Those of you who have been to the Cropredy Festival over the years will know Chris While and Julie Matthews undoubtedly one of the best folk duos around, writes Peter Cann.

For many years they were part of the Albion Band, led by the former Fairport Convention bass player, Ashley Hutchings. He realised that Chris and Julie were not only good singers and musicians but excellent songwriters too.

It was not long before Chris and Julie became a duo. The link with the Albion Band did not end, however, as Chris's daughter, Kellie, inherited her mother's wonderful voice to take over as lead singer.

Since the mid-nineties the duo has been touring the world and impressing audiences with their mix of folk, rock and country, all sung with first-class harmonies. Their live act has been captured on their latest release, Stages (Fat Cat), a double CD.

Though they are not well-known by the wider public, their talents have been recognised by the music press. Julie has emerged as one of the best songwriters today, with singers eager to record her work.

The US magazine, Country Music People, wrote: "While singer/writers Mary Chapin-Carpenter and Shawn Colvin gain all the plaudits, and the success, Chris and Julie, who are every bit as talented, are still waiting for that breakthrough."

Julie said: "In this country, there is no category for the huge amount of music that falls in between country and folk or rock and pop. In the States there is. If you try to buy one of our records in a shop, you won't know where to look and they don't know where to put us.

"The radio is the same. In the US, there's a slot called adult contemporary, which we don't really have, except for Bob Harris, and he only gets a few hours a week and is playing predominantly American music anyway."

Chris believes that music categories act as a barrier to them becoming more widely known. "We have tried to pull down the barriers and just present ourselves as musicians and usually when people finally come to see us they come back again, bringing friends with them." They hope that's just what will happen when they play The Mill, Banbury, on November 23. Tickets are 7.50. Call 01295 279002 for details.