Bones of All Men

Philip Pickett, Richard Thompson, ???????????&???????? | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (April 7, 1998)
• Original Release Date: April 7, 1998
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Hannibal
• ASIN: B000005Z1X
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #90,501 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #86 in Music > Indie Music > Folk > Folk Rock

Track Listings

1. The Short Measure Of My Lady Wynkfylds Rownde

2. Chi Passa Per Sta Strada

3. Fusi Pavana Piana/La Canella/Son Quel Duca De Milano/La Torza

4. Le Forze D'Hercole/Lo Ballo Dell Intoria

5. My Lady Careys Dompe

6. Tutte Venite Armati

7. Passo E Mezo/Pavana In Passo E Mezzo/La Cara Cossa Del Berdolin/El Pomo De Lo Pomaro/El Marchexe...

8. Gin Guter Neure Dantz/Tedesca Dita La Proficia/Der Mohren Auftzugkh/Branle Hoboken

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing, irreverent, lots of fun, but, no, not "celtic", March 6, 2003

By 

Michael Crowley (Albany, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Bones of All Men (Audio CD)

First off, let's get one thing straight-there's nothing "celtic" about this, as anyone who actually owned the CD would know. ... This is Renaissance rock, a combination which looks a bit dreadful in print but works remarkably well in performance. It's a hoot. It helps if you have some fondness for early music, but the reason this CD works so well is the musicians don't treat these pieces as musty canonical classics, but rather as cool tunes to stretch out on. In a way, this CD probably gives a better feel for what these tunes sounded like back in the day, in spirit anyway, since originally they weren't played reverently in hushed concert halls-they were played at parties, on street corners, in taverns, in people's houses. Most of these pieces are dances, after all. And the somewhat harsh, reedy sounds of many of the early wind instruments fits right in with the electric instruments and modern drum kit. Thompson shines as usual, he sounds like he's having a lot of fun, and Mattacks pushes things right along. Some of these songs really rock-- Le Forze d'Hercole/Lo Ballo Dell'Intorcia is, like, a total monster jam, with a huge drum foundation and Thompson and Pickett furiously trading licks.

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An unexpected gift from 500 years ago, February 5, 2002

By 

woburnmusicfan (Woburn, MA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Bones of All Men (Audio CD)

Philip Pickett plays medieval wind instruments (shawms, crumhorns, recorders, etc.) and his wife Sharona plays medieval keyboards. Together, they set out to incorporate a modern rock beat into dance music from the 1500s. Who better to work with than Fairport Convention, the first band (many, many followed) to combine rock with traditional British jigs and reels? Four-fifths of Fairport's classic "Full House" lineup is here -- guitar legend Richard Thompson, rhythm guitarist Simon Nicol, bassist Dave Pegg, and drummer Dave Mattacks -- along with longtime Fairport producer Joe Boyd.

It should be illegal that these folks bring off such an unlikely marriage of sounds with such ridiculous ease. Every piece is note-perfect, from gentle ballads like "My Lady Careys Dompe" to the firm rock beat of "Tedesca Dita la Proficia". No matter how accomplished a music lover you are, you have not heard it all until you've heard Pickett's recorder and Thompson's guitar trade fevered four-bar solos at the end of "Lo Ballo Dell'Intorcia". Four of the eight pieces consist of multiple tunes medleyed together, in the spirit of Fairport arrangements like "Dirty Linen". This was probably my favorite album of 1998, and definitely my favorite album of 1598.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Tremendous!, May 12, 1999

By 

[e-mail] (Newtown, CT, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Bones of All Men (Audio CD)

This is a marvelous CD. I've thought on and off for years about putting together a band to do electrified Renaissance music, but could never quite find the time nor the people to do it with. Alas, Richard Thompson, Philip Pickett and company have beaten me to it:-) Talk about a hard example to live up to!

In any event, the album is absolutely brilliant. The sound is pure Renaissance, pure folk-rock, and purely fabulous. It will probably make a few stuffy academics cringe, but anyone else who loves early music (or Fairport Convention) should definitely put _Bones of All Men_ high on their list of must-haves.