63 f
2 Grady Champion Back In Mississippi Live (GSM Music GSM 7400) Gutsy singing from vocalist and harmonica man Champion on some blues standards mixed with the more soul-styled originals, plus excellent back-up from the bass, drums and keyboards, and the exceptional fretwork of guitarist Eddie Cotton Jr., make this CD (recorded live at The 930 Blues Cafe, Jackson, Miss.) a real winner.
www.gradychampion.com
1 Hedy West & Bill Clifton Getting Folk Out Of The Country (Bear Family BCD 16754 AH) Reissued on CD after over 30 years, Clifton and West were two Americans who were omnipresent on the UK folk scene of the day. The late Andrew Townend on man- dolin and guitar makes the effort worthwhile but otherwise pretty much a period piece.
www.bear-family.de
The albums – good (2), adequate (1) and bad (@) – which didn’t get the full-length treatment, contributed individually by a selection of our various reviewers cowering under the cloak of collective anonymity.
2 Hindi Zahra Handmade (Blue Note 50999 45725005) Easily dismissed as another mildly exotic singer/songwriter with a slight jazz twist – her background is Moroccan/ French but she sings mostly in English – this one’s a slow-burning grower. Hard to put a finger on why its gentle pulse, textures and understated purr of vocals get under your skin, but I’m still playing it after four or five months. You don’t get signed to Blue Note for nothing.
www.myspace.com/zahrahindi
2 Various Irish Reels, Jigs, Hornpipes & Airs (Acoustic Music 319.1442.2) Originally released in 1979, this brought onto one LP Davey Graham, Dave Evans, Dan Ar Bras and Duck Baker and set them loose on Irish tunes. It was a belter then, and is a belter now – great guitarists all, and a massively influential set of tunes. PDFs included for most of the tracks.
www.acoustic-music.de
@ Annwn Aeon (GMV022) One should probably blame Ms McKennitt for this sort of thing. Sabine Hornung (harp, voice, pre- Raphaelite frock) and Tobias Von Schmidt (lute, bouzouki – both necks on one body if the moody pic of the chap in leather doublet and fishing waders is accurate) do that por- tentous new-age, nu-medieval Celtshite thang. Oh, please!
www.annwn-music.de
1 The Rowan Amber Mill Heartwood (Millersounds MILLEDCD005) Self-described as “woodland folkadelica”, they have that authentic twinkle-tinny Dr Strangely Strange/ Forest acoustic guitar sound, aug- mented by all manner of twanked, bowed and plunked things, getting mildly orchestral and into sleeping bag medievalism in places (glockenspiel and recorder alert!). Mildly captivating in a fey sort of way, although one might need a well grilled steak after- wards.
www.millersounds.co.uk
1 Dulce Pontes Momentos (Galileo GMC 038) Portuguese icon Pontes’ hard-to-pigeon- hole music hasn’t made much impact in the English-speaking world. She touches on fado and other folk styles, but the rather severe voice and melodramatic tendencies make her hard to warm to. Aside from a cheesy duet with Catalan tenor José Carreras (one of two pompous English-language power ballads) this double CD is a typically accomplished mix of live and studio recordings. Via Discovery in UK.
2 François Sciortino French Guitar (Acoustic Music 319.1444.2) Ambitious title perhaps, but Sciortino is a multi-skilled gui- tarist who can switch from lazy blues to boulevard chanson styles via folk tunes and jazz-inflected tracks. He makes it all sound easy and all of a piece, and the album is backed up by ferocious technique. A good lis- ten for sunny days.
www.acoustic-music.de
1 Gary Innes & Ewan Robertson Shouts (PD Productions PDP001) Apart from having a hell-on-the-eyes shrunken typeface, this is a decent enough collection from Innes (accordeon) and Robertson (guitar) who knock out a mix of traditional, covers and Scottish tales in gutsy fashion. There’s a stab at Richard Thompson’s delicate Beeswing and a reverend tilt at Auld Lang Syne amongst the goods on show.
www.garyinnes.com www.ewanrobertson.co.uk
2 Two Two (The Soup Label 5 060205 100092) Two complementary young singer-songwriters (Helen Turner, Sharon Winfield) trading catchy swear-you’ve-heard-it-before kind of acoustic folk-pop with cool vocal harmonies, much in the Waking The Witch/ Indigo Girls mould; here on their second outing they enjoy keen support from Ric Sanders & Troy Donockley et al. Maybe they’re sometimes over-reaching themselves, and their voices are a touch for- wardly recorded, otherwise Two’s quite persua- sive company.
