"Pour Down Like Silver" by RICHARD and LINDA THOMPSON – November 1975 UK Third Studio Album on Island Records featuring Simon Nicol of Fairport Convention, Pat Donaldson of Poet And The One Man Band and Fotheringay, Ian Whiteman of Mighty Baby, John Kirkpatrick of Steeleye Span and The Albion Band, Timi Donald of Trash and Blue with Nic Jones and Aly Bain of The Boys Of The Lough (April 2004 UK Universal/Island Remasters Expanded Edition CD Reissue and Remaster with Four Bonus Tracks) - A Review by Mark Barry...

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This Review and 204 More Like It Are Available In My

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CAPT. FANTASTIC - 1975

Your All-Genres Guide To

Exceptional CD Reissues & Remasters 

All Reviews From The Discs Themselves 

(No Cut And Paste Crap) 

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"...For Shame Of Doing Wrong..."

For their second album of 1975 and third as a duo – Richard and Linda Thompson kept up the high songwriting standards with "Pour Down Like Silver" (November 1975 on Island Records) – even if once again and like the previous two ("I Want To See The Bright Lights Tonight" from April 1974 and "Hokey Pokey" from March 1975) sales still didn’t see it chart.

Fronting each song with alternating lead vocals and RT on guitars - back on board came their Folk-Rock crew of old alongside some guests – Drummer Dave Mattacks of Fairport Convention and The Albion Band, Bassist Pat Donaldson of Poet And The One Man Band and Fotheringay, Flutist Ian Whiteman of Mighty Baby, Concertina and Accordionist John Kirkpatrick of Steeleye Span and The Albion Band, Drummer Timi Donald of Trash and Blue, legendary Trumpeter Henry Lowther with the virtuoso Fiddle Player Aly Bain of The Boys Of The Lough (Folkie Nic Jones also on fiddle) - all making an impact to the rich dark materials. Beautifully engineered and produced by both Thompson and John Wood (of Nick Drake fame and many more Island Records artists) - it sounded the biz too (and still does now, especially on this CD).

Looking not unlike the Shiek of Araby on the front cover while a be-scarfed Linda looks tasty as one of his many harem concubines on the rear (come to your desert-daddy my dear) - I’ve always thought "Pour Down Like Silver" is the kind of mid 70ts charmer that got lost somehow in the sheer deluge of albums in that apex year for the decade. And it contains a genuine masterpiece in "The Dimming Of The Day..." – a song covered by contemporary artists like Bonnie Raitt, The Corrs, Mary Black and Any Trouble. Luckily this rather cool 2004 Island Remasters CD Reissue does that lost-in-the-shuffle R&LT album proud. To the shame of doing wrong...

UK released April 2004 - "Pour Down Like Silver" by RICHARD and LINDA THOMPSON on Universal/Island Remasters IMCD 306 / 981 790-1 (Barcode 602498179017) is an Expanded Edition CD Reissue and Remaster with Four Bonus Tracks that plays out as follows (67:43 minutes):

1. Streets Of Paradise [Side 1]

2. For Shame Of Doing Wrong

3. The Poor Boy Is Taken Away

4. Night Comes In

5. Jet Plane In A Rocking Chair [Side 2]

6. Beat The Retreat

7. Hard Luck Stories

8. Dimming Of The Day/Dargai

Tracks 1 to 8 are their third album (Richard Thompson's fourth) "Pour Down Like Silver" - released November 1975 in the UK and USA on Island Records ILPS 9348. Produced and Engineered by RICHARD THOMPSON and JOHN WOOD - it didn't chart in either country.

BONUS TRACKS:

9. Streets Of Paradise (3:55 minutes) - Live

10. Night Comes in (12:10 minutes) - Live

11. Dark End Of The Street (4:12 minutes) - Live

12. Beat The Retreat (6:23 minutes) - Live

Tracks 9 and 12 are PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED, 9 recorded at The Roundhouse 1975, 12 at The Queen Elizabeth Hall, April 1975

Tracks 10 and 11 first released May 1976 on the 2LP anthology "Guitar, Vocal" on Island Records ICD 8. Track 10 recorded in Oxford, November 1975 and Track 11 at The Queen Elizabeth Hall, April 1975 ("Dark End Of The Street" is a cover version of the James Carr 60ts Soul classic penned by Dan Penn and Chips Moman).

