No More Sad Refrains: The Anthology

by

Sandy Denny

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Like many Baby Boomers, I first heard Sandy Denny on Led Zeppelin's "Battle of Evermore." However, over the past three decades, I have gone on musical journeys which included a trip to the the British folk/rock scene and artists like Steeleye Span and Pentangle, featuring wonderful female vocalists Maddy Prior and Jacqui McShee respectively. But the most stunning vocalist was Fairport Convention's Sandy Denny.

This 34-track, two-and-a-half hour anthology chronologically covers Denny's career from 1969's Fairport Convention through 1977's solo album Rendezvous. [She died the following April of a brain hemorrhage at age 30.] There's been some quibbling over what is--or isn't--on this anthology when comparing it to the Who Knows Where the Time Goes box set. I bought the box set on vinyl when it came out in 1986, and roughly half of the tracks on this new anthology are repeated from the earlier box set. But there are some worthwhile additions on this new collection which make it of special interest to Denny's fans. The following tracks are not available anywhere else: Fotheringay's "The Sea" from their only album which also included Denny's future husband Trevor Lucas; Buddy Holly's "Learning the Game" performed by The Bunch, which also featured Richard Thompson on guitar; "Here in Silence" and the 7-minute "Man of Iron" originally released as a single from the soundtrack to the film Pass of Arms; "Carnival," from Denny's third solo album Like an Old Fashioned Waltz; demo versions of "Stranger to Himself" and "One More Chance" where Denny accompanies herself on guitar and piano respectively; and the Richard Thompson-penned "For Shame of Doing Wrong." There are another half dozen tracks here not on the earlier box set that you would otherwise only find on the import anthology Listen Listen (1999).

So even if you already own the earlier box set, there is more than enough here to justify purchasing this anthology as well. If you don't already own it, your decision is already made since it's out of print right now. So pick this up and enjoy the most engaging voice of British folk. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED