5 Classic Albums

Please note that this is a review for the first volume of Fairport's classic albums, that Amazon have lumped together with the reviews for the second volume.It seems churlish to quibble about a fantastic value for money collection which contains this bands superlative albums 'What We Did...', 'Unhalfbricking', & arguably the best of all 'Liege and Lief'.It is no coincidence that all three feature the stellar vocal talents of Sandy Denny, as well as emerging guitarist Richard Thompson. Add to that Ian Matthews vocals and guitar on the first, and Dave Swarbrick on fiddle on the latter two.With back up from the likes of Simon Nicol, Ashley Hutchings, Martin Lamble and Dave Mattacks this band went from a fairly decent American music cover band (first album) to an unbettered folk rock band performing scintillating electric versions of both traditional folk songs and their own brilliant compositions (as on Liege and Lief). This transformation took place in 1969 over the three albums which form the core of this collection. Unfortunately, and this is my slight quibble, if you want any detail of the personnel or songwriting credits on any of these albums you will have to research elsewhere as none of the packaging contains this information. As the cost of these albums is so low l venture many purchasers unfamiliar with the bands history, would have paid an extra quid or so for a card insert informing them who was responsible for the delightful music they are hearing.I should also mention here that unlike on some other classic album sets (eg Jefferson Airplane), you do only get the tracks from the original album releases in this set. I mention this because there have been recent re-releases of these Fairport albums with contemporary single releases and tracks from the sessions added on.If these additional tracks are important to you, you may want to spend a little more and at least initially get the three individual albums which feature Sandy Denny and contain those bonus tracks.Whilst a reasonable attempt to bring what was at the time less mainstream American music to British listeners ears, l dont think the first album stands the test of time. Although very talented musicians, and they were to show marked improvement over a short period of time, the band were very young at the time and still finding their recording feet. Also the arrangements and production dont sound as crisp or accomplished as on the following three albums. This could also be because Joe Boyd only shared production credits on the first album, because the band were still gelling, or because they did not yet have the galvanising effect of recruiting vocalist Sandy Denny as a focus around whom to play. Whilst Ian Matthews is no mean singer, and Judy Dyble has a pleasant voice, neither have the command and emotional breadth that Sandy Denny could bring to a song. Mostly a record of covers with additional tracks of varying quality, l can't really say that any of the covers stand out as bringing any improvement or additional dimension to the originals.For me, the next 3 album releases in this set go up incrementally in quality. From the superb 'Fotheringay' which opens 'What We Did On Our Holidays' to 'Crazy Man Michael' which closes 'Liege and Lief' the band barely put a foot wrong.From exhilarating foot stomping covers and originals, to melancholic songs about love, death and madness this band at their creative peak rip through a superb repertoire of songs and tunes.So what about 'Full House' after Sandy Denny & Ashley Hutchings departed the band.Any album with Dave Swarbrick on fiddle and mandolin, plus Richard Thompson on guitar cannot be entirely bad. Although other reviewers love this album, the band in my opinion miss Sandy, and some of the tracks sound a little lacklustre to my ears. Not unsurprising that Richard Thompson would not have been at his energetic best after the losses of his girlfriend and of original Fairport's drummer Martin Lamble in a motorway crash which had occurred after the recording of 'Unhalfbricking'. He reportedly became increasingly reclusive during this period as a young man struggling to cope with this tragedy.For me the bouncy instrumentals 'Dirty Linen' and 'Flatback Caper' plus the traditional ballad 'Sir Patrick Spens' set to the lively tune used by Ewan MacColl on 'Hughie The Graeme' are true standouts on the Full House album which sometimes lacks sparkle, despite occasional flourishes.Buy this collection without any qualms if you just want the original album tracks from this marvellous band at their peak.

Five CDs for the price of one is a good bargin by anyone's standards. This is a nice set, and, if you would like an economical introduction to their music, then I would say, this is it. I guess then, being budget priced, I should not be expecting much more than the five CDs in cardboard sleeves in a cardboard outer sleeve. On examination, I discovered this is a Spectrum Music package. That says it all. A budget company that, in the past, as yielded many a low price CD. It would have been nice to have a little booklet telling a bit about the albums, maybe with a photo or three of the group, and possibly some lyrics. But, in this case, I think that the music speaks for itself. A great little bundle.

This is an amazing collection, showing how the band developed very quickly, the 5 albums covers just 2 years (June 1968 - July 1970). From originally being a British Jefferson Airplane covering American singer songwriters and starting to write their own songs in a similar style, To by the 4th album something totally unique, a combination of traditional British songs and their own writing in a similar style, so much so, that many have been incorrectly credited to Trad. Listening the albums in order, shows a clear path of how they arrived at the present position.

I may be showing my age, but this collection of albums took me back to my (slightly) mis-spent youth... Sandy Denny had one of the great voices in this genre of music and is hugely missed! Songs such as "Fotheringay" & "Meet on the Ledge" are classics! These are albums I listen to time & again & I doubt very much that I will ever tire of them! Highly recommended!

This is about the first five albums in the Fairport canon, from the highly competent Jefferson Airplane knockoff that is the eponymous first album, through the first flowering of quite extraordinary talent that was Sandy Denny, with What we Did On Our Holidays, Unhalfbrickin and Liege and Lief (the first truly classic folk rock album), and finally the full-fat folk epic, Full House. What a stunning set of albums - really just pick your superlatives.After which, with Denny, Hutchings, and then Thompson had left, and the band entering what might be called the Dave Swarbrick years, the Fairport folk-rock sound evolved had a distinctive harder core traditional edge in both its music and vocals, but that's a story for another set of 5 classic albums. No brainer at the peanuts price.

Great to hear all this stuff again after so many years. I was a folkster before anything else and Fairport expertly bridged the gap twixt folk & rock. The recent death of Dave Swarbrick prompted me to take this listen down memory lane. I loved his playing with Fairport and it still sounds fresh and inspired. My personal fave is Full House. Sometimes an album just all hangs together perfectly as an organic unit and Full House is one. So many happy memories listening to it again. I know this is sacrilege to many FC fans, but I was never that crazy about Sandy's voice (tho so sad to lose her so young, of course) and for me the more macho attack of the band (tho still with much intricate skillful playing) thereafter worked fine.

In terms of musical content I cannot give this any less than 5*. For me the Sandy Denny/Richard Thompson/Ashley Hutchings years will always be the finest work that Fairport Convention has bequeathed the world and in this collection are the three albums that lie at the core of a revolution in both the exploration of British tradition and the expression of songwriting. In any other world the Fairports of the past thirty, or even forty, years would still have reached admirable peaks of excellence, but the sheer brilliance of this early work is tough to match. The one surprise for me in this collection has been a reminder of just how much I enjoyed the first album with Judy Dyble on vocals. This has prompted me to seek out her more recent work.