For anyone interested in folk music then surely Peter Knight needs no introduction, as apart from Maddy Prior he has spent more years involved in Steeleye Span than anyone else. This is essentially a “best of” collection, as Talking Elephant’s head honcho felt that Gigspanner have never really gained the recognition they deserve and wanted to do something to address that. One of the reasons is that the band have always deliberately kept their releases low key, and they are generally only available through the website or at gigs, if at all. Current band members Roger Flack, Sacha Trochet , alongside previous percussionist Vincent Salzfaas, chose their most favourite pieces from those that had proven most popular at their live gigs and the compilation was then especially curated by Peter Knight from earlier recordings that span 2009 to 2017.
All the material included are traditional songs, except for their own “Urban Reel”, yet what makes this collection stand out is the way they treat the music and move it into directions which may not always be expected. Take for example closing song “Hard Times of Old England”. Like many others I am sure, I can trace back to exactly when I first came across that song as it appeared on Steeleye Span’s wonderful 1976 album ‘All Around My Hat’, which I heard when it was originally released. But while Knight was a key component of the band which recorded that, here it has been taken into new directions, almost as if folk was being treated in the same manner as jazz, in that it is possible to move out in tangents to create something vibrant and different. This different approach allows the listener to appreciate well known material such as “She Moved Through The Fair” in a new way, as the band are determined not to follow what has been performed so many times before but instead is creating something new from source material which is at least 100 years old.
If you enjoy folk and have not come across Gigspanner then this is an album you really need to discover and all power for Malcolm Holmes for coming up with the concept.
Rating: 8/10
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Track list:
1. She Moved Through The Fair
2. Bold Riley
3. The Blackbird
4. The Butterfly
5. Bows Of London
6. Death And The Lady
7. Urban’s Reel
8. Sí Bheag, Sí Mhór
9. Hard Times Of Old England
Links:
https://www.gigspanner.com/
https://www.talkingelephant.co.uk/
