Sunday, August 24, 2014

Burn & Glow, Amy Goddard, a CD review ...

During the club's enforced sabbatical some of us attended Chichester Folk Song Club on Tuesday evenings.
Indeed, several of us often do, and we always enjoy a warm welcome.

Last Tuesday Barry was MC ...


"I hate you all!"
That is code for, "WELCOME!"

A young lady, Amy, carrying a guitar walked in accompanied by her husband, Matt.
"Oh, good," exclaimed Barry, "Here's TALENT!"

There are those who can skilfully craft meaningful lyrics.
Others compose delightful melodies.
There are those who can engagingly perform.
Amy Goddard singularly combines all those talents … a rare gift.

Amy performed two of her own self-penned songs:
I Will See and Friends We’ll Always Be.
Her audience indulged in those precious moments when we close our eyes, slow our heart-rates and breathing
... we hope for more.
Anticipatory silence is followed by rapturous applause … deservedly so.

I bought her CD ...



There are 14 immaculately produced tracks: words and music all Amy's own work except for track 5, Jasmine, written by John Stewart.
Amy generously transcribes her lyrics in the album-cover.

Amy has the ability to pluck poetic phrases, (from who knows where?) that speak to the collective imagination ...
The futility of worry will dissolve as my eyes open ... and I see.
(There is wisdom for us all in those words.)

Her melodic guitar accompaniments, never over-stated, are competent and sensitive, beautifully complementing her charming and sometimes near-whispery voice.
(I like whispery!)
When Amy presents a song she almost hides behind it.
The song says it all.




If you want to know Amy, buy the album from her website, close your eyes, relax, concentrate and imbibe her songs through the pores of your very soul.

Then hit ‘replay’!

By the way, Amy writes that she might honour The City Folk Club with her gracious presence some time in the future. I look forward to that.

...  and Dogsbody won a Mars Bar in the raffle!

1 comment:

jerome said...

I heard Amy sing at the recent Song and Ale weekend at North Boarhunt.

A lovely CD. I've heard she will played on the BBC Wales Celtic Heartbeat folk show on September 7th.