SOLOMON'S SEAL

The long ´lost´ Pendragon album! Salomon´s Seal was the last collective efford recorded with the original line up, when the cracks were starting to show. The band was falling apart and the when the original LP faced dismal sales and critic response it was quickly withdraw. It was said during many years that the masters tapes were destroyed, so a CD version was very unlikely. But in 2003 it appeared in the market. Apparently it was taken from a (good) vinyl copy. I was not able to get one, but a friend had a rare LP version that he borrowed me. As a big fan of the band, I was glad I had finally had the chance to hear it.

Salomon Seal´s a good work, but not their best or most inspired. It was far from being bad or even weak either. It has the usual fine selection of originals and traditional songs arranged and performed with great skill. The tracklist is keeping their high standards with only Jump Baby Jump sounding like a filler. However it was also clear they had little else to say by the time the LP was recorded. Only vocalist Jaqui McShee seems to be really motivated, singing as good as ever. The overall feeling is that their hearts were not really on it.

If you´re a fan of the band, then Salomon´s Seal is a good pick. The chemistry between them still works and The Pentangle still delivered the goods, even if not as good as on their first three releases. The magic still lingers on, after all. Rating: 3 to 3,5 stars.