A to Z Album and Gig Reviews
"Acoustic is the new black" or so goes the obsession which surfaces in the British media every few years as critics get bored with the current generation of vacuous overproduced pap masquerading as music & tap into the Acoustic/New Folk/Singer-Songwriter/Unplugged scene which has been going on all the time just out of the spotlight.
This double album is not however, a genre defining piece. For "Acoustic" here, read "Organic" or at least cruder, less polished with emotional integrity intact. A number of tracks showcase the mellower side of some well known bands, Coldplay, Feeder, Radiohead, etc. & many others have no acoustic instrumentation whatsoever or qualify simply by being electric band tracks underpinned by strummed acoustic guitar.
Of the 36 tracks there is nothing really bad except Everything But The Girl's inexcusable mauling of "Night & Day". A handful of earlier classics are thrown in, Nick Drake, John Martyn, Simon & Garfunkel and Jeff Buckley; it is noticeable that some of the crop of contemporary performers seem rather uninspired by comparison with these ground breaking acts. The juxtaposition of Martyn's "Solid Air" with Muki's somewhat unremarkable cover of his "I Don't Want to Know" is particularly illustrative of this.
Cynics might consider the compilation a knowing marketing exercise targeted to become the soundtrack to middle class Thirty-Something dinner parties. It's tempting to feel that artists such Dido, Sterophonics, Eva Cassidy & David Gray are included as much for their saleability as their ability & "acoustic" credentials. Despite this it might serve to introduce the old school to new delights such as Feeder's exquisitely melodic "Dry", Big Star's Country-pop inflected "Thirteen" or I Am Kloot's "No fear of Falling". The latter shows a genuine lineage from & understanding of earlier artists such as Paul Simon or Al Stewart, carrying high emotional impact with just voice & guitar. Any compilation which exposes the incredibly talented Aimee Mann to new listeners has to be a good thing.
A final gripe, there is an infuriating absence of information. An opportunity has been wasted to explain the rationale behind the album & to enhance the listening experience with details of bands & how the "acoustic" element fits within their work.
James Hibbins
This compilation brings together some of the best of the artists who are regularly to be found playing at Glasgow's Acoustic Affair shows. These events began in early 2002, and have ever since provided a vital platform for emerging Scottish talent, principally in the sphere of songwriting. It's not exclusively for emerging talent, though, for this compilation includes tracks by Benny Gallagher, Clive Gregson, Karine Polwart, James Grant and Karan Casey. Some of these are taken from existing album releases, Benny's from a forthcoming set and Clive's being a fresh rendition of Antidote recorded with his new "singing partner", Wiltshire singer Jacqueline Sharp. There's also a healthy stylistic variety herein, with the superbly intimate stripped-back acoustic texturings of Carol Laula and the confidential and intense Nick-Drake-like indie-folk of Unkle Bob contrasting with the more straightforward timeless folk-pop of Sam Corry and Dan O'Neil (aka The River Detectives) and the sexy jazziness of Sophie Bancroft, via the contemporary acoustic pop of Paul McLaughlin (aka No. 1 Son). Also appearing are Kieran Docherty (Fall From Grace, taken from his debut CD Expectations, raises the stakes well, even in this company) and the defiantly gritty, quirky indie star Sporting Hero. Overall a mixed bag, but if this compilation manages to introduce you to just one really good act you've hitherto missed, then it'll have been worth while.
David Kidman Sept 2006
This is a truly exceptional 4-disc compilation box-set in that it fully deserves both its hefty PR profile and a place on the shelves of every folk enthusiast, even those who already boast a large and varied CD library. This box purports to be a "definitive collection" celebrating British acoustic music, and presents a well-nigh-unrivalled history of the folk revival in this country from 1960 to 2000. The compiler is that gentleman of impeccable taste and authority David Suff, who has clearly lavished an inordinate amount of care and time on the project, incidentally producing an exemplary 56-page booklet which perfectly balances insightful informativeness and readability with a high interest quotient in the chosen photographs, and appends a genuinely useful and (unusually!) largely highly accurate discography which lists not only the original releases but also on which releases the tracks might be currently available.
The Acoustic Folk Box complements (rather than supersedes) the (only ostensibly) similarly-themed previous sets like The Voice Of The People and The Electric Muse (which dealt with traditional source singers and folk-rock respectively), for it traces the acoustic thread in the music of the late-20th-century folk revival, an aspect which to date has not been anthologised. It starts with Lonnie Donegan, finishes with Eliza Carthy, and in between covers virtually every important artist whose recordings could be made available (anyone with even an inkling of the difficulties involved in obtaining - or in this case failing to obtain - the necessary permission for including tracks from the likes of Christy Moore will appreciate the harrowing enormity of such a task, and David has done a grand job so no complaints please!). Importantly too, vital developments such as the Shirley Collins & Davy Graham Folk Routes, New Routes fusion are given their due.
The individual selections are almost without exception intelligently chosen, very often eschewing the all-too-obvious choices in favour of cuts more truly representative of the artists concerned. OK, so I was puzzled by the Ralph McTell choice (Spiral Staircase), and those by John Renbourn and Martin Simpson are arguably more marginal than seminal, and I'm sure every experienced listener will part company with the compiler occasionally, but that matters not in the scheme of things, where infinitely more bullseyes are scored than on yer average compilation. David proves his credentials as a true connoisseur of the music by including some of the (wholly or partly) unsung heroes of the folk-roots revival such as the English Country Blues Band, Jez Lowe and Rory McLeod, and by choosing superior versions of Ron Kavana's Reconciliation and Richard Thompson's Beeswing (to give but two examples) from among the different ones recorded by the artists concerned.
Each disc is sensibly sequenced too, and properly represents a single decade. But a particular glory of this set for me was that, even though I'm already familiar with many or most of the selections and/or performers, it kept making me realise that I'd almost forgotten how good they were and made me rush back to my shelves to dig out again Frankie Armstrong's Lovely On The Water, Chris Wood's Lisa and June Tabor's Abyssinians (to name but three). The downside of course is the realisation that quite a number of the key original releases sampled herein (Bandoggs, Roy Harris, Vin Garbutt) have yet to surface on CD reissues, for whatever reason. But even without taking into consideration the rarity value of such cuts, this is an immensely valuable compilation, and a veritable benchmark which belongs firmly in the "if you only own one" category, an equally essential purchase both for the already-converted and for those coming fresh to the delights of British acoustic folk.
David Kidman
Should you wake up thinking, "By golly, today I think I'll treat myself to a CD full of songs about trains!" this is probably the CD for you. If your tastes run to traditional folk music, I daresay you'll be well pleased. If, however, you're reading this on the 06.57 from Portsmouth to Waterloo (calling at Havant, Petersfield, Haslemere, Guildford, some place in the middle of nowhere for ten minutes, Woking, and just long enough outside Waterloo to make you seriously late for work), then sadly, the song "Directors Of Connex Cry From Prison (With Extra Hard Labour)" is not included.
A Full Head Of Steam is a collection of songs performed by North Eastern artists to celebrate the 175th anniversary of the first passenger steam train from Stockton to Darlington. It's a (mostly) chronological journey from 1825 onward, and The Bev Sanders Band get us started with 'A Dream Of Steam And Freedom'. George Stephenson wonders whether he can take people to the ends of the earth, or just to the limits of their patience. (I may have made the last bit up.) It's a singable song, with a rousing chorus, and it starts the CD off with that reassuring thump that all train journeys give you. All is well, here is comfort, let us take you wherever you would be bound.
Much of the other material on the CD had me singing along, too. There's some familiar songs amongst the selection; Nebula perform 'Right Side Of The Footplate', a Huw and Tony Williams song covered by Fairport Convention as 'Travelling By Steam'. The FC version just has the edge, to my mind. Lindisfarne are featured, with 'Train in G-Major', a new recording of the old favourite from 'Fog On The Tyne'. Actually, the song has precious little to do with trains, but that's just nit-picking.
The songs show trains from many aspects: from the view of the driver (Ewan McColl's 'Song Of The Iron Road'), through the engineers who built the railway system ('The North Eastern Line') to the changes seen by a railway worker over half a century ('Jacko The Shunter'). There is also reflection that a train journey means leaving ('Railwaymans Farewell To Darlington').
Toward the end of the CD, the subject matter drifts from the railways of England to take in other countries - America and India. The predominantly traditional sound of most of the songs changes, too, with Skerne providing an authentic skiffle feel to 'Midnight Special' and The Whisky Priests rocking out in top form on 'Full Circle'.
The range of talents assembled here is exceptional. Some will barely be known outside the North East, but Martin Stephenson, Vin Garbutt, Eddie Walker and the duo of Bob Fox and Stu Luckley are well-established artists. It's good to see a mix of musicians like this, the international superstars side by side with local club performers.
Overall, then, this is probably one for those who like their music traditional and their trains running on steam. Given the original idea behind the project 'a tribute album about trains', the compilers (Ian Luck and Brian Launder) have done a good job. One of the local M.P.s has given his endorsement to the project, some chap from Sedgefield, and he's pictured in the sleeve notes. I understand from other sources that he plays the guitar too, ... should go far.
Unlike the 06:57 from Portsmouth to Waterloo ... OK, guys, next project - "Railtrack ain't working, let's go back to steam". Or maybe "Beeching was wrong!". I think you get my drift.
http://www.afullheadofsteam.co.uk
Mark McCulloch
Various - All I Want For Christmas (Dusty Records)
Oh yes, it's that time of the year again when you can't walk into a store without being assailed by the festive delights of Slade, Roy Wood, Bing and any number of artists roasting their chestnuts by an open fire. It doesn't have to be that way, at least not in the privacy of your own headphones when you can curl up with a yule log of your own musical preferences and remind yourself that Christmas isn't turkey and tinsel for everyone and that it's not supposed to be just about celebrating how many presents Santa brings.
This is a collection pulled from the deepest obscurity of independent Americana (homegrown and Swedish versions), 17 tracks by artists of whom I'm not ashamed to admit I recognise only one. That'll be opener Eric Hisaw, the Austin singer-songwriter who sounds like a Steve Earle knock-off, bemoaning that he ain't been home at Christmas for too long as he waltzes around his local honky tonk's spruce.
