In search of Claret Hall Farm
An observant rambler, pausing for breath and looking west after slogging up Bradley Hill, would spy sculptural brick chimney stacks rising above a nearby cluster of trees, and curiosity might tempt them to make a detour for further investigation. Claret Hall is a picturesque but outwardly unremarkable isolated farmhouse in pleasant countryside on the northern edge of Essex; the attractive small town of Clare is just a short walk away, over the border in Suffolk beyond the River Stour.
For most of the nineteen-eighties Claret Hall Farm was the headquarters of cult progressive rock band The Enid, which had been founded in 1973 by musical prodigy Robert John Godfrey at Finchden Manor in Kent, an experimental community for 'disturbed' boys. On arrival at Claret Hall, Godfrey and his close Enid collaborator Stephen Stewart set up a recording studio called The Lodge, and it was here that Kim Wilde - one of many clients - recorded her early hits. Several Enid albums were also made at The Lodge, including the innovative Something Wicked This Way Comes; it explores the themes of Cold War and impending nuclear apocalypse, highly topical subjects in the early 'eighties. There is a celebrated video made during a fan convention held here at Claret Hall in 1984, where the band can be seen playing their symphonic epic Fand out in the open, with the farmhouse clearly identifiable in the background. It's heady stuff. In 1989, Stewart left The Enid and Godfrey was forced to vacate Claret Hall due to lack of funds; he re-located to Northampton and established a new version of The Lodge there, which remains the home of The Enid to this day.
So why, you might be asking, was I here? In about 2014, after years of ambivalence towards The Enid, the intoxicating mixture of prog rock, classical music and English eccentricity finally worked its magic on me. I was hooked, and immersed myself in the music, history and mythology of the band. That immersion has now extended to seeking out former haunts of The Enid, with this expedition to Claret Hall being the first such project.
How to sum up The Enid? To paraphrase the words of Spinal Tap's Nigel Tufnel, "none more prog". What they do is very much an acquired taste, and I can guarantee it won't be everyone's cup of tea, but for the adventurous and patient explorer there is much to enjoy.
Photograph made on Monday 6th February 2017.
In search of Claret Hall Farm
An observant rambler, pausing for breath and looking west after slogging up Bradley Hill, would spy sculptural brick chimney stacks rising above a nearby cluster of trees, and curiosity might tempt them to make a detour for further investigation. Claret Hall is a picturesque but outwardly unremarkable isolated farmhouse in pleasant countryside on the northern edge of Essex; the attractive small town of Clare is just a short walk away, over the border in Suffolk beyond the River Stour.
For most of the nineteen-eighties Claret Hall Farm was the headquarters of cult progressive rock band The Enid, which had been founded in 1973 by musical prodigy Robert John Godfrey at Finchden Manor in Kent, an experimental community for 'disturbed' boys. On arrival at Claret Hall, Godfrey and his close Enid collaborator Stephen Stewart set up a recording studio called The Lodge, and it was here that Kim Wilde - one of many clients - recorded her early hits. Several Enid albums were also made at The Lodge, including the innovative Something Wicked This Way Comes; it explores the themes of Cold War and impending nuclear apocalypse, highly topical subjects in the early 'eighties. There is a celebrated video made during a fan convention held here at Claret Hall in 1984, where the band can be seen playing their symphonic epic Fand out in the open, with the farmhouse clearly identifiable in the background. It's heady stuff. In 1989, Stewart left The Enid and Godfrey was forced to vacate Claret Hall due to lack of funds; he re-located to Northampton and established a new version of The Lodge there, which remains the home of The Enid to this day.
So why, you might be asking, was I here? In about 2014, after years of ambivalence towards The Enid, the intoxicating mixture of prog rock, classical music and English eccentricity finally worked its magic on me. I was hooked, and immersed myself in the music, history and mythology of the band. That immersion has now extended to seeking out former haunts of The Enid, with this expedition to Claret Hall being the first such project.
How to sum up The Enid? To paraphrase the words of Spinal Tap's Nigel Tufnel, "none more prog". What they do is very much an acquired taste, and I can guarantee it won't be everyone's cup of tea, but for the adventurous and patient explorer there is much to enjoy.
Photograph made on Monday 6th February 2017.