www.twomusic.co.uk
@ Hugh Morrison Robert Burns Rocks (Dun Eistein DEPCD05) Well, if Mr Burns does, it isn’t obvious from this deeply underwhelm- ing item which is more like a watered-down Pogues crossed with Jimmy Shand, without the latter’s swing or the former’s glorious attitude.
www.hughmorrison.com
2 Colcannon Three Days In May(own label no cat. no.) US Midwest outfit with a snappy rhythm section and formidable playing. Eight albums down and still kicking, Boulder Col- orado-based Colcannon provide music devoid of cliché and rich in solidity. Original tunes in Celtic and eastern European veins prove clever yet authentic. A pleasantly refined yet com- pelling album.
www.colcannon.com
Hindi Zahra
2 Gurrumul Live In Darwin, Australia (Dramatico DRAMCD0063) Six-track 30-minute EP from Gurrumul’s first solo concert in 2008. Nice atmosphere and a pared-down acoustic sound that may even be preferable to his stu- dio recording, but no real surprises. Except that who then could really have predicted just how big an impact this Aboriginal singer’s warm voice and easy style was about to have.
www.gurrumul.com skinnyfishmusic.com.au
2 Sandy Denny & The Strawbs All Our Own Work (Witchwood Media WMCD2047) Sessions that just ooze the ‘60s, Sandy & The Strawbs got together in Denmark in summer 1967 and drummed up a huge meringue of an album which is autumnal, bright, wistful, rhythmic by turn. Early takes of Who Knows Where The Time Goes, one even with strings, three previously unreleased Dave Cousins demos and a whole stack of remastering make up the appeal.
www.witchwoodrecords.co.uk
2 West Of Eden The West Of Eden Travel- ogue (Zebra Art ZAR851) From the excellent digi-packaging to the quality of the songs and arrangements, West Of Eden are the business. I love this heaps and so will you. Shades of Waterboys, Runrig, Pogues and even Horslips, this is a masterclass in swinging, melodic con- temporary folk rock. Ok they’re Swedish but this is a scoot round the Celtic parts of our islands that’s rubbed off on a cavalier crew not short on smarts and songwriting. To be liked a lot.
www.westofeden.com
2 Fabrizio Poggi & Chicken Mambo Spir- it And Freedom (Ultra Sound US-CD 054/S) Deserves attention. Some heavyweight guests add to character of Italian singer, harmonica player and his excellent band handling diffi- cult material well. Songs from Dylan, Kristof- ferson, Guthrie sit alongside a few originals and well selected others. www.ultra-
soundrecords.it www.chickenmambo.com
1 Pennyless In Spring And In Blue (Pen- nyless Music PYL01) Lincolnshire-based duo Pennyless (guitarist Les Woods, fiddler Penny Stevens) recorded this disc with Graham Dale guesting on flute and percussion. They play an assortment of traditional tunes and their own songs, the latter showing promise but could do better. Playing is vigorous and enthusiastic: appealingly ramshackle though occasionally a touch plain unadventurous. Entertaining enough at decent-to-middling floor spot stan- dard.
www.pennyless-music.co.uk
2 Fergus Green St (own label no cat. no.) US Celtic-rock-based outfit showing more flair than most in their genre. Out of Worcester, Massachusetts they attack their material with a knowing panache. Unafraid to dabble in lesser-known repertoire, covering Ger Wolfe and Kevin Moyna songs as well as the ragged- ly familiar, Cait Sargent’s vocals possess a gaucheness that haunts as well as beguiles. Sounding like a Celtic Cowboy Junkies/ Vio- lent Femmes, Green St is better-than-average Irish American fare.
www.fergusband.com
2 Various Transatlantic Sessions 4 Vol- ume TwoWith Jerry Douglas & Aly Bain (Whirlie Records WHIRLIECD19) Transatlantic Sessions has Scottish, Irish and American folk musicians performing melting-pot collabora- tions which showcase the best of Americana, Scottish and Irish music. Highlights here include Jenna Reid’s sublime baroque compo- sition Bethany’s Waltz, and ex-Hothouse Flowers Liam Ó Maonlaí’s Worry Not. Via Dis- covery:
www.discovery-records.com
2 Paul Dooley The Harper’s Fancy (own label PDCD003) Clare-based harpist returns from rescuing rare harp manuscripts to the familiar exposition of traditional tunes on the harp. A harpist of rare talent and sensitivity, Dooley makes these tunes sound his own, as in a delicious track of O’Carolan’s, Loftus Jones, and reeling about with Miss Mon- aghan. Lavishly annotated and sweet to the taste buds – here is a master harper at work.
www.pauldooley.com
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84