After that it's unknown territory. Barn Burners come over all Chuck Berry with ode to getting seasonally sozzled Lit Up Like A Christmas Tree, Shelly King sprinkles snowflakes over the bluegrass with Let's Stay Home For Christmas and Samuel Jackson by Swedish countryrockers Silver Saddle proves that just because it's the season to be merry you can't sing about standing in a welfare line while Leanne Atherton's bluesy Bells of Bethlehem tackles similar issues to remind everyone that it's supposed to be a time of charity and loving one another, not passing by on the other side.
Elsewhere decidedly contrasting contributions come from The Lonesome Trailers with their Christian country Man In The Middle, The Unkool Hillbillies with a boogie woogie Honey, Merry Christmas, Cynthia Gayneau out in the Appalachian backwoods for I Remember Christmas, the self-descriptive Honky Tonk Christmas courtesy The Stumbleweeds, and Scott McClatchy's heartland rootsy cover of Steve Earle's Nothin But A Child.
For those who need their fix of traditional Xmas tunes, there's a couple of covers, Winter Wonderland from Billy Eli Band and a world weary Do You Hear What I Hear? From Saltwater. But when push comes to shove, the one to crank up over the turkey simply has to be Groucho's chugging country power-pop desperate love plea Dead By Christmas. Wrap that one up with mistletoe. And if you want send a festive greetings card, you'll be pleased to know all the artists have their e mail addresses included!
Mike Davies
The soundtrack of the concert special put together to honour the rescue workers of Sept 11, this is a star studded affair brimful of songs that cut to the emotional heart. The melancholic but pride infused tone is set from the outset with Springsteen's stark My City of Ruins and while you might have reservations about rounding things off with Celine Dion's misjudged syrup and strings drenched God Bless America (Willie Nelson's plaintive pain and pride filled acoustic America The Beautiful is far more dignified, even with Mariah Carey wailing away on the mass chorus), you can understand the sentiment.
Between times songs of healing, hope, defiance and dignity are the order of the day. Bon Jovi's stripped down Living on A Prayer, Wyclef Jean's version of Redemption Song, U2's Walk On, and a surprisingly subdued Tom Petty with I Won't Back Down. Billy Joel's New York State of Mind nicely catches the sense of the Big Apple's need for community oneness, while, rather bravely, Limp Bizkit's cover of Floyd's Wish You Were Here with Goo Goo Doll John Rzeznick on vocals is very politically pointed in the circumstances. You also get two songs called Hero, one from Ms Carey, the other by Enrique Iglesias, neither are great but only one necessitates the skip button.
But exceptions noted aside, everyone rises to the occasion for heartfelt performances, even Stevie Wonder regains his form with Take 6 on Love's In Need Of Love Today while Paul Simon's resonant Bridge Over Troubled Water, Dixie Chicks' I Believe In Love and surprisingly Sting's Fragile stand tall in the highlights zone. The defining moment though goes to Neil Young who delivers a version of Imagine that can choke you almost to tears.
Mike Davies
This 3-CD set is a bit of a mixed bag. It collects together three original Pye albums from the late 50s, two of which were originally issued on the Nixa Jazz Today label. These latter two LPs in particular spotlight the pioneering work of Alan Lomax in collecting field recordings of American folk and blues musicians who in those days wouldn't normally have found their way into a recording studio.
The first, subtitled Murderers' Home, is a collection of (mostly) work songs (topped up with a few blues) recorded at Parchman, Mississippi in 1947 by prisoners (gangs or individuals, either completely anonymously or under aliases) carrying out their duties. Even in 1947, though, the custom of worksong-singing was dying out. Sure, the recordings are primitive, but actually pretty good considering the circumstances in which they were made, and any occasional recession in sound quality doesn't get in the way of appreciation. One or two of the selections turn out to be merely tantalising fragments, but most are more fully realised pieces, including some grand examples of more extended hollers (notably "CB"'s Whoa Back). (This album supplements rather than supersedes the more exhaustive series of Lomax recordings of this type of material, mostly made a decade or so earlier, which are currently available on Rounder in such series as Deep River Of Song, though it's a pity that unlike the Rounder releases this Sanctuary issue omits the original song texts from its booklet.)
The second, subtitled Blues In The Mississippi Night, is a kind of thematic concept collection – "the story of the blues told by men who have lived the blues and created the blues" – incorporating recordings of blues giants such as Memphis Slim, Sonny Boy Williamson and Big Bill Broonzy alongside a clutch of loosely related tracks by unidentified singers (including some more worksongs from a group of convicts). The format used was to intersperse musical performances within a framework of the three principal bluesmen talking about their lives and their music (probably half of the album's total playing time is speech). The result, recorded in 1946, proved fascinating indeed, a triumph of documenting totally frankly the black man's experience of the inequities of the Southern system of racial segregation and exploitation – so frankly, in fact, that the bluesmen themselves were reluctant to be identified even on the recording's eventual release in 1957.
The third of the reissues – American Song Train Volume 1 – is the exception in that it comprises entirely studio recordings on which authentic American folk material is revived in performances by Alan himself with Peggy Seeger, Guy Carawan, John Cole and Sammy Stokes. Simply accompanied on banjo and guitar with occasional harmonica, these are appealing if not always exceptional renditions of attractive material; those on which Peggy sings lead tend to form the highlights – the ballad The Two Sisters and a couple of children's singing games for instance. An intriguing footnote to this latter album, by the way, is that the credited engineer is Joe Meek! Whatever, this reasonably-priced set is worth having for once again making available these important recordings in a sensible CD format.
www.sanctuaryrecordsgroup.co.uk
David Kidman
Various Artists - American Roots (Union Square)
And so the Oh Brother bandwagon trundles on, but at least this latest compilation of , er, American roots music is upfront about feeding off the hype. As it notes, several of the songs here figured prominently on the soundtrack with the first number out of the starting gate being Ralph Stanley with Man Of Constant Sorrow. However, trawling several decades of bluegrass, folk, clues and old time country, there's a lot more besides too among the 34 tracks.
Although more contemporary names like Nanci Griffith, Emmylou, Alison Brown, Lynn Morris and, stretching a point slightly, Eva Cassidy are included, the bulk of those featured tend to come from between the 70s and the dawn of time. There's plenty of the usual suspects - Dylan, Taj Mahal, Guthrie, Bill Monroe, the Carter Family, the Louvins (and much as I adore If I Could Only Win Your Love couldn't something less of an old chestnut have been used) and a token Johnny Cash (I Walk The Line, obviously) - but what earns this its stripes are the less familiar (to mainstream ears anyway, and that's who this is aimed at) but no less significant contributors to the rich heritage of American folk music. The Country Gentlemen, the oft forgotten Sonny Terry & Brownie McGhee, bluesmen Skip James and (the only artist to warrant two tracks) Mississippi John Hurt, bluegrass doyenne Hazel Dickens (two of her songs are also covered by other artists), Grateful Dead alumni Dave Grisman, and The Delmore Brothers.
It's good too to have crystal clear recordings of both Duelling Banjos and Foggy Mountain Breakdown, two of the definitive bluegrass instrumentals, and full marks to whoever compiled this for including Fools Gold by the much underrated Poco, a Buffalo Springfield spinoff whose role in popularising country rock has been too long overshadowed by The Eagles and who are long overdue for a reappraisal.
Mike Davies
Various Artists - And They All Sang Rosselsongs (Fuse Records)
Before I go too far, I must stress that this is NOT one of those "all and sundry try their hand at covering songs by one particular writer" albums that come out from time to time and accomplish little other than to embarrass both the performers and the songwriter. Here, in contrast, the very rationale for this release comes from Leon himself. To summarise: for over 40 years, Leon has been "writing songs and sending them out into the world", most of them through the medium of what he terms (with typical self-effacing modesty) his own "very limited voice"; from time to time, one of his songs has attracted other voices and other interpretations, so why not, then, a whole album of other singers' interpretations of his songs? Why not, indeed, provided that those "other singers" are the right ones for the job? So, Leon goes on to explain,"15 singers were approached and challenged to choose one song each to record, the only proviso being that it had to be a song he/she had not recorded before." The result was a set of supremely powerful performances by (in Leon's words) "singers who know how to sing words and are not afraid to stamp their own personalities onto the songs". And, not quite incidentally, an equally powerful proof (as if proof were needed!) of the excellence and longevity of Leon's songwriting. Because of the personal nature of the singers' choices, this is emphatically not a "Rosselson's greatest hits" set. Having said that, one of the songs (The World Turned Upside Down) could well lay claim to inclusion within that collective tag: for is there really anything new that a singer could bring to that oft-covered opus? - well, Robb Johnson turns in a stunning, fresh, spine-tinglingly imaginative, majestic and yes, meditative rendition that (fully in line with Leon's brief) can genuinely be termed an interpretation as opposed to a tired tribute-band cover. Robb's contribution alone is worth the asking price, but every one of the 15 singers delivers the goods in his/her own individual way while retaining the essential, piquant, je-ne-sais-quoi flavour of Leon's writing. David Campbell tries out a bold arrangement for Stand Up For Judas and gets away with it (and with honours); Roy Bailey brings his own brand of storytelling magic to the fable of William; Eliza Carthy perfectly characterises The Man Who Puffs The Big Cigar; Other highlights are Sandra Kerr's sparse, simple yet effective treatment of My Daughter, My Son, Janet Russell's intense, moving take on Song Of The Olive Tree and Martin Carthy's considered version of The Wall That Stands Between, while Nancy Kerr & James Fagan do a beautiful job on the folksy Still Is The Memory. I also really liked Barb Jungr's take on Invisible Married Breakfast Blues (one of the many undervalued Rosselsongs, I feel), and Elizabeth Mansfield's cabaret-style rendition of Don't Get Married, Girls, which does a very nice line in "slightly over-the-top" characterisation. One or two of the other singers who naturally incline towards a theatrical manner of presentation might be felt to (albeit quite unintentionally) draw attention to their fine vocal qualities at the expense of the lyrics, but generally speaking the deeply-felt quality of their interpretations is the overriding and compensating factor. The most important thing is that these songs are put out there, and brought to life with conviction and real understanding of what they're about; almost all of these, not just the best of them, can stand proudly alongside Leon's own signature renditions (which I wouldn't want ever to be without, I hasten to add). While the series of brief quotations appended in the booklet ably typify the Rosselson philosophy and provide a telling commentary on the performances: a neat touch that.David Kidman
Various Artists - Anglo International! (Folksound)
A considerable cornucopia of conglomerated concertinas, collected into a consorted or concerted cacophony of compact construction? Not quite, Leonard, although this commendably copious three-disc set presents plenty of fine playing and, quite against all the odds, turns out to be non-daunting, and a "really good listen" for the non-hardcore concertina fan. And coming so soon after Brian Peters' magnificent Anglophilia CD too, the Anglo enthusiast is really being spoilt now! Anglo International! gathers together (mostly recent, and all previously unreleased, some even specially recorded) performances from many of the instrument's most skilled players, from John Kirkpatrick, Noel Hill, Chris Sherburn, Roger Edwards, Will Duke, Roger Digby, Niall Vallely, Mary MacNamara, Andy Turner and Harry Scurfield through to names who are arguably perhaps known more to the true box specialist (like John Watcham, Tom Lawrence, Andrew Blakeney-Edwards and Mandy Murray - the latter a real find! - and Felix Castro Vicente from Galicia). Many of these folks are of course acknowledged as technical virtuosi of justly celebrated unflappable technique, but all-round musicianship is just as often on display on this set, and it all sounds duly effortless – even though those in the know will tell you different! There's also a sprinkling of historical archive recordings, suitably cleaned up and sounding very fresh indeed, from the likes of Scan Tester, Fred Kilroy and Nigel Chippendale; and there's even some "Zulu squashbox music" too! All of which should tell you that this set contains a staggering cross-section of musical expression, amply fulfilling its aim of demonstrating the versatility of the humble instrument and the surprising breadth of its repertoire (including generous representation of "novelty" and strictly non-folk items as well as Irish and English repertoire).
