2000s
Leon's last word of the 20th Century ("Encore" on Harry's Gone Fishing) had a sense of being his farewell bid, as he turned 65. Certainly the decade which followed showed a considerable decline in recorded output, with no new studio albums in the offing until 2008, as successive projects tended to introduce smaller clutches of new material.
This isn't to suggest Leon was inactive, however. In the 2000s, he continued writing children's stories, publishing books such as Home is a Place Called Nowhere and Pumpkin's Downfall, besides continuing to record his own children's songs for a range of projects. The most notable of these was The Greatest Drummer In The World, which started out as a children's story but was transformed into a stage show featuring Leon and Liz Mansfield, among others. Music from the show was subsequently released on CD (see below).
Later, Leon worked with socialist comedian/magician Ian Saville, to present the show, Look at it This Way. (Saville attempts to change the world with his magic, and fails - leading to the appearance of a puppet version of William Morris, who implores him to formulate a vision of how things should be.) The two also performed a second show, A Dinosaur in My Shoe, which was written for children.
Leon's more modest body of output during this period is detailed below. Note the album, And They All Sang Rosselsongs - an officially sanctioned CD of cover versions of Leon's material.
This isn't to suggest Leon was inactive, however. In the 2000s, he continued writing children's stories, publishing books such as Home is a Place Called Nowhere and Pumpkin's Downfall, besides continuing to record his own children's songs for a range of projects. The most notable of these was The Greatest Drummer In The World, which started out as a children's story but was transformed into a stage show featuring Leon and Liz Mansfield, among others. Music from the show was subsequently released on CD (see below).
Later, Leon worked with socialist comedian/magician Ian Saville, to present the show, Look at it This Way. (Saville attempts to change the world with his magic, and fails - leading to the appearance of a puppet version of William Morris, who implores him to formulate a vision of how things should be.) The two also performed a second show, A Dinosaur in My Shoe, which was written for children.
Leon's more modest body of output during this period is detailed below. Note the album, And They All Sang Rosselsongs - an officially sanctioned CD of cover versions of Leon's material.
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The Last Chance CD EP, Fuse, 2002 |
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Turning Silence Into Song CD, Fuse, 2004 |
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The Greatest Drummer In The World CD, Ensemble, 2004 |
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And They All Sang Rosselsongs CD, Fuse, 2005 |
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A Proper State CD, Fuse, 2008 |