Original copies of this CD reissue came in a stickered card slipcase (later copies lose this) with a 12-page booklet inside the jewel case. The lyrics that were on the inner sleeve of the original 1975 LP are here, a photo and a short history of the project by DAVID SUFF (of Fledgling Records). The liner notes expound on their embracing of the Sufi faith, the 'recorded live in the studio' nature of the recordings, the sad songs bolstered up by many Fairport Convention musician pals with Thompson concentrating on Guitar - leaving all tracks minus keyboards. The CD label sports a 'black and orange eye' pink label logo that was actually only on 60ts Island pressings (it should have been a palm-tree orange label), but it's a minor glitch because the Audio Remastering (doesn't say who did it but I suspect Denis Blackham of Sky Mastering) is glorious. To the music...

There is an anger pouring of the lyrics in the decidedly accordion-led Folk-Rock of "Streets Of Paradise" that give the song a strange lilt - Richard asking for a racehorse and being given a mule. Linda's lovely voice opens the 'lover lover' of "For Shame Of Doing Wrong" - our lady nursing a broken heart and missing the times before she and her man went their separate ways. There's a warmth to this song that reminds me of The Waterboys when they hit that sweet melody note - Thompson's guitar and duet vocals so clear in the transfer. I wish I was a fool for you again, they sing, well, I am.

As if that track wasn't good enough, the album now moves into real beauty for me - both Linda and Richard handling the haunting leads on the gorgeous "The Poor Boy Is Taken Away". As it smooches into your listening space - Thompson's acoustic guitar is complimented by mandolin strums and lyrics about a poor boy dressed for the 'tinkering trade'. Then Side 1 ends on the magnificent rambling shimmering guitar-based beauty of "Night Comes In" - a brooding 8:11 minutes of tears and rooms closing in and dancing until your feet don't touch the ground. Fantastic stuff and a stunning Remaster transfer as he doubles up the guitars – swanning its way to an elegant crescendo finish. It reminds me of Fairport at their Folk-Rock best.

"I've been looking for a love like you..." both sing on the jaunty "Jet Plane In A Rocking Chair" - soft soap shuffle with nothing to sell. While I like this Side 2 opener, I worship at the altar of "Beat The Retreat" - such a simple song yet so powerful - a world so full of sadness - burning all his bridges - running back home to you. And again the acoustic guitar and subtle flute/Shakuhachi notes lingering behind are brought to beautiful life by a superb Remaster. Can't say I've ever liked "Hard Luck Stories" - everybody's idea of a waste of time but a true gem in the RT catalogue - “Dimming Of The Day/Dargai”, saves the Side. Linda sings of a house falling down around her ears - drowning in a river of tears - needing you at the dimming of the day. I've loved this love song and ballad for near 50 years now and it still makes me shiver. And about four minutes in - it suddenly ends and goes into the three-minute-plus acoustic instrumental "Dargai" - magical stuff. 

While the unreleased live cut of "Streets Of Paradise" is good, my poison is the stunning twelve minutes of "Night Comes in" - accordion and electric guitar soon joined by a band enjoying this dark march. A surprisingly delicate acoustic take on "Dark End Of The Street" finds Linda in lovely vocal form and sounding not unlike a hurting Sandy Denny (it's credited as 'Live' but you can't hear the audience until their final applause). That delicate performance is cleverly followed by another Acoustic gem - "Beating The Retreat" – a smart extra that feels like it was always meant to be here and yet it's Previously Unreleased.

Maybe the Muslim garb of both on that striking cover art put people off - I don't know. But I do know that "Pour Down Like Silver" is an overlooked gem of an album and this 2004 CD transfer rocks in every way (running on back home to you). And I've seen it online for as little two quid. Now that's what I call a deal...

"Hokey Pokey" by RICHARD and LINDA THOMPSON – March 1975 UK Second Album on Island Records featuring Simon Nicol of Fairport Convention, Pat Donaldson of Poet And The One Man Band and Fotheringay, Ian Whiteman of Mighty Baby, John Kirkpatrick of Steeleye Span and The Albion Band, Timi Donald of Trash and Blue with Aly Bain of The Boys Of The Lough (April 2004 UK Universal/Island Remasters Expanded Edition CD Reissue and Remaster with Five Bonus Tracks) - A Review by Mark Barry...

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This Review and 204 More Like It Are Available In My

Amazon e-Book 

CAPT. FANTASTIC - 1975

Your All-Genres Guide To

Exceptional CD Reissues & Remasters 

All Reviews From The Discs Themselves 

(No Cut And Paste Crap) 

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"...Ice Cream Songs..."