Many tunes are of the less well-known variety, too, which is a distinct bonus. Although the vast majority of the music here is instrumental, there's a handful of vocal tracks which unashamedly present Sous Les Toits De Paris and St. James Infirmary alongside traditional (the Threlfalls' fine rendition of Bonny Labouring Boy). Elsewhere, morris tunes, jigs, reels and hornpipes rub shoulders companionably with military marches, Scott Joplin and music-hall in a delicious parade that passes by your ears almost in a flash and without overstaying its welcome. On some tracks (eg those by Bertram Levy, Chris Sherburn, Mandy Murray and Frank Edgley), the Anglo is augmented by other instruments. It seems churlish to point out that, within such a mouthwatering expanse of diversity and musical excellence and diversity, some of the Anglo's present-day (indisputably) key exponents are maddeningly, and inexplicably, omitted - there's no Brian Peters, and for that matter no Keith Kendrick... And while the presentation certainly appears at first glance to be admirably exhaustive, with a fat 48-page booklet, the whole package is actually compromised rather by slipshod editing (some track details are transposed or mixed up, eg on the final pair of tracks on disc one) and by the adoption of an apparently random, entirely illogical, and thus needlessly confusing, sequence for the sections devoted to the individual players, their biographies and their tune source details (even though these are well written and include much fascinating background information that's just as useful, and non-impenetrable, to the non-specialist as to the Anglo aficionado). But at only £25 incl P&P, this feast of a set is a hell of a bargain, and Noel Hill's magisterial and highly emotional keening on his landmark seven-minute performance of a slow air (Limerick's Lament) is alone almost worth that modest asking price.
David Kidman
In honour of Minnesota-born Bob Dylan and his 60th birthday on May 24, 2001, Minnesota label Red House Records' artists have put together an album of fifteen of his songs, which includes some absolute gems, introduces us to some artists we may not have heard and confirms the label's depth, breadth and quality.
Dylan's songs are powerful material and women have often brought some additional magic to them and/or produced the definitive version. Joan Baez's 'Love Is Just A Four Letter Word' (1968) and Little Feat's Shaun Murphy's 'It Takes A Lot To Laugh, It Takes A Train To Cry' (2000), immediately spring to mind. We all have our favourites, and now I have some new: Suzzy and Maggie Roches's laid-back harmonies on 'Clothes Line Saga'; the reflective 'It Ain't Me Babe' by Lucy Kaplansky; Eliza Gilkyson's opening track 'Love Minus Zero/No Limit'; and Rosalie Sorrels' gentle-country 'Tomorrow Is a Long Time'.
John Gorka's beautifully-paced 'Girl Of The North Country'; 'All Along The Watchtower' (with banjo) from Tom Landa & The Paperboys; Hart-Rouge's version in French of 'With God On Our Side', Martin Simpson's 'Spanish Leather' - as haunting a cover of that heartbreaker as you're likely to hear; and a rough-and-gritty blues 'Pledging My Time' by Greg Brown - all stand out.
Dylan's genius is without question and these artists lovingly tip their collective hat to him here. Happy Birthday, Bob!
http://www.redhouserecords.com
Sue Cavendish
Various Artists - A' The Bairns O' Adam (Greentrax)
It's taken me a while to get round to this tribute album to Hamish Henderson, for no apparent reason other than that it's been listened to piecemeal rather than all in one sitting. It doesn't deserve to be treated in that way, for it's a fine, abundantly thoughtful and generously unified CD. No generic pigeonhole does it justice, just as no generic pigeonhole does Hamish himself justice. Poet, songwriter, collector, soldier, academic - Hamish, the true polymath, was without doubt one of the major cultural figures of 20th Century Scotland, and this excellent CD is an honest, serious and eminently fulfilling tribute to this great man. Most of its tracks were recorded specially by artists who were personal friends of Hamish's and/or else greatly admired his work, and the collection both reflects the breadth of Hamish's activities and highlights his personal concerns and passions. The new performances are suitably committed and without exception very fine indeed; highlights for me (among a CD stacked full of great performances) include Alison McMorland's rendition of The Flyting O' Life And Daith and Gordeanna McCulloch's two tracks, which begin with an immensely gripping and highly concentrated take on the brief ballad The Speaking Heart; Gordeanna really penetrates to the heart of her songs like no other singer, and her rendition is a real showstopper. I also enjoyed the brief moment when Adam MacNaughtan "tak's the floor" for the delicious tongue-twisting Victory Hoedown, and the contrasting reading of one of Hamish's poems (the moving Ninth Elegy), so very convincingly linked by the reader (Margaret Bennett) to a performance of one of Hamish's favourite Gaelic songs. Another emotional moment comes when piper Allan MacDonald performs the two song airs he'd played at Hamish's funeral, though for me the effect is diluted just a tad by Fred Freeman's reciting of Hamish's own laments over the first of the tunes. The lighter side of Hamish is recalled with Ballad Of The D-Day Dodgers (courtesy of Rod Paterson), while Geordie McIntyre turns in The Ballad Of The Men Of Knoydart accompanied by Alison's banjo and Sandy Brechin's box. Other musicians contributing to the new recordings include Angus Lyon (accordion) and Malcolm Stitt (guitar, bouzouki). The final piece on this affectionately-compiled tribute is another masterstroke - Jeannie Robertson's vital 1960 performance of My Son David, taken from the archive of the School Of Scottish Studies. The remaining non-new recordings on this CD are interesting in themselves: there are two by Hamish himself - first a distinctly spirited, albeit brisk1951 performance of The 51st Highland Division's Farewell To Sicily, and second the "canntaireachd" of Mouth Music. An unusual inclusion is the Corrie Folk Trio's 1968 recording of Hamish's "Free Mandela" song Rivonia. Then there's Dick Gaughan's celebrated 1978 version of The Song Of Gillie More (taken from his eponymous Topic album) and the 1972 rendition of The John MacLean March by The Laggan (a version which Hamish himself particularly enjoyed). As tribute albums go, this one is truly in a class of its own.
David Kidman
Various Artists - Autumn Acoustics (Solarise Records)
The online-based independent label Solarise has a mission to alert the world to the wealth of talent out there. It's now releasing its second compilation of music from independent acoustic-based artists, some signed and some unsigned, some from other countries but mainly from England. The vast majority of these were completely new to me, but almost every one of them has something of interest to say and most have an individual way of saying it. An increasing number of us are becoming acquainted with the songs of Lancaster-based Angie Palmer, and her track I Need You appears here; though not entirely representative of her current work, it nevertheless showcases Angie's songwriting talent and distinctive, skilled guitar and vocal approach very well. Worcester-based Jamie Knight presents the slightly over-ornate Girl In The Light from his album Bound (on which the jury here's still out). Otherwise it's a lucky dip of unknown names, out of which those I rated most (apart from Angie!) were Birmingham roots/folk outfit Medicine Sunday and Denmark's Perfect Pitch (who coincidentally both feature a female vocalist and a cool, tight, stripped-down arrangement), Australia's Jeremy Harrison (the intriguing Old Man Patriot, set to a hypnotic rippling guitar figure) and America's Big Wolf Pappa. Maybe the Torch Moths' Look To The Hills is a rather obvious graduate of the Syd Barrett/Robyn Hitchcock school of acoustic whimsy, but still it's none the worse for that. Roger Francomb's soulful Breathe stretches out nicely, with overtones of John Martyn and Richie Havens. The CD sags a bit with the more ordinary acoustic-rock selections towards the middle, which though efficient enough are ultimately too melodically repetitive and thus less memorable. Overall this is a worthwhile collection though, and if it achieves its aim in bringing these performers to our attention then all the better.
David Kidman
Mississippi John Hurt was my first love and I go back to his music again and again. I'd 'discovered' his 1928 track, Stack O'Lee, on an old blues compilation just prior to the music industry rediscovered him 35 years after that original recording was made. He'd been working as a farm labourer in Avalon until a young blues enthusiastic wondered if he was still alive and went down to Mississippi and found him. It's a story stranger than fiction. MJH died in 1966, but not before playing Festivals and coffee houses across America and recording some of today's most influential acoustic blues. Candy Man Blues? You'll hear it here first. Those 1928 recordings are available on CD; Avalon Blues: The Complete 1928 OKeh Recordings (Columbia/Legacy) and there's more on Vanguard and Rounder. His fingerstyle, thumb-playing-the-bass-line-on-top, rolling acoustic folk/blues has influenced the likes of John Fahey, Leo Kottke, Bob Dylan and a thousand more.
