PORTFOLIO

(Recognize the style of the cover art? If you know Talk Talk albums, you can't mistake the James Marsh painting.)

This compilation of Steeleye Span was the third I have listened to (among few studio albums), and clearly the best of them. Easy Livin in his 2-star review talks about misleading randomness, but I have no such feeling. There may be some omitted landmark songs, but (being no expert of this band at all) I think this serves very well as an introduction to the 16-year timespan it covers, whether you're completely new to the band or have heard several albums. Of course a single disc can't do that very deeply, satisfying also connoisseurs, but hardly it has to. The most important thing is that it's packed with good music. (Since they are put under Prog Related here, a quick word on them: they were among the most succesful folk-rock bands during the seventies, rivalled by Fairport Convention. They performed mostly "Trad." material using mainly electric instruments - with professionalism and skill that was not for granted among folkies, and their key vocalist is the lovely Maddy Prior. BTW, the first place I heard her was in Mike Oldfield's Incantations.)

With 16 tracks - 20 on the original 2-LP - this CD represents some of the best music of their halcyon days of the seventies and briefly shows their evolution up to the 1986 album Back in Line. Also positive is that the short and basic liner notes give information on the album sources and the major changes in line-up in a user-friendly way. Thumbs up for this one!