BY SHEER coincidence, three wonderful albums have just come out, all of which take folk music by the scruff of the neck, stick it through a proper amplifier and get your brain cells and feet moving, which is what such music is for.

Two of them feature brand new material from a brace of our finest and most popular outfits. The third is a valedictory blast from the co-leader of one of the finest bands this country has ever produced.

Let’s start with Stefan Cush, who so sadly died of a heart attack aged just 60 on February 4.  Along with Swill Odgers he was the heart and soul of The Men They Couldn’t Hang, whose anthemic, rousing and politically inspirational songs have provided me with a soundtrack to my life and many stage-sharing moments for nearly four decades.