In 1972, i heard "Sir Patrick Spens" on WREK (Georgia
Tech station), called to find out who it was, went straight to a record store
and bought this album. This was to be the start of a continuing obsession
with Fairport and British/Celtic folk-rock bands in general.
This was a turning point for Fairport; the departure of Sandy Denny had left
them with no vocalist, and Ashley (Tyger) Hutchings's absence left them with
no bass player, either. The arrival of Swarb's old mate, Dave Pegg (in 2000,
Peggie is now the longest-serving member and leader of the band) handily
filled in the bass player slot, but that still left no singer.
So Richard and Swarb and Simon became singers.
Aside from "Spens", some of the highlights of this album include "Sloth"
(which, played live, has clocked in at fourteen-plus minutes on more than
one occasion), "Walk Awhile" and "Flatback Caper", a series of variations
on a folk instrumental.
Richard and Simon's guitars, Peggie's bass, Swarb's fiddle and DM's drums
complement each other perfectly.
This one is in the running for Best Fairport Album (which also puts it Very
Near the top for Best Folk-Rock Album).
And the liner-notes (by RT, i believe) are a hoot.
And as to the title, which bugged me for a while -- three guys named Dave
and two guitar-players; all caricatured as Tarot cards on the cover.
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