Cruel Sister - PENTANGLE***

A Maid That's Deep In Love/When I Was In My Prime/Lord Franklin/Cruel Sister/Jack Orion

After the huge success of Basket Of Light the relatively poor sales of the follow up Cruel Sister must have come as a big disappointment to leading British folk group Pentangle. Comprising traditional folk tunes the highlight is a twenty minute version of Jack Orion. (US:193 UK:51)

“My favourite track is Lord Franklin which is very pretty, sombre, and just the right length. There are several high points through the side-long Jack Orion and the title cut is a nice, dark tale.”

“I greatly prefer the approach this time around - which is much more rooted in folk, in particular folk music from times of history, with old and out of fashion instruments and delightful songs about murder, suicide, bloodshed and madness set to beautiful acoustic tunes. There are of course rock touches here and there, such as the instrumental workouts and an occasional eccentric touch that spices up the sidelong epic Jack Orion, but by and large this is just good meaty folk music performed well.”

“The obvious centrepiece is Jack Orion. Lasting eighteen minutes is has the potential to get really boring, but it never actually does. It has enough twists and turns, and a sense of momentum, to hold your interest.”

“Sometimes a sound just captures your imagination and carries you along with it, and Pentangle definitely does that for me. Even their questionable artistic moments are part of a constant search for some lost key in the murky depths of ancient music, matched with the spirit of jazz improvisation and Eastern touches.”

“As a Pentangle fan that I find myself hard pressed to rate this too high. Of course the playing is great but the material has many dull moments. I can do without the Jacqui soloing. To be fair the opening A Maid That's Deep In Love is respectable and the traditional Lord Franklin is a plus. The Jack Orion side really heats up over the latter half, but I still find myself glad when they finally drag out the last chorus.”

“This is an album of supremely talented musicians, expressing themselves without being self-indulgent. The album has such a light, lilting feel, it all sounds so simple that you don't notice the individuals; it's as if they create just one sound. The interplay between the instruments, the superb vocal lines, they take one song and let it fly down multiple paths, without ever creating a feeling that the song is dragging.”