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Prog Britannia - Album Reviews |
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Psychedelic Paul ![]() Forum Senior Member ![]() ![]() Joined: September 16 2019 Location: Nottingham, U.K Status: Offline Points: 45236 |
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Prog Folk Britannia
FAT MATTRESS A highly-sprung Folk Rock band from Folkestone. ![]() ![]() ![]() The Go Lightly family test out the fat mattresses in a bed shop. ![]() Edited by Psychedelic Paul - March 26 2024 at 03:03 |
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Psychedelic Paul ![]() Forum Senior Member ![]() ![]() Joined: September 16 2019 Location: Nottingham, U.K Status: Offline Points: 45236 |
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Prog Folk Britannia
FARAWAY FOLK A Folk band for sure, but Faraway from Prog Folk, sounding like a quaint British version of The Seekers, only without their success. ![]() ![]() ![]() |
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Psychedelic Paul ![]() Forum Senior Member ![]() ![]() Joined: September 16 2019 Location: Nottingham, U.K Status: Offline Points: 45236 |
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Prog Folk Britannia
FAIRPORT CONVENTION Who Knows Where the Time Goes? ..... Enduring folk legends Fairport Convention were known as the British Jefferson Airplane in their formative years, featuring a veritable panjandrum of folk rock luminaries over the past half century or more, including Sandy Denny, Judy Dyble, Ashley Hutchings, Richard Thompson, Martin Lamble, Trevor Lucas, Dave Mattacks, Iain Matthews, Simon Nicol, Dave Swarbrick, Jerry Donahue & Dave Pegg, who still remains with the band to this day. Fairport Convention looks set to be around for a long time to come with no sign of a final Farewell Farewell. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
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Psychedelic Paul ![]() Forum Senior Member ![]() ![]() Joined: September 16 2019 Location: Nottingham, U.K Status: Offline Points: 45236 |
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Prog Folk Britannia
FAIRFIELD PARLOUR A Prog Folk band with a colourful psychedelic history, having been known at various times as The Sidekicks, The Key, I Love Wight, and most famously, Kaleidoscope! ![]() KALEIDOSCOPE (UK) are sometimes confused with the American band of the same name, which is probably not surprising, considering they're both psychedelic sixties bands. Kaleidoscope was obviously a popular name for a band in the late 1960's flower-power era, conjuring up images of radiant psychedelic rainbow colours. Intriguingly, the British Kaleidoscope released their first album "Tangerine Dream" (1967) the same year as the synthesiser band Tangerine Dream were formed in Germany. Kaleidoscope's second album "Faintly Blowing" followed in 1969 and they released their third album "Home from Home" under the name Fairfield Parlour in 1970. They recorded a fourth album together, "White-Faced Lady", but it was shelved and remained in storage until 1991, when it was released on an independent label under the original Kaleidoscope name. The 1998 CD re-issue of Kaleidoscope's debut "Tangerine Dream" added six bonus tracks to the original eleven songs on the album. Let's take a look through the Kaleidoscope view-finder now and examine the many colourful psychedelic facets of Tangerine Dream".
