Caroline Herring's fourth album Golden Apples of the Sun is her most intimate and mature to date. Combing haunting originals with some surprising new takes on old standards, Herring has created an album that at once recal... more »ls the folk heyday of the 1960s and 70s while also sounding entirely fresh and new. Herring has built a name for herself by crafting in-depth story songs. Her last release, Lantana, was named by National Public Radio as one of the "Top Ten Best Folk Albums for 2008." While critics have long praised the purity and complexity of her voice, drawing comparisons to Joan Baez and Kate Wolf, the vocal performances on Golden Apples of the Sun are as comfortable and intimate as any Herring has produced. It is the most true to stage release of her career, and Herring gives credit to producer David "Goody" Goodrich, who crafted the stripped-down sound in the Signature Sounds studio in Connecticut. Armed primarily with just her guitar and live vocals, the finished product has all the marks of a fully developed artist and performer. Perhaps the most unique and unexpected aspect of the new album is the tribute Herring pays to iconic folk songstresses who influenced her. Herring's work has always been identified with the traditions of her native South, yet on Golden Apples of the Sun Herring filters the sounds and inspiration of Joni Mitchell and Judy Collins through her own distinctive musical sensibilities. Long-time Herring fans are sure to appreciate her interpretive abilities. Her inspired reinterpretations bring new life to Mitchell's "Cactus Tree" as well as the traditional bluegrass tune "Long Black Veil" and the blues classic "See See Rider." Herring also tackles "True Colors," a song made famous by Cyndi Lauper, giving a newfound strength and directness to the pop song.« less
Caroline Herring's fourth album Golden Apples of the Sun is her most intimate and mature to date. Combing haunting originals with some surprising new takes on old standards, Herring has created an album that at once recalls the folk heyday of the 1960s and 70s while also sounding entirely fresh and new. Herring has built a name for herself by crafting in-depth story songs. Her last release, Lantana, was named by National Public Radio as one of the "Top Ten Best Folk Albums for 2008." While critics have long praised the purity and complexity of her voice, drawing comparisons to Joan Baez and Kate Wolf, the vocal performances on Golden Apples of the Sun are as comfortable and intimate as any Herring has produced. It is the most true to stage release of her career, and Herring gives credit to producer David "Goody" Goodrich, who crafted the stripped-down sound in the Signature Sounds studio in Connecticut. Armed primarily with just her guitar and live vocals, the finished product has all the marks of a fully developed artist and performer. Perhaps the most unique and unexpected aspect of the new album is the tribute Herring pays to iconic folk songstresses who influenced her. Herring's work has always been identified with the traditions of her native South, yet on Golden Apples of the Sun Herring filters the sounds and inspiration of Joni Mitchell and Judy Collins through her own distinctive musical sensibilities. Long-time Herring fans are sure to appreciate her interpretive abilities. Her inspired reinterpretations bring new life to Mitchell's "Cactus Tree" as well as the traditional bluegrass tune "Long Black Veil" and the blues classic "See See Rider." Herring also tackles "True Colors," a song made famous by Cyndi Lauper, giving a newfound strength and directness to the pop song.
"Maybe it's just me -- though I doubt it, frankly -- but the discovery that "Long Black Veil," recorded by hordes of roots artists as if in obedience to some unwritten law, has been covered yet again never fails to elicit a low, irritated growl. Anyone within listening distance could have picked up that growl as I removed Caroline Herring's "Golden Apples of the Sun" from the package in which it arrived. I could not have been more wrong. Sometimes it is good to be wrong.
Written in 1959 by Danny Dill and Marijohn Wilkin, the folksong-like "Veil" was covered the same year by Lefty Frizzell, who turned it into a country hit. I was introduced to it on a Johnny Cash album a few years later. I thought it was a good story with a memorable twist, set to a nice tune. I did not anticipate that over the decades it would be beaten to death, through sheer repetition buried lower than the ballad's strung-up narrator. Miraculously, Herring resurrects the song resplendently, first by rewriting that worn-out melody, second by treating it as if it were something not from 50 years ago but from 150. There's her plaintive singing (with Ann Castro's backup vocal), and there is also the unsettling arrangement, incorporating old-time banjo and the drone of a one-stringed instrument (presumably a diddly bow) courtesy of David Goodrich, Herring's sole accompanist throughout "Golden Apples." When the song came on the player, some moments passed before I even realized what I was listening to.
