61 f VARIOUS ARTISTS
Greek Rhapsody: Instrumental Music From Greece 1905 – 1956, Compiled & Annotated by Tony Klein Dust To Digital DTD-27 / ISBN 8 80226 00272 5
While there have been many vinyl albums and CDs over the years concentrating on the classic rebetika era, often filled with highly detailed and informative notes, the actual literature of the music is pretty thin. There is, of course, Gayle Holst’s classic primer The Road To Rembetika and entries in various encyclopedias (the Rough Guide To World Music springs to mind), but there isn’t much else outside of Greece itself, and many non- Greek speakers are therefore challenged when it comes to exploring the background and history of this extraordinary, robust and exciting music.
It is, therefore, a delight to be confront- ed with this, a double CD with a book attached (or vice-versa). The bald details; a superbly illustrated 152-page hardback book with two CDs imaginatively cushioned in the inside covers, containing 42 classic and well re-mastered examples of instrumental Greek music. Sprinkled throughout the very detailed text is a plethora of rare photos and illustrations of other ephemera; the first sec- tion of the book allows you to absorb detailed descriptions of each recorded exam- ple, so you can enlighten yourself as you lis- ten. This is followed by a number of other chapters that deal with the recording history itself, the cultural context and the characters involved, a think piece on re-issuing historical sound recordings, and ending with notes, glossary and a bibliography. By the time you have waded through all this, and finished that bottle of ouzo (never open a second bot- tle if you want to recall what you did the pre- vious day…), you will know a great deal more than you did before, whether you are afi- cionado or enthusiastic beginner.
As with all Dust-to-Digital issues, the pro- duction values are impeccable, the book sits beautifully in the hands, and even if you are one who has mustered every single rebetika artefact you can, you’re still going to want this. Amazon UK have it for around £28 at press time and it’s worth every last penny.
www.dust-digital.com Paul Vernon
WILL POUND A Cut Above Lulubug LULU1234
Though still only in his mid- twenties, Will Pound is already recognised as one of the foremost exponents of the harmonica, regularly acclaimed for attaining heights of dexterity and ingenuity on that humble instrument (both diatonic
and chromatic varieties) of which other play- ers can only dream. Even those normally resistant to the charms of the moothie will succumb to its delights when confronted with such musicianship as Will demonstrates on his sparkling debut solo album, proving that he in every way lives up to the proud boast implicit in the disc’s title.
Although most of us have hitherto encountered Will’s playing primarily in the dynamic duo format with banjo ace Dan Walsh, A Cut Above finds him mostly teamed with guitarists including Tim Edey, Kris Drever and Martin Simpson (whose presence pro- vides a more than incidental reference to a certain acclaimed 1980s LP he made with June Tabor), while also among others various- ly listed as willing participants are Andy Cut- ting and Damien O’Kane.
As far as repertoire goes, Will takes us through a determinedly eclectic collection of musical experiences, many in genres not cus- tomarily essayed by harmonica players. There’s spirited old-time fare (Soldier’s Joy, Old Joe Clark), morris (White Jock, Dearest Dickie), relaxed Celtic (Will’s own composi- tion Waxy’s), a tune penned by the venerable Will Atkinson at age 93 (Not Out), and even an initially deliciously stealthy, keenly jazzy arrangement of Amazing Grace that Will learnt from Nashville’s Buddy Greene. A par- ticularly charming highlight is a beautifully played and arranged rendition of Chris Wood’s tune Mrs Saggs which features Andy’s melodeon, while Will also gives fiddle and guitar soloists their due moments in the spot- light on the effervescent bluegrass favourite Clinch Mountain Back Step.
Nifty virtuosity and (literally) breathtak- ing pyrotechnics, sure, but always (refresh- ingly) at the service of the music, which is surely why Will’s intense, natural musicality wins so many converts to the cause.
www.willpound.com David Kidman
VARIOUS ARTISTS Inside Llewyn Davis OST Nonesuch 400209
My fascination with the Greenwich Village folk scene of the early 1960s was hugely increased by the 2006 publication of the late Dave Van Ronk’s memoir: The Mayor Of Mac- Dougal Street, and Suze Rotolo’s A Free- wheelin’ Time, in 2009. Shortly thereafter, I began hearing the mind-boggling rumour that the Van Ronk book was being made into a movie by the Coen Brothers. That, as it turned out, was almost, but not entirely true. So, who the hell is Llewyn Davis? Elijah Wald (co-author of The Mayor Of MacDougall Street) explains on the film website. “His Welsh name recalls Dylan, and like Phil Ochs he crashes on the couch of a singing couple named Jim and Jean. Llewyn is not Van Ronk, but he sings some of Van Ronk’s songs and shares his background as a working-class kid who split his life between music and occasion- al jobs as a merchant seaman.” Got it? Good.
This soundtrack is produced by T-Bone Burnett, a man with plenty of form at this sort of thing, having previously performed the same duties for both Anthony Minghel- la’s Civil War epic Cold Mountain, and the Coen Brothers’ O Brother, Where Art Thou?. While the musical performance scenes in
Will Pound
both of those films relied largely on dubbing (the voices of gnarly country singers issuing magically forth from the perfectly-chiselled faces of Hollywood heart-throbs), the less well-known leads here have been cast for their ability to sing and play, as well as to act.
Oscar Isaac (Llewyn Davis) convinces from the opening track, a not-quite-Van Ronk Hang Me, Oh Hang Me, and follows it up with Green, Green Rocky Road, The Death Of Queen Jane and Fare Thee Well (Dink’s Song) – all performed completely solo to his own impressive guitar playing. Stark Sands delivers a suitably earnest version of Tom Paxton’s The Last Thing On My Mind accompanied by The Punch Brothers who crop up on a couple of tracks – as do Chris Thile and Marcus Mumford (sans Sons). There’s also a very welcome cameo from Nancy Blake, with (the Carter Family’s) The Storms Are On The Ocean.
Whilst the honey-toned and square-
jawed Justin Timberlake is guaranteed to set girlish hearts a-flutter, it’s his screen wife, British actress Carey Mulligan who causes the real heart-melting, as the pair harmonise on Hedy West’s Five Hundred Miles. Timberlake and Mumford successfully confound negative expectations on The Auld Triangle, which is delivered (along with Thile, Chris Eldridge and Gabe Witcher) in authentically straight unaccompanied style (not the overwrought whoopfest this writer feared.) The only clunker (to my ears) is the untypical Please Mr Kennedy, an up-tempo number apparently written by committee, which sounds worry- ingly like it might be a vehicle for Messrs Isaac and Timberlake to strut their stuff in a promo video (time and plot will tell).
As a stand-alone album, Inside Llewyn
Davis is all perfectly and predictably pleasant stuff, but by its very nature and purpose it is only a facsimile, a point rammed home by the inclusion of the final two tracks – Bob Dylan’s Farewell (previously unreleased) and Dave Van Ronk’s Green, Green Rocky Road. Will those hearing these personality-over- perfection performers for the first time (hav- ing just gone to see a nice, romantic musical comedy movie) find them disturbingly alien, or utterly revelatory? Are today’s pop kids likely to suddenly start harmonising Hedy West and Brendan Behan songs?
When’s the movie coming out? The answer to that last question is 6th December (USA) and 24th January 2014 (UK). I, for one, simply can’t wait to see it.
www.insidellewyndavis.com Steve Hunt
Photo: Elly Lucas
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