It's a jolly good opening to the album with the title track "Kaleidoscope", a jolly-sounding 2-minute burst of Sunshine-Pop that's positively bounding along with joyous optimism. It's a good all-round late-1960's Pop tune with a bright and sunny disposition, where all the birds are singing and the fluorescent flowers are blooming in the psychedelic garden of earthly delights. The curiously-titled "Please Excuse My Face" follows next. It's a gorgeous acoustic guitar arrangement where the lovelorn singer is in full romantic balladeer mode and pining away forlornly over his lost love. This beautiful ballad sounds as charmingly English as afternoon tea and crumpets whilst watching a game of cricket on the village green. Howzat! We're taking a psychedelic trip back in time now as we "Dive Into Yesterday", a song that's awash with colourful acid-tinged guitar vibes. It's a catchy tune that's very reminiscent of the Beatles at their most psychedelic, with influences from the West Coast sound of sunny California. This joyfully sunny music sounds as bright and bubbly as a glass of sparkling lemonade. And now we come to the curious tale of "Mr. Small, The Watch Repairer Man", the kind of cheerfully light-hearted Pop song that could only come from England in the late 1960's. It's a carefree and playful little number that doesn't take itself too seriously and it's representative of the Best of British Psychedelic Pop. We're travelling to distant foreign lands now with "Flight from Ashiya", only this appears to be a doomed flight as the constant refrain in this song is "Nobody Knows Where We Are" ..... Oh dear! It seems that despite the pleasant sunshine sound of this jangling and exotic Byrds-like psychedelia, the flight has gone down in the middle of nowhere. The dark mood continues with "The Murder Of Lewis Tollani", which closes Side One on a sombre note, although don't get too down-hearted because it's really a great Sunshine Pop song despite the solemn message in the lyrics. The strangely-titled "(Further Reflections) In The Room Of Percussion" opens Side Two. It's a typically cheerful 1960's Pop tune but who knows what the song's about as the convoluted lyrics are like a riddle wrapped inside an enigma on a psychedelic acid trip. One thing's for sure, "In the Room of Percussion" is nothing to do with a drummer doing a sound-check in the recording studio. We're meeting the charming "Dear Nellie Goodrich" next, which turns out to be a short but sweet jingly- jangly sunshine burst of lovely English Pop music, featuring some delightful sugar-coated harmonising. This very agreeable tune is as sweet as a jar of honey. It's time to pack our bags now because we're off to the seaside for "Holidaymaker", a happy- go-lucky Pop song that's just as bright and sunny as the song title implies. Don't forget to pack the suntan lotion because this summer song is positively bursting with sunshine. We're in the King's court for "A Lesson Perhaps", although he's not a progressive Crimson King. No, this is a traditional Folky King in a quaint pastoral setting. This gentle melodic madrigal represents a charming acoustic spoken-word diversion in an album that's positively glowing and overflowing with radiantly cheerful Pop songs. And now we arrive at the magnificent highlight of the album, "The Sky Children", in a classic example of saving the best song till last. This marvellous closing song has instantly transformed what could have been a very good four-star album into a five-star masterpiece. It's eight minutes of pure unadulterated pleasure. The music is similar in style to the Byrds classic "Eight Miles High" - only better! The "Poptastic" lyrics are simply sensational. Take a look for yourselves:- "A million white flowers in a field in the sky, Seemed to spell out a greeting as the children flew by, A guard in a chariot of silver and gold, Gave the children all tickets, then the story he told, Of a time in the future that was sunshine and flowers, And the children grew sleepy in the sky's white towers, They dreamed of the story that the guard had displayed, They saw all the wonders, tiny minds were amazed, They saw candy forests and dragons that breathed fire, On all that was evil in the misty mire." ..... And that's just the first verse! There are six more incredible verses to come!! This beautiful music does indeed sound like "A million white flowers in a field in the sky." It's heavenly! Travel back in time to the flower-power sounds of the late-1960's Summer of Love with this charmingly English album of glorious Sunshine Pop songs that's positively overflowing with cheerful exuberance and ebullient optimism. It's a Psychedelic Kaleidoscope of glowing rainbow colours wrapped inside a beautiful Tangerine Dream! |
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Psychedelic Paul ![]() Forum Senior Member ![]() ![]() Joined: September 16 2019 Location: Nottingham, U.K Status: Offline Points: 45236 |
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Psychedelic Paul ![]() Forum Senior Member ![]() ![]() Joined: September 16 2019 Location: Nottingham, U.K Status: Offline Points: 45236 |
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And on that note, here's a rocking & rollicking modern version of Rising for the Moon from the Cropredy folk festival in 2017. Fairport Convention's humungous discography is coming up next.
