To The Prettiest One
Tracks:
1. Deus Meus 2. Leaves Are Falling 3. Three Maidens 4. Journey 5. Bruton Town 6. Helios 7. No Effort Required 8. Fragments 9. Medley: i) The Morning Dew ii) The Lads of Laois 10. Mahadev 11. Phaethon 12. Spiral 13. Deus Meus (Reprise) 14. Return To Milltown
Reviews:
Dirty Linen Nov 2002
by Tom Nelligan
"Finishing up this month's survey back in England, there's the folk-rocking Southampton quartet (sic) Mary Jane. On the group's fourth disc, To The Prettiest One, lead singer (and fiddle and wind instrument player) Jo Quinn evokes memories of Annie Haslam of Renaissance as her soprano soars high on rocking original songs that often have a slightly medieval feel. The inclusion of the Latin hymn "Deus Meus," sung unaccompanied by Quinn, certainly contributes to that impression. There's alot of electric and acoustic guitar and bouzouki here, and while the focus is on the distinctive compositions of Quinn and guitar/bouzouki player Paul Alan Taylor, the disc also includes some successfully innovative interpretations of traditional songs like "Three Maidens" (with an angrily buzzing guitar), as well as a couple of richly layered reel sets for a change of pace."
www.folkworld.de
Mary Jane "To The Prettiest One"
Label: Seventh Wave; 7W002CD; 2002; Playing time: 64.44 min Mary Jane: With a name like that, you might be inspired to take a whiff and enjoy the music. Maybe it helps, it's also okay if you stay sober. But the group's name, taken from a Nick Drake song, is fitting, since playing psychedelic folk rock with a strong 60's feel The Band was already formed in Southampton way back in 1993, but seemingly struggled to assemble a steady line-up, which now comprises Jo Quinn (vocals, flute, whistle), Gillie Leach (violin), Paul Alan Taylor (electric and acoustic guitar, bouzouki), Steve Bayley (bass), and Andrew Pidgeon (drums). Mary Jane clearly stands in the tradition of 1960/70's English folk rock. Their material is a mix of traditional and original. The album opens with the Gaelic-Latin hymn "Deus Meus". There's the traditionals ballads "Bruton Town" (Pentangle and Sandy Denny tried their luck before) and "Three Maidens". Jo's vocals are ethereal, the guitar riffs kicking. The instrumental skills are displayed on traditional Irish reels "Morning Dew/Lads of Laois" and "Return to Milltown". Mary Jane is no newcomer on the scene, but still relatively unknown, they certainly deserve some wider recognition.
Seventh Wave Records
Walkin' T:-)M
The Greenman Review
www.greenmanreview.com
Mary Jane, To the Prettiest One (Seventh Wave, 2002)
As soon as I heard the band's name, 'Mary Jane,' I was intrigued. It's a name with so many associations: a children's rhyme, the slang name of a well-known recreational chemical, a character in Spiderman, a cartoon character and the little girl who wouldn't eat her Rice Pudding are just some of them.
Naughty but nice seems to be the defining characteristic, and that's quite a fitting description of the band and their material. It isn't traditionally played folk music, it pushes against the boundaries of contemporary folk rock with a somewhat psychedelic quality. There are some quite rocky-sounding guitar work and rhythms. Yet at the same time there is an underlying respect for tradition and the band clearly know a lot about traditional music.
Mary Jane is a young folk-rock band from the South of England. The band first formed in 1993 and the current line-up, who have been together a couple of years, comprises Jo Quinn, vocals, flute, recorder, penny whistles and violin, Gillie Leach violin and vocals, Paul Alan Taylor, guitar, bouzouki, Steve Bayley on bass guitar and Andrew Pidgeon, drums and percussion. This is the band's third studio album, and it's a very professional and accomplished sounding album, displaying a maturity and a level of musicianship which could shame some well-known bands.
Their material is a mix of traditional and self-penned, borrowing from both the Celtic and English traditions. On this album Mary Jane sounds fresh and up to date and has a fashionable new-age psychedelic feel. Yet at the same time they have incorporated some of the sound (and the appeal) of UK folk rock that is familiar to the older generation of listeners like me who have been listening since the 60s. In the space of a few moments I can hear musical phrases that simultaneously remind me of 60's and early 70's bands like Pentangle and Magna Carta and also of contemporary bands like the Blue Horses. Achieving this sort of blend of the familiar and the new is a very considerable achievement and gives the album a wide appeal.
The production is thankfully not too clinical. Although the lead vocals and instruments like the flute are allowed to float over the top of the rhythm section, the mix of this album has produced a very down to earth. almost live sound, which gives the album energy and personality and prevents it sounding artificial. I have not yet heard Mary Jane live but on the basis of this album I confidently expect them to be a very exciting live band.
The pre-release copy of the album does not have much detail of the instruments used on each track, so this will just be a brief rundown of the contents. The album has fourteen tracks, eight written by the band and six traditional, but unless you happen to recognise the traditional tunes you won't know in most cases which are which.
The short solo vocal opening track 'Deus Meus,' a Latin chant, acts as an interesting intro -- the second track of the album, 'Leaves are Falling' being the first full length song. This is mostly acoustic, and having a fairly gentle melody combined with gentle floating vocals, this track perhaps doesn't really stand out as much as it should.
It's the third track, 'Three Maidens,' which made me sit up and really take notice. A strong traditional narrative ballad, it starts with an aggressive, deliberately harsh-sounding electric guitar, which stays hypnotically in the background and contrasts wonderfully with Jo Quinn's flowing vocals and lead wind instrument. It fits together into a very effective, powerful and compulsive track. 'Bruton Town,' the fifth track, although more acoustic has a similar type of almost hypnotic rhythmic arrangement which forms the backbone of the song. 'Helios' starts gently and builds into a lovely instrumental section. 'No Effort Required' is probably my least favourite track because although it's beautifully played and sung I find it a bit repetitive. 'Fragments,' which follows, is superficially similar initially but builds to a more aggressively played guitar and rhythm structure, it also has an instrumental break which starts quietly then builds to an interplay of electric instruments. It works much better for having the contrasts and is another very strong track. The traditional Irish medley 'Morning Dew/Lads of Laois' that follows is a very cleverly arranged track. It has a very nicely played 'traditional' lead on (what I assume is) a flute, over a rhythm section that sticks with a traditional tune but has a thoroughly modern texture to the sound, again an excellent and effective compromise between tradition and freshness. 'Mahadev,' 'Phaethon' and 'Spiral' are all written by the band. 'Phaethon' is an interesting short piece using voice and violin to carry the melody over an acoustic backing then into 'Spiral' which is almost a classic electric folk-rock song. A reprise of 'Deus Meus' with more voices should perhaps be thought of as the end of the album. The last track, a traditional Celtic tune, 'Return to Milltown,' is more of an encore, but not a throw-away bonus track. It's a good strong treatment of the tune and like the earlier Irish tunes manages to be clearly traditional yet also up to date.
I have really enjoyed listening to this album, and it is still getting regular plays at home and in the car. It's one of the pleasures of writing reviews that occasionally one discovers new (or new to me) bands who are producing high quality music and interesting original interpretations of the tradition. There are a couple of tracks which I personally feel are a bit understated and laid back, and I found the words hard to understand in places. But balanced against the superb treatments of the narrative ballads and the arrangements of the traditional Irish tunes these are very minor quibbles about what is a powerful, interesting and extremely enjoyable album. I especially admire the way Mary Jane has blended older and newer styles of folk rock and produced an album that is firmly rooted in the English folk-rock style but also unique and up to date. They have not copied anyone, but clearly they have listened to and learned from many. The production and mix achieve an excellent balance of light and menace. Indeed for me the best tracks on the album are those which contrast those qualities, songs like 'Bruton Town' and 'Three Maidens', with the light airy ballad flowing over a gritty almost menacing down to earth rhythm. This is classic folk-rock, and to my mind these tracks easily stand comparison with recordings from the folk-rock 'masters' like Steeleye Span and Fairport.
Mary Jane has a web site with plenty of news about the band, other recordings, and information on how to get the albums. I recommend a visit.
[Chris Woods]