Our thanks are due to Tom Hoskins who rediscovered MJH and to Peter Case who 'collected' a host of contemporary blues and country giants to record his songs for this wonderful, just-released tribute album. Chris Smither, Bruce Cockburn, Lucinda Williams, Alvin Youngbood Hart, Steve & Justin Earle, Peter Case & Dave Alvin, Ben Harper, Geoff Muldaur, Mark Selby, Beck (who plays that seminal Stack O'Lee, here called Stagolee, alone with acoustic guitar), Victoria Williams, Bill Morrissey, Taj Mahal, Gillian Welch and John Hiatt take 15 of his songs and give them their own blues, folk and country interpretations.
I won't say more; Christmas is six months away so you'll have to buy it for yourself. The album is a must-have!
http://www.vanguardrecords.com
Sue Cavendish
I know we've heard it all before – products dubbed "a humorous alternative to other Christmas albums". But I admit this selection, sensibly and imaginatively culled (or should I say "reined-in"?!) only partly from the back-catalogue of that prime Scottish label Greentrax. As it turns out, they've licensed some choice selections from other labels. There's tracks from Tom Lehrer and Enoch Kent (from 1954 and 1962, though still most relevant!), Loudon Wainwright III's thought-provoking Christmas Morning, two from Cyril Tawney (There Are No Lights On Our Christmas Tree and the brand-new Lone Shepherd), and the sublimely ridiculous story of Mary Christmas from the fab Stoke-on-Trent duo His Worship & The Pig.
One of the highlights of this package, though, is Greentrax's own Robin Laing's (previously unreleased) rendition of John Rudkin's wickedly hilarious portrait of The Man That Slits The Turkeys' Throats At Christmas, complete with one of those "bootifully" wordy choruses that Robin relishes singing. "New Scottish country" is represented by Shoeshine label star Tom Clelland, with a specially recorded new song The Present. And of course, no Scottish Christmas album would be complete without the McCalmans, here represented by a somewhat uncharacteristic 1981 Christmas single that was probably intended as a belated answer to Slade's Merry Xmas Everybody, and Bill Barclay's Twelve Days Of Christmas, here presented in a 1991 live recording that certainly had 'em rollin' in the aisles! So, though it has its serious moments, this is really a genuinely fun compilation – a great hoot, mon! – that makes a fitting stocking-companion to the new St. Agnes' Fountain CD.
David Kidman
Ballads Of The Book is an elaborately ambitious project which features some of Scotland's best writers and musicians. The brainchild of Idlewild's Roddy Woomble, it began in 2005 as a simple idea to bring together the literary talents of Scotland's writing community with a diverse range of new and established recording artists. Idlewild had of course already explored artistic collaboration with poet Edwin Morgan on their album Remote Part, but Roddy wanted to take the idea a stage further by enabling other writers also to create original lyrics which the musicians could then interpret however they wished. The dual qualities of literary, poetic elegance and cutting-edge innovation in the writing are reflected in the unbridledly eclectic nature and range of the musicians and singers chosen to participate. Established folks like Alasdair Roberts, James Yorkston and Mike Heron (original Incredible String Band member) turn in some inspired vignettes (Alasdair Roberts' take on Robin Robertson's The Lowing works particularly well), while there's a rare appearance by the elusive hippy-child Vashti Bunyan (on Rodge Glass's The Fire) and King Creosote essays Laura Hird's Where And When? and Karine Polwart's setting of Edwin Morgan's The Good Years is utterly charming. Elsewhere we find contributions from Idlewild themselves, the Trashcan Sinatras, and two of Chemikal Underground's own acts (De Rosa and Aerogramme); and the Delgados' Emma Pollock gives us a taste of her solo activities with a gutsy interpretation of Louise Welsh's Jesus On The Cross. All of the chosen performers respond to the writing in an invigorating, imaginative and persuasive manner, although the more strange among the imagery isn't always necessarily conducive to an instantly appealing musical setting and thus some of the tracks take a few plays to sink in. But tracks like Sons And Daughters' brooding The War On Love Song, and Dreamcatcher by the as-yet-unsigned band Foxface are but two of the album's standouts and undeniably impressive on first acquaintance. Aidan Moffat's rough-hewn, episodic indie treatment of Ian Rankin's The Sixth Stone seems ideally matched to its author's peculiar literary qualities, whereas Alasdair Gray's Sentimental Song proves suitably cryptic in the hands of Lord Cut-Glass. The stylistic disparity of the contributions - and of the writing, indeed - isn't in fact a problem, much against my expectations. And the label's website contains a wondrous mini-site devoted entirely to the project; copious information on each of the performers, together with full lyrics... great, but nothing on the site will print out!).
David Kidman March 2007
Balling The Jack: the Birth of the Nu-Blues (Ocho)
I think it was J.J. Cale who once proclaimed that he'd "heard the news, it's the same old blues". And despite this collection's claim to be The Birth Of The Nu-Blues (note that the typography places the N back to front in Nu - and hey, why not Blooz or some other text derived massacre?), surely Cale is, in part, right on the money. The Blues (blooze, / bluz / bloos) is a feeling, an emotional response. The roots of any music given the name must be based in the gut, the heart and, of course, the soul. Consequently all talk of deconstructing The Devil's Music leaves me somewhat cynical. Now I know that the blues is also an arm of showbiz; it's clear that even a giant of the genre like Muddy Waters went out to entertain. It's for sure that even his Mojo couldn't perform to order, if you see what I mean. Further it seems clear that Robert Johnson's sticky end was the result of him cashing in his performer's charisma a little too often rather than old Nick collecting his contractual obligations.
What I'm saying is that however you slice the rhetoric, if you can't walk it like you talk it, it ain't the blues.
Take Moby, whose Find My Baby is included here, can a piece of music that samples and reshuffles genuine blues be the blues? Is the process of programming and reordering computer samples head or heart? I woke up this morning, believe I'll boot my Mac? Mind you, there are those who believe that installing Windows is akin to signing a pact with the Devil . . . And indeed, Alabama 3's Woke Up This Morning (stupidly omitted from this disc) which also samples blues legends, I'd gladly accept whilst mauling Moby. The difference is clear; Alabama 3 feel the music whilst, for me, Moby remains a hapless observer. Just as an aside, could the relative commercial success of these two acts actually prove my point in these musically anodyne times?
What of the rest of the album? Well I'll go along with Captain Beefheart as nu (oh, dear) blues, buy why showcase him with the 37 year old Electricity rather than say the still three decade old yet intrinsically nu-er Dachau Blues, a clear forerunner of the genre being floated here. Tom Waits too will get the vote though tying him to any specific mast is folly. And . . . well after listening to the full enchilada it's clear that the nu-blues is indeed same as the old blues. You know you can deconstruct, add beats or cover yourself in woad, but in the end if you don't feel it, it ain't the blues.
What's more the argument is as old as, well, the blues. The blues was ruined when it left the slave ships and took the fields right? Well no but when the musicians migrated to Chicago and plugged in, no again. Ok, but when those white boys stole the music . . or Wolf went psychedelic? My advice - ignore the blather. This might be 'old skool blues given a turbo-charge with hip hop thrills, punk power and art rock experimentation' but it's still music aimed and heart, soul and groin like all good rock'n'roll and it's the response of your organs that count.
Personally - and let's go back to the real meaning of the album title here (black slang for, er, having a reallly good time! Ya dig?) - seems to me that nu blues is for the nu breed who prefer their pleasures AA powered rather than driven by flesh and blood.
Steve Morris
"Banjoman" Derroll Adams died in February 2000, aged just 75; it's no exaggeration to state that ever since the 60s he'd exerted a profound influence on many musicians. So much so, in fact, that this tribute album was already being conceived, with the blessing of Derroll himself, as far back as 1998. Hans Theesink has been the prime mover for the project, and the end result now appears on his own label. It's a lovingly presented artefact indeed: a fulsome 77-minute CD, housed in a sturdy case and coming complete with a beautiful, substantial booklet which includes sensible biographical notes interspersed with often poignant reminiscences (Derroll's own as well as those of the participating musicians) and a selection of excellently reproduced photographs as well as full song texts and performer credits. Performers associated with Derroll were very keen to be involved with the project, and so it took shape very quickly; even so, Derroll sadly never got to hear the end product. The material is a mixture of covers of Derroll's own songs, specially-composed tributes and songs from his own repertoire, and this works well and provides both a thematic unity and the necessary variety. Rambling Jack Elliott, one of Derroll's earliest musical collaborators, contributes three tracks - The Cuckoo, Muleskinner Blues and a version of Derroll's own The Rock (one of two on this CD). The timbral depths of Derroll's own distinctive voice are approximated by Hans Theesink's delivery on Freight Train Blues and 24 Hours A Day. Allan Taylor's resonant tones are just perfect for his personal homage Banjo Man and a superb version of Derroll's own song The Sky. Donovan brings to the project a fine version of The Mountain and a new rendition of his own somewhat fey Epistle To Derroll, also supplying vocal harmonies to several other tracks. Other memorable moments are provided by Dolly Parton on My Dixie Darling, Wizz Jones and Ralph McTell duetting on Willie Moore, and Ralph's own touching and finely-drawn memoir A Feather Fell. As will be expected, Happy Traum and Arlo Guthrie also put in appearances, as does Derroll himself on the apposite closing recitation of A Profound And Beautiful Sadness. Just one or two of the tributes are perhaps a little over-reverential, but for the most part the gentle persuasiveness of Derroll's own approach is affectionately conveyed in these tribute performances. It's a really splendid package, in every way worthy of the character of the man it commemorates, and thus a truly fitting tribute.
