MELLOW CANDLE

— First review of this album —

Having already reviewed the sole album Swaddling Songs (1972) of this Irish band long ago, with the addition of this single I take the opportunity to pick their name up again. Mellow Candle were a very talented group but sadly their album failed commercially at the time. Deservedly it has later become a classic in the folk rock genre, easily appealing to the friends of stellar acts FAIRPORT CONVENTION, STEELEYE SPAN and PENTANGLE.

Both songs here were taken from the album, and rewardingly they represent two different aspects of their oeuvre. 'Dan the Wing' is a lively and rollicking song, reminding of the more uptempo songs of Steeleye Span. The dual female vocals of Alison Williams and the main songwriter Clodagh Simonds function nicely together, not unlike Agnetha and Frida in ABBA.

'Silver Song' is a dreamily mellow song in a peacful tempo, and personally more up to my taste. The vocals are absolutely beautiful and the arrangement has lots of little nuances, making this song a pure delight at least for folk rock listeners appreciating delicacy.

MELLOW CANDLE were an Irish Prog-Folk quintet whose flickering flame burned briefly but brightly in 1972 with the release of their one and only studio album, "Swaddling Songs", which has since become a treasured classic amongst Prog-Folk connoisseurs. The band were led by two sweet-voiced Irish songstresses, Clodagh Simonds (who also played piano, harpsichord and mellotron on the album) and Alison Williams, with a guitarist, bass player and drummer completing the traditional five-piece line-up. The band members were surprisingly young, with Clodagh Simonds being just 15 years old and still at school at the time when the band first got together in 1968 to record their first single "Feelin' High", a song later added as a bonus track to the CD re-issue of "Swaddling Songs". For collectors, a Mellow Candle compilation album "The Virgin Prophet" was released in 1996, containing previously unreleased material and alternative early versions of songs from the classic "Swaddling Songs" album.

It's Bach to the Future for some classically-inspired Folk with our first angelic song, "Heaven Heath". There are definite shades of Fairport Convention's classic "Fotheringay" to be heard here. Fotheringport Confusion, maybe. The gorgeous female harmonies and the tinkling sound of the harpsichord give the music the kind of playful pastoral aura that Mr J.S. Bach might have aired on his G-string. The gentle bucolic melody conjures up images of a sun-kissed golden meadow where sheep may safely graze. If Heaven was a place on Earth, then "Heaven Heath" would make the perfect musical accompaniment in the Garden of Eden. Red sky at night, shepherd's delight, and for *shear* musical delight, comes "Sheep Season", a charming and romantic mellow melody that's as reassuringly comforting as being swaddled in a warm woolly blanket in front of a roaring log fire. This outstanding sheep-shearing song also features a simply sublime guitar solo in the style of Fairport Convention's Richard Thompson, and if you listen carefully, you can hear the celestial sound of a mellotron too. There's more rapturous sweet nectar on the way with "Silver Song", a bright and shining piano ballad bathed in warm golden strings, that's so beautifully uplifting, it brings to mind the awe-inspiring music of Renaissance with the soaring siren-song voice of Annie Haslam. The swirling and echoey twin harmonies of Clodagh Simonds and Alison Williams are like manna from Prog-Folk heaven here. The gorgeous spectrum of music contained within this treasured album is so far proving to be as pleasing to the ears as the Technicolour riot of the Chelsea Flower Show is pleasing to the eyes, only without the huge crowds and the hayfever and the sight of someone stumbling facedown drunk into the flowerbeds.

It's Every Witch Way But Loose now: the witches are on the loose as the album takes a quirky and slightly sinister turn with some spooky Halloween antics in "The Poet and the Witch". The music is an off-kilter Witches Brew of constantly yo-yoing vocals, ranging from very high to very low, in a creepy Comus "First Utterance" kind of way. This offbeat song is unlikely to give you nightmares though as Clodagh and Alison are clearly angelic white witches blessed with heavenly voices, and the music is no more scary than a box of Black Magic chocolates. Flying into view now in magnificent plumage are the "Messenger Birds", a gently rippling piano and guitar piece featuring soaring ethereal vocals which ascend up into the heavens in the best traditions of classic Renaissance. This sparkling Emerald Isle jewel is the kind of heaven-sent music that blissful sweet dreams are made of. It's as joyously uplifting as a jubilant 2020 street party to celebrate the end of the coronavirus lockdown, with hugs and kisses all 'round, but only with *really* close neighbours. We're coming back down to earth now with some very conventional folky fare in the shape of "Dan the Wing", which draws obvious comparisons with Fairport Convention's "Tam Lin". This Folk song sounds so traditionally English, it brings to mind gaily-dressed (and occasionally gay) Morris Men - adorned with colourful bell pads and tassels - merrily gallivanting around the Maypole in the pub car park, whilst in the meantime, any self-respecting Englishmen have already beaten a hasty retreat inside the pub to escape them.

"Reverend Sisters" is another soothing piano ballad in the classic Renaissance mould, sprinkled with some magical Mellow Candle fairy dust. The gentle tinkling of the ivories combined with the lilting honey-toned voices of Clodagh and Alison, reminds one of "The Sisters" from the Renaissance "Novella" album. This haunting refrain washes over the listener like a gently rippling stream with heavenly harmonies to die for. It's a typical Irish Catholic tale of strict paragons-of-virtue nuns trying to steer their schoolgirls away from adopting any naughty black habits. We're breaking the spell now with "Break Your Token", which is a return to more traditional folky fare, with those eccentric off-kilter vocals again giving the music a certain edginess, and "Buy or Beware" continues in the same vein, with lyrics that appear to be an attack on rampant consumerism, long before anti-capitalist demonstrations became en-vogue for extreme left-wingers everywhere, although one feels the protests are not so much aimed at consumerism generally, but more likely aimed at the "Greed is Good" ethos of bank- busting rogue traders like Nick Leeson in their loud stripy suits, or Gordon Gecko Wall Street types in their bright red braces and swanky offices. Anyway, back to the music, and this classic Prog-Folk album is well-worth ten pounds, ten dollars or ten euros of anyone's money, whatever your political views.

From the economic to the esoteric now with "Vile Excesses", an enigmatic fairytale centred around shadows of unicorns and crowns of thorns, although judging from the song title, there's a cryptic environmental message contained within the lyrics somewhere. Again, this charming song is a wonderful spellbinding cross between Renaissance and Fairport Convention with a light sprinkling of Pentangle and Trees thrown in too. The penultimate song "Lonely Man" represents a departure from Folk into moody bluesier territory, although the twin harmonies of the two female leads sound just as enchanting as ever on this melancholic refrain. Finally, "Boulders on My Grave" takes off on a Pentangly Light Flight of fancy in a lively uptempo rocker that's very reminiscent of the vocalese style of Annie Haslam. Fittingly, "Boulders on My Grave" turns out to be the rockiest rolling stone on the entire album and it's a real album highlight. This is where the band really get to light things up for a fiery finish by burning the (Mellow) Candle at both ends, so to speak.

This precious one-off album is a true lost and found gem in the vast pantheon of Folk-Rock. Mellow Candle have graced the Prog-Folk stage with this rather special album of warm and comforting "Swaddling Songs". This delightful collection of whimsical evergreen melodies and sugar-sweet harmonies from a bygone age is a rare and revered album to treasure for all time. It's a timeless album with all of the enduring appeal of a United Nations world heritage site, provided the Taliban doesn't come along and blow it up. You're as unlikely to find this rare album at a bargain-price charity shop or thrift store as finding a mad mullah presiding over a bar mitzvah.

Another "psych folk" group--this one from Ireland. I hear The Byrds, The Association, The Moody Blues. I like the piano base, reverbed female voices of Alison Williams and Clodagh Simonds--the Mama Cass and Michele Philips of Irish folk music--and the Mellotron flutes. Apparently the three girls were still in school--15 and 16 year olds when they formed the band and barely into their 20s at the time of the making of this album. Wow!

1. "Heaven Heath" (3:00) dual female vocals over harpsichord, bass, and simple time-keeping drums. The two girls are so tight that it almost sounds like one! Great sound, great song. (9/10)

2. "Sheep Season" (5:01) the dual voices of Alison Williams and Clodagh Simonds are one heck of a team--the perfect voice duo. Alison here has the lead but Clodagh is with her every step of the way. Effected guitar plays out a Roger McGuinn-sounding solo in the fourth minute over the piano and is then followed by a Melltron flute solo to the end. (9.5/10)

3. "Silver Song" (4:26) a slow, blues-based song with Alison starting out in the solo lead. Clodagh joins in with amazingly perfect crystalline harmonies but doesn't stay, kind of comes back and forth. Gorgeous! Awesome electric guitar solo in the C part. (10/10)

4. "The Poet And The Witch" (2:51) very interesting for the sudden confrontation with the voice of Clodagh Simonds- -which is much more forceful and powerful than that of the angelic Alison. (8.5/10)

5. "Messenger Birds" (3:39) a more countrified music with solo lead from Alison Williams. (8.5/10)

