Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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34 of 40 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Traditional southern English folk music, 16 Nov 2005
The Albion Band has a history stretching back to the early seventies. During that time, over a hundred different people have been members but Ashley Hutchings has been there throughout. Ashley had a brief spell with Fairport Convention before setting up Steeleye Span with Tim Hart and Maddy Prior. As Steeleye Span became (like Fairport Convention) a folk-rock group, Ashley quit and formed the Albion Country Band, which soon became the Albion Dance Band before finally becoming the Albion Band. I say finally, but for this album they call themselves the Albion Christmas Band. It isn't the first Christmas album that the Albion Band have recorded but it's the only one I've heard.The line-up for this album is Kellie While (vocals, acoustic guitar, percussion, keyboards), Simon Care (melodeon, drum, morris dancing), Ashley Hutchings (vocals, acoustic bass guitar) and Simon Nicol (vocals, acoustic guitar, tambvourine). Of all the instruments used, the melodeon is the most noticeable, giving the album a very distinctive sound. The three vocalists sometimes sing in harmony and sometimes sing alternately, while there are some songs where one or other sings solo. There are also some narrations - not too many, and they are worth hearing. This mix provides for plenty of variety within the basic traditional folk sound. The songs are mainly traditional English folk songs although the group wrote some material in a similar style as well as covering a Jackson Browne song (Rebel Jesus). All of them blend in well together. The songs cover wassailing, polkas and Morris dancing as well as themes that are common in contempory Christmas songs. If you enjoy traditional English folk music (especially from the south of England), this is the Christmas album for you. And you can play this lively, upbeat album as background music, or you can give it dedicated attention - it is enjoyable either way.
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Mixed, 17 Oct 2007
Why oh why do we have to have the narrated tracks? They knock one star off straight away. Then there are three tracks which I think are below standard; Snow Falls, The Wren Song and Rebel Jesus. The rest of the cd is good, not mind blastingly great but well worth playing many times. This is the sort of cd which benefits from the editing you can do when you put it on a music server. One track which I had mixed feelings about at first was the first track, 'On Christmas Night, All Christians Sing': didn't The Albian Band did this a few years back with John Tamms on lead vocal duty? However, both versions are very good and there is enough difference to make it worth while.
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4 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Not like it used to be, 1 Jan 2008
Some of the best concerts I've ever been to were the Albion Band Christmas shows in the 1980s, with Kathy LeSurf, Phil Beer, Doug Morter and Ashley. They had it all - Mummers' play, "Old Sam" recitation, jokes, dancing and great songs. This CD is a reflection of the band's current Christmas show and it's just not in the same league. Too much Christianity to start with (and I know that sounds daft at Christmas, but it just isn't as much fun). Ashley, you need to go back to the live and lively shows you did in the eighties, record one of them live and stick it out on CD for next Christmas.
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~ Albion Christmas Band
~ The Albion Christmas Band
~ Fotheringay
~ Kate Rusby
~ The Imagined Village
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