Neapolitan

Merry Christmas Lisnaholic,

Seven Hundred Elves - Steeleye Span


The Blacksmith / Steeleye Span "Hark! The Village Wait"

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Lisnaholic

Hey, thanks neapolitan ! Happy Christmas to you too.
I liked both your Steeleye Span selections. The first one I hadn´t heard before and the second I knew would be good because it´s from Hark! The Village Wait. Of what I´ve listened to, that album is my favorite by Steeleye and the Spans.

And how about Spirogyra ? They are usually compared with Comus, and should not to be confused with US jazz band Spyro Gyra (which is what I once did, and made a very disappointing purchase.) They played around with a folk style, but wrote all their own material, albeit only a total of three album´s worth. I like their soaring violin breaks, and their "beauty and the beast" vocal team gives them a more balanced sound than Comus imo. This track is the closer from their first album, St.Radigunds:-



( Spirogyra have yet to register on MB´s Album Review listings, but here´s a review of First Utterance if anyone is interested:- http://www.musicbanter.com/album-rev...utterance.html )

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"Am I enjoying this moment? I know of it and perhaps that is enough." - Sybille Bedford, 1953

Lisnaholic

More than many other genres, prog folk gave girls a chance to front a "rock" band. In the first decade of prog rock- the seventies- vocals were often handled by some sweet-voiced female with flowing locks. So much so that it´s easy to get them mixed up. That´s why I thought I´d try a little quiz for anyone who is interested: for each photo, can you say who it is and what seventies band she was in ? As an incentive, the first person to identify them all correctly will get a nomination from me for Biggest Music Nerd of 2015.

Photo A ..... Photo B
Photo C..... Photo D
Photo E..... Photo F

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"Am I enjoying this moment? I know of it and perhaps that is enough." - Sybille Bedford, 1953

Neapolitan

Here are my answers:

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Lisnaholic

Well done, Neapolitan, you got them all! The only one you were doubtful about was indeed Ann Steuart of Tudor Lodge, and she was only there because you introduced me to their music a couple of days ago! How unfair is that?

And how about this band, from Vancouver? Nothing spectacular, but some beautiful folk-sounding music. As the album advances there are fewer vocals and more recorder/ acoustic guitar passages. That´s because Paul Horn was involved in making the album I guess. Anyway, I thought you might like it if you don´t know it already.

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"Am I enjoying this moment? I know of it and perhaps that is enough." - Sybille Bedford, 1953

Seltzer

Not very obscure, but I've only recently been getting into Roy Harper. Stormcock is a great album.

And if you're wondering, he is indeed the guy referenced in that Led Zep song.

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Lisnaholic

^ I have also allowed Roy Harper to pass me by, despite his high reputation and powerful advocates (i.e. Jimmy Page). So I made an effort with The Same Old Rock, but Roy Harper doesn´t make it easy for us; I wish he'd throw us a verse, a chorus, a hookline once in a while!

The Strawbs From The Witchwood album holds a central position in progfolk; the culmination of Dave Cousins' enthusiasm for folk, and the last album Rick Wakeman played on before defecting to Yes. But what a disappointment this album actually is! Dave Cousins doesn't have much of a voice imo, and the harking back to days of yore comes across as contrived to me. Judge for yourself, on what most people consider to be the album's standout track:-

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"Am I enjoying this moment? I know of it and perhaps that is enough." - Sybille Bedford, 1953

Neapolitan

Mellow Candle were from Dún Laoghaire, Ireland. The singers were just teenagers at the time. In my opinion their music is one of the best example for a blend of Progressive Rock and Folk. This is the kind of album I wish I owned. I read in the comments that the album cost £500. So it might not be likely.

Mellow Candle - Dan the Wing


I just found this today so I don't know too much about the band. I thought you might like it.
Jade - Five of Us

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Lisnaholic

^ Two more great recommendations - thanks, Neapolitan.

This is a kind of "What progfolk are you listening to" post, with the answer to that question being:-



Thanks to Nea's rec, I'm discovering the album Swaddling Songs, and enjoying this track in particular because of how the piano playing opens up at the end.
^ Yes, if you had to define progfolk, Mellow Candle's music would provide a good illustration of the sound. Not so sure about this album being progfolk; Audience are pretty eclectic prog rock, with a touch of folk in the mix sometimes. Anyway, this is a wonderful track, so no apologies if it's a bit off topic:-



I like the sound of this guy's album; it's mellow and rather mysterious. Perry Leopold has a soothing voice, describing things I don't quite grasp. It's the intrigue of that, plus the discreet beauty of the backing instruments that makes me come back for more of Christian Lucifer:-



^ Hope to explore more by these guys today, Neapolitan. This track sounds promising.

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"Am I enjoying this moment? I know of it and perhaps that is enough." - Sybille Bedford, 1953

Neapolitan

The singer in Audience sounds like Chris Cornell or vice a versa. Perry Leopold's singing reminds me of Leo Kottke, when he sings.

Seals and Crofts are described as Soft Rock, and Pop Rock. I'm not really familiar with all of their music, but I think the one song they do, Hummingbird, is pretty close to Progressive Rock territory. It's not the typical verse/chorus song. It has a minute intro, which builds before the whole band joins in, and the bridge is amazing. The bass is very Proggy. It came out in '72 a little later than most Prog-Folk. Maybe S&C marks Folk transitioning from mixing with Hard Rock & Prog (Acid Folk/Folk Prog) to mixing with Rock & Pop.

I had to include both live and album versions.

Hummingbird (live)

Seals and Crofts Hummingbird (Album Version)

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