Anglicana

Eliza Carthy | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 28, 2002)
• Original Release Date: 2002
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Topic Records
• Copy Protected
• ASIN: B00006JNAJ
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #120,525 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Return to Her Folk Roots, February 12, 2004

By 

M. Hartman (East Coast, Etats-Unis) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Anglicana (Audio CD)

After her foray into popdom with "Angels and Cigarettes", Eliza Carthy has gone back to the English folk idiom with "Anglicana". This album is successful on almost every level, most importantly because Carthy has further honed her skills and folk sensibilities. Her fiddle playing is absolutely superb throughout and never threatens to dominate excessively. She is surrounded by some top-notch musicians (her Mum and Dad as well as Jon Speirs, Jon Boden, and Tim Van Eyken) and the result is a session of high-quality songs. One of the most impressive factors here, though is Carthy's voice. Whilst her voice does not possess the crystaline beauty of the great Maddy Prior or Kate Rusby, it has an honesty and expressiveness that sets it apart. Carthy's edgy singing calls to mind the older voices of Harry Cox and the early Cooper Family. It is quite a beautiful voice. Her rendition of "Just as the Tide Was Flowing" is sung brilliantly. The beauty of the singing is not only in the voice but also in the delivery and Carthy is a master of folksinging. Have a listen...you won't be dissappointd.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars truly extraordinary, February 5, 2004

By 

Rob Pulleyn (marshall, nc USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Anglicana (Audio CD)

Eliza could probably coast on the reputation of her mother and father, and some might argue that in some past recordings she has. I like to think she was just practicing for this outstanding album. Her voice is fantastic: clear, nimble, emotional, soaring, unique. Her arrangements are flawless, the backup musicians are perfect, even her backup singers (including her mother and father) are wonderful. But it's the songs themselves that set this effort apart from everything she's done. I've probably bought five copies of this CD to slip into friend's hands with a message of "try this, you won't be the same again."
If you're thinking of "trying out" Elliza Carthy, this is not only a perfect entry point, but you might want to buy a few; one for home, one for the car, and some for all those folks who haven't discovered this astounding singer.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Traditional English folk songs in a contemporary setting, May 16, 2005

By 

Peter Durward Harris "Pete the music fan" (Leicester England) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Anglicana (Audio CD)

Eliza Carthy, daughter of folk singers Norma Waterson and Martin Carthy, emerged in the late nineties as Britain's leading female folk singer. Eliza has always sought to bring a contemporary edge to her music, perhaps hoping in the process to get more people to take an interest in Britain's folk-song heritage. It is sometimes said that a great song will survive any interpretation, but adapting traditional songs written in an entirely different era when there was little or no backing music to a contemporary setting is no easy task. Nevertheless, Eliza has come up with an interesting and entertaining album that preserves the essence of each song. Listening to this album, nobody can be in any doubt that this is, at its heart, traditional folk music, even if it is updated slightly to appeal to listeners in the new millennium.

Eliza found many of the songs here on a twenty-volume series titled Voice of the people (released on Topic records, like this album). Folk music fans will find much of interest in that series, if they can afford it. To a wider audience, the best-known song here may be Just as the tide was flowing -10,000 Maniacs are among others to have recorded the song - but Eliza sings it her way and it's superb as all the songs here are. Among my other favorites here are Worcester City, Little gypsy girl, Bold privateer and Willow tree.

If you have any interest in traditional folk music, you should give this album a listen.