Derroll's album on www.theessink.com
David Kidman
Various - Beautiful: A Tribute To Gordon Lightfoot (Northern Blues)
And still the tributes keep coming. Best known for If You Could Read My Mind, the Canadian singer-songwriter's been churning out songs for the past 40 years, hitting a golden streak in the 60s when he provided hits for himself and artists such as Peter, Paul and Mary and Marty Robbins. Five Grammy nominations and 17 Juno Awards seem reasonable grounds for this homage by his fellow Canadians, 15 newly recorded numbers by such well known acts as Cowboy Junkies and more internationally obscure names like Connie Kaldor.It has to be said that it doesn't start promisingly. The Way I Feel is Cowboy Junkies by the numbers, Jesse Winchester turns the great Sundown into a lumbering swampy blues, while Ron Sexsmith saunters through the fairly recent Drifters with an offhand casualness that sounds like he was staring out the window while he sang. But it gets better from the moment Bruce Cockburn enters the picture with a wonderful slowed down late night and nicotine smoke resonant guitar interpretation of Ribbon of Darkness, Blue Rodeo, rather perversely choosing a song Lightfoot's rumoured not to care for, give Go Go Round a ringing country rock treatment while Blackie and the Rodeo Kings (which includes Stephen Fearing) pretend they're The Band for Summer Side of Life.
On the face of it not a match made in heaven, even so The Tragically Hip (Canada's mix of REM and U2) give civil rights number Black Day In July a suitably powerful mood that captures the events it's describing, while elsewhere other highlights must surely include Maria Muldaur's weary bruised heartlands folk version of That Same Old Obsession, James Keelaghan investing Canadian Railroad Trilogy with the spirit of Stan Rogers and Harry Manx bending lap slide and steel around the lazy day fishing ode Bend In The Water.
Though it would have been interesting to hear what say Bare Naked Ladies might have made of The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald, refreshingly there's a fair representation of lesser known songs (possibly because that way they're not going to get so readily compared to the originals) rather than such obvious chestnuts as Early Morning Rain or Cotton Jenny. But yes, If You Could Read My Mind is here, courtesy of the aforementioned Ms Kaldor who, since you ask, is a Saskatchewan folkie whose voice carries the taste of the prairie and echoes of Joni and whose version must surely give even Lightfoot shivers.
Mike Davies
Soundtrack - Because of Winn Dixie (Nettwerk)
It's hard to imagine the ten year olds at which this tale of a girl, a dog and a community coming together is aimed are going to be much impressed by a soundtrack that features the likes of the Be Good Tanyas. However, their significant elders might well be advised to give this a listen. Rather than simply lifting material from extant albums, most of the recordings here are exclusives, kicking off with the Tanya's distinctive Opal's Blues. Other purpose build cuts include Emmylou Harris's late night under desert skies Cabaret, the skippingly sunny I've Gotta See You Smile by Leigh Nash of Sixpence None The Richer, Shawn Colvin's pure crystal streams sounding Fly, Someday Somehow from the Bangles-like sibling quintet The Beu Sisters and rising bluegrass star Alice Peacock with Sunflower.
Elsewhere the Finn Brothers's previously issued gorgeous Won't Give In sits alongside Shirley Ellis's classic Clapping Song while, keeping the rock n roll doo wop nostalgia going former Smashing Pumpkin James Iha joins forces with Ivy's Adam Schlesinger for a romp through Bobby Darin's Splish Splash.
Film co-star Dave Matthews (yes, of the band) puts in backing and production vocal duties for the gospel shuffling Glory Glory belted out by Patrinell Wright and Gloria Smith of the Total Experience Gospel Choir. Oscar winner Rachel Portman provides the three haunting, downhome rural Southern folk hued score samples that provide a fine evocative aural image of the film's wistful coming of age nostalgia itself. Take the kids, buy the album.
www.becauseofwinndixiemovie.com
www.nettwerk.com
Mike Davies
This rather unprepossessingly titled 3-disc set might easily have been dismissed as just another trashy tourist-fodder cash-in, but instead it's a real gem, and yes it does contain some classic performances from the Irish tradition. Each of the three discs has been available before, but this low-priced box is a sensible way of acquiring them for your collection. The original releases date from the time of the major folk revival (late 50s/early 60s), and are some of its greatest treasures.
Disc 1, The Lark In The Morning (subtitled Songs And Dances From The Irish Countryside), dates from 1955; its actually the long-lost first recording by Liam Clancy and Tommy Makem. These two legendary figures in Irish music were signed to the Tradition label, in fact, for a time before their heady success on the Ed Sullivan Show catapulted them into a major recording contract with CBS, and this LP, recorded in Ireland by the American folksong collector Diane Hamilton, presents them at their unadulterated and charming best, taking their place naturally among family and friends (these include Paddy Tunney, Joan Clancy, Sarah Makem, Dennis Murphy and the shortly-to-be-famous fiddler Padraig O'Keefe). It contains superbly definitive renditions of songs, many of which are now staples of the repertoire (Paddy's Rockin' The Cradle, Sarah's In The Month Of January and Tommy's Cobbler, to name but three), some as solos and some as duet performances, punctuated with fresh, unadorned playthroughs of sundry jigs, hornpipes and reels. Of course, as Liam's own chattily illuminating insert notes point out, these recordings come from a more innocent time, but they are immensely captivating and attractive in their own simple way, with plenty of presence and no need for any studio enhancement or artifice.
Disc 2 dates from 1961, and takes the Clancy/Makem story on to the third original "Clancy Brothers And Tommy Makem" album release, where Liam, Patrick and Tommy embarked on an exploration of what the sleeve note endearingly terms "all the moods and lines of the Irish song". Although recorded a long way from their native homes, this time in New York, it still claims to retain the "old country ring of honesty" in its own playful, foot-tappingly vigorous fashion. Myself, I find their often exaggeratedly hearty style (very much the precursor of pub-folk Oirish) has dated rather, and bears repeated listening somewhat less than the other two discs in this box, but there's still a certain historical fascination in these performances.
Disc 3 - The Bonny Bunch Of Roses - dates from 1959, and brings forth Seamus Ennis, his voice, whistle and uillean pipes, on just 14 selections from his vast repertoire that runs the gamut of Irish tunes and song. "Sharing the pipes and poteen", these are authoritative performances indeed, a joy from start to finish, infused with warmth and erudition, and many arguably virtually unrivalled too. But the whole of this box-set is a veritable bargain, an investment that any lover of the real Irish tradition won't for a moment regret, to be sure. I'm already looking forward to volume 2.
David Kidman
Big Chill/Rhythm Sticks At The Festival Hall 16th July 2000
One of the biggest percussion festivals in the world is being held at the Festival Hall, London. World, jazz, rock, contemporary and classical styles, have come together for a nine-day drumfest ending on July 23rd. It's an immense aural and visual extravaganza, guaranteed to dominate and batter into abject apology anyone who's ever laughed at a 'drummer' joke. Promoting it at the Festival Hall, big sound and big acoustics with full screen backdrop of projected images and smoke effects, make for a larger than life occasion.
Of the many diverse acts on Sunday presented by Big Chill, The Master Musicians of Jajouka and Talvin Singh, Robin Jones and his Latin jazz, and Luke Vibert and B.J. Cole with Pete Lockett, I tell you about the latter because of its uniqueness.
I've never seen anyone chain-smoke and drink beer on stage at the RFH. Pony-tailed Luke Vibert did, like some laid-back conductor orchestrating his programmed sounds, smiling at B.J. and enjoying himself enormously. Vibert must be one of the most creative of the young exponents of electronic music. It's not just drum & bass, hip-hop, ambient, or whatever is the latest thing being played in the clubs, he's working with real musicians. There is risk in any performance where you juxtapose and adapt programmed beats and sounds and weave them with the personality of 'human' input (in this case) of pedal steel and awesome live percussion. This is where Vibert obviously gets his creative kicks. Legendary B.J. Cole's pedal steel may have got a little lost in the synth sounds but Lockett's contribution took it to another place entirely. From frenzied sung scat, emulating the tabla, to djembe, to 'talking' style drum played with western sticks, the whole performance was boosted into one powerful thunderstorm of sound. Pity he's not on the album, Luke Vivert, B.J. Cole - Stop The Panic (Cooking Vinyl), but I like it anyway!
If you need a sticks fix email: rsticks@rfh.org.uk
Sue Cavendish
If this ain't an essential Xmas present then I don't know what is! Quite simply one of THE compilations of the year, this lavish and fabulously comprehensive four-disc collection, housed in a chunky hardcover DVD-sized box with a great little 68-page book, gathers together in a heady parade over five hours of music from the magnificent Stiff Records label. The set's 98 digitally-remastered tracks provide an arguably definitive overview of the groundbreaking imprint, embracing the hits, the should-'ve-beens, the discoveries, the trends and the more peculiar experiments, many of which haven't appeared on CD before, while it also finds time to throw up (and I use that phrase advisedly!) some enticing rarities along the way. All the various facets of the Stiff corporate personality are represented, from the label's first-rate championship of (and massive impact in turn on) emergent punk to its support of the mod scene and its work with late-70s pub-rock and 80s electro-pop. It had more than its share of unsung heroes too, and it loved to shock the music establishment by promoting and nurturing unique and oddball talents(true British eccentrics like Max Wall, who released his first-ever single, England's Glory, on Stiff at the age of 69!),
Disc 1 kicks off in 1976 with the first half-dozen of Stiff's A-sides (catalog numbers BUY. 1 through 6, classic Nick Lowe through The Damned via Roogalator and stuff I'd not got round to hearing at the time like the quasi-Beefheartian boogie of Tyla Gang and the raunchy 12-bar of Lew Lewis), then continues more or less numero-chronologically by way of Elvis Costello, Devo, The Adverts, The Yachts and Jane Aire & The Belvederes. And Mick Farren reinventing the Deviants with his own brand of rocked-up punk (Let's Loot The Supermarket Again). Not daring to omit those brilliant mavericks that Stiff discovered, Wreckless Eric and Ian Dury, who deservedly get a couple of tracks apiece. The Damned get four, charting their "progress" from New Rose to One Way Love. The disc closes with one of the few Stiff releases that never did much for me, Romeo & The Lonely Girl by Ernie Graham. In the midst of the disc, there's chalk to cheese with the aforementioned Mr Wall and Motörhead, whose lone Stiff release White Line Fever (born out of the dirt at the crossroads where punk met heavy-metal) never even made it to the shops… and that's just one of the many enticing rarities that Stiff have proudly placed on display for this celebratory box.