Following on from their April 1974 debut album as a duo - Richard and Linda Thompson matched "I Want To See The Bright Lights Tonight" in my eyes with their first platter of 1975 - "Hokey Pokey" ("Pour Down Like Silver" would make it a trio of album releases in November 1975). Chock full of melodies - fast ones and slow ones that all hooked you in such subtle ways - I also liked that slightly drunk-sodden feel to the tunes. No doubt about it, there was something cool and musical about the pair of them when they hooked up with their natural home - Chris Blackwell's Island Records. 

This 2004 'Island Remasters' Expanded Edition also offers five tasty extras - four of which are Previously Unreleased. There's three from BBC sessions plus two live cuts including one recorded November 1975 at Oxford that first appeared on the Island Records retrospective double-album "Guitar, Vocal" in 1976. They're not exactly Audiophile it has to be said (Linda's vocals especially) – but they do show that the Thompson band dynamic was in raring form on the live front too - RT ripping into his guitar on the title track "Hokey Pokey". The Remaster of the album is lovely. Let's get to the Smiffy's Glass Eye and the Ice Cream Songs...

UK released April 2004 - "Hokey Pokey" by RICHARD and LINDA THOMPSON on Universal/Island Remasters IMCD 305 / 981 790-6 (Barcode 602498179062) is an 'Expanded Edition' CD Reissue and Remaster with Five Bonus Tracks that plays out as follows (67:43 minutes):

1. Hokey Pokey (The Ice Cream Song) [Side 1]

2. I'll Regret It All In The Morning 

3. Smiffy's Glass Eye 

4. The Egypt Room 

5. Never Again 

6. Georgia On A Spree [Side 2]

7. Old Man Inside A Young Man 

8. The Sun Never Shines On The Poor 

9. A Heart Needs A Home 

10. Mole In A Hole 

Tracks 1 to 10 are their second album "Hokey Pokey" (as Richard and Linda Thompson) - released March 1975 in the UK on Island Records ILPS 9305 (same release date and catalogue number for the USA). Produced by JOHN WOOD and SIMON NICOL with all songs written by RT except "Mole In A Hole" by Mike Waterson - it didn't chart in either country. 

BONUS TRACKS: 

11. Wishing (Live)

12. I'm Turning off A Memory (Live)

13. A Heart Needs A Home (Live)

Tracks 11 to 13 PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED, recorded for the John Peel Show 11 February 1975, first transmitted 24 February 1975 

14. Hokey Pokey (Live)

Track 14 PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED, recorded live at The Roundhouse 

15. It'll Be Me (Live) 

Track 15 recorded November 1975 in Oxford, first issued on the May 1976 UK 2LP compilation "Guitar, Vocal" on Island Records ICD 8 (it was called "Live More Or Less" in the USA with the same catalogue no)

MUSICIANS were:

LINDA THOMPSON – Lead and Duet Vocals 

RICHARD THOMPSON – Lead and Duet Vocals, Acoustic and Electric Guitars, Mandolin, Electric and Hammered Dulcimer and Piano 

SIMON NICOL (of Fairport Convention) – Acoustic and Electric Guitars, Piano and Backing Vocals 

IAN WHITEMAN (of Mighty Baby) – Organ and Piano 

ALY BAIN (of The Boys Of The Lough) – Violin and Fiddle 

JOHN KIRKPATRICK (of Steeleye Span and The Albion Band) – Accordion 

PAT DONALDSON (ex Poet and The One Man Band and Fotheringay) – Bass 

TIMI DONALD (ex Trash, later with Blue) – Drums and Percussion 

The outer card slipcase afforded original April 2004 issues of the three Richard and Linda Thompson CDs lends each release a feel of classiness. The 12-page booklet thankfully reproduces the lyrics that appeared on the UK LP's inner sleeve (inside the Gatefold sleeve of the US issue) while DAVID SUFF of Folk Music Reissue Specialists Fledg'ling Records does the short but hugely informative liner notes. Doesn't say who did the Remaster but it 'feels' like the masterful hand of Denis Blackham at Skye Mastering - either way - whomever transferred these original master tapes did the business by them. 

