. She has a fascinating perspective on that time. There's a wonderful interview on UA-cam with Clive Palmer that has a similar take on Robin Willliamson and Mike Heron's relationship- "chalk and cheese" is the phrase he used. I also recommend Joe Boyd's excellent memoirs, White Bicycles.
Ms. Simpson's an evocative writer. Incidentally, she was a splendidly creative bass player, too!
Why set yourself apart from "the musicians" ? Goodness you were a vital part of the ISB sound! 💗🎶
And please write the other book!
great stuff rose
Rose is a gift ..... like a flower to a garden.
They were great in the world of classic rock. There are others that were much more popular and sucked on them without people knowing. I love ISB and Likky's absence. We miss you!. And rose, congratulations on your book
I'm an elementary school music teacher from Canada. I love the ISB and can't wait to buy your book!
Rose, I want to read your book SO MUCH... but where I live they don't seem to sell it in any of the nice bookstores I've tried. Listening to you talking about your life in the Incredible String Band was so precious and I hope we meet someday.... maybe. Thank you for that beautiful song at the end, with all those photos of you, Mike, Robin and Likky, it was truly a gift to me seeing all your happy faces so young and free.
To everyone else, I wish we all lived near each other. it's so lonely being a young hippie in a modern world where i constantly receive stares and ridicule. I loved reading all the comments under this video. I hope you are all well wherever you are, kindred spirits....
Fabulous! Thanks so much for this
wonderful ❤❤❤❤
24:07 Awww, what a lovely photo....
Prose as poetry. Thankyou.
p.s. I asked Mary about the time you describe so well in your video above. All she related to me that I recall is that Likky never did the washing up of the dirty dishes the band left in the sink. (I did wonder afterwards did she perhaps expect Likky to do it because she was female? But those were the times when this was very definitely thought the right and proper thing of course and I couldn't fault her for that.)
love the idea for a book about the Joe boyd production company! Always wondered....he had had Syd's early Floyd, you guys, Fairport, Drake.....what a scene!
Remember meeting meeting you Rose I think in York back then...if you were the girl friend of one of the ISB thin with long black hair...
Maravilla❤
beautiful the ultimate folk rock goddess.
Lovely to hear your story. The ISB was a large part of my life in the early 70s. Does anyone know what really happened to Licky?
ua-cam.com/video/ksMT5OFNhSI/v-deo.html . Go 24 minutes into the video
@@jeanettex2906 thank you
The criticism of Robin seems to be built on misunderstanding. It’s her view and she’s perfectly entitled to it, but it was never about accessing something that’s not available to “ordinary people”. Quite the opposite, actually. It’s about accessing something that is available to everyone, but not realised by everyone.
Rose is a lovely woman, but she clearly threw herself into something she didn’t really buy into, something that didn’t really interest her. She was a straight living with hippies. It must’ve been tough to deal with it at times. Like being a foreigner in a country whose language you haven’t learned.
When you read the book, though, it's clear that Rose was very enthusiastic about and tuned into what the band was about in their pre-Scientology days. And she writes with a lot of respect about Robin's brilliance -- less so about his temperament. (She was Mike's girlfriend, after all, so it makes sense that she often ended up backing him up in the clashes between those two men and their very different personalities, just as Licorice backed Robin.) It's a lovely book and Rose had a lot of the same idealism that fueled the community I grew up in, where everyone practiced Transcendental Meditation. Her descriptions of that world-changing time helped me understand my own parents' journey a bit better.
Robin Williamson WAS the ISB and he still is !"£$%^&*()_++_)(*&^%$£"!
Here's to the preservation of senses of wonder. I'm 71.
There's a film of "U"??
I didn't even know she was in the ISB.
I LOVE YOU..................................................
💕 love 💕
Liebe Rose, what do you think really became of Licorice M'?
What happened to Liquorice Mckecknie?!
It seems that nobody really knows. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Licorice_McKechnie
Here's something else I just found (subsequent to the post directly above). It's a pretty harrowing story told by a man who convincingly purports to be Likky's ex-husband from the U.S., and it's quite upsetting; it starts at 22:55 of the video. ua-cam.com/video/ksMT5OFNhSI/v-deo.html
Stay away from scientology!@@podfour
I will love you as long as I live.
I'm glad to have read the book and it is written clearly and fearlessly. For all that, it's not an enjoyable read. Certainly there is not only 'one truth to be told' but I just can't reconcile how uplifting ISB were for me, with the self-absorbed selfishness of the Hippiedom RS recounts - wherein 'personal freedom' seems to be a lowest common denominator state of not caring about anyone else or taking responsibility for any harm done to anyone else while pursuing self-interest. It's uncanny how this form of 'Libertarianism' morphed so effortlessly into the Right-Wing Libertarianism that now engulfs the World - from the ISB to Donald Trump via Margaret Thatcher, now that really is a bad trip!
Comes across as rather cold hearted, sounds jealous of one of the others. Lets be honest she was lightly talented and both the girls were little more than eye candy. Sensible to steer clear of that scientology nonsense though, seems to have destroyed Lickky.
I have fallen in love with you. Just thought I would let you know.
Rose Simpson comes across as not a very likeable person in the book. She casually tosses out information about the tragic deaths of Mike's Sister and the murder of Iris from Witchseason as events that don't really matter.Tra la la la la....
Mike must have been devastated and so too, Iris's family and to have their untimely demises so trivialised . Perhaps it would have been better not to have mentioned their deaths at all....
I prefered ISB without either of the talentless girls.
The Whole Worlds A Stage, And All The Worlds Leaders, ( Simply Puppets )
"Playing Multiple Different Roles"
These "Musicians", Are Nothing More Than "Magicians". ( Which We're Also Playing Their Roles As Well ) ,..My Father Actually Met, All Of The Members Of This Particular Band, At A University In Manchester [ England ]
They Are / Were All [ The Whole Band ] Members [ Including My Father ] Of The "Church Of Scinctology"
( Created By A Guy Called L. Ron. Hubbard. )