Gettin' the feelin' (Danny Kirwan) (LP 4890 - 4894)

Fairport Convention  Fairport Live Convention (Vinyl, Island Records, 1974) ***  

Roberta Flack  Quiet Fire (Vinyl, Atlantic Records, 1971) **** 

Françoise Hardy  One-Nine-Seven-Zero (Vinyl, Interfusion Records, 1969) **** 

Carole King  Rhymes & Reasons (Vinyl, A&M Records, 1972) **** 

Danny Kirwan  Second Chapter (Vinyl, DJM Records, 1975) **** 

Danny Kirwan  Hello There Big Boy! (Vinyl, DJM Records, 1979) **** 

Genre: Folk rock, soul, gospel, French yé-yé music, pop, rock

Places I remember: Brian Smith Collection, The Little Red Bookshop, JB Hi Fi, Vinyl Room, Vinyl Vault Plus

Fab, and all the other pimply hyperboles: Suzanne (Hardy)

Gear costume: Peace in the Valley (King) 

They loom large in his legend (The Album Collection playlists): Part 1; Part 2; Part 3; Part 4; Part 5; Part 6; Part 7; Part 8

Active compensatory factors: Fairport Live Convention comes from live dates in Sydney (The Opera House), and London and although that variety of live venues makes it a bit disjointed, and the atmosphere could have been better generally, these are the only recordings of the band live with Sandy Denny - so it is worth the effort.

I'm not a huge fan of the band, I much prefer Steeleye Span's grittier approach and sound, but Sandy Denny is superb within this framework.

Quiet Fire is Roberta Flack's third album, another great album from 1971. Her gospel/soulful vocals are, of course, her great asset, but she's an excellent pianist as well and the other musicians on the album like guitarist Hugh McCracken, organist Richard Tee, bassist Chuck Rainey, and drummer Bernard Purdie aren't too shabby either. 

The highlights are the gospel infused version of Bridge Over Troubled Water, and the versions of Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow and To Love Somebody. All come via her quiet fire approach.

Françoise Hardy is a French pop singer, although One-Nine-Seven-Zero was her third album done in English. It came as she was transitioning from being a French pop star to a more mature international artist. It's a pretty amazing album in many ways and something of a revelation to me. I love it when I come across something fresh and new to my musical world.

There are plenty of highlights and there is a lot of variety as well. I particularly love her version of Leonard Cohen's Suzanne. She has to keep the lyrics as they are really, and so there's something very cool about her version from a female point of view, which is missing from male versions.

Carole King's third solo album, Rhymes & Reasons, tends to be overshadowed by her dynamic first two albums, but I really like the warm sound and approach she adopts on the album. It may not have the hits, but it is a classy set of mid paced songs.

Danny Kirwan was a member of Fleetwood Mac back in the days when the band also included Peter Green and Jeremy Spenser. Chapter Two was his debut solo album after leaving FM in 1972.

Surprisingly, the album follows a pop approach rather than the blues. Pop as in later FM, Paul McCartney, America kind of quality pop. His third (and final) solo album was the equally great sounding Hello There Big Boy. Pity about the title and cover but the music is top notch. I will need to keep a lookout for his second solo album - Midnight in San Juan (1976).

 

Where do they all belong? Hitting the easy listening and jazz sections next.