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At eight strong then, with added instru- For example, in order to release the Foster’s individual musicians to demonstrate their
mental colour, strong messages and bags of inner blues on Hard Times Come Again No musical prowess. Aegean Suite is a mix of
spirit – both liquid and intentional – here is More, Turner thumbs the cello to create a klezmer and Balkan influences, Tarantella
almost an hour of sheer roustabout and jubi- chugging rhythm against a simple tam- Montemaranese takes its rhythm from the
lation. It ain’t subtle, it ain’t always pretty, bourine pulse. Similarly, on the album’s cello famous Italian dance, Ivailovsko Horo draws
but somehow it works! Warble on Warblefly. solo opener, the first of five very different on the Balkan dance form of the title, the
www.warblefly.co.uk
interpretations of My Old Kentucky Home, title track is slow and atmospheric and Ebony
Good Night, he reinterprets a song that can Counterpoint certainly lives up to its title.
Simon Jones
come across as sentimental bordering on
If you like reed instruments and the clar-
shmalzy as something darker. The next ver-
inet in particular, you will derive endless plea-
sion for voice, piano and cello has more of a
KIMBER’S MEN
sure from hearing them used in so many differ-
parlour feeling but some of the rippling
ent combinations and with such stylistic variety.
In Port A Private Label APL12
piano figures hint at things better left unsaid.
The familiar melody of Campdown Races
www.felmay.it, distributed by Egea UK.
Here we have not one but two CDs which con- emerges out of an improv jam between piano Michael Hingston
tain a folk club session by Kimber’s Men. This and cello but even then things are not quite
is a very brave way to market one’s wares. The as they seem; low in the mix a ghost-like pres-
good is naturally counterpointed by the not- ence whistles the tune straight. The pattern
THE QUEENSBERRY RULES
so-good. Nevertheless, the value for money to this exceptional work therefore is revisit-
here is great and there are some sterling ing the familiar in order to unlock what we
Take Your Own Roads Fellside FECD227
efforts with the harmonies. The crew them- have come to take for granted. A project
Take Your Own Roads is an important staging
selves are a varied group of voices, some very meriting superlatives.
post in the story of The Queensberry Rules,
strong, John Bromley’s bass is as good as you’ll
The Voices That Are Gone is limited to
who roared out of Stoke on Trent on a tide of
get, while others are weaker. There are points
2000 copies from Illusions, 4 Passage d’Enfer,
acoustic rediscovery and along the way
where the soloist sings flat but this is usually
75014 Paris, France;
www.illusionsmusic.fr
learned much about themselves and how
lifted by the powerful chorus harmonies. This
they related to the group and maybe each
usually doesn’t matter but there are points
Ken Hunt
other. There always were dynamics within but
where the weaker track follows a strong track
perhaps they haven’t been as fully formed or
and there is a sense of anti-climax.
obvious until now; on this album not only are
Some of the songs included are great
MATT DARRIAU,
they emphasised, noted, but they’re written
choices for a band of this type whilst others ISMAIL LUMANOVSKI,
large as a billboard. Two main strands
might have benefited from being left out
PATRICK NOVARA
emerge, one a sense of their own backyard
altogether. Barrett’s Privateers is a delight but
and what makes it tick, the other a real streak
I Will Always Be There sadly loses the momen- Liquid Clarinets Felmay fy 8150
of social concern with wider issues at the
tum built up by the preceding track. Ole Man
River is a cIass performance but Mingulay
This is a feast of reed players. The primary
core. Hopefully they’ve avoided the pitfall of
Boat Song is not a good choice of follow-up.
instrument of the three main protagonists of
making a recording that’s tied to a particular
The accompaniments are competent but this
this disk is unsurprisingly the clarinet, but Matt
time, yet does express frustrations and feel-
group are at their best singing unaccompa-
Darriau and Patrick Novara also play various
ings and not just knee-jerk, vox pop. They’ve
nied in harmony. I also have issues with white
forms of bagpipe and Darriau moves to a kaval
achieved this mostly through a simplified
Europeans attempting to put on black Ameri-
(Balkan flute) on the tune Uskudar/ Tsifeteli
approach to recording and production. Their
can accents as in God Moves On The Water. A
Theme. To add to the reed flavour, the accom-
previous Landlocked was no doubt crafted,
quick dive into Hugill will reveal that most of
panist is Greek accordeonist Dimos Vougioukas
this one, written often as studio time was
his shanties were of black origin and, despite
with percussionist, Neapolitan Francesco
looming or at coffee stops on the M6 as they
the aforementioned song not being a shanty,
Manna, the lone non-reed performer.
