WHAT WE DID ON OUR HOLIDAYS

This wonderful album marks Sandy Denny's debut with Fairport Convention. And what an impressive debut it is! From the very first notes of "Fotheringay" to "End of a Holiday", "What We Did In Our Holidays" is a wonderful album, plenty of beautiful melodies, good singin' & good playin' (pardon me, Grand Funk fans!). This album began Fairport's transformation from a Jefferson Airplane clone to England's premier folk rock band. In fact, "Fotheringay" and "Nottamun Town" could perfectly be fitted into "Liege & Lief", acknowledged as Fairport's first folk rock album. Unfortunately, this was Ian Matthews's last album with Fairport, but he delivered a final great performance: "Meet on the Ledge". His vocal interplay with Sandy Denny is, IMO, the finest moment of this great album. I resist to give those early Fairport albums 5-star rating, because I don't think they are "essential" to progressive music. But this and "Liege and Lief", despite their 4-star ratings, are in fact masterpieces.