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moshkito ![]() Forum Senior Member ![]() ![]() Joined: January 04 2007 Location: Grok City Status: Offline Points: 18653 |
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Hi, Of all the work that Fairport Convention did, none is as far out and special as their tribute to Sandy in the "Rising for the Moon" album ... with the piece "One More Chance", which is really far out ... and if that is not enough the redone album has a piano version by Sandy of this song that is down right spooky and really special. Maybe it is "spooky" because we know she didn't get another chance ... but wow, the two pieces are fabulous ... a really special tribute, if you ask me.
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Music is not just for listening ... it is for LIVING ... you got to feel it to know what's it about! Not being told!
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Psychedelic Paul ![]() Forum Senior Member ![]() ![]() Joined: September 16 2019 Location: Nottingham, U.K Status: Offline Points: 45236 |
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Prog Folk Britannia
ENYA Sail away, sail away, sail away.... If you'd like to journey through Marble Halls and go with the Orinoco Flow, why not spare some Amarantine love for Enya. Now's your chance to be a Wild Child and Paint the Sky with Stars in shades of Caribbean Blue. Only Time will tell if we'll ever have A Day without Rain in the Book of Days when the only Watermark we can rely on are Trains and Winter Rains. Anywhere Is better than being stuck outdoors like an Exile with Drifting dark thunderclouds overhead. It's in the Rain falling like tears On My Way Home when I recall the distant Storms in Africa. As Evening Falls under the light of those Shepherd Moons tonight, The Memory of Trees in blossom reminds me that spring is on the way, And Winter Came and quickly went away this year. Yes, it's finally time to put on the old sunshades again. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Edited by Psychedelic Paul - March 23 2024 at 07:38 |
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Psychedelic Paul ![]() Forum Senior Member ![]() ![]() Joined: September 16 2019 Location: Nottingham, U.K Status: Offline Points: 45236 |
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Prog Folk Britannia
ENERGY ORCHARD A fruitful harvest of great songs! Energy Orchard are a Hi-NRG Irish band you've probably never heard of before, but if you like The Waterboys, then you'll surely love the sound of Energy Orchard. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Edited by Psychedelic Paul - March 23 2024 at 06:47 |
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Psychedelic Paul ![]() Forum Senior Member ![]() ![]() Joined: September 16 2019 Location: Nottingham, U.K Status: Offline Points: 45236 |
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Prog Folk Britannia
NANCY ELIZABETH An obscure English Psych-Folk singer whose chances of getting any radio airplay and breaking on through to the other side of pop stardom are about as likely as the Top Gear team breaking on through to the other side of the English Channel in their homemade "car boats", where seaworthiness appears to be a foreign word to Clarkson, May & Hammond. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
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Psychedelic Paul ![]() Forum Senior Member ![]() ![]() Joined: September 16 2019 Location: Nottingham, U.K Status: Offline Points: 45236 |
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Prog Folk Britannia
ECLECTION Signed to Jac Holzman's legendary Elektra label and with a group name inspired by Joni Mitchell, Eclection truly represent an international collection of folk musicians, consisting of:- Sailor man George Kajanus from Norway; Kerrilee Male and Trevor Lucas (later of Fotheringay) from Australia; Michael Rosen from Canada; & Gerry Conway from Great Britain. Eclection only recorded one incredible self-titled album, which only adds to its unique charm, so let's get together and celebrate Eclection with A Glass of Champagne. ![]() ![]() Hello Sailor! Edited by Psychedelic Paul - March 22 2024 at 14:41 |
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Psychedelic Paul ![]() Forum Senior Member ![]() ![]() Joined: September 16 2019 Location: Nottingham, U.K Status: Offline Points: 45236 |
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Prog Folk Britannia:
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Psychedelic Paul ![]() Forum Senior Member ![]() ![]() Joined: September 16 2019 Location: Nottingham, U.K Status: Offline Points: 45236 |
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Prog Folk Britannia
