Cozens

Vocalist Graham Bonnet fronts this group consisting of drummer extraordinaire Cozy Powell, guitarists Ray Fenwick and Jan Akkerman, with Chris Cozens on keyboards, and guests like Terry Pack and Mo Foster on bass. The album begins awkwardly with a bit of bombast called "Hit and Run" but gets more hard pop with "Always," a drum beat that Roxy Music utilized on Manifesto, and that Elton John chose for "Healing Hands" under a melody that sounds totally derivative. Rocking harder than "Touch Me," the 1974 hit Fenwick composed for his group Fancy, but not as aggressive as that Top 20 song, there's the balancing act going on here of Cozy Powell's arena rock attitude and Ray Fenwick's pop sensibilities.

After releasing the much-delayed The Apprentice, Martyn was once again on a roll, and, while not quite as strong as The Apprentice, Cooltide was a solid outing. His jazziest release yet, it's marred slightly by a gravelly hoarseness in his voice, which makes him sound like he's just recovered from laryngitis. "Jack the Lad" was the single released, and, along with "Annie Says" and the aching "Call Me," they show him entering the 1990s in fine form. The title song had a long gestation, originally recorded for 1979's Grace and Danger under the title "Running up the Harbour." While a bit long, it's a great hypnotic, groove-oriented track that's smooth and cool, with Martyn venturing a little further afield than he had in quite a while.

After releasing the much-delayed The Apprentice, Martyn was once again on a roll, and, while not quite as strong as The Apprentice, Cooltide was a solid outing. His jazziest release yet, it's marred slightly by a gravelly hoarseness in his voice, which makes him sound like he's just recovered from laryngitis. "Jack the Lad" was the single released, and, along with "Annie Says" and the aching "Call Me," they show him entering the 1990s in fine form. The title song had a long gestation, originally recorded for 1979's Grace and Danger under the title "Running up the Harbour." While a bit long, it's a great hypnotic, groove-oriented track that's smooth and cool, with Martyn venturing a little further afield than he had in quite a while.

Jacqui McShee & Friends - English Christmas Carols
EAC+LOG+CUE | FLAC: 268 MB | Full Artwork: 37 MB | 5% Recovery Info
Label/Cat#: Goya # 870 008 | Country/Year: Germany 1994
Genre: Folk, Special Interest | Style: English Folk, Christmas

Jacqui McShee was already singing traditional folk in British folk clubs when she began working with virtuosic acoustic guitarist John Renbourne in 1966. A year later, she agreed to join Pentangle, a band Renbourne was forming with equally skillful guitarist Bert Jansch, bassist Danny Thompson, and percussionist/drummer Terry Cox. McShee's decision to accept Renbourne's invitation proved pivotal to the history of British music as Pentangle joined with Fairport Convention and Steeleye Span to put British folk-rock on the international map…