Fairport Convention - Fiddlestix: The Best of Fairport, 1970-1984

Title: Fiddlestix: The Best of Fairport, 1970-1984 Artist: Fairport Convention Release Date: 11/10/1998 Re-Released On: 2/11/1997 Label: Raven Album Type(s): Greatest Hits UPCs: 612657004722, 9398800004726 Genre: Rock Styles: Psychedelic, Folk-Rock, British Folk, Progressive Folk, British Folk-Rock Moods: Dramatic, Earnest, Passionate, Pastoral, Amiable/Good-Natured, Autumnal, Bittersweet, Intimate, Literate, Witty, Energetic, Gentle, Intense, Laid-Back/Mellow, Melancholy, Organic, Reflective, Rollicking, Searching, Sophisticated, Wistful Total Copies: 0 Members Wishing: 5 Number of Discs/SwapaCD Credits: 1

1. Fiddlestix
2. Sir Patrick Spens [Live]
3. Banks of the Sweet Primroses [Live]
4. The Plainsman
5. The Hexhamshire Lass
6. Polly on the Shore
7. Days of '49 [Live]
8. Possibly Parsons Green [Live]
9. Down in the Flood [Live]
10. Rising for the Moon
11. White Dress
12. The Eynsham Poacher
13. Adieu, Adieu
14. Three Drunken Maidens
15. Reynard the Fox
16. Widow of Westmorland's Daughter
17. Close to the Wind
18. It Suits Me Well
19. Jenny's Chickens/The Mason's Apron [Live][#]

Year Type Label Catalog # 1997 CD Raven 47

No other editions were found for this album.

Fairport Convention's '70s output has seldom been given a fair crack of the whip. Forever overshadowed by the massive strides that the band took during the late '60s or the nostalgic reunions of more recent years, the string of albums that stretched from Full House to Tippler's Tales are frequently overlooked by all but the most conscientious chroniclers -- and that despite including two of the band's finest LPs, the Sandy Denny reunion Rising for the Moon and its immediate successor, The Bonny Bunch of Roses. That omission is more than compensated for with Fiddlestix, a compilation expressly designed to plug the chronological void that reaches from the conclusion of the self-explanatory History of Fairport Convention, released in 1972, to the opening (1985) of The Woodworm Years. It isn't perfect -- a single disc could never do the era true justice. But with between one and three tracks apiece from each of the albums, plus a roundup of rarities drawn from singles, sessions, and the band's own archive, it illustrates the journey with electrifying precision. Such slabs of jolly ribaldry as "The Hexhamshire Lass" and "The Widow of Westmoreland," the mad instrumental "Fiddlestix," and a live "Sir Patrick Spens" all confirm Fairport's position at the very forefront of british folk-rock. They are joined, however, by such gems as the lovely "White Dress," the dramatic "Days of '49," and an epic "It Suits Me Well," performances reminding listeners that Fairport Convention was so much more than a simple electric trad revival band. Fairport was also one of the finest rock bands of the 1970s -- and Fiddlestix makes certain that listeners remember that fact. ~ Dave Thompson, All Music Guide

Name Credits Bruce Rowland ? Dave Mattacks ? Dave Pegg Arranger Dave Swarbrick ? Fairport Convention Arranger Glenn A. Baker Concept, Release Preparation Ian McFarlane Release Preparation Jerry Donahue ? Kevin Mueller Concept Martin Allcock ? Peter Shillito Concept, Compilation, Release Preparation Ric Sanders ? Richard Thompson ? Sandy Denny ? Simon Nicol ? Trevor Lucas ? Warren Barnett Mastering, Assembly