Jackson C Frank

See if you can join the dots – Elvis Presley, Bob Dylan, Simon and Garfunkel, Nick Drake, Sandy Denny, Pentangle and The Beatles. Well, there’s one man who sits at the centre of it all, and it’s more than likely that you won’t have heard of him: Jackson C Frank.

A damaged, wounded singer-songwriter who wowed the British folk scene and presaged psychedelia and punk, Jackson only produced one album – but its influence can still be heard today in the work of artists like Laura Marling, Counting Crows, even Daft Punk.

It’s a fascinating and heart-breaking tale, beginning with tragedy and guilt, reeling through London and Woodstock at the height of the swinging ‘60s, getting lost in a fog of mental illness and ending up with Jackson reaching an accommodation of sorts with his own legend.

Oswin and Carla are delighted to be joined by the music journalist Pete Paphides to discuss Blues Run The Game, how hurt and pain can drive creativity and the transformative power of music.