Customer Reviews

Sweet Child

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Five masters running the gamut of not just traditional folk tunes but old blues (Furry Lewis' "Turn Your Money Green"), old spirituals (No More My Lord) and jazz (2 Mingus tunes as well as a song titled "I've Got a Feeling" which is a not too subtle borrowing of riff and chord changes from Miles Davis' "All Blues" from the Kind of Blue record. Different melody, though - and lyrics so I guess it's ok that the song is credited to the band.). I think the guitarists have been given their due via reviews over the years (deservedly so!), Jackie McShee likewise and bassist Danny Thompson has been mentioned by the other Amazon reviewers, particularly his solo bass excursion through "Haitian Fight Song". So I feel the need to mention percussionist Terry Cox who gets incredible colors from his drumkit! Listen to his mallets on skins on "No More My Lord" and the amazing amount of tension he brings to the piece- it's almost orchestral. Really brilliant. For those who wrongly proclaim drummers as "non-musicians".

The interplay between these artists is startling - the two guitarists weave in and out and the vocals are not just your standard 2 or 3 part harmony. McShee's voice is the essence of purity, conviction and heart. I've worn out the grooves on my old vinyl record and I just ordered this CD. You should do the same - this is music everyone should hear.

Although an older recording, the music, the performances, and the songs are as fresh and inviting as beholding an overnight snow on a sunny Sunday morning. Not to suggest that this offering is anything but warm and glowing. Its the sort of music you can put on for an hour or more of inspiration and amazement--it will fill your heart and your essence. McShee is in fine voice and the instrumental work mesmerizing (not to single out one, but the bass playing has to be heard to be believed). And the arrangements are compelling and inventive. It was recorded live and alternative studio recordings are also included. As a bonus, it presents truly informative liner notes!

I purchased this two-disc set because I'm collecting some of the music that made strong impressions on me over the course of my life. Pentangle was one of the groups that my roommates played often during my college days in the early seventies, and something of that fascinating sound, the windy vocals, the energetic folk material and sensibilities, and the prominent use of the string bass, has stayed with me over the years.

Listening again to Sweet Child rekindled some of those memories all right (only some because it's just one of the Pentangle albums we played), but it also surprised me with its sound: clean and open, intimate and compelling. The performances soar to a level that I simply didn't appreciate at the time, both in the studio and on the stage.

Two CDs full of wonderful performances, ranging from moody to mellow to manic. A great addition to my collection!

This half-live, half-studio landmark album of the late 1960's is pure, unadulterated, uncategorizable genius, and this CD reissue includes much more of the live concert that made up the second half of the orginal LP, including great live versions of almost all the songs on their first album ("The Pentangle").
The live cuts are very well-recorded for the era, and the studio recordings are just gorgeous--lush, dark, and yet open--far better sounding than most pop LPs of the era.
Combining traditional British folk, blues, and jazz, Pentangle's "supergroup" line-up of 5 of the top British folk and jazz talents gave fusion a very good name, especially on this album. The blend got a bit too stiffly trad-folky for me after their third album, Basket of Light (with some sterling exceptions on subsequent albums).

Pentangle was the perfect name for this group: 5 diverse musicians merged into a perfect, magical, whole. And of all of their albums, this is the perfect, magical, one to own. Showing their virtuosity in every music genre, both live and in the studio, "Sweet Child" is Pentangle's tour de force and stands out not only its own genre, but as one of the best albums in any genre from the 70s. "Sweet Child" is, without a doubt, number one on my 'If I were stuck on an island' list. You will not regret purchasing this album!

When "Sweet Child" was originally released in 1968 it was a double album, with one of the two discs featuring live performances at Royal Albert Hall. I confess to never quite taking to the live disc (the sound seemed a bit dull), but the studio disc was great, a perfect continuation of their first album. Again, everyone gets to shine individually, and the influences range from classical ('Three Part Thing') to jazz ('I've Got A Feeling') to folk ('Trees They Do Grow High'). Splendid guitar work by Jansch and Renbourn abounds ('Hole in the Coal,' 'Sweet Child,' 'In Time,' etc.), as does tasty accompaniment by Cox (note the hand drums on 'Moondog') and Thompson, and individual guitar accompaniments (Jansch on 'I've Got a Feeling' and Renbourn on 'Trees They Do Grow High'). McShee sounds great throughout. This album solidified the group's reputation, and like the rest of their material from the period still sounds good.

"Sweet Child" was Pentangle's second album, released in 1968. This re-release includes no fewer than eleven bonus tracks beyond the original 2-album collection: four from the studio, and seven from the concert section. The sound is good, though a bit of hiss is still present (especially from the live recordings, which in addition always sounded a bit dull to me), but I guess we can't have everything. What we do have is 33 tracks of some of the most splendidly conceived and performed music of the period, and ranging from out-and-out blues and jazz through to Renaissance music, traditional folk, and originally composed contemporary folk.

With this much material, everybody in the group gets to shine. McShee has stellar vocal performances on 'No More My Lord' and 'So Early in the Spring', Cox sounds great on the hand drums in 'Moondog', Thompson solos on 'In Time', 'Hole in the Coal' and 'Haitian Fight Song', and Jansch and Renbourn have plenty of opportunities in 'Goodbye Pork-Pie Hat', 'In Time', 'Three Part Thing', etc., etc. No other Pentangle recording--even the later collections--comes anywhere close to displaying the full range of the group's talents, and at this price, especially, the whole package is strongly recommended.

While I like the idea of a band that goes from traditional english folk to the Staples Singers to Mingus, I think the blues and jazz interpretations here aren't quite as magical as the original band compositions and traditional folk ballads--hence only four stars. The label is to be commended for a truly "value added" reissue that includes seven substantial extra live cuts (making for a 75 minute long concert disc), and four alternate versions.

Considering it took place in the overheated summer of 1968, the tone of live concert is tame, even a bit formal-no political overtones, no drugginess, no interplay with the audience. It's nice though; the band's (and the audience's) reverence for the music really comes through. Renbourn and Jansch's acoustic guitar work is inspired of course, but the real surprise to me, as a longtime adherent of Steeleye, Fairport, June Tabor, etc., is Jacqui McShee. Her vocals are pitch perfect and never seek to outstrip the material, yet there are phrasings scattered throughout that make you melt with delight.

I'm inclined to compare this with another immortal live album from the sixties, Velvet Underground Live 69. This one wins hands down for recording quality; you hear the instruments and the vocals and nothing else. Unlike Live 69, though, the song introductions here are timid, a bit stiff, and interrupt the trancelike flow that marked the most memorable concerts of the era.

Here are the roots of the folk/jazz/blues experiments of early Jethro Tull, Jefferson Airplane, Grateful Dead, even Led Zeppelin, as well as the Elizabethan stylings of Gentle Giant. So it's not for purists only!

the absolute best of Pentangle!!! I haven't found an album of theirs that can begin to measure up. If you know of one publish your own review

This album is, in my opinion, one of the top 10 definitive masterpieces of the hippie era. Along with 'Earthspan' of the ISB, it represents the best of the English folk-rock genre. If you are 45-55 years old and don't have this album, do yourself a favour and buy it immediately.