Aly Bain of Folk Group The Boys Of The Lough provides the fiddle on the wickedly good opener "Hokey Pokey" - but it's Linda's 'shiver down your spine' vocals and RT's fantastic guitar soloing that thrills - the whole shebang just working so sweetly. Things slow down and beautifully so with the whiskey-head hurt that lingers in the slyly acidic "I'll Regret It All In The Morning" - someone succumbing to the wiles of the flesh just once too often. Disfigurement and the cruelty it evokes in smaller crueller minds is the subject of the strangely sad-happy "Smiffy's Glass Eye" - girls laughing - girls not interested - until the heartache became too much. Diamonds flash, ruby rings glitter and bloodshot eyes blink in the lowlife shimmy-dance of "The Egypt Room" - Hobnail Kelly and the Beefcake Kid in town to catch the princess as she beguiles. Side 1 closes on a softer note, "Never Again" sounding so clean and clear as Linda asks who will remember the salt tears of lovers, the whispers of a lover and friend gone too soon - a song that apparently harks all the way back to 1969 when RT lost his then girlfriend Jeannie Franklyn in that infamous Fairport Convention motorway crash. 

Side 2 goes Country Rock with "Georgie On A Spree" - Linda relaying a sad tale of Isabel and her flash beau Georgie - King and Queen - with all the girls mad jealous as he drives his Chevrolet by - Isabel lording it in the passenger seat. Better for me is the fabulous "Old Man Inside A Young Man" - a so-Richard Thompson world-weary tale of old Billy rueing his loveless lot - tired of the madams who know how to extract cash from his loneliness. I know many adore "The Sun Never Shines On The Poor" - but I find its urchins writhing around in the bourgeoisie mud just a little too downtrodden masses for comfort. Having said that those acoustic guitars sound gorgeous on the Remaster. I feel fairly certain that many fans like myself would have raced towards the wistful ballad "A Heart Needs A Home" on this CD Remaster - eyes crying rivers - the world is no place to be in when you're on your own. 

The extras open with two Country rocked-up cover versions - Buddy Holly's "Wishing" and Merle Haggard's "I'm Turning Off A Memory" - both of which are good. Not surprisingly they also do one of the LP's strongest songs "A Heart Needs A Home" and the piano playing is lovely. Two live stints hit you and despite not having the greatest audio in the world, the accordion and guitar work in "Hokey Pokey" both sing (a sure fan pleasing moment). They then do another cover that of Jack Clement's "It'll Be Me" - a bopper in the Crawdaddy tradition - me looking for you - where the lights are blue...

There are some who say that "Hokey Pokey" is actually one of his best albums. I don't know about that in truth, but the musical gems on Island Remasters IMCD 305, the top class audio, the cool enhanced presentation and all of it washed down with a clutch of genuinely interesting extras - make this a proper CD reissue winner in my book. Give this one a lick when the ice cream bell rings out in your street...

"I Want To See The Bright Lights Tonight" by RICHARD and LINDA THOMPSON (2004 Island Remasters 'Expanded Edition' CD) - A Review by Mark Barry...

"...A Butterfly For A Day..."

There's an argument that 'anything' on Island Records (no matter which decade) has musical value and should be in your collection as a matter of necessity - and a real man (that's me) would shed a big girl's blouse full of puffy Laura Ashley tears if this were not the case (I’m baring my gorilla-like chest as I type this). Sat proudly amidst those wise musical decisions would of course be the first two albums from 1971 and 1972 by Fairport Convention and Fotheringay's vocalist Sandy Denny - and Richard Thompson's own "Henry The Fly" from 1972.

But somehow the three albums this staggeringly good British guitarist and songwriter made in the mid Seventies with his then wife Linda (nee Peters) - "I Want To See The Bright Lights Tonight" (1974), "Hokey Pokey" and "Pour Down Like Silver" (both from 1975) – weren't so much publicly overlooked at the time of release - but as I recall - almost outright ignored - and on both sides of the pond. As with the two LPs that followed "I Want To See The Bright Lights Tonight" - the critics raved about them but the public just stayed away...

But time has changed all that - seeing both the influential and terminally hip Mojo and Rolling Stone magazines including "Bright Lights" in their '100 Greatest Albums Ever Made' lists. And returning to it and Island Records in general in the sunny halls of 2016 - a full 42 years after the event - I'm down with those retro-periodical assessments. I'd truly forgotten just how good "I Want To See The Bright Lights Tonight" is as an album. And it has to be said this 2004 'Island Remasters' CD Reissue has done that criminally overlooked LP a proper solid on all fronts (a big audio improvement too on the March 1993 version).

Let's wipe away the condensation - here are the details...

