THE IRON STONE

I'm not sure how to describe this, as this album, is something that I had heard before in Robin's days right after The Incredible String Band, and while not keeping up with him for almost 30 years, all of a sudden I get this album, mostly because it is on the ECM label, that I trust so much, for its originality and well known recording of things in one take.

I'm not sure that many folks will like this ... because, in many ways this is poetry at its best ... this is not a bunch of songs. More like a bunch of little stories, and I have a feeling that these are very much ad-libbed ... and many times I wonder ... how did he come up with that? No one can explain his feeling when he tells his stories, and the music accompanying this is unreal ... do not look to listen to this as if it was just a bunch of songs ... let's say that there is no song here ... just Robin and a few friends ... doing something that many of us think is crazy, and wonder how they came up with all that.

In the middle of all this, are a bunch of pieces that are phenomenal, and I had to listen to the album more than once to be able to feel comfortable with the whole thing, because it is so different as to just about be really difficult to say something. But there are some gems in here, that are too special to be left behind.

The Iron Stone, Political Lies are probably the two pieces that you will remember the most, although I find it difficult to even remember his words ... somehow I hear the story and follow it, but it's as if the words are melded with the story in such a way, that it makes it difficult for us to concentrate on just one thing that we are used to do ... thinking of the lyrics, and all of a sudden, the rest of the piece disappears ... it's as if the music is so elusive and special as to keep us in the story ... not the words, and here, how Robin does it in each and every piece is so special and by far such an individuality that makes this different, and special ... it might even be considered "prog-related" but if we take how this disdains the standard format for anything, this blows the style/definition to smithereens. I'm not sure I even want to say something about each piece, as I thought that listening to it, is going to be such an experience, and so different for many of us, as to make it tough to review something, or say something that in so many ways is so far and beyond words ... in the end, it is almost like "Verses at Elsmere" ... just a flow of feelings and words, and the music ... goodness the music ... makes you wonder how someone even considered doing this ... but it was obvious that some courageous folks took the chance and the work by Ale Moller, Mat Maneri and Barre Phillips is so incredible all the way through ... in what is one special album from an artist, that has so many albums that are so far and away from our ideas of what music, song, or poetry is ... there is a mastery about it, that is unbelievable. And all you can say is ... thanks Robin ... very neat and far out ... very neat and far out.