Small miracles abound on this marvelous recording. It arises from an unlikely, in lesser hands unpromising, premise: a modern-day folk singer's effort to pay tribute to two 1960s heroes, Judy Collins and Joni Mitchell. (In the latter 1960s it was still possible to think of Mitchell as something like a folk singer.) Herring even borrows the title of Collins's second Elektra album, released in 1962, consisting of all traditional songs but for a setting-to-music of W. B. Yeats's poem "Song of the Wandering Aengus," with its famous closing line "the silver apples of the moon, the golden apples of the sun." (Yeats took his inspiration from a legend associated with Aengus Og, the Irish god of love and beauty.) Herring offers up her own lovely, mysterious version of "Aengus," joining the esteemed company of other fine artists who have attempted the same; besides Collins, they include Karan Casey, Tommy Makem, Jean Redpath, Donovan, even -- rather incredibly -- Dave Van Ronk.
Herring does one early Mitchell song, the forgotten "Cactus Tree" (from "Song to a Seagull," her 1968 debut album) which proves -- unsurprisingly, given Herring's exemplary taste as much as Mitchell's -- well worth reviving. This cover also underscores Herring's debt to Mitchell's unique vocal style as well as to her composing approach. Yet this is entirely deliberate, really the whole point of the exercise. I did not think of Mitchell when I heard Herring's previous CD, "Lantana," but I heard the same strengths: strong, graceful singing, superior songwriting, compelling interpretations of traditional and other material, and intellectual, emotional, and musical maturity.
Every song is some variety of alluring. I've heard few singers who have so perfectly integrated art and folk song. And unlike Mitchell, Herring knows the tradition well -- it's part of her natural vocabulary -- but it is very much her own personalized vision of that tradition. Consider with all due awe the rolling, de-bluesified "See See Rider," with rarely heard but authentically aged lyrics. Her Mitchell-esque originals -- "A Turn Upon the Hill," "The Dozens," "The Great Unknown" -- likewise show that it only looks as if Herring were a borrower. She is, in fact, an owner of a magnificent and distinctive talent. With "Golden Apples" she is on her way."
Courageous, Acoustic Gem: Powerful, Addictive
revdrtomb | USA | 11/18/2009
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Herring's albums always seem to arrive at the right time -- when I'm in need of moving, literate compositions that remind me of the power and possibility of acoustic music.
The strength of Herring's writing comes for her extraordinary ability to straddle the line between honoring the past and forging her own unique voice -- which means her compositions have a familiarity about them while convincing you that you've never quite heard material like this before. That's true of "Golden Apples," which is more intimate than her previous releases, and which features covers of songs by Joni Mitchell and Judy Collins -- in Herring's distinctive style. (A companion EP, "Silver Apples of the Moon," includes a gorgeous take on Kate Wolf's "Here in California.") But it's Herring's original works that shine most golden here, her soothing voice and acoustic guitar a perfect match for her poetic sketches. Highly recommended."
Almost famous
Josiah | Toccopola, MS | 11/16/2009
(5 out of 5 stars)
"There is a scene in the director's cut of Almost Famous that involves Jason Lee's character going off on those who disdain popular music because, he believes, popular music is popular because it is good.
Maybe. But I am convinced, and offer Golden Apples of the Sun as Exhibit A, that music and talent are rarely rewarded based on merit. I suppose that we will not see Golden Apples of the Sun go platinum, and Caroline chased about by hungry paparazzi. However, I am willing to bet that three hours after you listen to the album for the first time, you will still be thinking about it -- that you will listen to it, and know that you have encountered music and lyrics that, if music's ubiquity in our culture were based on real quality, you would be hearing in subway stops and truckstops everywhere.
It is just that good."
Who Will Keep The Lamp Light Burning?
Alfred Johnson | boston, ma | 11/15/2009
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Okay, today I am under the influence of the children of the moon. Or is it that this weekend I went to a folk music concert (featuring the jug music of Maria Muldaur of the old time 1960s Jim Kweskin Jug Band and sidekick John Sebastian of The Lovin' Spoonful) and noticed that the ages of the majority of the patrons could have permitted the session to double up as an AARP meeting. This brings me to the subject at hand. Who will, if anyone, carry on the old folk traditions that we helped revive in the 1960s?
Every musical genre needs its revivalists, or it will merely past out of history. Folk (or, more properly, traditional music) has always had boosts: sometimes from surprising sources like Francis Child and his incessant ballad collecting in the 19th century, the father and son Lomaxes, John and Alan, the father, sons and daughter Seeger, Charles, Pete, Mike and Peggy. They, and others, carried the tradition through to the 1960s (and beyond) but I do not now see, and that concert audience's composition kind of confirmed a long held suspicion of mine, the younger blood that will preserve the tradition.
We know, however, that it will continue as long as people want to make ad hoc music for themselves and their circle. Moreover, that future folk music will, maybe, sound unlikely to our ears. That has always been the case though. Who would have thought that, let's say, Harry Smith's "Anthology Of American Folk Music" with its eclectic mishmash of styles and forms like mountain music, gospel, country blues and the like would have the seminal influence that it had on an urban, educated, for the most part upscale and upwardly mobile population that came of age in the 1960s.