6. "Dan The Wing" (2:45) another turn for Clodagh up front--and another more rocking song. When Alison joins in harmony it's dangerous cuz she becomes more attractive to listen to (is it my imagination or is the mix even favoring her over Clodagh?) Their dual scatting in the final minute is interesting. (8/10)

7. "Reverend Sisters (4:21) gently, hypnotic piano opens before Alison and Clodagh enter in perfect unison. Wow! Telling a story from school days in a rather dispassionate-yet-haunting fashion. (10/10)

8. "Break Your Token (2:27) a raucus up-beat rock song that opens with Alison on lead vocals. Clodagh joins in for the second verse and that's when it gets super interesting! These girls could sing--and play with and off of each other almost magically well. Did they sell their souls to the devil? They can't be real! 20-year olds don't sing with this kind of maturity, do they?! (8.75/10)

9. "'Buy Or Beware'" (3:05) another upbeat, faster-paced rock song with piano and rhtyhm section pounding away at a brisk pace while the girls do their Mama Cass & Michele Phillips magic. If these songs were rated on vocals alone they'd pretty much all be earning full marks, but the music, though very good, is often less stellar. Clever pseudo- religious tongue-in-cheek lyrics. (9.25/10)

10. "Vile Excesses (3:14) a kind of progressive blues bass and drums opens this one before piano and percussion join in followed thereafter by the girls--at first together, then alternating (by channel). One of the more poorly recorded songs for the vocals but the instruments get a chance to really shine on this one--especially Clodagh's (poorly recorded) upright piano. (8.5/10)

11. "Lonely Man" (4:28) a little C & W twang to go with the rock foundation while Alison and Clodagh once again perform vocal magic. Even when singing in a more controlled, sedate fashion, they are mesmerizing for the interesting way they each render their tracks--and more, how they blend--how the whole comes out. (8.5/10)

12. "Boulders On My Grave" (3:40) a rocker that could compete with The WHO or The HOLLIES! Opens with full rock band supporting Clodagh and Alison's "la-di-da" and "na-na-na" scatting, respectively. Tru-ra-luraloo is mixed in there with some English lyrics as a chorus. What a show!(9/10)

Total time 42:57

4.5 stars; a near-masterpiece of progressive rock music, bluesy folk with one of the most amazing vocal duos ever put to record.

Mellow Candle were a progressive folk rock band from Ireland, combining Celtic folk music with the sort of progressive folk that had been catching on across the border in the UK. Alison Williams' lead vocals are charming, and you can hear how groups this laid the foundation of the Clannad-spearheaded resurgence of Celtic folk in subsequent years, but whilst it is a pleasant and enjoyable listen, I don't think it's a fully-fledged classic; it's a four-star album that gets talked about in five-star terms thanks to its scarcity and the brief lifespan of the band. Still, even leaving behind an album that's this good is an achievement in itself.

Rare are the prog bands from Ireland. Fruupp, yes and Mellow Candle. Coming from Dublin more precisely, this unknown one shot band belongs to the brilliant obscure bands of the seventies who only produced an album, but a gem. I think of England, Spring (the posthumous compilations forgotten). Mellow Candle was an imaginative folk rock band, with the singing talents of two ladies (Alison Williams and Clodagh Simonds), in addition to bassist Frank Boylan, drummer William Murray and guitarist Dave Williams. But the main feature was Clodagh's piano parts. The main comparison coming to mind is Renaissance of course. Well, the classical influences are less strong certainly but "Swaddling Songs", their debut album (1972) is rich in varied and simple melodies. But, most of all, the blending of those two gorgeous female voices is a treat. This was a fantastic album deserving new discovery. Thanks to Esoteric records, we have now a remastered version (the original recording on Deram was produced by David Hitchcock of Caravan fame), some bonus tracks and an elegant booklet. The fans will note a second album, "The Virgin Prophet", featuring unreleased and different versions of songs found on "Swaddling Songs", was released in 1996.

Another one shot band that unfortunalty didn´t stay around long enough to fulfill their obvious grand potential. This time is an irish outfiit that came out under the name of Mellow Candle. Their only CD, Swadling Songs, was quite strong and had some very good tracks, with agfood musicanship and nice female voals that reminds me of the pastoral side of Renaissance and other prog folk bands of the time like Fairport Convention. David Williams provided some very nice guitar lines and Alison Williams had an excellent voice. I believe they influenced a whole generation fo irish bands that followed in the next decade, like Clannad.

