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Review: 'Serious Sam Barrett'
'The Seeds Of Love'   

-  Label: 'Ya Dig? Records/Bandcamp'
-  Genre: 'Folk' -  Release Date: '17.9.21.'-  Catalogue No: 'YD008'

Our Rating:
The Seeds Of Love is Serious Sam Barrett's latest album and is mainly based on the songs contained in the book The Seeds of Love compiled by Stephen Sedley for the English Folk Dance & Song Society. The album was recorded and produced on two-inch tape in Leeds at the Stationhouse studios by James Atkinson.

The album opens with one of the only original songs on the album Valentine's Day that is based on the song Ophelia sings in Hamlet, it's a very lovely song of love played on a banjo that Serious Sam picks beautifully to bring that sense of hope and longing to life and one of the few songs I know of that uses twixt in the lyrics.

The Wagoner is an old song credited to A.L. Lloyd and is another version of the tale of the Jolly Wagoner and what he gets up too. The liner notes state this is heavily influenced by Dick Gaughan and that's no bad thing.

Every Night Has An Ending is about a condemned man waiting for the hangman to call him to the gallows at dawn, as he dreams the night won't end and he will be able to spend more time with his true love.

Bushes And Briars uses the traditional lyrics by George Dowden but with a new tune by Serious Sam, this is a cute song about being in the countryside and being rather pickled.

Drowsy Sleeper is an acapella song that tries to persuade a lover to leave while you carry on sleeping, making sure you avoid the possibly disapproving parents in the next room.

Bonny May is a song about a young lady who is raped by her Lord, who she for evermore denies ever being with, no matter how pregnant she has become, this is redolent with the shame and sorrow inherent in such a tale of woe as the wily fox looks on.

The Recruited Collier is about a miner who's pressganged into going to war and tries to avoid the Gallows, this is a sparse and rather sad tale.

Three Ravens is the song on the album I'm most familiar with and this is a very cool version of this old Danish tale of the Three Ravens, Serious Sam has based his version on Ewan Mcoll's version.
Blow Away The Morning Dew has been re-arranged slightly by Serious Sam and he has re-written the refrain, that said this is a nice chiming tale of the wooing of a rich woman by a slightly poorer gent.

The album closes with Was On An April Morning and Serious Sam sings this acapella and doesn't have the help of the chorus of folk fans who would usually sing along with this song when it's played live in folk clubs, As the longing for love of the right woman is forsaken for the love of the woman who allows him to love her.

Find out more at https://www.facebook.com/Serious-Sam-BarrettYaDig-Records-185802254796469 https://serioussambarrett.bandcamp.com
  author: simonovitch

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