NOMADNESS

Nomadness isn't among the very finest albums by the Strawbs. "Ghosts" and "Hero And Heroine" were better, but this is still a brilliant effort. It's much simpler in structure and the songs are all reasonably short, but the album doesn't really steer away from the path the band had taken before. There are even more dabbles with various musical styles, and as usual some truly beautiful pieces courtesy of "Golden Salamander" and "Hanging In The Gallery". Dave Cousins has such an expressive voice and, particularly on "Golden Salamander", you can really understand how much emotion he pours into the song. "So Shall Our Love Die?" is among Cousins' most delicate songs as well. "Little Sleepy" is a weaker track that doesn't fit in perfectly with the rest, but it's not bad and only a minor complaint. I don't see any reason why those who have enjoyed the Strawbs' other albums from the seventies should not enjoy this one despite the gradual changes they were going through. The same goes for their follow up "Deep Cuts", which is equally packed with well crafted pieces of music.