Mick Softley (born in 1941 in South Woodford, Essex) was a close friend and associate of Maddy Prior, Clive Palmer, Davy Graham and Jack Elliott. He was a major inspiration to Donovan, who saw him play around England's folk clubs as a young man and covered a couple of his songs early in his career.
Songs for Swingin' Survivors, his 1965 debut for EMI, is a simple and stripped-down singer-songwriter album in the vein of Bob Dylan's work from the same time period.
Softley's more-than-capable writing shines through on protest tunes, love songs, ramblin' road ballads, and a pair of subtly virtuosic acoustic guitar instrumentals.
Comparisons with early period Donovan are also perhaps inevitable. Donovan cited Mick Softley as a major influence and Softley actually wrote a few songs, which were covered by Donovan. Notably 'The War Drags On', which Donovan included on his 'Universal Soldier' EP, and which is featured here in its original version.
Also included on this album are Softley's interpretations of the Billie Holiday favourite, 'Strange Fruit', and Woody Guthrie's 'The Plains of the Buffalo'.
Rarity value aside, this album also represents an integral piece of the whole UK 60s folk-rock jigsaw. In its way as important as debut albums by Donovan, Bert Jansch and Jackson C Frank. And this album, more than any, conveys the spirit of those first guitar-strumming pioneers.
Softley does not look back on this time favourably claiming during production he had gone "through a lot of hells and no heavens, a terrifying amount of personal pain" to the extent that he quit the music business for over four years. During this time, he returned to life on the road until late 1967.
Due to contractual issues he never received any royalties in the later years.
Mick today
Here is that first album
Peace
