Keeper Of The Fire: The Anthology [Box set]

A long awaited CD release by possibly one of the greatest folk story tellers of our time. Having seen Bob Pegg & Nick Strutt in concert in 1974 I simply had to run out and buy The Shipbuilder. Thirty years later it still sounds as fresh as it did back then. I have lovingly owned all of the original Transatlantic vinyl copies and my only complaint must be why has it taken so long for the record companies to pick up these recordings & run with them. Having said that the job they have done is excellent. The mastering is brilliant and the sleeve notes make superb reading. Any fans of Mr.Fox will surely know these recordings already & those that don't should make it their business to aquaint themselves before too long.

I first bought the cd "Join Us In Our Game" last year, which collects the two albums by the dark folk-rock band Mr Fox. I was intrigued by their epic gothic vision and their grasp of folklore and tradition and the brooding landscapes of the Pennines, and was eager to hear more music by both Bob and Carole Pegg. Looking around Amazon, this collection was the only release in stock, featuring Bob Pegg's post Mr Fox creations of the 1970's, and a mighty fine set it turned out to be.

This collection compiles the previously released albums "Bob Pegg And Nick Strutt" from 1973, "The Shipbuilder" from 1974 (also credited to Bob Pegg and Nick Strutt) and "Ancient Maps" from 1975 (Bob Pegg solo), along with a rare single from 1978, "The Werewolf Of Old Chapeltown". These are accompanied by several previously unreleased tracks, noteably the 8 song "Bones Suite" from the late 70's, and a John Peel radio session.

The vast majority of the tracks across this set were written by Bob Pegg, either alone or in collaboration with Nick Strutt. The 1973 album is made up of stand-alone story-songs, and Nick brings a country music flavour into the mix on several of the pieces, further augmented by pedal steel guitar by B.J.Cole, giving the album a markedly different feel to the work of Mr Fox. Bob's singing is also quite different, at first I wasn't even sure if it was him, the voice more tender than before. It's a very fine set, and Bob's love of storytelling shines as he opens a box of diverse curiosities for the listener.

"The Shipbuilder", "Ancient Maps" and "Bones Suite" are all concept pieces, each with storylines drawn from the tradition. Some of the original compositions contain snatches of lyrics or fragments of tunes from actual traditional pieces, adding to the sense we are encoutering something deeply rooted. Both "The Shipbuilder" and "Ancient Maps" veer into prog-rock stylings and have a very contemporary mid-70's feel, yet the presence of ancient sources is always apparent. This feeling is pronounced on "Ancient Maps", in which the Bath Festival Orchestra provide prominent textures on Renaissance instruments. As a curious aside, I hear similarities between this album and John Boden's 2009 release, "Songs From The Floodplain". Preceeding "Ancient Maps" is an alternate version of "The Wildman Of The Hills" that, with the harpsichord really would have been the better choice for the album itself than the blues version chosen, which jars the listener out of the landscape portrayed throughout the album (my favourite version of the song however is the Peel Session version). Where the first two concept albums are thoroughly captivating musically and lyrically, "Bones Suite" is a stark piece and less easy on the ear. It feels like a significant progression, the storytelling element now seems squarely centre-stage, and the mournful music - largely centred around whistles and percussion - is often secondary, painting a spooky backdrop to a dark tale.

These albums expand outwards in often surprising directions from what I thought I was getting myself into, based on the impressive Mr Fox albums, but the surprises are good ones. There are some truly gorgeous songs here, and highlights are numerous, some of my favourites include: Wildman; Jesus Christ Sitting On Top Of A Hill In The Lake District; the atmospheric opening three pieces on "The Shipbuilder", and its closer End Of The Affair; The One-Eyed Merchant; The Chapeltown Hawk... But I get captivated by so much here.

Bob Fox is a master storyteller, and I have to wonder why it took so many years for me to even hear of him. I hope the rest of his back-catalogue will also see the light of day, but this collection and the Mr Fox albums make for very rich pickings.