That said, I have no answer about whom, or what whirlwind, will ultimately set the new agenda for folk music but I would take time here to point out one candidate whose CD I am reviewing as part of this commentary, Caroline Herring. Her latest CD "Golden Apples Of The Sun" seems to be me to set the right tone for what the future of folk might look like. Obviously it will continue to depend on guitars, fiddles, mandolins and whatever low or high tech instrumental developments come along. But it will, like the revival of the 1960s, depend as well on the mix of old time music with some new, fresh material that will response to the needs of a new audience.
In that sense this CD fits a right balance. Three excellent compositions on this CD "Tale of The Islander", "The Dozens", and "Abuelita" (as well as a couple of others) are Ms. Herring's own work, and influenced by ideas that stem from her experiences and worldview. "See See Rider", a classic old time tune that I first heard Mississippi John Hurt do back in the days, the much covered mournful ballad "Long Black Veil", and the poem by William Butler Yeats set to music "Song Of The Wandering Aengus" reflect that tip of the hat to tradition. Of course in this space anyone who has the forethought to set a Yeats poem to music will have me eating out of their hand, no question. But that is a story for another day. What is for today is that this is what the future of folk looks like.
"
Caroline Herring : I go weak at the knees
Colin Spence | Formby, UK | 11/10/2009
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Caroline Herring's voice exudes understated Southern passion - a voice which delicately trembles and quietly smoulders as it embraces the lyrics of each song. Upfront, Caroline plays acoustic guitar and, on one track, banjo. Producer David Goodrich plays a range of instruments including electric guitars, ukulele and piano - apart from the occasional short solo, they are played sparingly to add a little extra texture to the music; he is also credited with electric bass and percussion, but their playing is barely perceptible throughout the album.
Her first album, 'Twilight', featured songs with a traditional folk/country influence but, with subsequent releases, she has placed greater emphasis on songs with more of a 'folksier' character. On this album she continues in that vein, this time drawing upon a wider range of styles and influences. There are 3 covers of songs by other writers, a 'trad. arr.' and 2 songs which are adaptations of poems. Her own songs, of which there are 6, are reflective and intimate - often evoking a strong sense of tradition and/or spirituality.
Some comments about my favourite songs :
TALES OF THE ISLANDER (Caroline Herring) - The song is an ode to Gulf Coast painter Walter Anderson - its title is a reference to Horn Island, where he spent much of his latter years as a recluse. It's a little more up-beat than most of the other songs on the album - exquisitely sung with picked acoustic guitar and piano accompaniment. Some terrific lyrics, rich in imagery - for example : 'We could bathe in the nullah of a gulf stream, Prowl like cats in the night, Then transform like moths, In a chrysalis of light'.
TRUE COLORS (Billy Steinberg/Tom Kelly) - Caroline takes this Cyndi Lauper song and makes it sound as if it was never intended to be a mainstream pop song in the first place. She imbues it with that same dark emotional nuance which can be heard in many of her own songs. It opens with sonorous acoustic guitar strumming which continues throughout the song; electric guitar is also featured, including a short solo.
LONG BLACK VEIL (Danny Dill/Marijohn Wilkin, arr. Caroline Herring) - I think Caroline's rendition is 'rootsier' than the 2 others that I've heard (Johnny Cash and Joan Baez) - her mournful vocals enunciate perfectly the song's dark and chilling mood (not dissimilar to that of her own stunning song 'Paper Gown' from the 'Lantana' album). It features insistent acoustic guitar and banjo strumming to create a slightly ominous rhythmic groove; also, there are some fine (if somewhat brief) backing vocals courtesy of Ann Castro.
SEE SEE RIDER (trad. arr. Caroline Herring) - I'm not familiar with any other versions of this song, although I believe it was originally a 12-bar blues - here, it's a folk-blues performed in a fairly laid-back manner. Instrumental accompaniment is from acoustic guitar and slide guitar (the latter giving the song its 'bluesy' feel).
My other favourite songs are 'The Dozens' and 'Song of the Wandering Aengus'; I liked 'Cactus Tree', but Caroline's version is very close to the original by Joni Mitchell (which I prefer). Only 'A Turn Upon the Hill', 'Abuelita' and 'The Wild Rose' don't entice me as much as the other songs on this album, and they are tracks that I am unlikely to play very often.
'Lantana' still remains my favourite album by Caroline Herring; 'Golden Apples of the Sun' has many superb songs and strong performances but, as an album in its entirety, I find it to be less consistent that either 'Twilight' or 'Lantana'.