Search - Albion Band :: Rise Up Like the Sun

Terrific But Not The Place To Start

chilke | Troy, MT United States | 03/30/2004

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I believe that this record is the least typical of the Albion Band. The Albion Band was considered the most English and traditional of the major English folk/rock bands of the seventies. That is why I prefer them over Fairport Convention and Steeleye Span. Battle Of The Field and The Prospect Before Us are loaded with toe-tapping good-time dance tunes. Rise Up Like The Sun seems to be a singular attempt to become more prog rock oriented with guitar solos and such. I am somewhat intolerant of prog rock and the guitar solos sound quite dated in comparison to more straightforward English folk/rock, which is nearly timeless. To the already converted:
An incredible cast of guests including Martin Carthy, Kate McGarrigle, and Richard and Linda Thompson! Richard contributes Time To Ring Some Changes(great song) and the bonus track, Rainbow Over The Hill, which has Linda on vocals! The Postman's Knock, which is probably danceable, is another bonus track, along with the rearranged sea shanty, Pain And Paradise(Viola Wills credited on vocals), and a remixed Lay Me Low(which I prefer to the original, it seems less guitar solo-y). House In The Country is a standout track-lovely and moving. It features John Tams and Kate McGarrigle on vocals. The Primrose is a toe-tapping delight and is along the lines of the joyous dance numbers on The Prospect Before Us. Gresford Disaster is diminished by the aforementioned prog rock affectations. It starts out great but becomes tedious. How can you go wrong with track credits that read like this? "With Martin Carthy, Julie Covington, Pat Donaldson, Andy Fairweather-Low, Kate McGarrigle, and Richard & Linda Thompson, backing vocals." Still, I wish they had kept some of the medieval instruments from The Prospect Before Us and left some electric guitars in their guitar cases. I'm no audiophile, or critic either, for that matter, but the remastered cd sounds about as good as any. The Albion Band has always been acclaimed for an innovative and extremely powerful rhythm section, and thankfully, several of these tunes allow them to rumble, especially the opening track, Ragged Heroes, a fine John Tams composition with impressive chorus vocals, and Thompson's Time To Ring Some Changes. File under: English semi-progressive folk/rock."

Great folkrock music

Graeme Qewe | Denmark | 05/10/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This album, is without any doubt my favourite album by The Albion Band. The music provided by these musicians, are belongs to the top of the folkrock genre. From Tams' opening track to the traditional ending track "Gresford Disaster", the listener will be in good company."