June Tabor

June Tabor is a great traditional British Folk singer, but her style is so thoroughly modern that she has become the English version of Joni Mitchell. Her strong narrative skills and always beautiful but often serenely downbeat vocal style helped set the standard for guitar-playing, flaxen-haired beauties. She sounds just as great collaborating with Fairport Convention, the Oyster Band, Elvis Costello, or Richard Thompson as she does all on her lonesome. Check out her two albums with Maddy Prior under the Silly Sisters banner -- they work as well together as Dolly Parton, Emmylou Harris, and Linda Ronstadt do on their American trio recordings.