L5 clive gash 9 hippiedrill 11

[rayge]

A Lal & Mike Waterson - The Scarecrow

B Louis Jordan - Ain’t Nobody Here But us Chickens 1956

[bungo the mungo]

bright phoebus is one of my all-time favourites and 'scarecrow' is one of the best tracks on it, so a bit of a no-brainer.

B was fun but forgettable.

A

[Deleted]

I'm glad A exists as a connection to something ancient and mystical, but in truth I prefer my folk less trad.
LJ is a lot of fun and his records always featured top notch playing - I love the rawness of the sax solo here. I've been a fan since the early 80s (when there was something of a revival of interest in him) and this is one of my favourites.

B

[toomanyhatz]

Another "declare yourself" match for which it pains me to not be able to claim both. I suppose A is a bit lower on the 'we need more of this' scale, but it's also closer to my heart.

I find it funny that this occasionally inspires some 'traditionalist'/'finger in the ear'-type comments. Certainly in the context of when it came out it's about as far away as it could possibly be without having screaming lead guitar. Certainly the chord structure that starts around :40 is not something that folk clubs had heard the likes of previously. This record is just such a treasure. I'm glad I'm not the only one who realizes it.

[Sneelock]

well, I was really psyching myself up to vote for A. but skope fixed that. "Ain't Nobody Here but us Chickens" forgettable???
maybe you don't like it & maybe you think it's stupid but "tomorrow is a busy day. we've got things to do, we've got eggs to lay" is certainly NOT forgettable. not in my pup tent!!!

B

[oh oooh]

A is a valuable record of a traditional style of music and all that. I mean, you know? fuck that. I like the title track but this thing is parched like an early Billy Bragg 'tune'. No use to me.

B is good fun

[DarknessFish]

A is a pretty folk-guitar track which is fairly hamstrung by the off-putting ear-finger-hollering vocal. Too strident and mannered for the beauty of the instrumentation, which as hatz points out, isn't that trad at all. I have a high tolerance for this kind of thing, but I can understand when people have the same reaction as I did to Loretta Lynn. By the end, it definitely won me over.

Louis Jordan isn't going to win me over, it's hard to appreciate this sort of thing now, which feels very much sanitised compared to what else was emerging around the same time, and everything that has followed since. Only the courseness of the sax really offers any kind of energy for me, and even then, not a lot.

A

[~ / % ? *]

B

Louis Jordan rollicking like a freight train, this is actually from 1946, not 1956; a huge influence on electronica, industrial, and synth pop.

[fearlessfreap]

Louis Jordan makes fun music, which is all too rare. B

[DarknessFish]

Aug 11, 2021 12:06:07 GMT ~ / % ? * said:

B

Louis Jordan rollicking like a freight train, this is actually from 1946, not 1956

Clearly not. It's a rock n roll remake, as it says in the video.

1946 version:

[Half Machine Lipschitz]

I bet Mike Waterson has a lovely collection of Fair Isle sweaters and flat caps. Is the song supposed to fade out as abruptly as it did? Seems odd.

I'm not a huge fan of that jumpin' and jivin' rock'n'roll, but this tune is amusing enough to earn my vote.

B

[~ / % ? *]

Aug 11, 2021 13:06:34 GMT DarknessFish said:

Aug 11, 2021 12:06:07 GMT ~ / % ? * said:

B

Louis Jordan rollicking like a freight train, this is actually from 1946, not 1956

Clearly not. It's a rock n roll remake, as it says in the video.

1946 version:

good job! (your video doesn't show, but I appreciate the research)

[morgan]

I've always wanted to connect with the watersons music but it's too nasal and earnest for me. I manage to enjoy most of that genre, even Martin carthy but I can't even get through all of bright Phoebus.

Louis Jordan gets my vote.

B

I've voted enough today, I need a lie down with a weak tea and a fairy cake.

[DayoRemix]

Tough one..Taking the vocal out of A allows me to enjoy the track, but it is a difficult task...B is bouncy, but generic and terribly dated (For me)...ugh...Vote A, for the instrumentation..

[osgood]

Thanks to an Eliza Carthy pick in latest cup, which I loved, I did a little explore in the Watersons territory and decided to stop since I found it was not friendly to my ears. I had Bright Phoebus labelled as to-do, and A has convinced me to remove that label. Not for me.

B is unsubstantial but at least it doesn't feel like work to get through.

B