Various Artists
The Halliard: Jon Raven/
The Jolly Machine
Michael Raven MR77 (1997)

This compilation CD presents important recordings from the early days of the folk revival. It comprises two albums and several bonus tracks, most of them recorded between 1966 and 1974. The albums were The Halliard: Jon Raven (1968) and The Jolly Machine (1974). Both of these were shared LPs, on which two separate acts each got half the tracks. The first was by the trio The Halliard and the solo singer Jon Raven, while the second was by the quartet Saga and the duo of Mike Raven and Joan Mills. The bonus tracks come from a 1973 Jon Raven LP and a 1966 EP by the Black Country Three. In case you are left wondering, the factor uniting all these seemingly unrelated elements is the Raven family: the brothers Mike and Jon Raven, at least one of whom appeared on every record mined for this CD, and their father Leonard, who engineered many of the tracks.

Probably the most influential group featured here is the Halliard, a trio featuring Dave Moran (vocals), Nic Jones (vocals, fiddle, guitar), and Nigel Pattison (mandolin, recorder). Although they are remembered mainly as the group that Jones was in before his solo career, the Halliard would have had a healthy impact on the English revival even if Jones had not gone on to greater fame on his own. Every year, folk revival bands revamp Halliard material. "The Lancashire Lads," as performed in recent years by Old Blind Dogs, was first fitted with its tune by the Halliard. So was "Boys of Bedlam," a song recorded by Tom Gilfellon and Steeleye Span and picked up from them by countless other groups. Strangely, neither of these famous Halliard arrangements appeared on their records, but they have nonetheless endured 35 years in the folk revival. The Halliard: Jon Raven was a last-minute recording made to sell on the Halliard's farewell tour. Although it was the trio's second album to be released, this disc looks to be the only source of Halliard songs on CD for some time. Apparently they consider their first album, The Irish in Me, an embarrassment (it's essentially a Dubliners pastiche), while an album of their broadside ballads was never released because of copyright issues.

The Halliard tracks on this CD are all very nice, and a couple stand out as quite brilliant. "The Calico Printer's Clerk" is a broadside ballad unearthed by the group in the Preston reference library and set to a tune by Moran. It tells the tale of a twee young gentleman, a cruel but beautiful young lady, and the eponymous clerk, who quite literally waltzes off with the girl in the end. It is full of rich, period detail from the 1860s, including lines like the gentleman's remark "I was dressed in the pink of fashion; me lavender gloves were new." It also details the trendy dances of the time, mentioning schottisches, varsoviennes, polkas, mazurkas, waltzes, and circassians as it relates its sadly comical tale. "Going for a Soldier Jenny," another broadside set to a tune composed by Jones, was one of their most popular songs; it expresses the mixture of excitement and bitterness felt by a jilted lover who joins the army to make his girl regret her cruelty. It is one of only two songs here sung by Jones, and it is a beautiful example of his deceptively easygoing performance style. The tracks sung by Jon Raven include a version of "The Lancashire Lads," in the Halliard's setting; this is the 1973 track and features Jones on fiddle and Tony Rose on concertina. Raven's other songs are also engaging; his version of "Love and Murder" (also known as "In Fair Worcester City" and "The Cruel Ship's Carpenter") is unusually complete and features nice guitar playing by both Raven and Jones. His unaccompanied takes on traditional songs like "Midsummer Fair" and "Long Lankin" and his gentle guitar arrangements of "Unquiet Grave" and "Rambling Sailor" add a solemn touch that skillfully sets off the Halliard's livelier arrangements. The two Black Country Three songs (which replace two Jon Raven songs from the original LP) add some uptempo fun, with hearty choruses and strummed guitars—sort of halfway between the Kingston Trio and the Dubliners. In all, the Halliard/Raven portion of this CD is a satisfying listen containing lost gems of the early revival.

The Jolly Machine, too, is an undervalued classic. It is a collection of topical songs from the 19th century dealing with industrialization and its effects on social life in the West Midlands, especially in the old Staffordshire districts of the Potteries ("Charlie's Song," "The Jolly Machine," and "Chartists' Anthem") and the Black Country ("Wednesbury Town," "Nailmaker's Lament," and "The Dudley Canal Tunnel Song"). Many of these songs were collected by Mike Raven from broadsides and songbooks held in various libraries; Raven then wrote the tunes or adapted them from tradition. This produces memorable songs that you've probably never heard before, including "The Tommy Note," a complaint about being paid in scrip instead of real money. "John Whitehouse" is a song that, like the Irish ditty "In Praise of John McGee," involves the odd custom of wife selling; and "Freedom and Reform," a general plea for support of the Liberal cause. Exceptions to this pattern are a lovely and melancholy chant learned from John Tams and a song on unfair payment practices written by Jill McLean. Special mention should be made of "Wednesbury Town," a stunning original song written by Mike Raven that is indistinguishable from a period broadsheet lament. Mills has a beautiful clear voice with a bit of Shirley Collins' sweet melancholy, while Raven's virtuoso guitar playing shows impeccable technique and classical training wedded to a great head for folk tunes. Saga is led by the strong voice of Chris Mordey, and features rich arrangements on fiddle, viola, harmonium, and guitar. The combination of these elements gives The Jolly Machine variety, fascination and fun.

One thing that should be mentioned: This is not an audiophile release by any means. The Halliard and Jon Raven LP was recorded live in a private house on a single microphone — essentially, it's a field recording. This works fine for Raven's solo tracks, but the trio's sound suffers a bit from their varying distances to the microphone and their more complex arrangements. The Jolly Machine and the Black Country Three tracks were done in proper studios, but as the master tapes are missing, these tracks were transferred from old LPs. Thus, various crackles and pops are audible from time to time. I find these shortcomings bother me only when listening through headphones, so I avoid them for this CD.

— Steve Winick (Philadelphia, PA)