Waterbug Rec.
Sarah McQuaid : The Plum Tree and the Rose (US/IR/SP/UK,2012)****/***°
For her sensibility to song, singing and (sometimes open tuning) guitar playing Sarah McQuaid would fit well for lovers of early Joni Mitchell. However I think it is especially the other inspirations to her personal longings and feelings that give Sarah’s music something extra. She has shown before, and succeeds here even more to focus on historical contexts, imagines the stories behind certain facts and brings them in a new inspired context of contemporary songwriting. And aso her guitar style can be influenced by some older traditions. Thanks to the booklet with lyrics and background stories it is very easy to go deeper behind all the inspirations.
The first track, “Lift you up and let you fly” has warm arrangements of electric piano and a trumpet solo to the acoustic guitar, is about the ability in letting go a child, when it is grown up. “Hardwick’s Lofty Towers” is the first song with a historical context. It is about the wealthy woman behind the Hardwick towers. With guitar and fiddles in close harmony this song with the right sensibility kind of creates a new tradition of folk. Further she also interpreted “Solid Air” by John Martyn accompanied with some trumpet too, and sung by a lower and slightly breathy voice. “Kanilworth” is a song about Robert Dudley’s courting of Queen Elizabeth, accompanied by a nice warm picking theme. “In Derby Cathedral” can be considered as an appendix to the song of Bess of Hardwick, more rhythmical, with a Spanish trumpet and some harmonium. “The sun goes on Rising” played with a brushed rhythm has a bit of a bluesy mood and is a song about the current evolutions and bad economic situations. This is followed by an Occitan minstrel song by Ellian du Cadenet (12th century) accompanied by a droning shruti box (=a small hand harmoium, fitting with the droning instruments of the time) and a South American tiple (replacing the sound of the medieval zithers). Sarah also reinterpreted a John Dowland song (the famous Rennaissance lute player composer) which she rearranged for guitar, a song about courting frustrations, a succesful interpretation bringing the song to the level of a new inspiration fitting in our times. “New Oysters New” is a trio voice only, voice responding song, originally by Thomas Ravenscroft now sounding like a court-music alike fun-making introduction of a meal entering the dining room coming from the kitchen. This is followed by a Dublin-based love related song inspiration. The title track’s guitar arrangement to the song in fact very much fits the Downland period once more, deliberate or not. The album is concluded with another voice only canon in six parts. A successful album which for a change isn’t all blurry and vague but something that can reveal more by closer listening/reading.
Sarah currently is residing in the UK. Much of the roots that can be felt in this album are also very much English.
The album is produced by Gerry O’Beirne (Midnight Well, Patrick Street, Sharon Shannon Band), engineered by Trevor Hutchinson (Waterboys, Lúnasa)
