Bulletin - May/ June
2009
Folk Music - America, British Isles
& European
Norman & Nancy Blake
->
Malvina Reynolds
AMERICAN FOLK |
NORMAN &
NANCY BLAKE & THE BOYS OF THE LOUGH |
Plectrafone 40125 |
Rising Fawn Gathering |
$15.98 |
12 tracks, 49 min., essential
In 1978 the Blakes appeared at a festival with the Boys and then played
together informally after hours. Then in 1984 they played together at
Harvard in a series of shows set up by Rounder Records. Norman and Nancy
(and James Bryan, who toured with them) had wanted to record with the Boys
since then, and 23 short years later, they did. These recordings from 2007,
include not just Norman and Nancy (and James Bryan) and the Boys of the
Lough, but Bryan's 20-year-old daughter Rachel as well. Selections include
The Stockton & Redesdale Hornpipes; The Bonny Bunch Of Roses,
from the early 19th century; While The Band Is Playing Dixie, a
Spanish-American War song published in 1900 and recorded by Sara and
Maybelle Carter in the 1960s; as well as more recent fare, such as The El
Paso Waltz, written by Dave Richardson (of the Boys); and
Castleberry's March, penned by Nancy Blake. The music here is nothing
short of beautiful, and the many musicians sound as if they have been
playing together all their lives. An absolute good. (JC)
|
IRELAND |
THE BOTHY BAND |
Mulligan (US) 3013 |
Out Of The Wind Into The Sun |
$17.98 |
10 tracks, very highly recommended
This 1977 album was the
third by this brilliant group. A powerful and exciting selection of songs
and tunes. The instrumental pieces range from the wildly exhilarating The
Morning Star to the gentle Maid Of Michaelstown . There are three
lovely vocals by Triona Ni Dhomnaill - three familiar songs which are given
new life by Triona and the band - Streets Of Derry/ The Sailor Boy/ The
Factory Girl. Wonderful stuff. (FS)
|
AMERICAN FOLK |
THE HIGHWAYMEN |
Varese 66847 |
The Folk Hits Collection |
$13.98 |
19 tracks, 67 min., highly recommended
It would be short
work for any mathematician worth his salt to demonstrate definitively in a
proof that The Highwaymen are not cool now and never have been, even when
they were folk stars twinkling in the firmament of the early 1960s. So
clueless were they that their original name was The Clansmen (named for
their love of Scottish folk music, one imagines), with apparently no
understanding of the negative connotations that just might attach to the
moniker. Their big hit: Michael (Row The Boat Ashore). Their look:
collegiate (of course they were in college) and preppy. They would look at
home in a Wonderbread commercial. And yet...damn if these guys don't sing
real nice. And it isn't just that they all have great voices either; they
sound as if they are actually enjoying themselves, joyful even. So while Bob
Dylan may have sent groups like this--The Brothers Four come to mind--to the
far reaches of folk history, in the case of The Highwaymen, anyway, it is
worth the journey. This collection gathers their better known work from
1961-64 and tips in some recordings from this century because these guys
still get together and make music. Songs include Marching To Pretoria/
I'll Fly Away, Tom Paxton's Ramblin' Boy, Red Is The Rose/
Mighty Day, and the previously obscure Leadbelly number Cotton Fields
which the boys rescued and rode up the pop charts, only stopping at #13.
Worth investigating for fans of the genre who may have heretofore shied away
from the "uncool" side of sixties folk music. Besides, uncool is the new
cool and it always was. (JC)
|
AMERICAN FOLK |
MALVINA REYNOLDS |
Omni 114 |
Sings The Truth |
$17.98 |
29 tracks, 79 min., recommended
I confess that I have never
enjoyed Reynolds work, have always found it to be self-important and
preachy, even as I find myself agreeing with some of her observations. But
after listening to this collection, I realize that I had never heard these
early tracks, but only the later Cassandra stuff. This release reissues her
Tells The Truth LP (made for Columbia in 1967 and produced by John Hammond)
for the first time on CD, and the remaining cuts are all live shots
previously unreleased in any form. The Columbia sides waxed when Reynolds
was in her mid-sixties, include her best-known song Little Boxes,
which was a rare Pop hit for Pete Seeger, and What Have They Done To The
Rain?, which was a hit for The Searchers. The live material comes from a
concert in 1965 recorded by KPFA (three cuts), a concert from 1967 recorded
by KQED (6 cuts), and two 1970s era shows (4 cuts). In all, this album finds
the feisty Reynolds at the top of her game. (JC)
|
Back To New Release Index
Back
To Home Page
|