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The 2007 release of the album The Imagined Village saw Martin Carthy, Eliza Carthy, Tunng, Benjamin Zephaniah, Paul Weller and others join Simon Emmerson (he of Afro Celt Sound System) for a reworking of folk songs in a modern ‘village’ setting.

And the project then went on tour (notably at The Big Chill) with some technical jiggery pokery to replicate the stars that couldn’t make the gigs. All in all an ambitious project and I was only thinking the other day (when reviewing the Laroca EP as in addition to Aaron Jerome, I was talking to The Imagined Village/The Bays drummer Andy Gangedeen) could they possibly do it all again? And the answer is, yes they have and they are on tour throughout January!

Not only that, the ‘prog’ album storyline from the first album has been dropped (thank goodness) and all the electronics is in the hands of just one man (another secondment from The Bays and ‘scene’ veteran, Simon ‘Palmskin’ Richmond) and you’ll find the Empire And Love collection of 12 new/standards top quality throughout where Martin and Eliza Carthy and Chris Wood feature on vocals.

So when I say this is the best version of ‘Scarborough Fair’ I’ve ever heard (and there’s been quite a few) you won’t be disappointed on this one track alone (erm, both versions). Luckily, this is not just a one-track album. Of course, purists might not appreciate the ‘modern’ aspects but the two openers work particularly well with an indo-jazz twist on ‘Sweet Jayne’ and the ‘electronic’ riff on ‘Byker Hill’.

Another nu-classic is the tale of ‘Space Girl’ with space travelling bouzouki and synth combo and this version of ‘My Son John’ is updated with current war zone references; again purists might balk at this but if the aim is to get youth interested in folk music as a relevant music for today, I think it works..

And whilst ‘Scarborough Fair’ is modal-folk with “psychedelic cosmic love from California” (as Carlos Niño joins the dots of West Coast 60s rock/jazz and the modern beat generation), the approach of The Imangined Village isn’t a extreme as say, Bullion’s ‘Say Goodbye To What’ but fans of folktronica will be right behind this one.

And just to top things off, did you ever think you’d hear Martin Carthy sign Slade’s ‘Cum On Feel The Noize’? And it’s great! I did think when reviewing Final Song #1 a while back, Slade’s ‘Coz I Luv You’ would be a good choice, by I really like what Imagined Village have done to this 70s classic hit. By the way, did I ever tell you that one of my claims to fame was that a kid I went to school with Noddy Holder’s paper boy or the time I was drinking with Noddy in Clutterbucks? Oh, happy days.

This album is the best I’ve heard of this type since Pirate Ballads, Sea Songs And Chanteys by the Rogue’s Gallery (that also heavily feature the Carthy family) and I’m going do my best to see them live (see dates below).

I actually bought the first The Imagined Village album twice; the second time was from a stall at a Village Fete in rural Dorset which was the perfect setting for listening to the CD whilst the early rounds of the dog obedience show was going on but with the move away from Peter Gabriel’s Realworld label, moving from a tribe of 16 musicians to a core ten-piece, aiming for a more ‘live’ direction and working on the project for six months solid, has made The Imagined Village - Empire And Love one of the big early albums of 2010.

Tour Dates:
15 Jan 2010 20:00 Glasgow Concert Halls Glasgow, Scotland
16 Jan 2010 20:00 The Sage, Newcastle Upon Tyne
18 Jan 2010 19:30 Liverpool, Philharmonic Hall Liverpool
19 Jan 2010 20:00 Leeds, Irish Centre Leeds
20 Jan 2010 20:00 Theatre Severn, Shrewsbury
21 Jan 2010 19:30 Birmingham, Town Hall Birmingham
22 Jan 2010 19:00 Reading Concert Hall, Reading
23 Jan 2010 20:00 Colston Hall, Bristol
24 Jan 2010 20:00 Salisbury City Hall, Salisbury
26 Jan 2010 19:30 De Montfort Hall, Leicester
30 Jan 2010 20:00 Royal and Derngate, Northhampton
31 Jan 2010 19:30 Queen Elizabeth Hall - Southbank Centre, London

Reviewed: The Imagined Village - Empire And Love Cat. No. ECC002 Release date: 11th January 2010
Tracklisting:
1. Sweet Jayne (7:53)
2. Byker Hill (6:02)
3. Space Girl (4:01
4. My Son John (6:12)
5. Scarborough Fair (6:50)
6. Mermaid (6:05)
7. The Handweaver And The Factory Maid (5:09)
8. Lark In The Morning (4:09)
9. Rose Buds In June/Mrs Preston’s Horn Pipe (6:45)
10. Cum On Fell The Noize (4:13)
11. Scarborough Fair (String Reprive) (6:50)

Links:
theimaginedvillage.com
www.myspace.com/theimaginedvillage
www.traditionalmusic.co.uk/folk-song-lyrics/My_Son_John.htm
thebays.com