Disc 2 moves the story on from 1978, opening with The Members' Gumbyesque "classic-of-Oi" debut Solitary Confinement that sidestepped their later preoccupation with the reggae vogue. The label's coloured-vinyl collectables are represented by the rarely-outed Humphrey Ocean's fun (if mildly Duryesque) Whoops-A-Daisy. Stiff also promoted talented one-offs who at the time were hoping for a jump-start to their careers, like the mod-punk-pop Realists, the altogether grittier Scottish punks The Subs (who as it happened didn't go on to better things) and Pointed Sticks (who regrouped last year as The Tranzmitors). Disc 2 also presents examples of Stiff's flying in the face of the attitude of the day by promoting female performers, from Rachel Sweet (I Go To Pieces and the tremendous girly-pop B.A.B.Y.) to the rather weird Lene Lovich (who gets three tracks on Disc 2), Kirsty MacColl (her aborted second single You Caught Me Out appears here) and the brilliant Go-Go's. Also during the course of Disc 2 we witness the post-recording-debut infancy of Madness (arguably the label's most successful act) and their "heavy heavy monster sound" (One Step Beyond) from an era when the Two-Tone fixation was in full swing. Stiff also fostered the development of the ingeniously quirky songwriter Jona Lewie (veteran of the Brett Marvin/Terry Dactyl combos who came out of the 70s pub-rock circuit), Graham Parker's backing band The Rumour (here represented by the atypical, if at the time chillingly contemporary, synthy epic Frozen Years) and sharp Staten Island-based power-pop outfit Dirty Looks. Disc 2 also brings us the awesomely over-the-top chainsaw-wielding mayhem of the Plasmatics' Butcher Baby and the Ubu-inflected Motor Boys Motor, concluding with proof positive that Stiff had their finger on the pulse of the tastes and trends of the scene in all its diversity: tracks by the legendary Desmond Dekker and the exuberant tex-mex party man Joe "King" Carrasco.
Disc 3 kicks off with the second of the set's three Any Trouble tracks, followed by the under-appreciated but stimulating yet delicate punky-reggae of the Equators (Baby Come Back) and a contemporary but rockabilly-inspired obscurity in the shape of Nigel Dixon's only release. Then comes a procession of Stiff chart hits, courtesy of Jona Lewie, Dave Stewart (with Colin Blunstone), two apiece by Tenpole Tudor and the era-defining Belle Stars, with further contrast in the form of the excellent mod-punk of Department S, the post-punk outfit Theatre Of Hate in their Westworld and the strange "Cure-meets-Wurzels" of The Dancing Did's Lost Platoon. Not to miss out the tremendous, angst-ridden (and chart-topping) cover of It's My Party by Dave Stewart and Barbara Gaskin (surely one of the most penetratingly accurate reworkings in pop history), which earns pride of place on Disc 3. Eddie Tudor's country-folky Hayrick Song is surprisingly good fun too; this, like the Passion Puppets' rather fine (if in places quite Bunnymen-like) track (Like Dust) was new to me. Also on this disc, Stiff's 80s excursions into vaguely electro-pop New Romantic territory are represented by the misleadingly-named Electric Guitars, the more screwball Devo successors Yello and the intriguing world-music-wise singing of Brigit Novik (with electro-pop outfit M). Disc 3 also chronicles the label taking a chance on some decidedly unlikely acts: Alvin Stardust and Tracey Ullman... and perhaps the least said the better (musically) about ex-Pretender Billy Bremner's annoyingly repetitive Loud Music In Cars, although the weird synth-and-samples workout Who Likes Jazz? by one-single-wonder duo Via Vagabond has undeniable charm all its own.
Finally to Disc 4, which moves into the mid-80s (and the label's eventual collapse into bankruptcy in 1987) with some typically "crazy to try but crazy not to" ideas like the tasty gospel of The Inspirational Choir Of The Pentecostal First-Born Church Of The Living God (yes, really!), framed by some more prime Kirsty MacColl sides, no less than four Pogues tracks and two from edgy ska revival outfit The Untouchables. There's also a slice of strident "wild colonial" Attitude from Northern Ireland's Ruefrex, classy if mildly anonymous pub-rock from Dr Feelgood, the heavily Jam-influenced pop of Makin' Time, the sparky female pop of the Mint Juleps (who mostly sang acappella, though not on this appearance), the seminal fringe-indie of Furniture, the soulful neo-garage of The Prisoners, some swinging acid-jazz from Tommy Chase and the recorded debut of Belfast-born singer-songwriter Andy White. The set's closing sequence brings the label uptodate with its recent renaissance and tracks from recent albums by Eskimo Disco, the Tranzmitors, the Producers and the re-formed Any Trouble. Oh, and finally there's a nod to Stiff's contribution to comedy too, but in the form of an extract from the Wit & Wisdom Of Ronald Reagan album (which doesn't even last 4 minutes and 33 seconds, if you get the gist...).
One other factor in the overall high desirability of this box is its presentation. Its hardcover case encases not only the discs themselves but also an insert containing a full colour book featuring a label history, new interviews, a potted biography of every artist on the discs and as many photos and bits of illustrated artwork for sleeves, flyers and badges as the makers could squeeze in! Unfortunately, the disc-by-disc tracklist is almost unreadable, due to poor resolution of the faint typeface used; that aside, the book is a recommendable collectable in its own right, and a perfect companion to the discs themselves.
All in all, the box-set may concentrate on the singles Stiff released, with a healthy quotient of rarities and stuff hitherto unavailable on CD, but it does illustrate (and very well too) Stiff's maverick character, its willingness to take a chance on ostensibly unpromising acts or musical adventures and its determination to fly in the face of acceptability. Oh yes, and the influential nature of many of the acts who were nurtured or launched at Stiff and jumped ship for greater things as destiny called. OK, so in the end many of its acts were barely even footnotes in the history of music, and you're unlikely to love every single track on this set, but that was the wonderful nature of Stiff the label - and looks set to continue to be following its relaunch, as it's enjoying a really good press with its latest batch of releases.
David Kidman November 2007
Various Artists – Bird In The Bush: Erotic Folk Song (Topic)
David Kidman
It's taken three albums but at last Bob Harris has come clean and finally admitted that he is in love with Americana. He has to mix up his show with a myriad of styles and genres but his 'mission' has always been to introduce a hungry public to the very best of Americana and country rock. Bob Harris Presents Americana isn't just a title, it's a cause for celebration.
Because this is Bob Harris it has a built-in guarantee, rather like the kite mark there's an inherent quality assurance.
Mind you., he's canny enough to hedge his bets. Alison Krauss could be suffering from laryngitis and be singing in Swahili and she'd still be a genius. So to finish off the album with her singing Stay is sure to leave a warm and abiding memory.
Even those with just a passing knowledge of the genre, will surely recognize the quality of Krauss, Todd Snider, Chris Knight, Patty Griffin, Sarah Harmer, Slaid Cleaves and John Prine. Even 'Whispering Bob' has no need to shout their credentials from the rooftops. But. as on air, it's the artists you may not have heard of that are the album's true treasures. Hayes Carll released a contender for album of last year with Little Rock and if you missed it, firstly, ask yourself why? Then find out what you missed with Wish I Hadn't Stayed So Long.
Alongside Hayes Carll is Alana Levandoski and Grayson Capps, who sings the title track from his latest album, all wonderful and all, until now, perhaps unheralded. If you also factor in Ray Wylie Hubbard and James McMurtry, both of whom have caused quite a stir in recent months, then Bob Harris Presents stands up as an album in its own right.
However, that's not its primary purpose, it's a showcase and whether you know Americana or not, Harris has done what he's done better than anyone else for years and brought some 'real' music to his audience.
Michael Mee February 2007
This could almost be a NetRhythms sampler! Bob Harris writes, "There are two types of music. Mainstream and non-mainstream. We get mainstream to saturation point. Everything else has to sink or swim. This album is a small attempt to redress the balance and introduce you to some of the amazing artists operating just under the surface." Sounds like our Mission Statement doesn't it?
Many of our favourite artists (already reviewed on our pages) are represented here and, as is the way of so much good music, all the tracks come from albums released on independent labels. From the UK there are Kimberley Rew, Thea Gilmore, Peter Bruntnell and from across the Atlantic, Eliza Gilkyson, Neal Casal, Ryan Adams, Oh Susanna, Stewboss, Slaid Cleaves, Richard Shindell, Calexico, Laura Cantrell, Jerry Joseph, Carol Noonan, and The Idle Jets. If you don't know them, this is a great place to start. Beautiful voices, haunting songs and fine musicianship are generously featured on this gem of an album.
This collection can also be bought as a taster for some wonderful albums you'll hear played on 'taste guru' Bob Harris radio shows (and Bob Paterson's show on SpydaRadio for that matter). Tune in and enjoy ...
http://www.bobharris.org
http://www.spydaradio.co.uk
Sue Cavendish
In June this year, 70,000 music fans gathered in Manchester, Tennessee for a three-day festival ostensibly to rival Woodstock. Bonnaroo brought together a diverse lineup of bands and DJs ranging from long-term festival rock stalwarts like Widespread Panic to up-and-coming stars like Jack Johnson and Norah Jones to hip-hop notables Jurassic 5 to the Blind Boys Of Alabama to bluegrass legends Bela Fleck & Edgar Meyer and the Del McCoury Band. This lineup admirably reflected and recognised the extensive musical influences prevalent in today's scene. Key performances totalling just over two hours were whittled out of 75 hours of audio taped at the festival, to present on this double CD the very best and most representative of the festival.
