Search - Pentangle :: Cruel Sister

Pentangle Get Witchy

Stolenmoment | Indiana | 07/03/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"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. Although most listeners don't consider this album their best, I have a special fondness for it. Another reviewer mentioned that some of the vocal harmonies are a bit off, but for me it just adds to the wonderfully spooky atmosphere. "Lord Franklin" is one of my favorite Pentangle tracks because it creates a wistful effect attributable more to performance than lyrical content. Renbourn's vocal delivery, though hardly a technical marvel, is perfect for the song. (Dylan based "Bob Dylan's Dream" from FREEWHEELIN' on this traditional tune.) As for the "Lay the bent to the bonnie broom" refrain in "Cruel Sister," I found this in a Google search:



"holly and ivy, used magically from the earliest heathen times, holly being particularly abhorred by witches in England and other countries of Europe; broom, most potent against witches and spirits, and per contra, often used by witches in their spells; the bent or rush, protective against the evil eye, and, as Miss Broadwood points out, doubly powerful when combined with the broom, as in the refrain (1 A), 'Lay the bent to the bonny broom.'"



Just a bit of white magic, you know."

AGELESS,CLASSIC,DEEP,WONDERFUL

little dave | Chicago,IL usa | 02/01/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"If you are even a passing fan of PENTANGLE,this disk is a must have.At the

time I write this review,Amazon is not offering us the chance to use a

media player to audition this disk.What a shame this may cause you to

miss one that I believe would become a household favorite.I am tasking myself to convince you to take a chance here.Every song on this disk has

the crisp,tight outstanding musicianship and soaring vocals of Jaquie Macshee (not sure of the spelling)--AND an added double bonus.The final

track on this album,"JACK ORION" is a twenty two minute epic that should

be mentioned as a classic along with any Led Zepplin or Fleetwood Mac song

that gets constant airplay.This tune alone is worth the price.You will not regret this expendtiture of you hard earned entertainment $.GIANT,VERY OBSCURE YUMMY MUSIC.NOT TO BE MISSED!"

Ordinary

B. E Jackson | Pennsylvania | 04/20/2009

(3 out of 5 stars)

"While the lead singer of Pentangle has a pretty female voice that reminds me of Judy Collins a little bit, what makes this album ordinary to me is the fact that a band like Fairport Convention took the British folk rock genre a step further as far as making the folk-rock movement more interesting and creative, so we're left with a few copycats that appeared back in the day that didn't have the same kind of success, or the same level of incredible songwriting that could really move the listener the way Fairport Convention did.



Maybe I'm just not as big of a fan of folk rock compared to most people, but I have a hard time appreciating Cruel Sister. I can't get around the average vocal melodies despite the pretty instrumentation.



This is still recommended for folk rock fans because I'm sure you'll like the album regardless of the ordinary way the songs are written, but this album isn't very impressive to me. It just seems like a genre of music that's very hard to expand upon and find a way to stand out from all the other bands attempting the same thing."