Cruel Sister
Encyclopedia
Cruel Sister was an album recorded in 1970 by folk-rock band Pentangle
. It was the most folk-based of the albums recorded by the band, with all the tracks being versions of traditional songs. Whereas their previous album had been produced by Shel Talmy
, and featured quite a heavily-produced, commercial sound, Cruel Sister was produced by Bill Leader
, noted for his recordings of folk musicians. The album has an "uncluttered" sound with each instrument clearly placed in the mix and, despite its use of a range of instruments, including electric guitars, it maintains a clarity and simplicity, appropriate for the material.
The album was a commercial disaster.
Cruel Sister opens with the song "A maid that's deep in love": one of several English folk songs that tell the story of a young woman who disguises herself as a man in order to follow her lover to sea. The instrumentation features Bert Jansch
playing the underlying rhythm on appalachian dulcimer
in an arrangement reminiscent of the version recorded by Tim Hart
and Maddy Prior
on their 1968 Folk Songs of Old England.
"When I was in my Prime" is an unaccompanied folk song, showcasing Jacqui McShee
's solo voice.
"Lord Franklin" is a version of the traditional ballad, also known as "Lady Franklin's Lament
" which describes Sir John Franklin
's ill-fated expedition to discover the Northwest Passage
. John Renbourn
sings the lead vocal and plays acoustic guitar. A heavily overdriven, sustaining electric guitar, also played by Renbourn, is used as a melodic instrument, almost violin-like in its sound. Unusually, Bert Jansch plays the concertina on this song.
"Cruel sister", the song which provides the title for the album, is a traditional ballad (known in some versions as The Twa Sisters
), telling the story of the violent rivalry between two sisters for the love of a knight. It features the most complex vocal arrangement on the album with McShee, Jansch, Renbourn and Cox
all contributing to the vocal texture.
The whole of side two of the album is taken up with an extended version of the ballad "Jack Orion", previously recorded by Jansch on his own Jack Orion
album. "Jack Orion" is a version of the Child ballad
"Glasgerion
". The arrangement on Cruel Sister develops through several sections with different rhythms and instrumentation: acoustic guitars, recorder
s, glockenspiel and electric guitar, together with some dramatic double bass playing by Danny Thompson
.
The album cover features engravings by Albrecht Dürer
. The picture on the back cover is his The Sea Monster, dating from 1498.
Pentangle (band)
Pentangle are a British folk rock band with some folk jazz influences. The original band were active in the late 1960s and early 1970s and a later version has been active since the early 1980s...
. It was the most folk-based of the albums recorded by the band, with all the tracks being versions of traditional songs. Whereas their previous album had been produced by Shel Talmy
Shel Talmy
Shel Talmy is an American record producer, songwriter, arranger best known for his work in London with The Who and The Kinks in the 1960s, with a role in many other English bands including Cat Stevens and Pentangle...
, and featured quite a heavily-produced, commercial sound, Cruel Sister was produced by Bill Leader
Bill Leader
Bill Leader is an English recording engineer and record producer. He is particularly associated with the British folk music revival of the 1960s and 1970s, producing records by Davey Graham, Bert Jansch, John Renbourn, Frank Harte and others....
, noted for his recordings of folk musicians. The album has an "uncluttered" sound with each instrument clearly placed in the mix and, despite its use of a range of instruments, including electric guitars, it maintains a clarity and simplicity, appropriate for the material.
The album was a commercial disaster.
Cruel Sister opens with the song "A maid that's deep in love": one of several English folk songs that tell the story of a young woman who disguises herself as a man in order to follow her lover to sea. The instrumentation features Bert Jansch
Bert Jansch
Herbert "Bert" Jansch was a Scottish folk musician and founding member of the band Pentangle. He was born in Glasgow and came to prominence in London in the 1960s, as an acoustic guitarist, as well as a singer-songwriter...
playing the underlying rhythm on appalachian dulcimer
Appalachian dulcimer
The Appalachian dulcimer is a fretted string instrument of the zither family, typically with three or four strings. It is native to the Appalachian region of the United States...
in an arrangement reminiscent of the version recorded by Tim Hart
Tim Hart
Tim Hart was an English folk singer and multi-instrumentalist, best known as a founding member of electric folk band, Steeleye Span.-Early years:...
and Maddy Prior
Maddy Prior
Maddy Prior is an English folk singer, best known as the lead vocalist of Steeleye Span.-Early life:...
on their 1968 Folk Songs of Old England.
"When I was in my Prime" is an unaccompanied folk song, showcasing Jacqui McShee
Jacqui McShee
thumb|300px|right|Jacqui McShee performing with [[Pentangle]] at the 2007 [[BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards]]Jacqueline 'Jacqui' McShee is an English singer. Since 1966 she has performed with Pentangle, a jazz influenced folk rock band.-Biography:McShee's musical career began as a soloist in British folk...
's solo voice.
"Lord Franklin" is a version of the traditional ballad, also known as "Lady Franklin's Lament
Lady Franklin's Lament
"Lady Franklin's Lament" is a broadside ballad indexed by George Malcolm Laws commemorating the loss of Sir John Franklin's British Arctic Expedition of 1845...
" which describes Sir John Franklin
John Franklin
Rear-Admiral Sir John Franklin KCH FRGS RN was a British Royal Navy officer and Arctic explorer. Franklin also served as governor of Tasmania for several years. In his last expedition, he disappeared while attempting to chart and navigate a section of the Northwest Passage in the Canadian Arctic...
's ill-fated expedition to discover the Northwest Passage
Northwest Passage
The Northwest Passage is a sea route through the Arctic Ocean, along the northern coast of North America via waterways amidst the Canadian Arctic Archipelago, connecting the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans...
. John Renbourn
John Renbourn
John Renbourn is an English guitarist and songwriter. He is possibly best known for his collaboration with guitarist Bert Jansch as well as his work with the folk group Pentangle, although he maintained a solo career before, during and after that band's existence .While most commonly labelled a...
sings the lead vocal and plays acoustic guitar. A heavily overdriven, sustaining electric guitar, also played by Renbourn, is used as a melodic instrument, almost violin-like in its sound. Unusually, Bert Jansch plays the concertina on this song.
"Cruel sister", the song which provides the title for the album, is a traditional ballad (known in some versions as The Twa Sisters
The Twa Sisters
"The Twa Sisters" is a murder ballad that recounts the tale of a girl drowned by her sister. It is first known to have appeared on a broadside in 1656 as "The Miller and the King's Daughter." At least 21 English variants exist under several names, including "Minnorie" or "Binnorie", "The Cruel...
), telling the story of the violent rivalry between two sisters for the love of a knight. It features the most complex vocal arrangement on the album with McShee, Jansch, Renbourn and Cox
Terry Cox
Terence William Harvey 'Terry' Cox played drums in the British folk rock bands The Pentangle, Duffy's Nucleus and Humblebums....
all contributing to the vocal texture.
The whole of side two of the album is taken up with an extended version of the ballad "Jack Orion", previously recorded by Jansch on his own Jack Orion
Jack Orion
Jack Orion is the third album by Scottish folk musician Bert Jansch, released in 1966. It contains a number of traditional songs, including the epic "Jack Orion": a ten-minute adaptation of the Child ballad "Glasgerion" which tells of a court fiddler’s attempt to seduce a countess and his servant's...
album. "Jack Orion" is a version of the Child ballad
Child Ballads
The Child Ballads are a collection of 305 ballads from England and Scotland, and their American variants, collected by Francis James Child in the late nineteenth century...
"Glasgerion
Glasgerion
-Synopsis:Glasgerion is a king's son and a harper. He harps before another king, whose daughter arranges a tryst with him. He tells his servant to ensure that he wakes in time to make the tryst. The servant goes in his place and rapes the princess. She learns the truth and kills herself,...
". The arrangement on Cruel Sister develops through several sections with different rhythms and instrumentation: acoustic guitars, recorder
Recorder
The recorder is a woodwind musical instrument of the family known as fipple flutes or internal duct flutes—whistle-like instruments which include the tin whistle. The recorder is end-blown and the mouth of the instrument is constricted by a wooden plug, known as a block or fipple...
s, glockenspiel and electric guitar, together with some dramatic double bass playing by Danny Thompson
Danny Thompson
Daniel Henry Edward 'Danny' Thompson is an English multi-instrumentalist best known as a double bassist and businessman...
.
