Alison Hustwitt is an accomplished singer-songwriter whose music is deeply influenced by American Folk and Americana. With her distinctive voice and evocative songs, which can be serious or humorous, Alison entertains audiences with her heartfelt performances.

Her grandfather, Frank Lawes was a well known plectrum banjo player, some of whose pieces -such as Syncopatin’ Shuffle- are still part of banjo repertory.  However, this was no “nepo baby” situation as he was not a particularly loving grandparent and never reacted to news that she had taken up the guitar.  Her father Jim, was a very fine harmonica player.

Drawing inspiration from Pete Seeger, Alison’s musical journey has been shaped by a diverse range of influences, including John Prine, Joe South, Tom Lehrer, The Flatlanders, Gerry Colvin, Gordon Lightfoot, Stacy Earle, The Dillards, Mike Nesmith, and The Indigo Girls. Each has contributed to her unique style.

Born and bred in Sussex and now a resident of Gloucestershire, Alison’s musical journey began at the age of 11 when she first picked up a guitar. Shortly thereafter, she began her songwriting journey.  A period of relative musical silence followed until Alison’s early thirties, when the profound experiences of losing her younger brother to cancer and the dissolution of her first marriage became catalysts for reigniting her creative spark.

“I write songs because it is a passion, but also because I have to.  It’s rather like a benign form of hearing voices, in that once a song is triggered it will jump up and down and become an ear worm until it is written down, then if I’m lucky I get some peace until the next one comes along.  I’m not complaining because songs are a joy to write. The one thing I cannot do is write songs to order. It can be very frustrating, but whenever I’ve tried to force the process the results are not pretty.”

In addition to her solo career, Alison has lent her voice to community choirs and close harmony groups. She trained as a singing workshop leader, encouraging others to sing and hosting occasional workshops focused on vocal care. She derives great fulfilment from aligning her music with causes she believes in and frequently appears at community events, from festive Christmas markets to vibrant local agricultural shows.

Alison’s musical journey includes being part of a great team who ran the music stage at Treefest@Westonbirt for several years. She has played at a networking event for Ukrainian refugees and their hosts in rural Herefordshire where Daydream Believer” became an unexpected anthem of unity; she has also performed at other events in support of refugees. When busking she normally collects for Medicins Sans Frontieres.

Currently, she is working on music for her third solo album,