UK released April 2004 - "I Want To See The Bright Lights Tonight" by RICHARD and LINDA THOMPSON on Island Remasters IMCD 304 / 981 790-7 (Barcode 602498179079) is an 'Expanded Edition' CD Remaster of the 1974 10-track LP with Three Bonus Tracks added on and plays out as follows (53:24 minutes):

1. When I Get To The Border

2. The Calvary Cross

3. Withered And Died

4. I Want To See The Bright Lights Tonight

5. Down Where The Drunkard's Roll

6. We Sing Hallelujah [Side 2]

7. Has He Got A Friend For Me

8. The Little Beggar Girl

9. The End Of The Rainbow

10. The Great Valerio

Tracks 1 to 10 are his 2nd solo LP "I Want To See The Bright Lights Tonight" - released April 1974 in the UK and USA on Island Records ILPS 9266. Produced by RICHARD THOMPSON and JOHN WOOD - it failed to chart in either country.

BONUS TRACKS (Previously Unreleased):

11. I Want To See The Bright Lights Tonight (Live)

12. Together Again (Live)

13. The Calvary Cross (Live)

Tracks 11 to 13 recorded live at The Roundhouse, London on 7 September 1975. As well as Richard & Linda Thompson - the band included John Kirkpatrick, Pat Donaldson and Dave Mattacks.

Musicians:

RICHARD THOMPSON - All Guitars and Lead Vocals (Backing and Duet Vocals on "Down Where The Drunkards Roll" and "The Little Beggar Girl")

LINDA THOMPSON - Lead Vocals on "Withered And Died", "I Want To See The Bright Lights Tonight", "Down Where The Drunkards Roll", "Has He Got A Friend For Me?", "The Great Valerio" and Duet Vocals with Richard on "The Little Beggar Girl"

SIMON NICOL - Dulcimer

JOHN KIRKPATRICK - Anglo Concertina and Accordion

BRIAN GULLAND and RICHARD HARVEY - Klummhorn

PAT DONALDSON - Bass

DAVE MATTACKS - Drums

ROYSTON WOOD, TREVOR LUCAS and CWS (Manchester) SILVER BAND - Backing Vocals

Original April 2004 issues of this CD came in a natty-looking card slipcase (reissues just have the jewel case) - both issues have a 12-page booklet with the lyrics from the original LP's inner sleeve, musician credits and short but heartfelt and informative set of liner notes by DAVID SUFF of Fledg'ling Records - a reissue label with a long Fairport Convention history. The only slightly stupid and obvious glitch is the Pink Island label with the Black and Orange ‘Eye’ logo on the CD itself – a label variant that's only found on late Sixties Island LPs in the UK - it should be the Pink-Rim Palm-Tree Island records logo to repro the original 1974 LP. It doesn't say who did the remaster (maybe Denis Blackham at Skye Mastering) or where - but my God is it good. Every track on this Folk-Rock masterpiece feels new and in your face for all the right reasons. Tons of presence and a huge sound...

It opens with the upbeat Folk-Rock of "When I Get To The Border" - Thompson's guitar chopping and chiming like a goodun as the melody ambles on. The magnificent "Calvary Cross" has the most amazing warbling electric lead guitar - a sort of tremulous English Blues Folk-Rock chug that feels so heavy as it plays - ten-ton bricks in its hurting guts (hardly surprising to see a live cut of this fan-fave included as a Bonus Track). "Withered And Died" is beautiful and sad - a butterfly for a day tale. Not surprisingly this lilting song was chosen as the album's representative on the 2006 Island Records Folk-Rock 3CD Box Set "Meet Me On The Ledge". Those Klummhorns provided by Royston Wood and Trevor Lucas on the title-track "I Want To See The Bright Lights" gives it a colliery brass band feel – it’s rhythm playfulness - like it’s a debutante at a ball itching to dance. It's also at this point that you notice the lyrics - earthy, fun, working man observant - they floor you. Side 1 ends with such a feeling as the gorgeous "Down Where The Drunkards Roll" with Linda on Lead Vocals. I’ve always thought it a masterpiece – lonely yet moving.