Highlights include a very-Deadlike Phil Lesh & Friends with special guest Bob Weir (Tennessee Jed), Galactic's Tiger Roll, Robert Randolph's Allman-Brothers-like Peekaboo, Ben Harper's emotionally charged acoustic medley, the spirited John Butler Trio, and Trey Anastasio's nicely stretched-out Last Tube, OK, one or two other performances seem mere crowd-pleasers, efficient enough runthroughs but you won't necessarily want to listen to them often outside the festival context (this is of course inevitable with any such recording). Even so, there are no outright embarrassments here, and the compilers have done their job well. There's a supercharged party atmosphere coming through on all the cuts, and by and large the crowd keeps quiet when they need to. All great stuff yes, even if musically it doesn't seem quite to rival Woodstock - comparisons may seem invidious, but then again, most trails have been blazed already, things have moved on in the world, and hindsight sure is a funny thing…
David Kidman
Latest Releases in the Living Tradition Magazine's Tradition Bearers Series:
These three albums together comprise the very latest releases in the Tradition Bearers series, instigated over 18 months ago by the makers of The Living Tradition magazine. These follow on sensibly from the previous small batch of two releases (also reviewed for NetRhythms) which presented admirably honest recordings of distinctive and contrasting traditional singers (those latest being of Ellen Mitchell and Sara Grey). Two of the current batch of three come under the umbrella title of Borders Traditions. Fiddles gathers together 1956-vintage recordings from the School Of Scottish Studies archive by Andrew Harvey and James Wilkie, alongside some 1973 recordings by the hitherto under-represented Bob Hobkirk and a clutch of modern recordings by Ian Anderson, Jimmy Nagle and Wattie Robson. As the insert notes acknowledge, the Borders is not the place of the towering giants of the instrument, and little is known of a distinct tradition. In Borders lore there's the character of Jedburgh fiddler Rattlin' Roarin' Willie, but the Borders fiddle has never taken centre stage as it were. The parallel development of "heavy" and "light" styles, for dance accompaniment and intimate house party respectively, typify the strands of Border fiddling, and Bob Hobkirk is considered the greatest exponent of the "light" idiom today. Otherwise, there may well be some identifiable technical aspects which can be considered as hallmarks of a specific Borders fiddling style, and these are described in the booklet notes; these include the thick-textured double-stopping feature of the "heavier" style of Jimmy Nagle for example. This is an informative selection, well mastered to provide a consistent listening experience; around half of the selections are unaccompanied, the remainder backed by guitar, occasionally banjo.
Sangsters brings together Borders singers from a wide time-span, from the unmistakable and unsurpassable Willie Scott (the Border shepherd, regarded by many as an archetypal Borders Sangster) through to Eric Bogle, between them performing material both traditional and contemporary in origin. The central thesis of this release is that the Borders region has every bit as much "an idiosyncratic voice and repertoire" as the more widely celebrated North-East of Scotland, and the whole collection proves a persuasive advocate for this theory. Seven of the disc's 19 tracks were taken from the School Of Scottish Studies sound archive; these include Willie Scott's four selections, which were recorded twenty years apart (1953 and 1973/4), and show him on fine form (and naturally, these include The Kielder Hunt!). Less well known are two other shepherds - James Wilson, who recounts the choice comic saga of the Brundenlaws, and (the unrelated) Tommy Wilson, who contributes a fine brace of fun songs. The remainder of this release comprises modern recordings, mostly accompanied, in the spirited, lively and typically Borders fashion. Among these I specially enjoyed Henry Douglas' light-hearted Donald Caird and John Nichol's four contributions which take delight in the clear enunciation of the dialect. The sense of the Borders as "a community celebrating itself" is just as strongly felt in its modern songwriters, here represented by Eric Bogle's No Use For Him, performed here by Gordon Kelly, fairly briskly but not without feeling (the thesis is expanded by Eric himself in a short interview extract that follows the song). And the true "sociality" of the Borderers is well in evidence in the entertaining conviviality of latter-day performers like Ian Anderson and Gordon Kelly; their contributions, being live and unadorned by any studio enhancement, certainly capture the friendly spontaneity that Borders song generates when performed in its natural setting, although on one or two occasions the brisk pace feels a little too "jolly" for the material. The only female singers represented are Elsa Lemaitre and Pat Douglas, here singing together on The Wail Of Flodden. This is a most attractive release; but shame about the lack of texts in the otherwise most informative booklet.
Finally, Chris Foster's release is the third in the "stand-alone" category of Tradition Bearers releases which was inaugurated a couple of years back with John Watt's Heroes; it's actually a straight reissue of Chris's 1999 album which was hitherto only available briefly on his own Green Man label and seemed destined to join the ranks of the neglected, almost cult-status gems with which the folk scene has been liberally littered over the years. (In fact, Chris's two late-70s albums on Topic - Layers and All Things In Common - have just been reissued on CD, albeit in Japan only.) Chris's work clearly fits squarely and unambiguously into the "tradition bearer" ambit; equally clearly, both his style and approach belong very much to the Nic Jones/Martin Carthy school, especially in the way his accomplished guitar styling is used to creatively underpin the songs (on Traces, this is particularly apparent in songs like The Fowler). Chris nevertheless has a captivating individual performing style; his playing is genuinely inventive, whereas his singing is passionate if in a manner that's arguably slightly understated, and he brings his own distinguished stamp to a range of not-often-heard songs from the tradition, often in unusual versions, as well as songs from the pens of modern-day originals, here Leon Rosselson (the perennial Flying High, Flying Free providing a foil for the mighty tale of Barney's Epic Homer). As the insert notes rightly point out, Chris's music speaks for itself and his position as an artist in the community (after all, to maintain an ongoing social context for his work is an important qualification for a tradition bearer), while cementing his position in the tradition alongside the musicians from whom he's taken his inspiration.
Tradition Bearers releases continue to be available either on subscription or individually, from PO Box 26064, Kilmarnock KA2 0YG.
David Kidman
Various - Both Sides Now: The Spirit of Americana (Gravity)
Well here's a useful catch all catch up compilation in time for slipping into your Americana Christmas stocking. Sub-sub-titled The Best of Americana 2002! It rather stretches a point to include the Flaming Lips' pop-glorious Do You Realise? and Warren Zevon's You're A Whole Different Person, but otherwise this embraces all shades of the genre, from sparse mountain music to gutsy guitar rocking, from the Be Good Tanyas, Arlenes and Silver Jews to Jason Ringenberg, Jay Farrar and Grant Lee Phillips.
Rather than the review descending into an extended list, suffice to point you in the direction of Raul Malo & Shelby Lynn's revamp of It Takes Two To Tango, Rodney Crowell's Johnny Cash tribute album version of Ballad of a Teenage Queen, the inclusion of little known but worth discovering names Dan Bern, Wiskey Biscuit, Departure Lounge, and Cicero Buck, After All This Time from Darden's Smith's criminally underpublicised comeback album, and the fragile beauty of Hope Sandoval's Suzanne.
But whether your taste leans more to Dylan (High Water) or Lambchop (I Can Hardly Spell My Name) with its balance of reliable old timers and emergent heirs to the throne (Mary Gauthier step right up), even with the notable omissions of Ryan Adams, The Guthries and Eileen Rose, this is ridiculously good value for money, even though it'll probably cost you a fortune tracking down the albums by the artists you'll just be discovering within. And I managed to get through the whole review without once drooling over the fact it also contains Thea Gilmore's not-entirely-Americana-but-who-cares cover of I Dreamed I Saw St Augustine from her forthcoming new album. Oh darn.
Mike Davies
Brand New Boots & Panties (east central one)
A re-recording of the original album by Ian Dury & The Blockheads
This is a homage album with a difference. New Boots & Panties was released in 1977. The 2001 Brand New Boots & Panties features Sinead O'Connor, Robbie Williams, Paul McCartney, Billy Bragg, Wreckless Eric, Cerys Matthews, Grant Nicholas, Shane MacGowan and Keith Allen (all with The Blockheads) and Madness. It's a time capsule for those of us who are old enough to remember falling in love with punk and pub rock. It's also a fund-raising tribute which will raise money for the Cancer BACUP charity.
Struck down with polio aged seven, Ian Dury was physically handicapped all his life but it didn't diminish his spirit or talents. For example, I hadn't known that he'd attended the Royal College of Art and taught painting at the Canterbury Art College. Dury died of cancer a year ago but Clever Trevor, Billericay Dickie, Sweet Gene Vincent are here to remind us that he was wicked and witty and dead good fun. Old Stiff label-mates, Madness, do him justice with My Old Man, as those watching 'Later ... with Jools Holland' a couple of weeks back would have seen.
The press release for BNB&P is too good not to be quoted. "Ian Dury was the dog's bollocks and 'New Boots And Panties' was the cat's pyjamas". 'Live At Lourdes' that album was originally going to be called, a Lazarus blast by King Crip [who'd been the singer with Kilburn And The High Roads and then Ian Dury And The Kilburns]. That gives the flavour of iconoclast Dury - if iconoclast was not too pompous a word for him!
http://www.iandury.co.uk
http://www.eastcentralone.com
This is a double-album collecting together in one useful and handy package 40 Californian classics from the rarely-compiled "Laurel Canyon" era. It contains choice examples of the various influences that came to fruition during this momentous period (1967 through 1977), and as you'd expect it includes the work of several key singer-songwriters of the time, many of whom went on to greater things. The set's not arranged chronologically, and there seems to be no semblance of purpose in the almost random sequential arrangement of tracks, but the music itself is good and representative enough, even if there are some curious choices. For a start, the Mamas & The Papas track isn't the one that would give the set its title, but instead we get Creeque Alley (rather closer to reality than dreaming). And curiously too, the lead track from the Byrds (a seminal crew on the west-coast scene) is So You Want To Be A Rock'n'Roll Star. But present and correct we do find here the various strands of musical activity that demonstrate the theses of the compilers – the transition from folk to pop (Joni Mitchell, Judy Collins, Carly Simon) and country to pop and rock (Crazy Horse, Gram Parsons, Burritos, Eagles), the evolution of the working troubadour into a sophisticated musical force (James Taylor, Jackson Browne, Randy Newman, David Ackles), the carrying-forward of the spirit of the working-man's ballads and social concerns (Arlo Guthrie) and the development of folk through psychedelics into jazz (eg Tim Buckley). Then, the development of the various different label brandings of Warner, Reprise, Asylum, A&M and Elektra, provided contrasting arenas for the eclectic experimenters (Love, Buffalo Springfield) and the soft-rockers (Seals & Crofts, Bread) with such acts as America and the Doobie Brothers falling somewhere in between. Not to mention Bonnie Raitt, Fleetwood Mac and cult successes like the Grateful Dead, Little Feat and Warren Zevon. And less expectedly, Canned Heat's On The Road Again makes an appearance - though a welcome and entirely appropriate one - albeit in its less glorious (truncated single) form. I was also pleased to see Jo Jo Gunne's Run Run Run... Yes, one could argue till the cows come home about which one track to include from such acts, but although there's a modicum of typically mildly self-indulgent middle-of-the-roadery here you can't deny the quality of the majority of the tracks on this set. Oh, and many of these artists are rarely if ever compiled on anthologies - though most of you will already have all the individual selections on your shelves and there's no unreleased material to tempt you.
