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Hall, Adrian –
Alpaca In A Field
****1/2
A long time coming, Adrian Hall has been playing guitar
for over 30 years. He is a mainstay of the Baldock & Letchworth Folk Club and Alpaca In A Field is
his debut album. A long time coming but definitely worth the wait as AIAF expertly shows the varying chops
of a superb musician.
Adrian’s
main guitar-style is fingerpicking in the English folk traditions, often playing the melody and a bass or chordal undertow
at the same time. Some particularly fine examples of his exquisite fingerwork can be found on the Deserter
and Kit’s Tune / When A Knight Won His Spurs though shuffle any tune on AIAF and you will find some fine playing.
Adrian is also a good understated singer with his performances
usually having the most impact when he sings about something that really moves him as is the case with Love Never Dies.
The emotional centerpiece of the album, Love Never Dies was written by the brilliant Martin Simpson who has been the
biggest single influences on Adrian’s guitar playing over the past few years. Not that Alpaca in
A Field is all timeless picking though – there is also strumming-a-plenty on Sligo Fair and the self-penned Magdalene’s
Song which have something of an early 70s feel.
One of the strengths of Alpaca In A field is its variety of styles.
As well as the picking and strumming, we have some rather ribald humour in the not very politically correct but
extremely funny Portuguese as well as two mandolin instrumentals. This variety gives us a fully rounded
picture of Adrian the performer and keeps the interest going over an album consisting almost entirely of one singer and his
stringed instrument.
Alpaca In
A Field is a superb, honest album by a master craftsman. It is highly recommended and can be purchased
by contacting Adrian at adrian@heijoshin.com - with samples also available at www.myspace.com/adrianhalls_alpaca . Furthermore, £5 from the sale of each copy will be
donated to East Anglia Children’s Hospices. A long time coming then, but definitely worth the wait.
Released: 2011
Acquird by me:
9.11 - Bought (Adrian)
Harvey, P J - To Bring You My Love
****
An
intense, yearning, distorted album of surprisingly melodic songs by a highly individual artist. I particularly like the sparse
instrumentation and arrangements. An excellent album.
Released - 1995
Acquired by me: 27.11.98 - Borrowed (Howard)
Hayes, Edwina - Live at the Virtually Acoustic Club
***¾
Beautiful, quite simple love songs with fine singing by the artist most likely to succeed
on the London acoustic scene 2001. A compelling, moving live performer.
Released - 2001
Acquired by me: 18.7.01
- Present (Edwina)
Hayes, Edwina – Out On My Own
****
During
much of the 90s and early noughties, I played on-and-off on the London acoustic circuit. Of all the artists
I came across over the years, I always felt that Edwina Hayes was the one most likely to make it. With
her beautiful voice, simple yet well constructed songs, goodish looks and bubbly yet determined personality, all those who
saw her live were moved by her talent and charm. This must have included someone at Radar, subsidiary of
Warners, for here we are with Out On My Own, Edwina’s debut album.
Out On My Own includes songs I heard Edwina play
solo in tiny clubs just three years ago such as the beautiful I Want Your Love and Won Me Over as well as more recent (mostly)
co-compositions, one of the best of which is I Can’t Believe. The acoustic backing to these slightly
country-ish ballads is provided by a cream of famous sessioners including Clive Gregson, Christine Collister and Kate St.
John. Although the playing and arrangements are very professional and slick, I wonder if Edwina would have
preferred to play her own guitar and be backed by her inner circles of friends in London and Nashville a la Norah Jones.
Good as the album is, the intimacy of the Edwina Hayes live experience isn’t really captured here.
Out On
My Own is a good album by a superb singer and consistent songwriter. Well worth buying if you like polished
acoustic torch songs though even better, go and see Edwina live as well. There she will certainly win you
over…
Released: 2004
Acquired by me: 6.05 (Purchased)
Hayes, Edwina
– Pour Me A Drink
****1/2
With her beautiful, heartfelt singing, excellent songs and effusive personality, Edwina
Hayes was always one of the artists most likely to make it from the London acoustic scene in the early noughties. After playing frequently in London, around the UK and in Nashville, Edwina was eventually signed by Warner
Brothers with whom she released her debut album Out On My Own in 2004. Although
OOMO contains some excellent songs, the intimacy of the Edwina Hayes live experience was rather lost with the slick arrangements
provided by a band of well-known session musicians.
Much truer to Edwina’s live solo sound is her new second LP Pour
Me A Drink which features just her guitar and vocals with the only other musicians present being Jake McKaegue on acoustic
lead on two songs and Carissa Broadwater on backing vocals on one. Pour Me A
Drink is an excellent album with the sparse arrangements bringing Edwina’s superb, moving singing and bright finger-picking
guitar style to the fore. Also impressive are the strong melodies and structures
to the songs, many featuring bridges in a style somewhere between folk and quality country music.
Edwina’s main lyrical
theme is love, often of the unrequited kind. Among the best songs of the heart
on Pour Me A Drink are Season Of Love, Run and Leave A Light On For You. Moving
on to other subject matter, the title track is another instantly memorable highpoint with its tale of a life of regrets.
All
of the songs on PMAD are written or co-written by Edwina apart from covers of tunes by Richard Thompson (Waltzing’s
For Dreamers) and Randy Newman (Feels Like Home) as well as the traditional Froggie Went A Courting. These covers fit seamlessly on this stark yet warm LP on which Edwina’s beautiful voice will undoubtedly
get the most accolades though her guitar playing and considerable compositional craft should not be overlooked.
Without
the weight (in both senses of the word) of a major record company behind her, Edwina Hayes has produced a superior album,
which is closer to her true live sound than her debut LP. Pour Me A Drink is
recommended to anyone who likes quality singer-songwriters though if you get the chance, try to also see Edwina live where
her warm-hearted and often humorous banter adds a further dimension to an already excellent performance.
Released: 2008
Acquired by me: 4.5.08 –
Edwina (at a gig)
Hollis, Mark - Mark Hollis
***
Solo album by the former Talk Talk mainman.
Great piercing punctuations of harmonica and a few other good moments but its often dreary, unmelodic and a little pretentious.
Released
- 1999 ?
Acquired by me: 30.10.00 - Borrowed (Library)
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