Tim Glover

Tim Glover

TAKE A listen

to Tim Glover

Part musician…

part adventurer

Tim Glover is one of those wonderfully restless spirits the folk world seems to produce so naturally. Banjo player, guitarist, songwriter, traveller, teacher, sailor and storyteller whose life has carried him from the folk clubs of Merseyside to the harbours of Sydney, Australia.

Part musician, part adventurer, Tim’s journey through folk music has stretched across more than half a century, fuelled by humour, curiosity and an enduring love of song.

Part musician…
part adventurer

 

Tim Glover is one of those wonderfully restless spirits the folk world seems to produce so naturally banjo player, guitarist, songwriter, traveller, teacher, sailor and storyteller whose life has carried him from the folk clubs of Merseyside to the harbours of Sydney, Australia.
Part musician, part adventurer, Tim’s journey through folk music has stretched across more than half a century, fuelled by humour, curiosity and an enduring love of song.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Discovering Folk on Merseyside
Tim’s musical beginnings came early. Growing up in Shropshire and later Merseyside, he was surrounded by music from childhood piano lessons, harmonicas and the sounds of the thriving 1960s folk revival.
But the defining moment came at a birthday party, when Tim first heard Robbie Jones playing five-string banjo with the early Hooters folk group.
The sound stopped him in his tracks.
From that moment on, the banjo became central to his musical life. A second-hand zither banjo from Birkenhead soon followed, along with long hours learning chords, songs and technique in the rich musical melting pot of the time.
Like so many musicians of that generation, Tim absorbed everything around him Dylan, Peter Paul and Mary, Jackson C Frank, Paxton and the growing folk club movement spreading across Merseyside.

 

Folk Clubs, Rufus Crisp and the Liverpool Scene
He helped run the college folk club at the Hope and Anchor in Prescot and performed with the group Rufus Crisp, mixing music with the humour and relaxed atmosphere that defined many of the great clubs of the era.
Regular visits to clubs like the Black Horse exposed Tim to a remarkable generation of performers and organisers who shaped the North West folk revival.
Among the musicians who left a lasting impression was the legendary Derek Brimstone, whose unique blend of dazzling guitar work, open tunings and humour became a major influence.
It was Derek who introduced Tim to DADGAD tuning opening up an entirely new musical world.

 

Alias Glover and Jones
In the mid-1970s, Tim formed the duo Alias Glover and Jones with fellow Wirral musician Brian Jones.
The partnership quickly became known for its combination of strong musicianship, banjo-driven arrangements and shared humour on stage. Together they performed across the folk circuit, including memorable appearances supporting Silly Wizard at Liverpool’s Everyman Theatre.
Though the duo lasted only a few years, it remained one of the defining musical chapters of Tim’s life — filled with songs, travel, laughter and lifelong friendships.

Overland to Australia
In 1976, Tim made a decision that perfectly suited his adventurous nature leaving Britain to drive overland to Australia in a Land Rover.
The journey took him through countries including Iran and Afghanistan during a very different era of world travel, before eventually arriving in Sydney just before Christmas with little more than determination, stories and a love of music.
Australia would become home.And folk music once again opened doors.

The Symbolics and Australian Folk Life
Settling into Sydney’s thriving folk scene, Tim formed the duo The Symbolics with multi-instrumentalist Andy Saunders.
Blending folk songs, humour and theatrical stagecraft, the pair became popular performers across Australia’s club and festival circuit, later touring nationally with Arts Council support and travelling on to New Zealand.
The duo recorded their first album called Under the Counter, featuring a lively mixture of Australian, English and American material, reflecting Tim’s lifelong love of traditional song and storytelling.
As the years passed, Tim continued performing in a variety of musical settings from folk clubs and festivals to blues sessions and ukulele groups always adapting, always playing.

Songs, Stories and Humanity
Alongside traditional material, Tim developed into a thoughtful songwriter whose songs often drew inspiration from films, history and ordinary people.
Pieces such as Mr Tuttweiler, inspired by silent movie pianists, and The Old Man, written after meeting a traumatised veteran in France, reveal a warmth and humanity that run throughout his work.
Even now, Tim continues to perform blues, ragtime and clawhammer banjo around Sydney, while encouraging younger generations of musicians through local clubs and sessions.

A Life Still in Song
Tim Glover’s story is one of movement across countries, stages, friendships and musical traditions.
From Merseyside folk clubs to Sydney ferries, from banjos to kazoos, from overland adventures to intimate songs, his life reflects the enduring spirit of folk music itself: community, humour, resilience and connection.
As Tim says, music was never simply about performance. It was about people, stories and keeping the conversation alive.

Join Brian Jones as he sits down with his great friend, Tim Glover. Whilst the two keep in touch via email, Keep Folk Talking has finally given them the chance to see each other again and have a proper yarn about the old days in the 1970s, when they were together as Alias Glover and Jones.

In this episode, Tim reflects on a lifetime in folk music – from his early musical influences and the vibrant folk scene of the 1960s and 70s, to his eventual move to Australia. Packed with warmth, humour and nostalgia, it’s a heartfelt reunion between old friends sharing songs, stories and memories from across the years.

gallery
HIGHLIGHTS

READY FOR ANOTHERstory

READY FOR ANOTHERstory

Take a look in to all our artists for your next trip down memory lane…