Customer Reviews

Dear Companion

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Meg Baird gives us an intimate, modern presentation of folk music, revealing why traditional song still speaks to us. She extends the concept and reach of classic ballads like Barbary Ellen and Willie O'Winsbury into the 21st century with covers of under-recognized 60s and 70s ballads such as The Waltze of the Tennis Players (Alan Fraser) and All I Ever Wanted (New Riders of the the Purple Sage). The arc is made complete with two of Baird's own contemporary compositions. Baird seems to whisper the tunes on Dear Companion directly in the listener's ear, pulling human experience out of the arcane language of classic ballads and the forgotten recent past to connect it to our lived experience, breathing stories into our hearts.

I'm 60 years old, and I haven't heard anything this clear and true since, at the end of the set, Chuck Mitchell's wife sang a couple of her own songs--Urge for Going and Circle Game--at the Chessmate in Detroit in 1966.
Gregg Zajic

There is a timeless quality to this album that is reminiscent of Sandy Denny (who, in my opinion, is the greatest female vocalist of all time, not to mention a great songwriter). The mix of traditional and contemporary covers, plus the fine original material, bodes well for future releases. I can't wait to hear what Ms. Baird will come out with next. I sense limitless possibilities.