WATER BEARER

Sally Oldfield began her career with brother Mike in a duet call The Sallyangie back in the 60s. Her first solo work "Water Bearer" was recorded in the spring of 1978 at the Roundhouse and at Chipping Norton Studios. It was her most progressive work in a long career that veered much more into mainstream music, though I've heard "Celebration" has nice moments as well. Oldfield is an extremely talented multi-instrumentalist just like her brother and this album was completely written, arranged, and produced by her.

This highly sophisticated vocal showcase is just so impressive. Impeccable arrangements and many layers of beautifully played instrumental accompaniments grace each track. There are lots of hand percussions and exotic sounding instruments. The sound quality is crisp and clear, one reviewer I read noted her album had better sound than brother Mike's work from this period. The songs features Oldfield's beautiful "Annie Haslam-like" voice as the material delves straight into the fantasy worlds inspired by Tolkien. Truly this music is the soundtrack for your next Elven get-together at Rivendell. It can get a bit repetitive and a bit cheesy to be frank, but mostly it should please fans of prog-folk or crossover.

I enjoy "Water Bearer" on occasion and while quite pleasant and technically top-notch, I don't feel it is the important progressive work that many others do. 3 stars.

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