Folk & Country > 10 GBP to 15 GBP Folk & Country

Ding Dong on High Street

Advantages: Enjoyable listening
Disadvantages: Will not appeal to everybody

...It is called Voices at the door. The CD has 17 tracks. All are unaccompanied except the last one and I will say more about this later. The tracks are:- 1. How Beautiful Upon The Mountains 2.08 2. While Shepherds Watched/Hail Chime On 3.29 3. Curly Hark/Newtons 3.16 4. While Shepherds Were Watching 2.36 5. Holy Well 4.36 6. Bodmin Wassail 2.27 7. Barwell Old Hark 3.39 8. Time To Remember The Poor 4.13 9. While Shepherds Watched/Liverpool 2.31 ...
...12. George Dunn's Wassail 3.00 13. First Good Joy Our Mary Had 4.04 14. Star Of Bethlehem 3.51 15. Adam Lay Ybounden/Deo Gracias 1.52 16. Jacob's Well 3.32 17. Ding Dong Merrily On High 3.12 Total running time is 54.13 minutes The tune for track 17 is a rather old one first published in 1589 though these words were not written for it until 1924. There is a booklet giving details of the performers and details of the carols themselves included ...

Coloneljohn 12.12.2007 · Read full review
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Review of Voices At The Door (Midwinter Songs And Carols) - Various Artists

Night Visiting

Advantages: Bella has a beautiful and clear voice.
Disadvantages: There are one or two tracks which i'm not sure about

'Night Visiting' is Bella Hardy's first album. All eleven tracks are written, performed (fiddle and vocal) and produced by Bella. Excerpts of all her tracks can be heard at 'www.bellahardy.com' and she is sometimes played on Mike Harding's Radio 2 show (Wednesday 1900-2000) Bella has a clear and beautiful voice. Her music is in the style of English Folk comparable to Kate Rusby and Cara Dillon. Jim Moray, (Sweet England) is currently listening to ...
...website. Her lyrics are imaginative and story-telling as if handed down through centuries. Her instrumentals include the fiddle, melodeon, viola, harp, accordian, whistles and concertina. I love her album, and often listen to it, I bought it from her website and it arrived immediately. My favorates are 'Heart Hill' which is beautifuly sad and Young Edmund which is a very folky story of separated lovers. ...

indexicality 27.10.2007 · Read full review
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Review of Night Visiting - Bella Hardy

Original, fun & sometimes moving

Advantages: Kate's fabulous northern singing voice
Disadvantages: None, in my opinion.

Kate Rusby's singing voice is a very honest one, revealing her northern accent, which I think is wonderful in this age of Pseudo-American pop singers. She manages to convey both complexity and simplicity in her well-crafted songs - which draw on traditional lyrics and original music. The album opens with guitar used almost percussively in the intro to The Good Man - a highly unique, humorous and ambigulous song (traditional lyrics), and works its ...
...think?) xylophone... don't quote me! Unfortunately, the album wanes a little in the middle, but the first and last few songs are memorable and lovely. I have to say I haven't liked everything I've heard Kate do (slushy duets with Ronan spring to mind) but this album was the first I heard of her and a good introduction. I have yet to see Kate and band perform live, but would very much like to. Good stuff. ...

lizdavies 08.01.2007 · Read full review
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Review of Underneath The Stars - Kate Rusby

I am stretched on your grave

Advantages: a few truly superb songs
Disadvantages: A few weaker links.

Rather a morbid title I realise, but it is in fact one of the tracks from what has proved to be quite a good album. Being something of a folk devotee, I had approached Kate Rusby with scepticism - she's 'made it' into normal music outlets, which must mean she has sold out and just done an album of easy listening? Well not actually quite true. This is certainly the sort of album that non-folkies might get along with, but its true to some good traditional ...
...'proper' folk - spend any time in a folk club and you soon find that most of the traditional songs are about sex and/or death (except for the ones about fishing, but there it is.) "Sir Eglamore" an old, and rather silly song about a knight and a dragon, set to music by Kate. It has all the 'lanky down dillies' you could possibly ask for in a folk song, (I have no idea how anyone sings anything like that whilst keeping a straight face.) "As I roved ...

Bryn_Pearson 20.06.2002 · Read full review
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Review of Hourglass - Kate Rusby

Not exceptional but still enjoyable

Advantages: One of those albums that puts a smile on your face when you listen to it
Disadvantages: Probably for fans of country, alt-country, bluegrass and roots only

Once in a while you come across an artist who just seems to offer that extra 'something' - whether it's a distinctive voice, edgy guitars, inspired arrangements or quirky lyrics, you know you've found somebody worth listening to, even if there's a few raw edges or they're not particularly 'trendy'. Back in the summer of 2007, a young Canadian fiddle player called Kendel Carson (note the correct spelling of her first name, Ciao - couldn't find the ...
...double CD as a debut release - "Rearview Mirror Tears". Whilst it will never win awards for originality or even possibly exceptional musical expertise, I found it did several things extremely well - Kendel's enthusiasm, coupled with an almost refreshing naviety in some of the performances, sat well with other tracks that made me think she'd been in the business for years. Her voice is rather good too - all of which makes me suspect this won't be ...

graeme10 04.12.2007 · Read full review
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Review of Rearview Mirror Tears [Digipak] - Carson Kendle