Ewan McLennan – Borrowed Songs
Self Released – Out Now
Ewan McLennan is one of our most valued folk singers, writers and interpreters. He is also an artist of integrity and social awareness, most obviously highlighted by his Breaking the Spell of Loneliness project with George Monbiot. Borrowed Songs is Ewan’s first release since Loneliness, and it sees him back on more familiar ground, with an album of eight songs, half self-penned, put to modest arrangements of guitar, banjo and Sam Moore’s lovely violin and viola playing. In fact, Borrowed Songs comes across as a modest release in many ways; its run time is just thirty-five minutes, and its packaging is attractive yet simple, with brief but insightful notes on each song. It all comes across as an austere release, with Ewan seemingly purposefully leaving himself nothing to hide behind. This is clear in the first song, ‘Windrush’, an original piece focusing on the Windrush deportation scandal from two years back. Ewan sings this one unaccompanied and the piece is all the more potent for it, with nothing detracting from the reflective narrative.
The banjo kicks in for ‘Blacking the Engines’, an altogether more uplifting tale of positivity in the workplace. Tom’s violin also contributes to this one, giving it an appropriately richer sound and wider scope, a touch that compliments the travels noted in the song and the human spirit that comes through in the story. ‘Our Captain Calls All Hands’ does away with the fun metallic tones of the banjo and introduces Ewan’s wonderful finger-style guitar playing. This one is an age-old English ballad of fantastic quality that Ewan’s slightly melancholy singing voice suits and his leisurely paced melody is spot on. It’s as simple as it gets, with just voice and guitar telling the story, which nicely fits the traditional nature of folk song that permeates through the album. There are no wasted notes here; the song is sung with as good a melody as can we wished for and the overall feeling is of hearing the purest notes carrying these stories, which is what folk music is all about.
Another traditional and familiar tune is ‘Rufford Park Poachers’, one harking back to the turn of the twentieth century, when it was sung by Joseph Taylor, and more recently by Martin Carthy, among others. Here Ewan uses a percussive acoustic guitar line to frame the song, and it’s another example of material being treated by one of the most discerning performers currently on the circuit. Ewan’s decision to keep the arrangements stripped right back pays off again here, with his top drawer playing and clear voice being all that’s needed to keep it fresh and exciting. But before that comes a pair of tunes, one traditional and the other original, that form the core of the album and have the lightest mood of the lot. ‘Pad the Road’ is an oldie, with additional writing by Steve Byrne and a melody by Mike Vass and it’s a lovely summer tune full of innocence, whereas ‘Down the Line’ is Ewan’s own and is another solo offering. I love a bucolic tune and this little running romance immediately transports you to a rural place full of sun, plants and carefree life, played to a capoed guitar part.
Another traditional piece finishes the album, and it’s one that belongs hand in hand with the two central songs. ‘Wild Mountain Thyme’ is a tune that Ewan has apparently been singing for ages now and it’s a gorgeous one to end the set with. Tom Moore’s viola is delicately used, and Ewan’s guitar playing is spacious and always considering the song. It’s absolutely beautifully sung and played and proves once again that sometimes the simplest interpretations can be the most powerful, something we can hear across this album. Similarly to Sam Sweeney’s Unearth Repeat, Borrowed Songs contains pieces both original and traditional and treats them in the same way, which is as songs and stories that need to be kept alive by playing them, hearing them and passing them on. This brief and quietly powerful album is one of subtle beauty and astute skill.
Order Borrowed Songs via http://www.ewanmclennan.co.uk/product/borrowed-songsewan-mclennancd/
Live Dates
06 March – The Village Pump Folk Club, Trowbridge
09 March – Colchester Folk Club, Colchester Arts Centre
13 March – Kalamazoo Klub, London
14 March – Brighton Toy and Model Museum
7 April – The Wardrobe Theatre, Bristol
24 April – Bodmin Folk Club
15-17 May – Shepley Spring Festival
19 May – Nailsworth Festival
26 June – Campfire Club, London
8 July – Hambledon Folk Club
11 July – Priddy Folk Festival
1 August – Sidmouth Folk Festival