TalkAwhile - The Folk Corporation Forum

I think a new tread is in order!



Here's the right one

http://shopping.yahoo.com/p:Before%20Your%20Time%2FConsonant%20Please%20Carol:1921276211

There's the clue then - check out Voiceprint Records - not Talking Elephant....

Well done internet-searching bots!!

Who're Voiceprint? (not that it really matters, they're obviously an online CD-selling setup like so many others)

and what's this "Close To The Wind" thing then? ;)  

Didn't they spring out of / are connected with Road Goes on Forever Records?

"The Woodworm Years" I guess!

I assume it's the wonderful album of the same name by Swarbrick and Nicol.  Their two original albums were released as a 2-on-1 as "Close To The White Bear" which I think had a track or two missing to make it all fit.  I believe that "Close To The Wind" was released in its own right.

Or it may be the Fairport compilation of the same name.

Those are more interesting theories than I had come up with...

The reason I asked was because it leads to precisely nothing (well nothing useful) on the Voiceprint website, so I figured it was something to do with the song "Close to the Wind" that had escaped somehow in someone's mind and made its way into the listings without actually being anything one could buy...

I'll have to look into the FC compilation thing - it's not one I'd heard of before.  But that's not really surprising, there are seemingly millions of compilations and reprints and re-releases and so on.  I can't hope to keep up with them all, even with the excellent assistance of various websites!

I think Barry ment that DVD audio thingy that was released a few years back. If you didn't Barry, then there's another possiblity.

Barry is quite correct, the link from Ollie gives a release date for Close to the Wind as 1984 so it does refer to the outing with Swarb - jolly good it is to.

Jackdaw

And I think (I'm away from home so can't check) that Simon wears a very fetching/loud red (tartan?) jacket on the cover shot... must have a look later.

Here's some info on the 2-for-1 "Close To The White Bear" and it's vinyl predecessors:
http://www.informatik.uni-hamburg.de/~zierke/swarb/records/liveatthewhitebear.html

And my favourite discography when it comes to anything Fairportish:
http://www.fcfansite.fsnet.co.uk/
I've never been disappointed when looking for information about Fairport's musical output under the band name.

The "Close to the Wind" on Amazon is listed as DVD Audio from 2004 and is tracks from "Red and Gold" and "The Five Seasons."

"Close to the White Bear" is only available through their Marketplace for £49.95!
I thought I had managed to secure it at a more reasonable price a few years ago, when I ordered it from Atrax/Artax?, but unfortunately that closed down before I got my copy. The cheque disappeared (it was never cashed, I hasten to add), so I imagined the order lying somewhere on a disused doormat until thrown away. One day I'll get to hear it...

Yes, I wonder what ever happened to Alex Mowbray?

Swarb decided to take his merch in-house after his operation, at least I think it was afterwards....and Alex had to close down.

He's definitely honourable, so I guess he'd have ripped up your cheque.

I believe (but not sure) he's one of the admins on Longdogs. Certainly recognise the name from that neck o'the woods.



Edit: Just checked and it is him. He has a website - http://www.alexmowbray.com

I thought he was Alex Lyons............. ???

Indeed he is - http://www.alexlyons.co.uk/ - I think Chris made a typo.

No idea which Alex is being talked about, but the above is a member here....

it is alex lyons not alex mowbray who used to be atrax

Yes, I made a typo....too many Alex's on Longdogs!

My humble apologies to Mr Mowbray, who is a fine chap.

I hadn't realised that this was such a rarity! I picked up a copy when it was first issued as I was going through something of a FC completist phase at the time! In the context of this discussion I am slightly ashamed to say that I have probably only listened to it twice, as it seems there are many people who would like to hear it. I think I should dig it out again and give it another spin. Definitely worth having for the studio take of Close To The Wind though.

Did talking Elephant used to be HTD records? What happened to HTD?

HTD was sold to someone else.

Blimey, I don't post in a while and people are starting to forget my name....and talk about me in the past tense....  ;D (ooh....the smiley's are hexagonal....they were round last time I was on).

Nothing to worry about, was out of action for a few weeks earlier in the year and have been trying to make up lost time since so have just got out of the habit of regularly logging in/on.

I haven't had a chance to get to the origin of this thread so apologies if I'm covering old ground but:

'Close To The Wind' was originally the 1984 studio album by Simon & Swarb but has never been available on CD individually - only as the studio half of the 'Close To The White Bear' CD (with a track missing from both albums). Superb album, lots of familiar Swarb & Nicol fare with the tunes etc, but also the real genesis of the new Fairport in the shape of the band recording of 'Close To The Wind'.

The other 'Close To The Wind' was one of the first (if not the first) of the budget Woodworm era compilations (although in this case it was actually full price). CD in about 1998 and then DVD audio a few years later. It's almost all of 'Red & Gold' and 'The Five Seasons', both very good albums (I was playing the former yesterday funnily enough).