CLARK-HUTCHINSON* A Blues-Rock duo who can Dust My Broom anytime, just like Steven Seagal, who likes to send bad guys to the bank - the blood bank! ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() *Listed as Indo-Prog/Raga Rock on ProgArchives
Edited by Psychedelic Paul - March 20 2024 at 10:33 |
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Psychedelic Paul ![]() Forum Senior Member ![]() ![]() Joined: September 16 2019 Location: Nottingham, U.K Status: Offline Points: 45236 |
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Prog Folk Britannia
MICHAEL CHAPMAN (1941-2021) A folk singer and virtuoso guitarist who, on a good day, has the songwriting talents of Bob Dylan, but on a bad day, sounds like Tom Waits after a few beers. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
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Psychedelic Paul ![]() Forum Senior Member ![]() ![]() Joined: September 16 2019 Location: Nottingham, U.K Status: Offline Points: 45236 |
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Prog Folk Britannia
SANDY DENNY (1947-1978) Three-piece-suite 2: another trio of sweet songs from the lovingly-remembered Sandy Denny and Fairport Convention. ![]() Edited by Psychedelic Paul - March 12 2024 at 08:17 |
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Psychedelic Paul ![]() Forum Senior Member ![]() ![]() Joined: September 16 2019 Location: Nottingham, U.K Status: Offline Points: 45236 |
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Prog Folk Britannia
JUDY DYBLE (1949-2020) Three-piece-suite: a suite of sweet songs in loving memory of Judy Dyble and Fairport Convention. ![]() Edited by Psychedelic Paul - March 12 2024 at 08:05 |
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Psychedelic Paul ![]() Forum Senior Member ![]() ![]() Joined: September 16 2019 Location: Nottingham, U.K Status: Offline Points: 45236 |
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Prog Folk Britannia
JUDY DYBLE Who knows where the time goes? I've been away from here for just a week, but it seems like a whole month. The same can be said of folk singer Judy Dyble, who appeared on Fairport Convention's first album in 1968 and then with the short-lived folk duo Trader Horne in 1970 before disappearing from the music business altogether for over thirty years, becoming a mother and a librarian in the meantime. Judy then made the most amazing comeback since Linda Perhacs in The States, recording a whole string of superb solo albums in the early 21st century, culminating in the wonderful collaboration with David Longdon of Big Big Train which arrived at the station in 2020, shortly before they both passed away to that great prog folk convention in the sky. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() TRADER HORNE were a short-lived British Prog-Folk duo consisting of Jackie McAuley (formerly of Them) on vocals, keyboards and guitars, and Judy Dyble (ex-Fairport Convention) on vocals, electric autoharp, recorder and glockenspiel. Their one and only album "Morning Way" was released on Pye Records in 1970 but didn't make much of an impact on the record-buying public at the time, but the album has since become a legendary lost classic and a real collectors item. The original LP album has been known to fetch incredibly high prices. It was subsequently re-issued on CD in 2008 with two bonus tracks added to the original thirteen songs on the album. The album opens with "Jenny May", a lovely acoustic Folk ballad with Judy Dyble's gorgeous honeyed vocals floating like a warm summer breeze over the gentle bucolic melody. Altogether now, "Summer breeze, makes me feel fine, blowing through the jasmine in my mind." ..... This quaint sunny Folk tune does indeed make you feel fine and it sounds as quintessentially English as a game of cricket on the village green. The next song sounds very reminiscent of the old Christmas carol, "We Three Kings of Orient Are", which just happens to rhyme with the song title, "Children Of Oare". One of the charming things about this album is each song concludes with a brief but beautiful pastoral flute melody to interlink all of the songs together. The next exquisite piece of music "Three Rings for Elven Kings" is a soft and gentle instrumental number for flute and autoharp, with the autoharp resembling the sound of a harpsichord. Next up is "Growing Man", featuring Judy Dyble's delightful vocals right at the forefront with Jackie McAuley on backing vocals. The music sounds semi-classical, featuring a mini woodwind orchestra, and it's a song that could have had pride of place on an early Fairport Convention album, especially bearing in mind that Judy Dyble was the lead singer on their debut album. It's time now for some "Down and Out Blues", which is just what it says on the label - a mournful bluesy number where Judy Dyble does indeed sound down and out and penniless with these heart-felt lyrics:- "No nobody wants you, When you're down and out, In your pocket's not one penny, And all your pretty friends, You haven't any." ..... Cheer up Judy because the next song "The Mixed-Up Kind" is an altogether jollier tune which sounds like a lost classic which could have come right off Fairport Convention's illustrious first album. It's a truly beautiful melody carried along by the mellifluous strings of the autoharp with Judy Dyble's crystal-clear vocals sounding at their absolute best here. This tremendously appealing song represents the stunning highlight of the album so far and it's also by far the longest song on the album at over six minutes in duration. This song is six minutes of sheer beauty and joyous delight. It's as good as, if not better than anything Fairport Convention have ever done. Side Two opens cheerfully with "Better Than Today", and what could be better than listening to this charming pastoral Folk melody today, or any day come to that. There's some truly beautiful harmonising between Judy Dyble and Jackie McAuley on this lovely Folk song. The next song "In My Loneliness" is a mournful ballad (just as the song title implies) featuring weeping violins and with Judy Dyble sounding at her most imploringly passionate best here. There's a change of pace for "Sheena", an up-tempo and uplifting melody that swings along exuberantly on a wave of eternal optimism, in the style of some of the best music from the sunshine state of California. In contrast to Side One, where all of the songs concluded with a brief pastoral flute melody, all of the songs on Side Two conclude with a brief tinkling of the ivories. The next song "The Mutant" is a doleful melancholy ballad with Jackie McAuley taking lead vocal duties for a change. And now we come to the title track "Morning Way", a song with trippy lyrics which probably comes closest to the Psych-Folk that Trader Horne are sometimes labelled as. Again, there's some gorgeous multi-tracked harmonising to be heard on this four and a half minutes of musical magic. It's time now for "Velvet to Atone", a solo piano piece with Judy Dyble's crystal-clear vocals gleaming with all of the sparkling beauty of a crystal chandelier. The album concludes with "Luke That Never Was", which opens to the sound of a solemn church organ, although this is just a prelude to a good old-fashioned happy-clappy tambourine song to sing along to in church. If only they really DID sing rousing spiritual songs as good as this in the local parish church, the vicar would surely approve. "Morning Way" is a charmingly beautiful, one-off gem of a Folk album that we can all treasure for posterity half a century on from it's initial release. Trader Horne's marvellous album is a very pleasant reminder of why we just love those bygone halcyon days of the 1970's, which often brings to mind the poignant refrain, "They don't make music like this any more." ..... which is a shame. Trader Horne are sometimes labelled as Prog-Folk and occasionally as Psych-Folk, but it's basically just an all-round good English Folk album with no strings (or labels) attached. Edited by Psychedelic Paul - March 12 2024 at 04:39 |
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Psychedelic Paul ![]() Forum Senior Member ![]() ![]() Joined: September 16 2019 Location: Nottingham, U.K Status: Offline Points: 45236 |
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Prog Folk Britannia
LESLEY DUNCAN (1943-2010) ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Edited by Psychedelic Paul - March 11 2024 at 10:32 |
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Psychedelic Paul ![]() Forum Senior Member ![]() ![]() Joined: September 16 2019 Location: Nottingham, U.K Status: Offline Points: 45236 |
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Prog Folk Britannia
DULCIMER A Prog Folk trio who are anything but dull and with a proficiency in a multitude of instruments, which of course includes the dulcimer. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
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Psychedelic Paul ![]() Forum Senior Member ![]() ![]() Joined: September 16 2019 Location: Nottingham, U.K Status: Offline Points: 45236 |
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Prog Folk Britannia
NICK DRAKE The Van Gogh of Folk Music - The tragic story and all-too-brief lifetime of tortured soul Nick Drake (1948-1974). ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
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