THE BIG HUGE

Originally released as a double album Wee Tam & The Big Huge for some reasons gets commercialized as two separate Cds, the first called Wee Tam and the next being The Big Huge. Again the Boyd/Elektra connection is present, the pastoral setting of artwork (both albums photos taken from the same shoot (same clothes)

By this time, ISB had become a quartet by adding vocalist/percussionist Licorice (Williamson's girlfriend) and Rose Simpson (Heron's English girlfriend although apparently met through Williamson) on bass. According to producer/discoverer Joe Boyd, this was more of a tit for tat move, when Williamson declared Licorice a member, Heron went out to buy a bass and told Rose Simpson to learn it quickly, which although not gifted for that, she learn with a 300 % will and actually managed it to the point that Winwood once enquired about using her for his first solo album (which turned out to be Traffic's Barleycorn album) but he was quickly booted from the studio away from Rose by Heron.

If Wee Tam is a soporific album, TBH is a pretty good successor to Hangman, it's partly due to the quality of the songs spared for this half-double album. Besides starting on the lengthy Maya and its thoughtful lyrics, it contains the 16-seconds mega epic Son Of Noah's Brother (really worth at least 20 times its actual duration), the liturgical Mountain Of God (a bit annoying, but not overstaying its welcome), the semi- comic Cousin Caterpillar with the group's silly chorus line, the corner-cutting Iron Stone and the astounding Circle Is Unbroken, one of the definitive and seminal prog folk song, also one of their most influential.

Theoretically this Cd reissue should stand as side 3 and 4 of the double vinyl album release, but Big Huge easily surpasses Wee Tam, on all counts. From the compositions and songwriting point of view, to the execution of the music including a more varied instrument used and offering a more ethnic side, TBH simply dwarfs its twin release WT and doesn't leave it a chance.

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