Maddy Prior (born 14 August 1947, Blackpool, England) is an English folk singer. One of the most accomplished female vocalists in the British folk music scene, Maddy Prior is best known as the lead singer in the electric folk-rock band Steeleye Span. In her teens Prior moved to St Albans, where she befriended the young Donovan Leitch and Mac MacLeod. She later formed a duo with MacLeod called Mac & Maddy. She became a roadie for visiting American musicians, including Reverend Gary Davis.
In 1966 she began performing with Tim Hart, another St Albans resident, and together they recorded two albums before becoming founding members of Steeleye Span in 1969. They were the backbone of the group until the early 1980s when ill-health forced Tim into semi-retirement (Tim died at Christmas 2009).
Prior left Steeleye Span in 1997 but returned in 2002. Prior has enjoyed a long solo career, as well as working with other artists and groups, including Mac & Maddy, Tim Hart & Maddy Prior, and Maddy Prior & The Carnival Band.
Her most famous - and lighthearted - team-up was with June Tabor in the Silly Sisters. Since 2003, Prior has run and hosted an Arts Centre called Stones Barn in Cumbria.
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