Give it a Listen!
When I was recommended to listen to Jonatha Brooke’s new CD The Works, words by Woody Guthrie with tunes by Jonatha, I thought maybe, but it wasn’t on the top of my list. I was also informed it might take me a few listens to get into it. So don’t get me wrong I’ve nothing against either Jonatha or Woody I just didn’t think it would be one that I’d keep listening to. I was also given the chance to see her play at The Stables recently but was helping over in Buckingham the same night.
From the first line of the first track I knew straight away I liked what I was listening to and by the third track “All you’ve got to do it touch me” I had to look again at the track listing, were these song really written by Woody Guthrie over 50 years ago, they still sounded so current, a testament of a true wordsmith and Jonatha’s interpretation. Jonatha also manages to include two of her own compositions that fit in so well I didn’t realise until I looked at the CD sleeve. Highlights for me include Madonna on the Curb and My sweet and bitter bowl though you can actually keep the whole CD on repeat and not be disappointed.
www.myspace.com/jonathabrooke
From the first line of the first track I knew straight away I liked what I was listening to and by the third track “All you’ve got to do it touch me” I had to look again at the track listing, were these song really written by Woody Guthrie over 50 years ago, they still sounded so current, a testament of a true wordsmith and Jonatha’s interpretation. Jonatha also manages to include two of her own compositions that fit in so well I didn’t realise until I looked at the CD sleeve. Highlights for me include Madonna on the Curb and My sweet and bitter bowl though you can actually keep the whole CD on repeat and not be disappointed.
www.myspace.com/jonathabrooke
I went to see Brian Houston play live at The Stables Stage 2 during October 2008. Brian is one of those acts if you’ve seen him once you just want to keep going back. Back in his native Ireland he will often tour with a band though I’ve only ever seen him play solo, but this is no problem when he brings his guitar looping and sequencing kit with him. With this new CD Brian has once again delivered a gem, the new material is, in my mind, his best so far. He has penned some thought provoking lyrics with true feeling, why he is not known to a wider audience remains a mystery to me, if there is any justice then Three Feet from Gold will at least get him more radio airplay. Listen to Woman out of you, a quite exquisite song about his daughter's coming of age, especially when you hear his story behind it and The Fool, Brian’s take on domestic violence, actually there isn’t a bad track on it, so buy the CD
www.myspace.com/brianhouston
www.myspace.com/brianhouston
Not far away from the turntable (that sounds so much better than CD player) is the new album from Eliza Gilkyson called Beautiful World. Why Eliza is not know to a wider audience is beyond me as she has constantly produced high quality and thought provoking music, which has often brought her into conflict in her native America. This happened on her 2004 CD Land of Milk and Honey where she questioned some of US policies abroad and especially in Iraq.
Beautiful World is no exception to this, where the subject matter includes man’s destruction of the environment, the 9 to 5 lifestyle and Internet porn! Eliza is also still writing about US involvement abroad and in the track Great Correction she writes of her experiences as a US citizen travelling to other countries and the line “People round here don’t know what it means, to suffer at the hands of our American Dreams” is alluring to her thoughts when she returns home. As with many of her previous albums you might need a couple of listens to fully appreciate all of her sentiments as often the dark undertone of the songs can be masked in the upbeat and lively tunes, but you will want to investigate more.
www.myspace.com/elizagilkyson
Beautiful World is no exception to this, where the subject matter includes man’s destruction of the environment, the 9 to 5 lifestyle and Internet porn! Eliza is also still writing about US involvement abroad and in the track Great Correction she writes of her experiences as a US citizen travelling to other countries and the line “People round here don’t know what it means, to suffer at the hands of our American Dreams” is alluring to her thoughts when she returns home. As with many of her previous albums you might need a couple of listens to fully appreciate all of her sentiments as often the dark undertone of the songs can be masked in the upbeat and lively tunes, but you will want to investigate more.
www.myspace.com/elizagilkyson
I’ve been listening to the new Teddy Thompson CD A Piece of what you need. In Teddy’s own words
"This is a happy record, well, maybe not happy, but upbeat. Actually, maybe not upbeat, but it does have some up-tempo songs! Anyway, it's as close as I've gotten to making the record I've always wanted to make."
This only took me a couple of listens to realise this was going to be a great album. Teddy has the knack of writing song that seem instantly familiar and I was lucky enough to see Teddy play live at The Stables in Wavendon, earlier in the year, where he’d tried out a few of his new songs.
www.myspace.com/teddythompsonmusic
"This is a happy record, well, maybe not happy, but upbeat. Actually, maybe not upbeat, but it does have some up-
www.myspace.com/teddythompsonmusic
The idea of a concept album was often the domain of the prog rock groups of the 1970’s and although this wouldn’t be the first time for a folk artist it is the first time in many years. Jon Boden’s Songs from the Floodplain paints a dark picture of a world were the environment has been irreversibly damaged by man and its effect on mankind. So vivid are some of the songs from the opening number We do what we can through to Beating The Bounds and Under Their Breath to the closing song Has Been Cavalry, you could actually see this as either being made into a stage play or TV musical drama, I guess with Jon in the lead role. This underlines the talent that is Jon Boden, whether in folk supergroup Bellowhead, with his mate John Spires or even his classic outing with the Tacet Ensemble he has a lot to offer. I was also lucky to see him play live with his band The Remnant Kings, and photo’s can be found in my Gallery, and I hope he tours again with them soon. A great evening and a great album.