Search - Edward Cockram Purcell, Phyllis Tate, Arthur Sullivan :: Songs My Father Taught Me

Sir Thomas Allen makes the point in a note with this delightful collection of 25 ballads that he rates it beside his many recordings of music heavyweights like Wagner and Verdi. There is no need to justify his enthusiasm, for it is clear from the outset that he treats the music with the sort of complete respect that has made him one of our most-loved singers. It is too easy to be dismissive of this repertoire, but when it is taken at its own value and sung and played with honesty, as it is here, the results are heartwarming. Allen recalls hearing the songs in the family home following the two world wars, "a time when there seemed a need for reassurance." Perhaps that time is with us again, and these performances strike a chord. There are many old friends here and perhaps some new discoveries. Who can resist the beautifully constructed "Love, could I only tell thee" or that old potboiler "The Lost Chord", especially when given with such warmth? A picture shows Allen and family in full vocal spate. At the piano is his father, to whose memory he dedicates the disc. --Keith Clarke