Thompson opens Side 2 starts with a very Fairport vocal on "We Sing Hallelujah" - a rowdy-dowdy old-fashioned melody that feels hundreds of years old (very clever doubled voices). In direct contrast comes the 'Saturday night and I'm all alone' sadness of "Has He Got A Friend For Me" where Linda sounds like a lost teenager rather a happily married woman. With big acoustic guitars and a concertina as its base - the song has a sound Paul Brady would get on his magnificent Irish Folk LP "Welcome Here Kind Stranger" (September 1978 on Mulligan Records) - another winner when it comes to melodies. "The Little Beggar" At times BL feels like the great album Fairport Convention should have made in 1974 but never did. Taking money off snobs sings "The Little Beggar Girl" - the most Traditional Folk song on the album - mandolins and jaunt abound. Another one of the album secret gems is the desperately bleak social commentary of "The End Of The Rainbow" - a song sung by Richard about a child subject to a brutish father - only half protected by a mother who is trying her hardest - but Richard only sees an inevitable hurting future for the kid. The album ends with Linda doing the ballad "The Great Valerio" - a high-wire walker - we the people watching from below as this balancing hero keeps his eye on the target of the other side.

Amidst the three Bonus Tracks is a sharply recorded ten-minute version of "Calvary Cross" – the live band in fine form as Richard stretches out on those solos to the clear delight of the crowd. But even better is Linda's lusty vocal on the Buck Owens Country classic "Together Again" – her Patsy Cline vocals followed by great guitar playing from RT - these two alone making the extras feeling like real bonuses and not just reissue filler...

I've always thought that Richard and Linda Thompson's "I Want To See The Bright Lights Tonight" was part Fairport Convention on top form combined with that second album Fotheringay never made - and that's a combo I'll take any day of any week. 

And at under a fiver online in 2016 - "I Want To See The Bright Lights Tonight" by RICHARD and LINDA THOMPSON is a big old classic for very small change...

"Matthews' Southern Comfort/Second Spring" by MATTHEWS SOUTHERN COMFORT [feat Ian Matthews] (1996 and 2008 Beat Goes On CD Reissue and Remaster) - A Review by Mark Barry...

"…Leave This Troubled World Behind…"

Few bands got to release three albums in one year (Fairport Convention and Creedence Clearwater Revival did it in 1969) – but Britain's Folk-Rock outfit MATTHEWS SOUTHERN COMFORT featuring Ian Matthews (ex Fairport Convention) managed it in 1970. And that’s where this fabulous Beat Goes On '2LPs-on-1CD' Reissue comes in. Here are the comforting details...

Originally UK released June 1996 - "Matthews Southern Comfort/Second Spring" by MATTHEWS SOUTHERN COMFORT on Beat Goes On BGOCD 313 (reissued December 2008 with the same Catalogue No and Barcode 5017261203137) offers two full albums onto 1CD Remaster and plays out as follows (76:06 minutes):

1. Colorado Springs Eternal

2. A Commercial Proposition

3. The Castle Far

4. Please Be My Friend

5. What We Say

6. Dream Song

7. Fly Pigeon Fly

8. The Watch

9. Sweet Bread

10. Thoughts For A Friend

11. I’ve Lost You

12. Once Upon A Lifetime

Tracks 1 to 12 are their debut vinyl album "Matthews' Southern Comfort" - released January 1970 in the UK on Uni Records UNLS 108 and Decca DL 75191 in the USA (both in gatefold sleeves and with an insert)

13. The Ballad Of Obray Ramsey

14. Moses In The Sunshine

15. Jinkson Johnson

16. Tale Of The Trial

17. Blood Red Roses

18. Even As

19. D’arcy Farrow

20. Something In The Way She Moves

21. Southern Comfort

Tracks 13 to 21 are their 2nd LP "Second Spring" - released June 1970 in the UK on Uni Records UNLS 112 and Decca DL 75242 in the USA (both with an insert)

The eagle-eyed collectors among you will notice that there are two non-album 7" single B-sides from the period that are missing. First is "The Struggle" - a B-side to "Colorado Springs Eternal" - the only single lifted off the debut album on Uni Records UNS 513 issued in January 1970. Second is "Parting" - a B-side to "Ballad Of Obray Ramsey" - the only 7" taken off the 2nd LP on Uni Records UNS 521 issued May 1970. Not to fear - they are both BONUS TRACKS on the "Later That Same Year" Beat Goes On CD remaster (BGOCD 807) along with both sides of their other non-album single - "Woodstock" b/w "Scion" (see separate review).

The 16-page booklet cleverly reproduces the gatefold inner of the debut LP on its inner spread while the lyric sheets that accompanied both original LPs have been reproduced also - but using the drawing face shots on the back sleeve of the 2nd LP in between text (its nicely done). The short but hugely informative liner notes are by noted Musicologist JOHN TOBLER.

