|
|
|
Reviewed in fRoots For over a decade, David Suff has assembled an irregular but enlightening series of compilations, reissues and themed records - from imaginative multi-artist tributes to the music of Richard Thompson, Joseph Spence and Blind Willie Johnson, to an equally diverse remake of the classic Mike and Lal Waterson album Shining Bright. Mostly he's operated on his own Fledg'ling label, but now teams up with Topic for perhaps his most ambitious project yet, a four-CD history of The Watersons. In true Suff fashion, it steadfastly avoids the obvious, veering off into many of the numerous strands that have contributed to the grand Waterson history, accumulating a broad selection of obscure and previously unreleased tracks that even the participants didn't know existed. The icing on the cake, though, is the inclusion of a DVD of the rarely seen 1965 Derrick Knight BBC TV documentary Travelling For A Living, an insightful fly-on-the-wall following the first incarnation of the group (Mike, Lal, Norma Waterson and John Harrison) on their travels around the country. Including clips of Anne Briggs and Louis Killen, performances at their own club, the Blue Bell in Hull and informal footage of them at home and on the road, it reveals plenty about not only the group themselves, but the evolution of the folk revival and indeed Britain in the 1960s. Looking like a young Liam Gallagher - and equally uncompromising - Mike Waterson certainly emerges as a charismatic anti-hero and for any of us who have subsequently developed a love of folk song, the film is an inspirational reference point to the folk revival's heartland. From such a base it is easy to wallow in the glorious harmony singing that's remained the essential root of The Watersons in the ensuing four decades. A detailed booklet, including the memories of the main participants, sheds further light on the genesis of a musical family that instantly established a vocal style that has often erroneously been attributed to the influence of the Copper Family, but is in essence pure Yorkshire. The opening track - a full-blooded Here We Come A-Wassailing from 1965 - sets the tone of ceremonial songs that were a prime ingredient of their initial appeal on the Frost & Fire album - and we're away on a colourful, enriching journey that encompasses almost the entire revival. It follows only a vague chronological course, and constantly throws up surprises. A live performance of the pre-Waterson group The Folksons makes an early appearance with an impassioned Blood Red Roses and as old and creaky as much of that first CD is, the energy and spirit as they sing the likes of Greenland Whale Fishery, Derby Ram, Hal-an-Tow and White Cockade (which oddly makes two appearances - albeit 25 years between them) is still very recognisable in their modern work and everything they've done between. For reasons presumably of licensing, there is nothing from Bright Phoebus, the watershed comeback album of 1972 which relaunched the family as a major force and caused some alarm among the purists by its modern tendencies and contemporary content. It is, however, indirectly represented by Blue Murder's measured version of the title song and Red Wine Promises, a movingly spartan unreleased demo for the album. There is in any case powerful evidence of the songwriting genius - and I use the expression deliberately - of Lal Waterson glimpsed on Bright Phoebus, but not fully realised until much later with the brilliant albums Once In A Blue Moon and A Bed Of Roses, the latter released posthumously in 1999. Listening to a home-made 1970 recording of Lal's darkly evocative Song For Thirza is the single most emotional moment on the near five hours of music for me, although the equally oblique The Bird from the same time with the same minimalism runs it close. The wonderful anti-Thatcher tirade, Hilda's Cabinet Band, from 1990 displays the alternative upbeat style of Lal. There are also some wondrous Mike Waterson moments. His performance of Tam Lyn from 1977 is surely the most mesmerising interpretation of that epic ballad outside of Bert Lloyd, while we are generously treated to a series of Mike's more familiar, irresistible throwaway chorus gems: Mole In A Hole, Three Day Millionaire and perhaps best of all, a song I'd never heard before, McIlroy The Emerald Cowboy. Martin Carthy chips in with his mighty version of Mike's feminist anthem A Stitch In Time. There are plenty of Norma and Eliza gems, too - including a stunning unaccompanied, previously unreleased live version of Doal Not Cole by Norma - and the fourth CD demonstrates the broad range of the modern WatersonCarthy incarnation, from Black Muddy River to Stars In Their Eyes. Even with 86 tracks personal favourites are inevitably omitted (no Rubber Band, Some Old Salty, Country Life, etc.), but as a representation of the character and soul of a family that's played a pivotal role in the evolution of this country's indigenous music across the last four decades, it is a remarkable work. - Colin Irwin |
The Watersons
Mighty River of Song
NO LONGER AVAILABLE
Limited edition: 4 CDs, 1 DVD, a 52-page color booklet and a poster, The definitive Watersons collection includes 86 tracks of group, solo, duo, trio, offshoot and guest performances including 50 rare, live and previously unreleased tracks. The DVD documentary, Traveling For A Living, was originally released in the '60s. Researched and compiled by David Suff.
Buyers outside the US please note: This is large box set, and will be shipped by regular surface post if you order online using the shopping cart. If you want to use Air or Priority Post, please contact me FIRST, before you place your order, so I can invoice you at the proper rate.
|
The record label says:
The original Watersons were Mike
and his sisters Norma and Lal, with their second cousin John Harrison. That
is the lineup heard on Early Days and most of Frost and Fire, classic recordings
from the 1960s. After a period off the scene, the group re-emerged in 1973
with Harrison's place filled by Martin Carthy; these are the Watersons of
For Pence & Spicy Ale and Green Fields. In their power and rich texture the Watersons' harmonies are unmatched in
English folksinging.
|
'Not so much a stream as a flood' The Times 'Passionate, inspirational' Mojo 'extraordinary' Uncut 'Utterly unmissable' Time Out '.. a remarkable work' FRoots 'Long may they prosper' The Observer Music Monthly
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Please note!
Most CDs have been
imported from Europe or Asia.
They are not all
shrink-wrapped, and I am not
going to con you by wrapping them
here just to make you think they
have been sterilized in America.
We guarantee that the CDs and the
contents are all brand new and in
perfect condition. Whenever I
can, I use recycled shipping
materials. They may not look as
pretty on the outside, but they save
money and keep the trash dumps a
little bit emptier.
|