Most of the tracks are very well crafted and recorded, the band had a very tight rhythm section .Clodagh Simonds beautiful harmony vocals and her very effective keyboard playing are one the bands best features. Their sound is a very good mix orf prog rock and folk and i think they were a bit ahead of their time. I can´t find no other explanation why this record failed to make a bigger impact on the folk-rock scene (maybe fueled by bad manangement and/or internal squabbles, I really don´t know). Anyway, at least they left this little gem here for posterity. All tracks are good and varied, helped by their tasteful arrangement and excellent musicanship.

If you´re into prog folk, or good melodic music in general you should not miss this one. An excelent assition to any prog music collectio. Rating: four strong stars.

Folk prog always manages to get me. Especially when there's bass line clear to hear. I don't know why, but to this beautiful voice and mild instruments, bass guitar simply fits me perfectly. Whole album sounds surprisingly fresh and new. First I though that it's new release (if I wouldn't be aware of it's year of birth). And not only sounding refreshing, but surprisingly proggy. I though that I should rate prog folk albums as good folk ones with flavour of prog, but this one (again, mostly due to bass and piano) sounds like prog. I feel like listening something influenced by (or something that influenced) Renaissance at times. Even it's not as good and her voice is not as good as (but after all, what is). I'm pleased very much.

4(+) for great prog folk album. There are flaws, it's sometimes not strong enough, but that's rare.

If I had to choose just one album to carry me through the rest of my life, I would seriously consider choosing this gem.

Absolutely breathtaking from beginning to end. Well, check that, because oddly, I would rank the very first track as the least important, but after that, it is just one masterpiece after another. Comparisons to Denny-era Fairport would be appropriate but not particularly telling, as this album is a true original.

The melodies here are often described as "beautiful" but they are much more than that. They are often extremely sophisticated and incredibly original. "Sheep Season may well be the greatest single piece of 5 minute music I have ever encountered. The female vocals here are (and I do *not* exaggerate) simply not to be believed. Utterly breathtaking. The melodies wrap around soft, flanged out guitar, acoustic piano and breezy drum and bass work. This is the stuff of legend and when you see the original album goes for a couple of grand, it's easy to see why.

The rest of the album ranges from super complex, fast-paced rockfolk with twists and turns to the breezy, soft passages that are just a perfect calling for the haunting vocal approach that is surely their greatest asset.

In terms of quality, this is right up there with Fairport's 'Liege and Lief.' Perhaps only the second Dando Shaft album would also compare in its own way.

Now, in terms of sound quality, I advise that you track down one of these five options if CD is your game: The Edison Japan CD release (ERC-29223), Polydor Japan CD (POCD-1903, Acme CD (ADCD 1040) or Si-Wan (SRMC 0021). These are all the same and very good. See For Miles CD (SEECD 404) is also good and fairly similar. Maybe not quite as good as it seems just a little brighter. The more recent release on Esoteric seems to have some upper midrange boost that is a bit glassy at higher volumes. I find this version a bit sterile and it also seems to have had the hiss level lowered from the earlier versions, which already seemed to have had some annoying dehissing but this takes it even further. It is most noteable on something like "Reverend Sisters" and seems to leave the recording sounding just a bit closed in and less natural. Also avoid the Japan SHM mini lp CD like the plaugue. It is brickwall compressed and worst version ever released on CD. The older Japan mini from 2001 was decent, but basically sounds like original transfer for Edison only a little louder with some compression.

On vinyl, I have heard the Si-Wan version from 1993 and the more recent Universal/Si-Wan white vinyl release. Both of these sound just like the original CD transfer. Same with the Acme LP and the Tapestry bootleg. The new Deluxe version on Rise Above Records is a great package, but again, it sounds like it also originates from the same old CD transfer that's been around since that first release on Edison.

I recently obtained a 2nd UK Deram LP pressing of this album with handwritten matrix and it is glorious. It finally seemed to confirm what I have suspected for some time now, and that is that even the original CD transfer done for Edison (which as mentioned, basically seems to have been the source of every CD and 90s to present LP version ever issued) had some no-noise applied. It also has quite a smiley-faced EQ curve compared with the older vinyl. The midrange on the vinyl is stunning in comparison. If you think this album sounds nice on one of the CD versions, you should hear how amazing it was prior to digital intervention.

5 Stars all the way for 'Swaddling Songs'. This is truly a musical masterpiece.

I’ve heard several of these tracks in early form thanks to the 1996 rarities & demos release ‘The Virgin Prophet’, and I have to say these finished versions benefited greatly from some studio polishing and production.

Mellow Candle are near-legendary in prog folk circles, and deservedly so. This was their only studio release, but every song here is a folk delight with mild psych overtones and occasionally even a little rocking out. Best of all, the band features a pair of women whose voices seem to have been made to sing folk music - Clodagh Simonds and Alison Williams. Both have rich, expressive voices that carry each tune to heights that a male troubadour would not have been able. The two of them also either wrote or co-wrote all but two songs on the album (“Vile Excesses” and “Buy or Beware”, both of which are credited largely to Ms. Williams’ brother David).

