FULL HOUSE

Full House was recorded after Ashley Hutchings and lead singer Sandy Denny had left the band, so with such missing talent you can forgive most people for thinking they would just fold. But these gentlemen had many magic tricks up their sleeves. This is a fantastic effort. Where "Liege & Lief" kicked the door open, this one comes storming through. I actually like this a lot more than the band's previous album! Superb singing, perfect for the songs and nice harmonies, incredible playing, especially by Dave Swarbrick, fiddler extraordinaire and guitarist Richard Thompson. This new incarnation of Fairport Convention actually became very well known for thier amazing live shows and the duelling between Swarbrick and Thompson in particular. Instrumentally, this album definitely hits home hard with solid and thrilling performances all round. "Sloth" is an excellent highlight. It's an intense, emotion packed piece with the most brilliant fiddle and guitar solo's. This, then, was where Fairport proved they did indeed have a future after Sandy. Granted, it would be an awkward and uneven future, but this, at least, helped the band to cement their position as the first true admirable English folk-rock band.