PRINCESS OF THE ISLAND

I guess these recordings predate their 1971 album. The liner notes seem to suggest that this material is their very best. Tracks 1-8 were recorded in Paris in June, 1970, and tracks 9-14 were recorded in Isle Of Wight during 1969-1970.

On display here is charming folk which certainly might appeal to lovers of the genre. Put it this way: If you adore Trader Horne and the idea of a more stripped down, demo-quality sound to the male/female sound on display there appeals to you, look no further.

Shide & Acorn's sound is intimate. That intimate sound is sometimes sad and sometimes playful. Interestingly, things are also fleshed out a bit in that Joy Perkis adds violin and recorder to the proceedings. Vocally, she has a beautifully light, soft voice. It perhaps doesn't exhibit a whole lot of character, but she sings in key and doesn't get in the way of anything. Some tracks also feature drums, so there is some variance to the overall approach.

I'm giving this one 3 stars. I'd like to hear their album proper and perhaps hearing these earlier tracks would make more of an impact. Here they don't have a sound distinctive enough to pull me in to the point where albums by Tudor Lodge, Mellow Candle, Dando Shaft and so forth would ever see diminished playing time as a result of my reaching for this CD.