Newsgroups: bit.listserv.allmusic
Date:         Mon, 25 Jan 1993 12:28:19 MEZ
From:         Hosko <RMCB@DLRVM.BITNET>
Subject:      Re: Gimme three steps out that door (No Roses)

I wrote:
>>   the incredible 'No Roses' by Shirely Collins & the Albion Band.
>>   If anyone likes the type of music that we're talking about here and
>>   hasn't heard 'No Roses', then I suggest that they just go out
>>   and buy it - there's no need to listen to it first, just take my
>>   word.

Michael Bloom responded with:
>I can't agree with this recommendation. Collins' voice has never appealed to
>me-- it's wispy and somewhat ragged, and her sense of pitch is unreliable.
>Not that I demand perfection in singing, but she seems so microphone-shy, I
>just don't wanna hear it. To compare her to Sandy is ridiculous. My favorite
>Albion-related record is probably _The Complete Dancing Master_, a doctoral
>dissertation disguised as a record album-- 'Tyger' Hutchings took a lot of
>primary sources about prevailing community standards regarding dancing, as
>early as an extract from Chaucer (but mostly from the 17th-18th centuries),
>had his friends recite them, and complemented them with appropriate music.

  In general I agree that Shirley Collins' voice sounds a little fragile,
and that's it's not everyone's taste - especially on albums like _Adieu
To Old England_ or _Sweet Primroses_. But, have you actually heard 'No
Roses_? This is a very different style to her normal albums. I heard
that when someone suggested that she make an electric folk-rock album
she didn't like the idea, but that she gave in to persistant requests,
and that 'No Roses' was the end result. It was Shirley and her husband,
Hutchings, that formed the Albion Country Dance Band (and they were
originally titled) and this was their first outing
on record. Shirley said that when she went into the studio to record
it a number of friends dropped by to see how things were going and she
let whoever came by play along (hence the large number of guest musicians).
This album is definately to be rated alongside the others I mentioned -
it's good from start to finish, and contains some great tracks like
_Poor Murdered Woman_, _Van Deeman's Land_ and _The Murder Of Maria Martin_.
It contains some great concertina playing, and some nice singing from
Mike & Lal Waterson on _Hal_And-Tow_.
  As requards a comparison between Shirley and Sandy - well, there's food
for thought! - I could write and essay on this. I could argue that Sandy's
clear dreamlike voice is not really suitable for the rugged English folk
song, and that Shirley's fits better because of it's impurities! I've seen
both Sandy and Shirley live, and their concerts say it all; when I saw
Sandy she had just released her album called 'Sandy', and she performed
in a concert hall without a band, just her and a piano or guitar. It
was a superb, gentle concert.
Shirley, on the other hand, played in an old barn in Sidmouth,
with everyone sitting on the floor or standing round the sides. The place
was extremely small, and she performed totally unaccompanied (no guitar,
no nothing) and without a microphone. She sang songs that everyone could
join in the chorus with, and a good time was had by all. We left that
evening with the feeling that this was what English folk music was all
about. I've only even been to one concert that was 'heartier', and that
was the Watersons (with Carthy).
  Also, one big difference between the two is that Sandy writes most of
her songs herself, while Shirley interprets traditional songs. I consider
both singers to be extremely important in their respective corners of
modern English folk music. I agree that with 'No Roses' Shirley took a
step into area where Sandy was the queen, but it's still one hell of an
album!

Hosko
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