''Single Flame'', the second album of British singer-songwriter
Lucy Ward, was released in the United Kingdom by
Navigator Records
Navigator Records is a small independent record label in the United Kingdom, specialising in folk and roots music. It is wholly owned by Proper Music Distribution and was launched in 2008.
Musicians who have recorded on Navigator Records incl ...
on 19 August 2013.
It was critically acclaimed and received a four-starred review in ''The Guardian''.
Songs
The album includes "For the Dead Men", a self-penned
protest song
A protest song is a song that is associated with a movement for protest and social change and hence part of the broader category of ''topical'' songs (or songs connected to current events). It may be folk, classical, or commercial in genre.
...
, which was released as a single in January 2012 coupled with a remixed version of "Maids When You’re Young" (a song that had been included on Ward's debut album ''
Adelphi Has to Fly''.
Reception
In a four-starred review for ''
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...
'',
Robin Denselow
Robin Denselow is an English writer, journalist, and broadcaster.
Education
Denselow was educated at Leighton Park School, a boys' Quaker boarding independent school (now co-educational) in Reading, Berkshire, followed by New College, Oxford, wh ...
said that Lucy Ward "proves to be an even more mature and thoughtful singer-songwriter than she was on Adelphi Has to Fly" and described her follow-up album as "impressive and original" and "a brooding, often angry set that deals with everything from politics to love, death and personal tragedy, with a couple of powerful traditional songs added in".
Hazel Davis, for americanaUK, described it as a much angrier album than her debut release but "a genuinely eclectic sounding collection" with "songs that are Thea Gilmore-good".
Simon Holland, for
Folk Radio UK
''KLOF Magazine'' is an independent online music and culture magazine launched in 2004 by Alex Gallacher.
Content
''KLOF Magazine'' primarily features writings on music as well as interviews with a wide range of notable artists and musicia ...
, said that the album was "charged, emotive and utterly compelling".
Track listing
# "I Cannot Say I Will Not Speak" (Lucy Ward) 4:04
# "Honey" (Stu Hanna/Lucy Ward) 3:41
# "The Last Pirouette" (Lucy Ward) 3:55
# "Icarus" (Lucy Ward) 5:14
# "Velvet Sky" (Stu Hanna/Lucy Ward) 4:13
# "Rites of Man" (Lucy Ward) 5:08
# "The Consequence" (Lucy Ward) 2:15
# "Lord I Don't Want To Die in the Storm (Stu Hanna/Lucy Ward) 4:09
# "For the Dead Men" (Lucy Ward) 4:25
# "Marching Through the Green Grass" (
Traditional
A tradition is a system of beliefs or behaviors (folk custom) passed down within a group of people or society with symbolic meaning or special significance with origins in the past. A component of cultural expressions and folklore, common examp ...
) 2:50
# "Ink" (Lucy Ward) 4:11
# "Shellback" (Lucy Ward) 4:38
''Total album length'' = 48:43
Personnel
* Lucy Ward – vocals, guitar, concertina
* Izzl Cooper – cello
* Anna Esslemont – violin (on "For the Dead Men")
* Joy Gravestock – violin
* Sebastian Hale Smith – double bass
* Debbie Hanna – backing vocals
* Stu Hanna – guitar, banjo, mandolin, fiddle,
B3 organ
The Hammond organ is an electric organ invented by Laurens Hammond and John M. Hanert, first manufactured in 1935. Multiple models have been produced, most of which use sliding #Drawbars, drawbars to vary sounds. Until 1975, sound was created ...
and backing vocals
* Sam Pegg – bass guitar
* Stephen MacLachlan – drums
Production
''Single Flame'' was produced by Stu Hanna from
Megson, who also performs on the album, with his wife Debbie Hanna providing backing vocals. The photography and artwork on the CD cover was by Elly Lucas.
Notes and references
External links
Lucy Ward: Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Single Flame
2013 albums
Lucy Ward (musician) albums
Navigator Records albums