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Two folk musicians are working on turning local legends into original songs to pay testament to the history, culture, and stories of Jersey through music.
Jersey folk musicians Jo Thorpe and Tom Oxenham sat down with Express for an evening of music and stories...
The duo discussed their love for making music, the tradition of folk songs, and their experiences with collecting and performing them.
Pictured: Jo and Tom recording some of their songs at the Express podcast studio.
Tom said: "These songs have lasted so long because they are good songs, and because the ones that weren't so good got forgotten about and passed on orally around the country in different parts.
"It's great to have someone perform a song really well, but actually, it's more about the song and that carrying on.
"Obviously there's loads of nerdiness about getting into the history."
Songs reflect the daily lives and struggles of the people performing them – from sea shanties, to Scottish songs that women would sing when working with wool and yarn.
Jo explained: "I love the storytelling aspect of it and the fact that these songs have been handed down through generations, whether it's farm workers or mums and grans."
The pair often find themselves gravitating towards darker songs and legends.
Tom said: "I love that Sam Hall or Jack Hall song, which is it is about a man who's going to be hanged for robbing people on a highway.
"It's a pretty dark song.
"Usually they were printed out for hangings in England, and most of them were pretty rubbish.
"But this one was a very good song, and it stuck around and people remembered it. So I find that one great."
Jo and Tom released an EP at the end of last year, and are now working on turning local legends into original songs.
"They're amazing stories in their own right, but I'm actually trying to turn these into some songs," said Tom.
"I think we've got about five, maybe six."
Jo added: "To be able to now put these to tunes is wonderful. Hopefully, we'll get them recorded and get them out there."
Listen to the podcast to hear Five Spanish Ships, inspired by a Jersey legend about ship wreckers and the origin of the sand dunes...
Jersey has a calendar of folk events for islanders to take part in.
Tom runs a beginner-friendly session on the first Tuesday of every month.
Regular sessions also take place at Kitty O'Shea's (the last Friday of every month) and at Staks La Pulente (roughly every other Sunday).
In addition, Jo hosts La Veil'ye – a traditional get-together where people share music, stories and poetry.
"As adults, how often do we sit and listen to a story?" she asked.
"You might listen to an audiobook or a podcast, but actually to sit around the fireside while someone is telling a story is just so special."
To stay up-to-date on events, follow @jsytradfolk on Instagram.
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