WATER BEARER

I was quite surprised to find Sally Oldfield here in PA. And much more when I had the chance to listen to her debut album Waterbearer. I used to think of Sally as the sister of her more famous brother Mike. Yes, like most people who were alive on earth in the late 70´s I had heard her biggest (and only) hit single Mirrors. As much as I liked this song, I never felt really moved enough to actually go and get the CD. Maybe I was afraid of another big, prog related, disappointment like so many I had at the time.

So I was glad to see what a big surprise this work turned out to be when I finally gave it a shot so many years after it was released. Her music was a (then) very original mixture of celtic folk, ambient and what became to be known as ethinic or world music. In other words, she was at least some ten years ahead of her time. Small wonder it was so hard to label her work (and market it). No one had come up with the new age label at that period yet. If Waterbearer was released in the late 80´s or early 90´s she would probably enjoy a much better midia exposure and maybe commercial success like Enya, Loreena McKennitt, Clannad, etc.

There is a lot of Mike Oldfield´s music influence here, but she already had proved she had a sound of her own. I loved the clever use of percussion, acoustic instruments and synthesizers. Her multi tracked vocals are another great feature: Sally Oldfield has a real beautiful voice and she knows how to use it to maximum effect. Add some fine songwriting skills, excellent production and tasteful arrangements and, voilá!, a remarkable album was born in a time when most things progressive were going downhill. Fast!

Conclusion: maybe today her music does not sound as groundbreaking as it might had been in 1978, due to so many imitators that came after it. But it did stand well the test of time after all these years, it still feels fresh and exciting. if you like bands like Renaissance or Fairport Convention, then this is a must have. Waterbearer, to my delight, proved to be much stronger than just a bunch Mirrors look alike tunes. Rating: 4,5 stars.