The remaster was done back in 1996 at Sound Recording Technology in Cambridge (doesn't say who) and it's really sweet - especially on the far better recorded second LP.

The debut was meant to be an Ian Matthews solo album. In fact the band's name was a mistake - named after the last track on the second LP "Southern Comfort" (written by Sylvia Fricker). But Matthews Southern Comfort somehow stuck. In fact when Ian Matthews left - the group continued as "Southern Comfort" on Harvest Records. And yet despite its lavish gatefold sleeve and the inclusion of heavyweight Fairport Convention players like Gerry Conway, Ashley Hutchings, Richard Thompson and Simon Nichol - the debut LP in my eyes firmly defies flight. Weak songs are the culprits. Looking through the song credits you see the name Steve Barlby - which turns out to be a pseudonym for songwriters Ken Howard and Alan Blaikeley - who were his management team at the time. Part of the recording contract deal was that he had to use some of their songs - and bluntly they're not what the MSC sound was about. The other pseudonym on "Fly Pigeon Fly" is Hamwood - which turns out to be the duo of Albert Hammond and Mike Hazelwood. The organ on "Thoughts For A Friend" is clumsy - "The Castle Far" sounds like some dreadful madrigal - but "A Commercial Proposition" written by Richard Thompson is more like it.

"Second Spring" is everything the debut should have been - it's properly brilliant and has stood the test of time too. The presence of ace guitarist and melody strong Carl Barnwell makes his presence known with "Moses In The Sunshine" and "Even As" - which like "Woodstock" practically defines the mellow sound that people love them for. The Traditional "Blood Red Roses" is done Acapella and is gorgeous - as is the impossibly pretty Matthews original "Tale Of The Trial". I've always felt that their stunning cover of James Taylor's Apple debut song "Something In The Way She Moves" should have been the lead off single instead of the banjo plucking "Ballad Of Obray Ramsey" - it's a gem (lyrics from it title this review). It ends on the epic eight minute "Southern Comfort" which feels like Fairport in full flight meets MSC. Very tasty...

So there you have it - a debut that promises much but delivers little - and a follow up that nails it. Their third and last album "Later That Same Year" followed in November of 1970 and was just as strong as "Second Spring" (the CD remaster of "Later" also contains those four quality bonus tracks - see separate review).

"Matthews' Southern Comfort / Second Spring" is a really lovely CD reissue by Beat Goes On of the UK - and brings back such fond memories...

"Let The Days Go By/Sunny Side Of The Street" by BRYN HAWORTH - October 1974 UK Debut Solo Album and May 1975 Follow-Up LP Both on Island Records (June 2004 UK Gott Discs CD Compilation - 2LPs Remastered onto 1CD) - A Review by Mark Barry...

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"…And It Picks Me Up…Turns Me On…Puts Me On My Feet Again…"

Hailing from Blackburn in Lancashire, Bryn Haworth first came to notice on a series of amazing 7" singles by SHARON TANDY and beat darlings FLEUR-DE-LYS on Immediate, Polydor and Atlantic Records. These mid to late Sixties UK 45's now command huge money on the collector's market. Miscredited as ‘Bryn Hayward’, Haworth then played electric and acoustic guitars on “Get Yourself Together” on Andrew Leigh’s 1970 Polydor solo album “Magician” (ex Spooky Tooth, Matthews Southern Comfort). He also turned up on two Jackie Lomax albums - "Home Is Where My Head Is" from 1971 and "Three" from 1972 - both were on Warner Brothers and have been reissued by Rhino (with extra tracks) where he plays on almost every cut. He then took his songs to A&R man Richard Williams who signed him to Island Records in 1973. Which is where this CD comes in...

UK released June 2004 - "Let The Days Go By/Sunny Side Of The Street" by BRYN HAWORTH on Gott Discs GOTTCD003 (Barcode 881881000323) offers his first two albums on Island Records from 1974 and 1975 Remastered onto 1CD and breaks down as follows (78:46 minutes):

1. Grappenhall Rag

2. All I Want

3. I Won’t Lie (This Time)

4. Ee I Love You Lass

5. Miss Swiss

6. Let The Days Go By

7. Get Yourself A Man [Side 2]

8. Time Has Come

9. Whims And Ways

10. All I Need Is A Home

11. Anywhere You Want To Be

Tracks 1 to 11 are his debut album "Let The Days Go By" released October 1974 in the UK on Island ILPS 9287

12. Good Job

13. Pick Me Up

14. Darlin’ Cory

15. Dance

16. Peace Of Mind

17. Give All You Got To Give [Side 2]

18. Heaven Knows

19. Sunny Side Of The Street

20. Used

21. Thank The Lord

Tracks 12 to 21 are his 2nd and last album for the label released May 1975 on Island ILPS 9332. Both albums were first released on CD in Japan by Vivid Sound in 2003 in 5" card repro sleeves, but they're hard to find now and expensive. This 2004 issue is the first official UK CD release of these rare LPs. 

Both albums featured musicians from great British bands of the time - "Let The Days Go By" had Pete Wingfield (formerly of Jellybread) on Keyboards, Gordon Haskell (of Fleur-De-Lys and King Crimson) on Bass, John Porter (of Roxy Music) also on Bass, Terry Stannard, Alan Spanner and Mel Collins from Kokomo (ex Arrival and The Grease Band) on Drums, Bass and Saxophone - while John Rabbit Bundrick played Hammond Organ on "I Won't Lie (This Time)". The second album featured Dave Mattacks, Dave Pegg and Dave Swarbrick from Fairport Convention and again members of Arrival. Haworth played the mandolin and all electric and acoustic Guitars in his unique melodic sliding style.

Packaging - each record initially came with inner sleeves, but neither is reproduced in the 16-page booklet - however, the booklet more than makes up for it. You get the lyrics and full musician credits for the two albums, a 4-page history by Mark Chatterton and even a picture of his band on tour in 1974. The colour photo on the back of the booklet is the rear sleeve of "Let The Days Go By" and beneath the see-through CD tray there's even a glowing NME review of his debut album.  It's very tastefully done. The outer card wrap tells us it's digitally remastered but doesn't advise by who or where (licensed from Universal music). The sound quality is excellent, certainly clearer than the vinyl counterparts I've worn out after years of use.

Musically - his debut is far removed from that Sixties psych and beat sound - it's more CSNY with religious lyrics. It's all plucked acoustic guitars, mandolins, a gorgeous instrument called a Harpoleck and superb slide electric guitar. Haworth made the Harpoleck something of a feature on his albums; it looked like a Harp in your lap - or the inside of a small piano - and when you drew the plectrum across its taught strings, it gave a sort of elevated 12-string guitar sound - beautiful. The second album rocked out a bit more with very catchy tunes like "Picks Me Up" (lyrics above) - even showing a bit of menace on "Used".

If you wanted a lay-of-the-land, "Darlin' Cory" appeared on 2009's "Meet On The Ledge" 3CD box set featuring Island's Folk and Folk/Rock acts - it's a Denis Blackham remaster and is available on iTunes as a purchase or a listen.

There's a certain peaceful and positive quality about these albums that I've always loved. "Heaven Knows" is as sweet as Seventies singer-songwriter gets. Great stuff. Recommended.

PS:

Further places to look for his work:

Haworth played guitar on Badger's "White Lady" (Epic EPC 80009) and John Cale's "Fear" (Island ILPS 9301) both from 1974. He put in lovely Mandolin work on "Somebody Who Loves You" and menacing slide guitar on "Like Fire" on "Joan Armatrading" - her extraordinary "Love & Affection" album from 1976. He plays guitar on Andy Fairweather-Lowe's 1976 album "Be Bop & Holla" (AMLH 64602). Haworth then signed to A&M Records and released probably his most accomplished album - the varied and beautiful "Grand Arrival" (1978 on AMLH 68462). Around this time, he even secured an end of program slot on Bob Harris's "Old Grey Whistle Test" in the UK where he and his band did a blistering version of "Beans On Toast" from "Grand Arrival". "Grand Arrival" was in turn followed by "Keep The Ball Rolling" (1979 on AMLH 68507) which featured Cliff Richard on 2 tracks and Pete Wingfield again on Keyboards. He later played on Ian Matthews "Stealin' Home" album and several of the Gerry Rafferty Eighties albums. He did work for Chris De Burgh, Cliff Richard, Amazing Blondel and even Dana Gillespie. There after it was full-on Christian Music LPs on the Chapel End and Word labels (UK only releases) and other CDs right up to the 2010 where he's released 2 new albums and still commands a dedicated and loyal audience.

PPS: Would someone please reissue “Smith Perkins Smith” – it was on Island Records in 1972 – they sounded like the UK’s answer to CSNY. Only made one album but it was a sweetie…