barrelled north to Fellside’s Cumbrian head-
quarters, is a chance at improvisation and
it would like all of them, work perfectly well
The diversity of the musical styles match-
trust in each other’s intuitions built up over a
in English accents.
es the broad range of nationalities and influ-
decade and a half of cooperation.
All of this however, really only begs the
ences of the musicians. Darriau is from the
question, is it any good? The answer, I have to
USA, he plays jazz and is also a member of
The band themselves felt they had to
admit, is yes. The CDs invite the listener into a
the band The Klezmatics. Macedonian Ismail
consolidate with Take Your Own Roads as
folk club setting where the audience really
Lumanovski has moved to New York and is a
well as reach beyond what they’d already
lets go and joins in with enthusiasm and not a
student at the Juilliard School where he plays
achieved. Have they done it? Well, I reckon
little expertise. The artists don’t waste loads
in the school symphony orchestra and in a
that the writing’s their most pertinent so far
of valuable time with in-jokes and idle banter
Gypsy all-star band. French-born Patrick
and that their strengths are fully realised. The
but engage well with their audience and pro-
Novara is an Italian citizen who is a specialist
people they’ve roped in to help aren’t just
vide some great entertainment. The overall
in baroque music and is also a member of the
names but friends who understand what TQR
feel is a little rough in places but that’s
band Trio Muzike who play a mixture of Occi-
are up to, so slaps on the back to Brian Peters
because this is an honest offering which, in
tan, Italian and Balkan music.
on melodeon and Nancy Kerr who fiddles var-
many ways, sets a standard for live folk music
The album is completely non-vocal and
ious stringed things throughout. No covers,
recordings. After several listenings I find the
has eight relatively long tracks of various
no trad stuff this time round, it’s just their
sense of ‘live’ performance arises from the
styles that give ample opportunity for the
own efforts put down in a straight-forward
manner: Top Dog is Phil Hulse at his sharpest,
imperfections. I certainly don’t miss the clini-
cal cleanness which seems to be the Holy
The Queensberry Rules
with a round attack on those who profit from
the misfortunes of others, yet When The Last
Grail of studio engineers.
One Is Gone is perhaps the most sympathetic
The sleeve notes list a total of 27 songs
piece, a tribute to the fading veterans of
with the interludes and introductions includ-
WWI, managing a balance between the hor-
ed but not listed. This gives 22 tracks on one
ror of conflict and personal bravery. Duncan
CD and 18 on the other. For the audience this
and Gary Wilcox dig up the lore and history:
sounds like they had a great night and I
ghostly aircraft over the Peak District, van-
would certainly have been happy to have
ished railways and the industrial class system
been there.
www.joestead.com
of the Victorian Potteries; resplendent in var-
Paul Davenport
ied rhythms and a close encounter with rock
’n’ roll, no doubt what they do is maturing.
Yet it’s the reference on the air The Mile-
MATT TURNER, PEG &
house that tells you much about The Queens-
BILL CARROTHERS
berrys, a tune in celebration of a local boozer
in which they used to congregate; the sleeve
The Voices That Are Gone Illusions ILL
notes simply tell that now it’s a Chinese
313003
restaurant and in that is the crux of both the
band and the album: make the most of what
The Voices That Are Gone is a startling work, opportunity provides, what is around and
one capable of jolting you out of complacen- close to you, they will change soon enough.
cy. It takes as its book the songs of Stephen
And if that’s an expression of individuali-
Foster (1826-1861), one of America’s defining
ty you can relate to, then Take Your Own
song-poets. Matt Turner plays cello, Peg Car-
Roads is for you.
rothers sings and Bill Carrothers plays piano
and sings. The Voices That Are Gone is like Jay
www.thequeensberryrules.com;
Ungar’s soundtrack for Ken Burns’ PBS televi-
www.fellside.com, distributed by Proper.
sion series The Civil War taken another step. Simon Jones
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