David Kidman June 2007
David Kidman
Celtic Crossroads - Various Artists (Putumayo World Music)
But what Celtic Crossroads proves is, that if you give great music a serious listening then it remains great music, whatever label you attach. Rather than just give folk music a spruce up with a lick of paint, the artists on Celtic Crossroads have cut the music back to its roots and injected a new spirit, a spirit which makes it all the more relevant to today's audience.
Take Wild Mountain Thyme as an example. It's the non-aficionados archetypal folk song, it has become slightly twee and saccharine. However while Keltik Elektrik have retained the romance they have toughened it up adding a sharp edge which transforms and energises the song, that energy is indicative of the whole album.
And while all the transformations may not be as stark and obvious as that wrought on Wild Mountain Thyme, all the contributors have opened new doors and blown away the stale and tired cobwebs.
Putumayo World Music has given the artists a sense of freedom to give their talent its head but, perhaps more importantly, they have illustrated the international falvour of Celtic folk. Scotland, Ireland and Wales are obvious places to look and well represented here, but the exquisite Alan Stivall from Brittany and Canada's Ashley MacIsaac offer the more exotic contributions to an already glorious collection.
Capercaillie and Sinead O'Connor may well be the established names but the honours belong to all.
Michael Mee
David Kidman August 2007
The sub-title to this album is 'Traditional and Contemporary Music Inspired By The Spirit of The Family Farm' and the ten tracks paint a picture of life down on the farm during good and bad times. The opener, The Ridge by Paul Hovda is a lovely piano piece, the playing much akin to the style of Bruce Hornsby. Far Side Of The Hill is a little too traditional for me and although Glenn Yarbrough sings the song well his voice doesn't do anything for me. John Cowan's I Am Home raises the spirit again with vocal harmony on the chorus and mandolin throughout. This tells the story of the home and it's place in the life of a family.
This Old Plow continues with the mandolin and there's bluegrass and folk in abundance. Tim O'Brien on vocals and Sam Bush on fiddle along with an excellent guitar break from David Grier set up this song perfectly. The second Paul Hovda piece, Country Maiden, is achingly beautiful and would be ideal for a film soundtrack. You should be able to visualise the prairies when listening to this. Thunder Rollin' 'Cross Arkansas is a bluesy gospel style song with cool clarinet. The vocalists here are Victor Mecyssne and Jonell Mosser and their voices merge perfectly. The traditional In The Bleak Midwinter starts with a few lines of speech before going on to dulcimer and Tennessee music box played by David Schnaufer and Stephen Seifert respectively. The result is a soothing listen to wash all your worries away.
The next track is three pieces from The Harvest Suite played by Jay Ungar and Molly Mason with the Nashville Chamber Orchestra and all three pieces are pure Americana. You can imagine the crops growing in Prairie Spring; the hazy days of Summer and everyone having a great time at the Barn Dance after the crops have been harvested. Nanci Griffith puts in a guest appearance as backing vocalist on Trouble In The Fields. Maura O'Connell is the main vocalist and this will have your heartstrings stretching. The album finishes with Be Still And Know, Paul Hovda's third track and like the previous two, is, quite simply, a beautiful piece of music. There are a number of great tracks on this album but it is worth buying for the three Hovda tracks alone.
David Blue
Various Artists - Chester Folk Festival (CFF)
This modest and likeable CD is produced by Chester Folk Survivors, who organise one of the country's most highly-regarded smaller-scale festivals (Chester, which is held in the nearby village of Kelsall each Spring Bank Holiday); like many similar ventures throughout the UK, the CD's been produced partly as a festival fundraiser and partly to showcase the wealth of talent available among its organisers and friends and the bands in which they play. The thesis, of course, being that many of the performers included are deserving of wider acclaim… Here, the musical compass is expectedly broad, as you'd wish for in any festival worth supporting, from gorgeous harmony singing (the Waite Collective), solid traditional artistry (Roy Clinging) and singer-songwriter fare (Graham Bellinger, Charlotte Peters Rock) to lively tunesmithery (locals the Tyme Bandits and Shetlanders Solan), jugband bluesiness (Root Chords) and typically upfront riotousness (the Family Mahone). Also putting in appearances are Trefor & Vicki Williams, Full House, John Finnan and the Restless Bentleys. Around half of the tracks are taken from existing album releases, and recording quality is well up to industry standard. This whistle-stop tour through the region's plethora of talent proves an enticing enough appetiser, although some of the selections (albeit perfectly competently executed) lack the degree of distinction that might some day lift their performers above the basic "acceptable on a festival bill" category. Also, some of those performers will evidently come across more vibrantly in the live setting, as you might expect (that I can testify). But as a tasty festival primer/sampler, you can't fault this product - and it's all in a very good cause!
www.chesterfolk.freeserve.co.uk
David Kidman
This invaluable issue, which comprises volume 22 of Greentrax's specialist Scottish Tradition series, presents a collection of source recordings from the School of Scottish Studies Archives at the University of Edinburgh, an important repository for Scottish children's lore. The material was recorded over a period of three decades from 1952 to 1981; yet for all the fact that every selection is sung (or recited) in Scots, it's easily understood and accessibly presented, and you'll discover that much of it, like the traditions from which it springs, has been - and continues to be - transported beyond the boundaries of Scotland itself (we all know Knees Up Mother Brown, and the dandling song Dance Tae Tha Daddy, for instance). Evidence of this is provided by the fact that several recordings here were made by Scots emigrants now living in Australia, who are able to recall with amazing clarity the rhymes of their childhood. The central role of music and song in nursery education is ne'er to be underestimated, and the recordings on this disc will serve to reinforce those song and rhyme traditions that, happily, have never been completely lost in Scotland. The child's development is charted by the well-planned sequence of the disc, with the life being followed from cradle through infancy, schoolday activities (skipping, ball-bouncing, chasing and catching, various counting rhymes and songs, and a circle game with actions), and on to courtship: fun as well as more serious purposes. As well as playground performances by Scottish schoolchildren (from Campbeltown, Dundee, Glenrothes and Aberdeenshire), there are also plenty of recordings from further afield. The adults recorded include Jeannie Robertson, Ray Fisher and Jean Redpath's mother, while there are also some important recordings made by Hamish Henderson and Emily Lyle among the delights on display here. The presentation is excellent, with a nice fat booklet containing full notes, complete texts, a really helpful glossary and, setting it all in perspective, an introductory essay by the project's editor Ewan McVicar. This disc exemplifies the folk process at work even at the earliest stages in a person's life development, and it's a release giving endless fascination. It's also one of considerable historical interest, and highly commendable in every respect.
David Kidman April 2008
The late John Peel championed countless artistes over his long tenure on BBC Radio 1, and many of these feature in his All-Time Festive Fifty "chart" of Year 2000, compiled unbearably scrupulously from 25 years of Festive Fifties which were each in turn compiled from listeners' votes for the three greatest tracks of the given year. This single-disc CD, which represents the first official compilation from the 2000 compilation (if you get my drift!), necessarily omits some artistes (principally those who enjoyed multiple-choice status in the original Fifty, but also some cuts which have allegedly been "compiled to death"!), but is actually a more than reasonable collection and a bloody good listen. Inevitably it teenage-kicks-off with the Undertones, then the Clash (White Man In Hammersmith Palais). After which, in a scintillating parade, moving on in no particular order through the shadowy hinterland of cult-songwriterdom with Nick Drake, Robert Wyatt and Tim Buckley, classic album tracks from Dylan and the Velvet Underground, indie from the Fall and the Smiths, C86 with The Wedding Present and up to date with Britpop from Pulp and Stereolab. On the way, there's choice nuggets from Joy Division and successors New Order, examples from PJ Harvey and the Sundays and "obvious choice" 45s from the Jam, the Only Ones and the Damned. 19 tracks in all, and you can't argue with any of the choices, except to substitute some of your own selection/s from the true Fifty - which every true fan would be doing, naturally enough!
David Kidman October 2006
Various Artists - The Clear Stream: Guitar Music From Scotland And Beyond (Greentrax)
This project began life over ten years ago, back in 1994, with the aim to record tracks by some of Scotland's finest exponents of the guitar - if only to show that Scottish music was more than just piping (only joking...!). As always with such ambitious projects, however, artists' availability was an ongoing bugbear, and the work was only finally completed in 2004. But it's been worth the long wait, for there are some lovely performances enshrined here. Not the least important and valuable of these are four tracks performed by the late Tony Cuffe, a particularly innovative player, to whom the whole album would seem a fitting memorial; two of these tracks are used to bookend the disc most stylishly. The disc's title is most apt too, for the sound of the guitar ripples like a clear stream throughout the 17 tracks, with all the freshly-minted clarity of texture you'd associate with a Highland watercourse. Playing styles vary quite a bit, as a mere glance at the contributors will testify - there's Dick Gaughan performing two of his own compositions from the suite Timewaves (outed at last year's Celtic Connections festival), which prove disc highlights in anyone's book for a start! Then Rob MacKillop treats us to a set of 17th century Scottish lute pieces, and Jack Evans brings a touch of bluesy jazz to his two selections (I specially liked the Gille Callum Set), while Tony McManus celebrates his interest in the music of Brittany in consort with premier Breton guitarist Soïg Sibèril and ever-inventive bassist Alain Genty on n