The album cover features engravings by Albrecht Dürer
Albrecht Dürer
Albrecht Dürer was a German painter, printmaker, engraver, mathematician, and theorist from Nuremberg. His prints established his reputation across Europe when he was still in his twenties, and he has been conventionally regarded as the greatest artist of the Northern Renaissance ever since...
. The picture on the back cover is his The Sea Monster, dating from 1498.
Track listing
- "Maid That's Deep In Love" (Traditional, arranged Jansch, Renbourn, Cox) – 5:30
- "When I Was In My Prime" (Traditional) – 2:57
- "Lord FranklinLady Franklin's Lament"Lady Franklin's Lament" is a broadside ballad indexed by George Malcolm Laws commemorating the loss of Sir John Franklin's British Arctic Expedition of 1845...
" (Traditional, arranged Jansch, McShee, Renbourn) – 3:23 - "Cruel SisterThe Twa Sisters"The Twa Sisters" is a murder ballad that recounts the tale of a girl drowned by her sister. It is first known to have appeared on a broadside in 1656 as "The Miller and the King's Daughter." At least 21 English variants exist under several names, including "Minnorie" or "Binnorie", "The Cruel...
" (Traditional, arranged Jansch, Renbourn, Cox) – 7:03 - "Jack OrionGlasgerion-Synopsis:Glasgerion is a king's son and a harper. He harps before another king, whose daughter arranges a tryst with him. He tells his servant to ensure that he wakes in time to make the tryst. The servant goes in his place and rapes the princess. She learns the truth and kills herself,...
" (Traditional, arranged Jansch, Renbourn, Cox) – 18:38
Personnel
- Terry CoxTerry CoxTerence William Harvey 'Terry' Cox played drums in the British folk rock bands The Pentangle, Duffy's Nucleus and Humblebums....
– drums, percussion, dulcitoneDulcitoneA dulcitone is a keyboard instrument in which sound is produced by a range of tuning forks, which vibrate when struck by felt-covered hammers activated by the keyboard....
, glockenspielGlockenspielA glockenspiel is a percussion instrument composed of a set of tuned keys arranged in the fashion of the keyboard of a piano. In this way, it is similar to the xylophone; however, the xylophone's bars are made of wood, while the glockenspiel's are metal plates or tubes, and making it a metallophone...
, vocals - Bert JanschBert JanschHerbert "Bert" Jansch was a Scottish folk musician and founding member of the band Pentangle. He was born in Glasgow and came to prominence in London in the 1960s, as an acoustic guitarist, as well as a singer-songwriter...
– acoustic guitar, appalachian dulcimerAppalachian dulcimerThe Appalachian dulcimer is a fretted string instrument of the zither family, typically with three or four strings. It is native to the Appalachian region of the United States...
, recorderRecorderThe recorder is a woodwind musical instrument of the family known as fipple flutes or internal duct flutes—whistle-like instruments which include the tin whistle. The recorder is end-blown and the mouth of the instrument is constricted by a wooden plug, known as a block or fipple...
, concertinaConcertinaA concertina is a free-reed musical instrument, like the various accordions and the harmonica. It has a bellows and buttons typically on both ends of it. When pressed, the buttons travel in the same direction as the bellows, unlike accordion buttons which travel perpendicularly to it...
, vocals - Jacqui McSheeJacqui McSheethumb|300px|right|Jacqui McShee performing with [[Pentangle]] at the 2007 [[BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards]]Jacqueline 'Jacqui' McShee is an English singer. Since 1966 she has performed with Pentangle, a jazz influenced folk rock band.-Biography:McShee's musical career began as a soloist in British folk...
– vocals - John RenbournJohn RenbournJohn Renbourn is an English guitarist and songwriter. He is possibly best known for his collaboration with guitarist Bert Jansch as well as his work with the folk group Pentangle, although he maintained a solo career before, during and after that band's existence .While most commonly labelled a...
– acoustic guitar, electric guitar, sitarSitarThe 'Tablaman' is a plucked stringed instrument predominantly used in Hindustani classical music, where it has been ubiquitous since the Middle Ages...
, recorder, vocals - Danny ThompsonDanny ThompsonDaniel Henry Edward 'Danny' Thompson is an English multi-instrumentalist best known as a double bassist and businessman...
– double bass