Ruth Angell & Sid Peacock
Album: Love Forgiven
Label: Self Released
Tracks: 12
Website: http://www.ruthangell.com

Reviewing music is like prospecting for gold. You spend ages digging and just once in a while you come across a nugget, something that shines out above the rest. This exquisite album is just such a nugget.

The makers of this album are Ruth Angell and Sid Peacock. Ruth is from Derbyshire and plays fiddle and sings .Sid is from Northern Ireland and plays guitar and sings. Together they make lovely music which they tell us is inspired by beautiful places and great poets. The album which contains both songs and tunes, some traditional, some original, was recorded at The Tyrone Guthrie Centre at Annaghmakerigg, County Monaghan. This Centre is a retreat for artists was bequeathed to the State by Sir Tyrone Guthrie with the proviso that it be used for the benefit of artists. It is set among the lakes and drumlins of County Monaghan and the tranquil surroundings have clearly permeated this recording.

The album begins with two well-known traditional Irish folk songs, "She Moved Through The Fair" and "Carrickfergus". The former is beautifully sung by Ruth, with a shimmering, drone-like backing. The latter is sung by Sid, with harmonies by Ruth. The following track "Malahide" is a gorgeous tune with soaring fiddle and chunky acoustic guitar. Malahide is a seaside town in County Dublin and I'm surmising that the tune is an evocation of that "beautiful place". Clearly, Ruth and Sid are masters of their instruments, fiddle and guitar respectively.

"Tiny Sparrow" is a version of the American folksong "Fair And Tender Ladies", as performed by The Carter Family [and others]. It has a simple arrangement, just guitar and vocals [from Ruth] but it works beautifully. The mood changes with "Vagabond's Lullaby" which is sung by Sid, sounding rather like an Irish Leonard Cohen [if you can imagine that!]. The song is about a man who drinks when he can and is, what you might call, a free man.

"The Birdman" is about an eccentric who cuts bread into neat little one inch squares so that he can feed the birds .This song must be the spiritual successor to "Feed The Birds" from Mary Poppins. Actually, it's a lovely song with some fine finger-picking guitar. Following "The Birdman" is "The Birds" [naturally] which is a suite of tunes inspired by our feathered friends and, again, features some great fiddle and guitar interplay.

"The Kiss/No Roses" are two poems. The latter is by Christina Rossetti whose haunting words are beautifully sung by Ruth with a simple but effective piano accompaniment. "The Humours of Lissadell" is a traditional Irish reel which has been performed by, amongst others, De Dannan .This version is superb with some amazingly spirited fiddle playing.

"Days of Days" is about welcoming a new-born baby into the world and telling him/her of the love and support they will receive. In many ways it is the antithesis of Richard Thompson's "End of the Rainbow ".

The final track "Hope For The Young" closes the album on a gentle note, with advice for youth - " The mind's only free when it's young ".

How can I sum up this album in one word? Beautiful.

Peter Cowley