TIME WILL PASS

This album strikes me as a last, somewhat desperate attempt at a successful release by Mandy Morton and her late ex-husband. Most of the musicians were hired for the studio work with the exception of violinist Tom Ling and Dick Powell who had been with Morton for a while and had toured with the band.

Spriguns suffered from several maladies in their day, ranging from Ms. Morton’s reported miserly financial management to a lack of persistence in the ‘band’ membership. But their biggest problem was one of timing: folk music with mild progressive leanings and vaguely commercial aspirations described a pretty small and niche market in the mid and late seventies. Morton appears to have made a tolerable living touring regionally around Britain and parts of Europe, and she likely made a few dollars off the albums, but Spriguns was never destined to be a big name in folk music. I think a couple of her former band members ended up in the eighties Canadian pop band Katrina & the Waves, so you pretty much get the idea (“…I’m walking on sunshine...”).

The music is pretty decent, with the obligatory comparison to Sandy Denny being a somewhat valid one in the case of Ms. Morton. Morton wrote all the music for this album, as well as the lyrics for all but the traditional tune “Blackwaterside”. She had a tendency toward rather dark moods in her writing, and this album seems to be the darkest of all the band released, although certainly not morose by any stretch; maybe mysterious is a better word.

None of these tracks stand out particularly well, although the title track is most representative of the sound on this album. While the acoustic guitars and mandolin (along with Morton’s voice) give the music a folkish tinge; the electric violin, bass and guitar all say late-seventies artsy pop rock. Same goes for “Blackwaterside” which starts off as a rather traditional-sounding folk tune before giving way to some brief but Bryan Josh-like guitar whining before fading away; and “Devil's Night” which follows a similar pattern but is stretched out over a thirteen minute track.

My personal favorites are the opening “Dead Man's Eyes” and closing “Letter to a Lady”. The opener is the best example of a modern folk tune with a bit of rock and some Celtic accents that the band ever managed in my opinion. The closing track is one of three on the album with an orchestral background (strings, really), and this adds a nice touch to what is an otherwise more subdued composition. “White Witch” is another laid-back song with string backing that is a nice touch but suffers a bit from overindulgence by wandering on for nearly thirteen minutes even after it becomes apparent there isn’t enough material there to hold up for that long.

This isn’t essential music by any means, but it is decent at least, especially considering the time period and apparent lack of promotion or development on the part of Decca Records. I think three stars is right for folk and prog folk fans, but this isn’t the kind of album that will likely appeal to more staid progressive music fans.

peace