It would be difficult to find a better traditional British folk record than this. June Tabor's career was at its artistic peak when she recorded this in 1983, and in my opinion her voice has never come across on record as good as this, either before or since.
She has achieved a fine balance ... Read review
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Advantages: Brilliant choice of material, expertly performed Disadvantages: None
It would be difficult to find a better traditional British folk record than this. June Tabor's career was at its artistic peak when she recorded this in 1983, and in my opinion her voice has never come across on record as good as this, either before or since.
She has achieved a fine balance of traditional and contemporary (songs by Bill Caddick, Lal Waterson and Joni Mitchell) material, and even where the songs weren't written especially for her, ... ...opener, trad song "The Month of January" sets the standard: Tabor's vocals over delicate, unobtrusive background instruments - a major plus factor for the entire disc.
The modern songs, "The Scarecrow" and "She Moves Among Men" are haunting both musically and lyrically with their powerful evocations of abuse and neglect. On the latter the piano comes to the fore in a powerful solo which demonstrably illustrates the violence lurking beneath the surface ...
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Album Notes: Arguably June Tabor's most stripped-down and somber album, 1981's ABYSSINIANS is so low-key that even those songs that have minimal instrumental backing sound almost like Tabor is singing them unaccompanied. "The Scarecrow," with its almost subliminal guitar and cello arrangement, is one of Tabor's finest and saddest performances. The rest of the album is nearly as dark, with the overall tone ranging from hopeful melancholy to the absolutely bleak despair of "She Moves Among Men (The Barmaid's Song)." One gets the idea that the album's title has less to do with cats, despite the cartoony cover drawing, and more to do with the concepts of "abyss" and "sin." ABYSSINIANS is as bleak as Joy Division's CLOSER or the darkest hours of hardcore country music, and like those albums, there's a cathartic spirit to this album that makes it ultimately a satisfying listening experience.
Titles on disc 1
1.: Month Of January
2.: Scarecrow
3.: One Night As I Lay On My Bed
4.: She Moves Among Men (The Barmaid's Song)
5.: Lay This Body Down
6.: Smiling Shore
7.: Bonnie Boy
8.: I Never Thought My Love Would Leave Me
9.: Bonnie Hind
10.: Fiddle And The Drum
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Listed on Ciao since : 23/04/2005
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