SINGS THE SONGS OF ROBERT BURNS

Abetted by some of the most prestigious names in the contemporary British folk world--John McCusker, Colin Reid, Boo Hewerdine, Kate Rusby (who duets harmoniously on the homesick Highland panorama of "Wild Mountainside") and with Kevin McCrae's eloquent string arrangements (with the Royal Scottish National Orchestra) meriting comparisons to Robert Kirby's work on the first two Nick Drake albums, this is an album that serves to impress upon the listener the desire to explore the works of Burns--and Reader--further. If "Jamie Is My Darling"--a call to sexual initiation--is justly delivered with all the juvenile frisson of a tentative knee-trembler behind the bike sheds then "John Anderson My Jo" is breathtakingly poignant in its tale of life-long commitment. Thoughtfully--and for the benefit of Sassenach speakers of the "De'il's tongue"--Reader's sleeve notes provide handy translations of some of the more abstruse elements of Burns' Scottish dialect. She also admits to being a bit coy about Burns' bawdiness ( "Brose and Butter" omits the most offensive, female crotch-area word in the English language) so one can only hope she'll be brave enough to include a version of "Nine Inch Will Please a Lady" on her next Robert Burns album. After all, on the strength of this effort, a second volume is surely warranted. --Kevin Maidment

Sure enough the usual classics are revisited. ''My Love Is Like A Red Red Rose'', ''Auld Lang Syne'' and ''Charlie Is My Darling'' all get a dusting down; but with a band and arrangements as good as this, it's like listening to a brand new repertoire. Ably abetted by her usual band and featuring the awesome fiddle of John McCusker and the lush orchestral arrangements of Kevin McRae, Reader has reached a logical point in a career that's gradually moved nearer to pure folk with every release. In her voluminous sleeve notes she contextualises the project by recounting how her move from the urban sprawl of Glasgow to the Ayrshire town of Irvine brought Burns' magic to her attention.

The delicate acoustic backings focus the mind on Burns' words. It's the universality of his messages that Eddi's attempting to convey here. The bawdy ''Brose And Butter''; the declaration of lasting devotion ''John Anderson My Jo''; and the call for political moderation and peace ''Ye Jacobites'' - all have a contemporary relevance. And as John McCusker says in his commentary, it's in no way in danger of being ''dead posh''.

If there's a reservation it's in the somewhat cloying nature of the strings of the RSNO. Yet this is a small gripe in the face of such a fresh look at a man's work that's justly celebrated every 25th of January north of the border. Interestingly the finest moment arrives with the song ''Wild Mountainside'' which isn't actually by Burns at all, but by the Trash Can Sinatras' John Douglas. It's included to demonstrate how the poet's muse lives on in Scotland to this day. On this evidence it'll be a long (or should that be lang?) time before Reader and her friends lose their inspiration. --Chris Jones

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