CD-Charts Position 101
Average Rating:

Hourglass

CD-Charts > Music > Traditional British and Celtic Folk
by: Kate Rusby

Release Date August 18, 1998
i must admit that i heard this on a recorded tape while i was waiting for a girl i was babysitting to fall asleep, and i may have missed the last song or two, but what i heard was amazing. this woman's music is beautiful--you lose yourself in her lyrics, her voice, and her stunning guitar riffs: especially when you expect to hear a child's lullaby tape, and you get kate rusby. someone you may never have heard of, but if you know one thing, you know that as soon as you can get to the store you're going to buy her cd.

CD-Charts Position 102
Average Rating:

Inside the Thunder

CD-Charts > Music > Traditional British and Celtic Folk
by: Dougie MacLean

Release Date February 21, 2006
As a long time fan of Dougie MacLean, I was disappointed in INSIDE THE THUNDER. Every song sounded exactly the same to me.

CD-Charts Position 103
Average Rating:

Below the Salt

CD-Charts > Music > Traditional British and Celtic Folk
by: Steeleye Span

Release Date August 08, 1989
The sheer aural beauty of much of this album cannot be adequately stated in words. This is not (with the possible exception of 'Spotted Cow') a 'pop' folk album. This is an attempt to create great music. Maddy Prior's vocal in the haunting 'Sheepcrook and Blackdog'is one of those rare musical moments that can transport the listener to that special realm of pure emotional pleasure which constitutes one of the most profound experiences possible. The bouncing happiness of 'Royal Forrester' shows how little great rythm depends on a thudding drum. 'King Henry' also features a driving drum-less rythm with a wonderful duet. The two a cappella songs, 'Rosebud in June', and 'Guadete'are as different as shivering and infinity. Rosebud successfully evokes the hardship ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 104
Average Rating:

Open Road

CD-Charts > Music > Traditional British and Celtic Folk
by: Donovan

Release Date August 22, 2000
This being a very hard CD to find , is helping me complete
my Donovan collection. I hadn't heard this album of his for years !
I remember having liked it years ago, and now hearing it again
see why. Also the music for "Celtic Rock" was later used in
his song "The Jabberwock".

CD-Charts Position 105
Average Rating:

Ten

CD-Charts > Music > Traditional British and Celtic Folk
by: Kate Rusby

Release Date January 07, 2003
I have been a fan of Kate Rusby for a number of years, and this album has quickly become my favorite. Her music tends to tell stories in beautiful song, and in them are found all the raw and agonal emotion of traditional folk ballads. Even where she composes her own songs, these raw emotions often remain in the lyrics encapsulated in her beautiful voice.

One of my favorite songs on this album is "I Wish" which is a portrait of the regret of a girl who has become pregnant by a man who has since moved on to someone else. Here she uses words of a traditional song with her own melody to create a fantastic effect.

Similarly the tragedy in "The Drowned Lovers" which features a curses by a mother (and in one interpretation even murder) against her ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 106
Average Rating:

Must I Paint You a Picture? The Essential Billy Bragg

CD-Charts > Music > Traditional British and Celtic Folk
by: Billy Bragg

Release Date October 28, 2003
I love Billy Bragg's lefty politics, his rough, un-taught voice and his tremendous guitar playing, but most I just love his courage. He's a good, at times clever song writer - "Walk Away Renee" was a nice surprise, and you just should have him in your catalog.

CD-Charts Position 107
Average Rating:

Hero and Heroine

CD-Charts > Music > Traditional British and Celtic Folk
by: The Strawbs

Release Date October 12, 1998
Short and sweet I have all of the strawbs recordings and this is by far the masterpiece from the group!!!!

CD-Charts Position 108
Average Rating:

Sea of Tranquility

CD-Charts > Music > Traditional British and Celtic Folk
by: Phil Coulter

Release Date October 25, 1990
I recently returned from Ireland where I heard this album.
Very relaxing music and some in my company were playing it
while being delayed in the airport. Glad to find that it
could be purchased at Amazon.

CD-Charts Position 109
Average Rating:

Down the Old Plank Road: The Nashville Sessions

CD-Charts > Music > Traditional British and Celtic Folk
by: The Chieftains

Release Date September 17, 2002
The Chieftains..BLUE GRASS?
Yep, shure 'nough is, y'all.
Well, sorta...

When people hear "Chieftains" they're thinking Irish, Gaelic..but BLUE GRASS? Actually it's not a stretch at all considering that Irish folk music played a major role in the creation of American folk music, Blue Grass (Tenessee, Kentucky)--and via Blue Grass to Country & Western. Of course other ethnic flavors are involved including Scottish & colonial British, French, Spanish & African (Gospel, Blues, Jazz.)

To offer a comparison, the soundtrack of "O, Brother, Where Art Thou?" gives a pretty good sampler of Blue Grass, & this CD does the same--but with more songs, more A-List US artists (John Hiatt, Bela Fleck, Earl Scruggs, Vince Gill, Alison Krauss, Lyle Lovetti, ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 110
Average Rating:

Fairytale

CD-Charts > Music > Traditional British and Celtic Folk
by: Donovan

Release Date February 15, 2005
Released in October 1965, Donovan's 2nd UK album for Pye Records is represented on this "Expanded Edition" by Tracks 1 to 12 - and it's something of a lost Sixties Folk/Rock classic.

The album's opener "Colours" is a balls-to-the-wall 60's classic - it truly is. "Fairytale" features a lot of tracks like that - just Donovan and his acoustic guitar - more Folk than Pop really. In fact, when you hear almost any track on this very hard-to-find LP, it's easy to see why Donovan was often referred to as Britain's Bob Dylan. And it wasn't just because of the similar vocal styles - they were both such good songwriters and commentators on the times.

Highlights include "The Ballad Of A Crystal Man" which is represented on this disc twice - the full album version and the edited ... Read More: