Wonderfully Sparse, Poetic Arrangements
Andrew Shaffer | JAPAN | 06/02/2000
(4 out of 5 stars)
"A very unusual recording: this is the only way I can adequately describe this piece without getting poetic myself. On this recording, founding Incredible String Band member, Clive Palmer, collaborates with poet, Bob Devereux, in a highly eclectic collection of original and traditional material, with two surprisingly finely-crafted cover tunes. Throughout this recording, the arrangements are refreshingly simple, heavy on both tradition and innovation. Clive sticks mostly to his banjo and northumbrian pipes, with his warm voice often heard in the chorous, and Bob recites his verses with an odd mixture of both earnestness and sometimes, dark sardonic humour. In short, this is a delightful recording -- engaging in it's simplicity and sense of intimacy that conjers up images of rustic, dimly-lit coffee houses, with a slightly counter-cultural feel..."