Anne - I think your order would have been before my time (to reference another of Simon's LPs) but can only assume it went astray or Swarb had no copies left. I had quite a number of enquries about the CD when the two Atrax Swarb & Nicol CDs were being heavily plugged but I definitely replied to all of those.

I do have a very small number of copies of the 'Close To The White Bear' CD - with a bonus CD featuring the omitted tracks: a tune set and Simon's fab solo version of Pavanne - and they're just taking up space here so if Anne or anyone else wants to drop me an email or IM I'll try to help you out.

Carey was just about the No 1 Swarb & Nicol fan and the driving force/nagger-in-chief behind 'Another Fine Mess' (alright matey!  [;-)) so I'll pop a cheque in the post to Cancer Research with any proceeds.

Just a PS regarding HTD:

It's a slightly unusual one in that the name and the back catalogue was sold but the company has carried on under the Talking Elephant name, and in fact are still using HTD as the name of their 'Music Store' (selling non Talking Elephant items). In effect it just means that the 1993-2000ish HTD CDs, including some great Albion Band releases, are hard to get hold of.

Barry & Malcolm are wonderful chaps so I'd highly recommend paying them a visit, either for the Talking Elephant CDs (Fairport, Albions, Morris On) or as an alternative to Amazon, HMV, etc for anything else.

The "Close to the White Bear" album is really good.I got mine from the localrecord library which always seems to have a very good selection of folk/roots music. Obviously the sandal wearing bearded librarians are the same sandal wearing bearded people at folk clubs!

I sincerely hope that you do not count our Jude as a "sandal wearing bearded librarian", she has only ever fitted two of those categories!!

Jackdaw

Actually only one category, that of wearing sandals!

I didn't get a librarian qualification due to some band or another persuadiing me to go on the road with them, and there was no contest really..... ;)

Objection, your Honour! I don't see any sandal wearing, bearded librarian colleagues around me in my daily work. >:( I thought that the sandal wearing, bearded folk clubbie was extinct, too! ;D ;D ;D
 But "Close To The White Bear" must be really good - I have the old vinyls and I enjoy them a lot.

One of my more prised psessions is my original vinyl of "Live At The White Bear." Purchased over the bar of the said pub from the fair hand of Mr Cutts himself.

As an aside I was in the White Bear last week. They are currently going through a major building project which will see them offering accommodation, but the good news is that at least some of the Jethro Tull memorabilia still adorn the walls (Along with the extract from Michael Theakston's will).

Who? None of the old HTD stuff is available anymore... Sonja Kristina, Dunford's Renaissance, the Caravan Acoustic albums...

Maybe I'm missing something here, but they sold the name and back catalogue to someone - but the back catalogue is no longer available, the name doesn't exist anymore anywhere and the artists on HTD are releasing new stuff on Talking Elephant?  ???

I remember about 2 years ago a whole bunch of Albion Band compilations appeared in my local FOPP (Leamington) - 5 quid each. They seemed to be compilations of stuff from the "HTD" years.

.............and if you want to really confuse the issue, FAC played the Artrix at Bromsgrove last night - see seperate thread!!

steve

Upon reviewing this thread, I got out my Double CD of Before Your Time/Consonant Please Carol that was released on folkprint a couple of years back. Everything fine, except they neglected songwriting and musician credits for the last three songs on Consonant-Middle Ground, the wonderful Danny's Song, and Rhapsoblue/Telstar. Well, alright, I know where Rhapsoblue and Telstar come from, but would love to know who played what!

Here you go, IE - from the original CD booklet...

Middle Ground (Mary Chapin Carpenter)
Simon - Santa Cruz; Hi-strung; Vanden mandolin
Gerry: drums
Maart: Rob Armstrong fretless acoustic bass; accordion; Guild 12-string; Roland HP300 piano
Sheryl & Sheila, Pete (Zorn): backing vocals

Danny's Song (Michael Blanchard)
Simon: triple-tracked Santa Cruz and Yamaha 305SE; Roland D50; finger cymbals (well, Chris Pegg's sherry glasses, actually)
Sir Danny Thompson: Victoria T.S.B.

Rhapsoblue in D/Telstar (Gershwin/Meek)
Simon: parlour guitar; Rickenbacker 12-string; Santa Cruz; Fender Stratocaster; percussion
Maart: Lowden LSE1 acoustic (lead line); rhythm programming; Roland U20 and JV80

Cheers
PT

PaulT, Thank you very much, Cheers!

Thanks to Alex I've now got my copy of "Close to the White Bear" and can thoroughly recommend it to anyone else who might want to take him up on his offer. There are some splendiferous tunes on it which must have required very nimble fingers, but also some very beautiful, haunting slower pieces.