These are short songs in traditional folk form for the most part, all of them lasting less than five minutes with several of less than three minutes. But each seems to portray a complete thought or theme without coming across as rushed or incomplete, something novice folk bands sometimes have a tendency to do.

The instrumentation is pretty simple: bass, guitar, drums and keyboards (mostly piano). The bulk of the music comes from the voices of the two ladies, typically with one singing lead and the other harmonizing, but occasionally in duet. The two of them make for a beautiful medley of sound throughout.

Most of the tracks are unhurried, introspective and somewhat earthy in tone. A few times David Williams ratchets up his guitar a bit with a combination of psych and mellow rock flair such as on “Lonely Man” and “Buy or Beware”, but these times are few and far between. A few tracks like “Dan the Wing” and “Break your Token” have a decidedly Irish lilt to them, but mostly this is just some good folk music without pretension or pompousness.

One track sticks in my mind as something I’m sure I heard as a youngster, the Mamas & Papas- sounding “Buy or Beware”. Ms. Williams and Ms. Simonds sound just like Mama Cass Elliott and Michelle Phillips. I don’t know if this was ever released as a single, but the line “I want no water with my wine” strikes me as something I’ve heard before.

This is a very easy to listen to album, and doesn’t really strike me as dated-sounding although the musical style was in decline even when this was recorded in the early seventies. No matter, prog folk fans hold the album in high esteem for the most part, and now that I’ve had a chance to play it a few times so do I. Four stars for the ladies and their accompanying men. Too bad Mellow Candle weren’t able to make more of a go of things back then, but this album leaves an impressive and lasting legacy. Highly recommended to prog folk fans for sure.

peace

I don’t own the only album Mellow Candle released in the seventies (‘Swaddling Songs’) although it is buried midway down my wish list. So normally I wouldn’t have been interested in this thing either, especially not knowing much about the band anyway. But I had a chance to pick up a used copy so it seemed like the right thing to do.

This is pretty much an album that is only going to appeal to a limited audience, mostly folk fans but by extension probably most prog folk fans as well. I wouldn’t say there’s much about the record that’s progressive other than possibly some of Clodagh Simonds and Allison Williams’ vocal harmonizing which is quite pleasant but a bit of an acquired taste since they’re not particularly melodic nor does either of them have great range when singing in this style. But the sound fits quite well in a folk setting.

This isn’t a ‘lost’ studio album; it’s just a collection of demos and assorted unreleased tracks the band made early in their career. The timing of its release it a bit of a puzzle, although the mid-nineties saw quite a few older vinyl releases be reissued on CD so I suppose Kissing Spell wanted to have more than just the ‘Swaddling Songs’ disk to offer fans.

This being what it is (outtakes and remnants), and having been recorded more than thirty years ago, the sound quality isn’t the greatest; and the production is mostly in the form of whatever engineering went into the CD reissue (which probably wasn’t much). There are no tracks that stand out for me, but I suppose hard-core Mellow Candle fans will find many things to pick over and enjoy. A couple observations from a neophyte Mellow Candle ‘fan’ might be in order though.

First, Clodagh Simonds has a very interesting piano style. There are the occasional solo piano bits (like the sanguine passage on “Lords Of”), but with several songs on the album she seems to be trying to parrot the bass, which gives the tunes sort of a lumbering feel to them (“Buy or Beware”, “Break You”, “Boulders on my Grave”, “Crabtree”). I’m not a pianist so can’t describe this very well, but it is a mildly awkward style, and not one that reflects her lack of ability since she performs beautifully elsewhere like on the almost medieval “Reverend” and “Pretty Polly” as well as the delicate and exquisitely mournful title track.

Another is that this band took an interesting approach to folk music back when these tracks were recorded. The combination of harmonizing female vocalists, piano and a pretty funky electric guitar and bass made them a bit of an enigma. They weren’t really folk, weren’t quite rock. I can see where the fans they did have would have probably been quite loyal to this narrow range of music that attracted them in the first place.

But for me this release is a curiosity more than anything else. I should probably give it two stars since it is clearly something that only fans of the band are likely to find appealing; but I like the vocal and piano combination even if it does fuzz out at times due to the poor recording quality. So I’ll go with three stars but the disclaimer that this shouldn’t be purchased in lieu of the band’s self-titled seventies release, which is generally considered a classic and is therefore is probably the better choice of these two.

peace