Alasdair Roberts
The Crook Of My Arm

A Norman Records recommendation (29th November 2006)

This record left our Clint feeling ecstatic.

Its about time Alasdair Roberts got the credit he deserves. If only because the first two Appendix Out records are the best and most underrated albums in the folk pop canon. And his first solo album is a work on unequalled genius. Over the years he has done everything that could be expected of him yet has consistently slipped under the radar. Until maybe recently when with the nu-folk explosion he has been getting a lot more interest. This new album is produced by Will Oldham and like 'The Crook of my Arm' is a collection of traditional folk songs. Sounds very nice on first listen. On Drag City.

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What their label says...

Though Appendix Out has always been essentially a one man venture, this is the first time Ali Roberts has seen fit to release a record under his given name. It is also his first full-length release on Secretly Canadian. The Crook of My Arm is a collection of acoustic interpretations of traditional British folk songs and as such is very much a labour of love. Alis upbringing was rooted in Scottish folk music; his father was a traditional musician who played with Dougie Maclean, and their family home as a kid was a safe haven for wandering folk singers such as Alex Campbell (whom he covers here). Though the unhelpful (but beautiful) sleeve does list the artists whom he covers (Nic Jones, Shirley Collins, Dick Gaughan etc), it does not say which song is by which author, so for the purposes of this review I will hazard a guess using my extensive knowledge of traditional song! The opener Lord Gregory sets the tone for most of the record; songs of doomed lovers, family feuds and murder. The Gregory in question here has (I think) fathered a child by the protagonist of the song, and is now refusing to help her out. On The False Bride, the roles are reversed - this time the woman being the villain of the piece - a smitten chap being led on by a loose lady, which ends in his suicide. The record is not all doom and gloom - some of the songs are playful and even funny - Ploughboy Lads is basically about the girls eyeing up the farmers in the fields, and The Magpies Nest, - which I think is derived from the singing of Anne Briggs - is a sweet, pretty love song. The Crook of My Arm is a fantastic record. At points the playing is so quiet it is barely there, and the singing is his best yet. It also serves as a primer for those who are americana-ed out and are perhaps wanting to sample some of their own cultural heritage for a change.

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