CD-Charts Position 1
Average Rating:

.

That's Proper Folk

by: Various Artists

Release Date April 07, 2008
Who cares whether it's proper folk; it's proper good and at an indecently low price

CD-Charts Position 2
Average Rating:

.

The Fairest Floo'er

by: Karine Polwart

Release Date December 10, 2007
I came across the CD by chance as I'd never heard of Karine Polwart, but decided to give it a try after listening to a brief extract of Mirk, Mirk is This Midnight Hour. I am so pleased I took the risk - it is absolutely astounding. I have always liked Dowie Dens of Yarrow since I heard Bert Jansch's version, but Karine's is so beautifully sung with such a hauntingly sparse accompaniment it has me in tears every time I listen to it. A wonderful CD!

CD-Charts Position 3
Average Rating:

.

The Imagined Village

by: Various Artists

Release Date October 15, 2007
I think this is probably a great album and certainly a sterling effort to bring together a range of influences both old and new to fuse a new UK folk perspective. The first talking bit sounds like Stanley Unwin on that Small faces album though and it can get just a little bit self indulgent - Hopefully like me though it will inspire you to re look at the rich heritage of traditional music this country has to offer

CD-Charts Position 4
Average Rating:

.

Poor Man's Heaven

by: Seth Lakeman

Release Date June 30, 2008
Well, album number 4 from Seth Lakeman finds him backed by a major label. Not good news for someone who's used to recording albums in kitchens. So, it was with some scepticism that I listened to Poor Man's Heaven and it was to say the least, a huge letdown. For a start, I don't personally LIKE the songs. They are bland to the extreme, and as several reviewers have already noted, mostly at the same tempo. Did his metronome break or something? Not good. On the plus side, I do like Crimson Dawn and Solomon Browne. The latter is a slightly obscure subject but is poignant and comes across well, despite sounding cluttered - a sparser sound may have suited it better and let the lyrics breathe a little.

To me it all sounds far too mainstream orientated, ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 5
Average Rating:

.

Scribbled in Chalk

by: Karine Polwart

Release Date April 10, 2006
I didn't know Karine Polwart, but got this CD on the strength of reviews and recommendations. Karine has a light, lilting voice, and her Scottish accent comes across, which I like. Nearly all of the songs are of the gentle variety, but that doesn't mean they are all the same. Some are gentle/melancholy (Baleerie Baloo, I've Seen It All), some are gentle/whimsical (I'm Gonna Do I All, Holy Moses, Take Its Own Time), and some are only gentle on the surface, but really biting underneath (Daisy, Maybe There's A Road). As well as the soothing voice, there's some lovely string playing, especially on Terminal Star. Where The Smoke Blows is the only song that you could really call upbeat, and its the one that works least well for me; perhaps it could have been left out. ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 6
Average Rating:

.

Dreams of Breathing Underwater

by: Eliza Carthy

Release Date June 23, 2008
Eliza is a huge talent- writing , playing and a voice like no other, but for me this CD seems to have lost the sound and emotion and subtlety that I love about much of her work.
Big sound, but unsatisfying , maybe less is more?

CD-Charts Position 7
Average Rating:

.

Awkward Annie

by: Kate Rusby

Release Date September 03, 2007
I like to listen to Jerry Anderson on BBC Radio Ulster, he's really funny (although when my English Nephew was visiting he couldn't understand a word anyone on the show was saying) and he plays nice folk music. I heard the song 'village green appreciation society' a few times on his show, and thought it was brill (I don't remember the Kinks version.) I surfed the net to find who sang it, and came across Kate Rusby - what a discovery! I bought this album on the strength of that one track, and have played it nearly to death already. I like all the songs, as well a loving Kate's accent (I spent two years in Leeds when I was at college, and it brings me back to those happy times.) Buy it. Play it. Love it.

CD-Charts Position 8
Average Rating:

.

The Bairns

by: Rachel Unthank And The Winterset

Release Date August 20, 2007
We caught Rachel Unthank at Cambridge Folk Festival in 07 and were blown away. It reminded me of some of the cutting age post punk stuff (hardly sounds folk!) in the early to mid 80s, not that we can trace much of this but vague memories of Peel, and support groups to the Nightingales and Terry and Jerry (sorry I am indulging myself here).

So after playing the Bairns to death, and tiring of it a little, totally surprised when we saw them live again to appreciate how wonderful this is and to have to play it once again.

Brilliant that a whole new audience can now appreciate it through the mercury nominations and even more wonderful to meet Becky at the Big Chill, even if I had forgotten the camera at the time (hope that she doesn't think she has a middle aged ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 9
Average Rating:

.

Folk Awards 2008

by: Various Artists

Release Date January 28, 2008
Ok...so I'm new to the folk scene, but what an introduction. Excellent!!
Made me want more and feel more confident about exploring the possibilities.

CD-Charts Position 10
Average Rating:

.

Two

by: Kathryn Williams & Neill MacColl

Release Date March 03, 2008
These two created their musical partnership after a random pairing on a concert bill (2005's Daughters of Albion concert in Cork). There must have been much mutual intuition floating about in the sessions because they sound like they've been playing together for years. Kathryn has said that "the whole experience was the musical equivalent of standing naked in front of the person you love and wanting them to like you." In various sheds and garages (independent artists always say that! But Kathryn wouldn't lie to us, would she?!), they recorded twenty one songs in six days, whittling them down to the thirteen released on this wondrous record.

A languorous and hushed, homely atmosphere wraps itself around the songs, with Williams and MacColl sharing vocals (although the latter sometimes ... Read More: