Golden Apples Of The Sun – JUDY COLLINS****

Golden Apples Of The Sun/Bonnie Ship The Diamond/Little Brown Dog/Twelve Gates To The City/Christ Child Lullaby/Great Selchie Of Shule Skerry/Tell Me Who I’ll Marry/Fannerio/Crow On The Cradle/Lark In The Morning/ Sing Hallelujah/Shule Aroon

Influential folk singer Judy Collins furthered her growing reputation with her second LP Golden Apples Of The Sun consisting of traditional folk material accompanied by acoustic guitar.

“With her second LP release Golden Apples Of The Sun Judy shows significantly more confidence as a singer. What is interesting is the obscurity of these traditional folk songs, although she does branch out into some other genres, such as gospel with Twelve Gates To The City. The best tracks would be the title song, the ballad Fannerio and Crow On The Cradle."

“Her second album is not quite so intense as her debut. Nonetheless, it makes up for this slight deficiency with its heartbreaking sadness that announces itself from the opening title track.”

“This early album is more of historical interest, because it is not quintessential Judy Collins. However, if you remember the times you can appreciate that this was a period when folk music did not mean commercially viable songs but more 'authentic' music. The bottom line is that fans of that voice are going to appreciate hearing it at the beginning of one of the most celebrated careers in folk music.”

“All in all, this is traditional folk music at its absolute darkest and most intense. These are songs that truly told the stories of ordinary people from the times they were written in a way that is hard to comprehend for people today.”

“Judy Collins' Golden Apples Of The Sun is a marvellous musical rendition of a beautiful poem - my favourite song back in the late 60s. Though she continued recording traditional songs as and when it suited her, I don't think she recorded another album dominated by traditional songs.”

“The title track is a poem originally written by W B Yeats, but later set to music. British folk fans should be familiar with Lark In The Morning, a traditional English song still popular in folk circles. There are several other excellent tracks here, including some of Irish origin.”