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Nigel Eaton
Pandemonium (Beautiful Jo Records)
$17.99
A collection of self-penned tues that stretch the limits (again!) of the hurdy-gurdy.
The Musicians
Nigel Eaton - hurdy-gurdy, bass and keys
Andy Cutting - diatonic button accordion
Mark Davies - keys, percussion, bass, voice and programming
Paul James - saxophone Julie Murphy voice
Becky Price - piano, harpsichord and piano accordion
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Listen:
St Suliac
Concerto
Sound of the Bell
Britain's hurdy-gurdy maestro, Nigel Eaton originally played piano and cello, moving to the hurdy-gurdy when his father, Christopher Eaton, started to make the instruments in 1981. In 1985 he joined the groups Blowzabella and Ancient Beatbox with whom he has toured extensively in Britain, Europe and South America and recorded six albums. Nigel also appears on numerous records with artists ranging from Robert Plant, Scott Walker and Marc Almond to The Philharmonia and The New London Consort, and soundtracks for films such as Aliens and The Name of the Rose. Nigel took part in a year-long world tour with Robert Plant and Jimmy Page (of Led Zeppelin) and is one half of Whirling Pope Joan with Julie Murphy
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'Nigel Eaton concentrates on the hurdy-gurdy but ranges far and wide. Look at his form: years with dance band Blowzabella; recordings with Scott Walker and the Philharmonia; performances in Eritrea and along the Northwest frontier with the singer Julie Murphy; a year-long tour with Robert Plant and Jimmy Page, late of Led Zeppelin. So I tore Pandemonium from its plastic wrapper more eagerly than might be expected for an album of hurdy-gurdy music, eager to find out which direction he had chosen for his solo album. The answer? All of them. "Eaton's quest is for "the perfect 3/8 bourrée". Three Sharks comes close, the hurdy-gurdy complemented gorgeously by Andy Cutting's accordion and the sax of Paul James. Of Curlew, another bourrée or something near, Eaton remarks "good riff, though". These he comes up with as regularly as a rock guitarist, also placing them in Sound of the Bell and Hum'n'Bass (hmmm, dodgy title), among hefty percussion, stalwart bass and gothic keyboards as "experiments in hurdy pop". Experiment is a weaselly word, but Eaton needn't have hedged his bets: these are effective tunes, especially Great Escape, based on music he and Julie Murphy heard in Eritrea. Murphy sings a traditional song and Sidney Carter's Like the Snow (so spare you'd think it traditional), and there's also a classical piece, Michel Corrette's Hurdy-Gurdy Concerto II. Eaton would love to play this with an orchestra. Here's hoping an adventurous conductor listens to Pandemonium and gives him a call'. Julian May, Songlines 'A largely self-composed set of Eaton doing what he does so well, with not a few tunes in the French style. These are all as perfectly fine as you'd expect but there are bonuses, too. Two tracks, Sidney Carter's Like the Snow and Break of Day (aka Lemady) are sung by Julie Murphy with her characteristic passion and there's a handful of ventures into what Eaton terms "hurdy pop". These last are tunes with a bunch of electronics as back up and they work a lot better than I remember Ancient Beatbox's LP doing. The various parts now hang together far better but in the end you either love the straight jacket beats of techno and allied genres (which for me stand in the same relation to rhythm as "customer care" does to service) or you don't. From a pre-electronic age, Michel Corrette's Hurdy-Gurdy Concerto No. 2 is terrific and, meaning no disrespect to Becky Price's harpsichord accompaniment, one can only echo Eaton's hope that one day he can record this piece with an orchestra - are you listening, grant-giving bodies?' - fROOTS 'A brilliant album that shows Nigel and friends at their very best! You get wonderfully played jigs, bourrees, mazurkas, and waltzes that bear listening to over and over... Green Man has reviewed over three hundred English Trad and Not-So-Trad Music CDs, more than any other online zine, and I can say that this is among the very, very best of those CDs! Me opinion is that he's a superb hurdy gurdy player who forms great temporary bands, picks superb material, and is always blessed with far better than average production. What's not to like?' - Green Man Review 'An outstanding eclectic album from hurdy-gurdy maestro Eaton for much of which he's joined by equally brilliant guests to produce an electrifying masterpiece, highlighting the instrument's rich and diverse repertoire. An immediate favourite is the haunting song and tune set, Like the Snow/The Chimney, on which he is joined by the ubiquitous and wonderful Julie Murphy, his collaborator in Whirling Pope Joan. Eaton's own La Gloire de Mon Pere is a great tuneand with Andy Cutting contributing on accordion, the two old chums sound as exciting as ever. Classical hurdy gurdy is rarely heard, so what a refreshing treat it is when Becky Price joins him at the harpsichord for Michel Corrette's Hurdy-Gurdy Concerto II. The three short experiments , made with programmer Mark Davies. succeed where in the past similar trad-electronic fusions have failed. This is a must for gurdy lovers, as well as those still unfamiliar with this ancient and fascinating instrument' - Taplas |
TRACK LIST
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