STYLE: Jesus Music RATING OUR PRODUCT CODE: 102473-15833 LABEL: Kissing Spell FORMAT: CD Album ITEMS: 1
Reviewed by Lins Honeyman
Following the CD release of folk rock outfit Caedmon's highly collectable 1978 eponymous album by specialist label Kissing Spell, live material from the band's heyday has been unearthed to give more insight into the capabilities of this largely underrated group. Culled from two performances in their then hometown of Edinburgh in 1977 and 1978, this collection sees the group very much in their natural habitat on stage and they arguably seem more cohesive than on their renowned studio album. Despite evidently playing to only a few people on these recordings, the level of commitment from each band member never wanes and, as a result, they collectively turn in some truly captivating and intense live performances. Memorable moments include Simon Jacquet's frantic mandolin on "Ivory Tower", Jim Bisset's haunting guitar on "Sea Song" and the delicate group harmonies of "Storm" whilst the inclusion of "Aslan" and "Ten Maidens Fair" reflect the band's Christian faith at the time. Whilst a good chunk of the material from the studio album is featured in almost identical form, a handful of previously unreleased songs such as bassist Sam Wilson's stunning "London Psalm" and "Worlds And Friends" by multi-instrumentalist Ken Patterson ensure that this release stands tall alongside its more famous counterpart and adds more colour to Caedmon's already fascinating history.
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Posted by Sam Wilson in Edinburgh @ 22:17 on Oct 31 2010
One thing that's somehow got missed in the historical record
is that, while I wrote the music for London Psalm the words
were a poem I found in, I think, Buzz Magazine. I soon lost
the mag and couldn't remember the poet, and the whole song
got credited to me on this album. If the poet reads this,
I'm terribly sorry and I'd love to pass on the credit where
it's due.
One thing that's somehow got missed in the historical record is that, while I wrote the music for London Psalm the words were a poem I found in, I think, Buzz Magazine. I soon lost the mag and couldn't remember the poet, and the whole song got credited to me on this album. If the poet reads this, I'm terribly sorry and I'd love to pass on the credit where it's due.