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Singer and multi-instrumentalist Anna Tam is perhaps better known for her work with Wilde Roses and the Mediaeval Baebes, but she is a fine singer in her own right, with a strikingly crisp, crystal clear voice.

Her debut album, Anchoress, covers a selection of fifteen tracks, thirteen traditional songs and two original tunes. It’s a rich collection of songs and tunes, with a considered and sensitive ear for each song’s history and rendition.

Tam is lucky enough to live on a canal boat, which is not only her home but also, partially, her recording studio; a refuge during a difficult year. As she notes: “In a year of isolation I’ve felt so fortunate to be able to reach out from my boat through folk music like an Anchoress through the window of her cell. These are some of the songs and tunes, many of them exploring isolation in its different forms, abandonment, loss, etc. that have kept me company, shared my sorrows, inspired a lot of joy and connected me with a wonderful community.”

The album opens with ‘Jenny Nettles’. It’s a story concerning the abandonment of the central figure, made pregnant by one of Rob Roy’s soldiers, who committed suicide near her home village of Falkland, Fife. It’s a dark, tragic song, delivered with a moody atmosphere by Tam’s voice and the low drone of her hurdy-gurdy.
The song is swiftly followed by the more sprightly ‘Tarry Trousers’. It’s a mother’s warning to her daughter who has fallen in love with a jolly jack tar of the titles. A sailor’s wife is no future for a young woman. As with the opening track, Tam’s voice is accompanied simply, in this case by the lively sound of the nyckelharpa.

‘Whittingham Fair’ may be more familiar to some listeners as ‘Scarborough Fair’. As with many traditional songs, both belong to the same root. Tam’s interpretation plays with the past tense of the narrative, the idea that the girl was ‘once a true love of mine’.
Tam explores some well-selected traditional Irish songs on the album, including the playful ‘I Know My Love’ and the eternal favourite ‘She Moved Through the Fair.’ The latter is delivered solely through Tam’s idiosyncratic voice. It’s a powerfully evocative version.
Scottish songs feature heavily here, with some affecting interpretations of a few classics. ‘Braes of Balquhidder’ may be more familiar as ‘Wild Mountain Thyme’, here Tam returns the tune to Robert Tannahill’s original words. The track opens with a haunting duet of voice, before Tam’s viola da gamba steps in. Whilst ‘Blue Bleezin’ Blind Drunk’ is a bleak, menacing song, from the traveller tradition of Sheila and Belle Stewart. It’s a tale of domestic violence and the dark impact of alcohol.

Whilst the album is very much focused on Tam and her solo accompaniment, she does enlist a couple of guests for a few tracks. Roy Chilton, Tam’s father, joins her on banjo for the nimble ‘Elsie Marley’, whilst Geoffrey Irwin joins her on fiddle for the closer ‘The Goblet’.
The two self-penned tracks, ‘Fairy Boat Hornpipe’ and ‘The Goblet’ prove Tam to be a talented tunesmith. ‘Fairy Boat Hornpipe’ is a fun little hornpipe performed on cello, guaranteed to get some toes tapping. ‘The Goblet’ is, similarly, a splendid dance tune. It’s a handsome end to what is an entirely entrancing recording.

Throughout, Tam’s talent as a multi-instrumentalist is evident, with her tackling a selection of traditional instruments, including the nyckelharpa, viola da gamba, and hurdy-gurdy ensuring that her arrangements of some very familiar tunes and songs are gifted with a unique and thoroughly engaging sound.
Complemented by extensive sleeve notes, Anchoress is a beautifully produced and arresting listen. Whilst Tam’s classical, mannered voice may not be to everyone’s taste, those who love traditional songs and tunes delivered with confidence and expertise won’t go wrong here. A delightful and entirely enchanting album.

Tracklist: 
1 JENNY NETTLES
2 TARRY TROUSERS
3 WHITTINGHAM FAIR
4 THE UNQUIET GRAVE
5 BRAES OF BALQUHIDDER
6 ELSIE MARLEY
7 ARRANE SAVEENAGH
8 IF I WERE A BLACKBIRD
9 FAIRY BOAT HORNPIPE
10 FEAR A’ BHATA
11 I KNOW MY LOVE
12 LET NO MAN STEAL YOUR THYME
13 SHE MOVED THROUGH THE FAIR
14 BLUE BLEEZIN’ BLIND DRUNK
15 THE GOBLET

Staat er compleet op, 10% pars mee gepost. Met zeer veel dank aan de originele poster.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fwp4GcrO3V0