CD-Charts Position 21
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Sweet Child

CD-Charts > Music > English Folk
by: Pentangle

Release Date February 26, 2008
This could be Pentangle's best album - 'Basket of Light' is the only other contender, but this one has much more material on it.

The first disc was recorded live in 1968 and the second is from the studio. The live show is great, with a mix of folk standards, originals and instrumentals showing great dexterity and skill from all involved. Bert Jansch and John Renbourn's version of Mingus' 'Goodbye Pork Pie Hat' is a standout instrumental tune - very relaxing and melodic. The studio set is a strong album in its own right, with highlights (for me) being the guitar duel of 'In Time', the morality tale 'Sovay' and the grooving 'I've Got A Feeling', which borrows the chord sequence from Miles Davis' 'All Blues'.

This expanded ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 22
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Bert & John

CD-Charts > Music > English Folk
by: Bert Jansch John Renbourn

Release Date February 26, 2008
Why does Amazon attribute this to Bert Jansch? If ever you were looking for an inspired collaboration of two equal partners, then surely this delivers the goods. More than forty years on and it still gives me shivers. I have several versions of 'Goodbye Pork Pie Hat' and this version stands with the best of them. 'Stepping Stones' continues to make me wince with delight, though I must have heard it a hundred times. And 'After the Dance' always leaves me wanting more. John Renbourn came up, less than two years later, with 'Sir John Alot Of Merrie Englandes Musyk Thyng And Ye Grene Knyghte', surely one of the most cringemaking titles ever contrived but also a seminal and utterly brilliant album which I still rank amongst my top ten of all time. ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 23
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Liege And Lief

CD-Charts > Music > English Folk
by: Fairport Convention

Release Date May 06, 2002
"Liege and Lief" was Fairport's first album that was almost entirely inspired by traditional British music. The band had previously released 3 albums during a relatively short period of time, and the repertoire had been a mixture of pop, rock and American and British folk.

In May 1969 after the recording of the previous album "Unhafbricking" the band had a terrible road accident which took the lives of drummer Martin Lamble and Richard Thompson's girlfriend Jeannie.

Other band-members were injured in the crash and the group were close to splitting up, but with their wounds healing up they eventually decided to continue with new members Dave Swarbrick and Dave Mattacks.

They did not want to perform their old ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 24
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Inside Out

CD-Charts > Music > English Folk
by: John Martyn

Release Date November 14, 2005
Released within eight months of Solid Air, you can tell JM was on a roll...and indeed if you liked Solid Air, you will love Inside Out too, as it ploughs a similar jazzy/folky/psychedelic furrow to it's predecessor...and (hurray!) Danny Thompson does the honours again on stand up bass.

It will always amaze me that Martyn has always been slightly marginalised in the music stakes. Many of his songs are timeless pieces that could and should be covered by lots of people, but the reality is quite different. Maybe it's because he stamped his personality so strongly on them...who knows, but Fine Lines, Glory of Love, Ain't No Saint, Make No Mistake have got classic written right through them. This is another great, great album from the man. Some may ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 25
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Solomon's Seal

CD-Charts > Music > English Folk
by: Pentangle

Release Date February 26, 2008
Of all the Pentangle albums, this is by far my favourite - if you could add Cruel Sister & Let No Man Steal Your Thyme to it, it would be perfect! Sally Free & Easy is sublime, and the only song that betters it in my mind is Willy O'Winsbury (the tune of which will be familiar to Fairport fans as it was used to set the words of Farewell Farewell to). The only song I'm not too keen on is the Lady of Carlisle, but then you can't have everything!

CD-Charts Position 26
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Prodigal Son

CD-Charts > Music > English Folk
by: Martin Simpson

Release Date July 30, 2007
We saw MS playing a Wiltshire school hall last Saturday night, where the spell he cast over the rapt audience was palpable. To be able to capture a crowd for the whole of the evening is extraordinary, especially when you consider it's "just" his voice and his guitar playing that's on display. But, as anyone who's ever seen him play live (this was my fourth time) will tell you, his ability on the guitar is nothing short of magical, while his distinctive style of singing is ideally suited to traditional material.

Put the two together, and something remarkable happens, as he's able to keep the rhythm of the accompaniment precise as he stretches and compresses the timing of the song. This is nowhere better demonstrated than in his reading of "Little ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 27
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Grace And Danger

CD-Charts > Music > English Folk
by: John Martyn

Release Date November 02, 1989
Martyn is perhaps one of the most erratic recording artists, a reflection presumably of the ups and downs in his own life. As is well documented, 'Grace & Danger' corresponds with one of these troughs, and has resulted in an album which is staggeringly perfect in its artistic and musical execution. The mid-section 'denial' trio of songs beginning with 'Sweet Little Mystery' are ones I return to with depressing regularity. They are sublimely beautiful, and worth the price of the CD alone. Phil Collins and John Giblin are the most wonderfully intuitively rhythm section,so much so that I almost forgive Collins for being both in Genesis and writing Face Value, but nothing is quite that good. This record is far from depressing, but is both haunting and quite, quite ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 28
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Pink Moon

CD-Charts > Music > English Folk
by: Nick Drake

Release Date June 26, 2000
I'll keep this review relatively short, and hopefully it'll be of use to anyone considering buying Pink Moon, Nick Drake's 3rd album.

What this album has to offer is something between Nick Drake's other 2 albums. Pink Moon isn't as upbeat and jazzy as his 2nd album Bryter Layter, but then again it isn't as depressing and gloomy as Five Leaves Left. Even if it does comprise just Nick and his guitar on all but the opening (title) track, Pink Moon doesn't necessarily leave you feeling depressed. And that's because a lot of the tracks on the album basically aren't gloomy.
For example, "Pink Moon" (Track 1) might take a while to get into, but it's not a sad song at all. Neither are songs like Road, Which Will or Free Ride. The only song on the album ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 29
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The Finest 'arvest of the Wurzels

CD-Charts > Music > English Folk
by: Wurzels

Release Date August 13, 2001
Never meant to be taken seriously, the Wurzels have nevertheless proved their longevity by keeping themselves busy making music over a period of more than forty years. For much of the time, they have been content to play local venues in Bristol and Somerset, but they have made an impact nationally (with a British number one hit) and internationally (with the same song becoming a Canadian number one hit). They actually scored hits with five different songs in the British charts. A re-mix of their biggest hit also charted. Wurzel music is difficult to classify. British stores such as HMV and Zavvi generally put it on the easy listening shelves, but I would say that the main influence is folk. The Wurzels like to call their music Scrumpy and Western, so perhaps they think their ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 30
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Fotheringay

CD-Charts > Music > English Folk
by: Fotheringay

Release Date August 16, 2004
Whilst I broadly agree with the other reviews, I must say that I don't think this is the highlight of Sandy's post Fairport career. Sandy's compositions and vocal style continued to get more varied and interesting, and also her post Fotheringay albums are sung entirely by her which is all to the good.

This album is held back by Trevor's performances (although i actually don't mind The Ballad of Ned Kelly, which is one of Trevors best songs.) when what one longs for is to finally hear Sandy writing and performing a whole album without compromises.

The Sandy penned songs and the traditional Banks of the Nile are naturally the standout tracks here: for one can't see how anyone in their right mind would thing Trevors Gordon Lightfoot cover would be the best ... Read More: