Customer Reviews

Ain't Comin' Back (this year)

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I have to say that I'm not a folk music fan, probably because so many of the songs seem overly sentimental and so many of its singers--I guess because of their quest for an "honest" sound?--come across as vocally ugly. So this CD was a wonderful surprise. Energetic, tuneful, musical, authentic, true to folk traditions without being trite, the "real McCoy"--all these come to mind as I listen to the terrific lyrics, beautifully performed from the heart by the very talented Bailey and his ensemble. "Welcome Home", "Windmills" and "The Widow McDaid" are probably my favorites but since all fourteen songs are winners, it's a matter of picking from among the best which ones you like the most. Superlatives are in order for this fine recording.

When Howard Carter broke the last seal on Tut's tomb, he was asked, "What do you see?" Carter's reply: "Wonderful things." Break the seal on this album and you'll find the same. Bailey is an extraordinary musical storyteller; these songs let you stand on a hot, dusty rise on the Great Plains, in a Midwest backyard, a street in Northern Ireland, a chilly beach in the west of Ireland. No wispy sentimentalism here. This is folk music of the highest order, the kind that illuminates the importance of individual lives. There is the lilting tragedy of the widow McDaid, the roaring independence of Clayton as he comes to town and a tongue-in-cheek cautionary tale for all. (Take the "Explicit Lyrics" warning with a grain of salt. The "language" used is milder than what you'll hear on commercial radio.) Some of the music is simply Fred and his guitar; on much of it there are lovely background vocals and vibrant instrumentals by local friends. So. Sit down. Just...listen.