Who Could Love You More - The Lost Brothers

Trails Of The Lonely By The Lost Brothers.

Brrrh, the Beast from the East has arrived In Westbury. That is the cold weather from Russia. I just ventured out to go to the bank and the shops and it felt like -10 C. I’m back home in the warm now. Blizzards are predicted for later in the week. I can’t believe I was outside digging the garden in the sunshine just a few days ago. I have put plenty of food out for my feathered friends so they don’t perish in the cold.

I’m listening to a CD by The Lost Brothers called Trails Of The Lonely. I saw them at Glastonbury in the Acoustic Tent about three years ago. I think I only listened to them because it was raining outside. They sounded quite pleasant, but I must admit I forgot all about them afterwards, until a couple of weeks ago when I read a glowing review of their latest album in one of the music mags. I had a look on eBay and found a promotional copy of their first album from 2008 for only £2.99 so I bought it and that’s what I’m listening to at this very moment.

If you haven’t heard of them before, they are a duo from Ireland consisting of Mark McCausland and Oisin Leech. They got together in 2008 and have made five albums since then. The one I am listening to was their first, released in 2008. It was recorded in the attic of a house in Portland Oregon. As soon as I heard the first track Angry At The Sun I immediately thought of early Simon & Garfunkel. I was most impressed. Fallen is the second song and has a bigger arrangement and sound with a string driven backing. Ribbons And Bows has a singalong feel with drums to the fore and a very live atmosphere. City Of The Rose is one of the stand out tracks and has a ghost like quality which pervades the whole album. I think the house where the album was recorded must have been haunted, or the band thought it was. No Tears For November is another quality song with lots of rhyming going on, probably a stream of consciousness type of song. Refuge is a dreamlike love song with a lazy days of summer feel to it. Trails Of The Lonely, Part 1 is next and is an instrumental, Part 3 comes later, there is no part 2. Mary In The Morning is a charming love song with whistling accompaniment. Wake Me Up has more whistling as an intro and you wouldn’t think the singers were Irish because the album sounds very American to my ears. Under The Turquoise Sky is a sad song which fades away nicely at the end. Last Day On The Job is a great song about a broken hearted clown. It reminds me of something else, but I can’t think what it is at the moment. Dream No More continues the laid-back vibe of the album and has a country feel to it. Joker Ghost Laughing Track shows the fact that they are Irish because it is interrupted with them laughing and talking about the door mysteriously opening on its own. Who Could Love You More is another very laid-back love song. The final song is That’s Just Me which just like the opening track brings me back to Simon And Garfunkel. It is a beautiful way to end a very nice album.

I have really enjoyed listening to this album on a bitterly cold February afternoon. I might buy another Lost Brothers CD to see how they have progressed over the ten years since this first album was released. The last Irish duo who impressed me this much were Tir Na Nog and I think the Lost Brothers might be just as great as them.

The Further Adventures Of Charles Westover by Del Shannon.

I had never heard of this album until a few days ago. A muso friend of mine who really knows his stuff read my review of Blossom Toes and suggested that if I wanted to hear another lost gem from that era then I should check out The Further Adventures Of Charles Westover by Del Shannon which was released in 1968. I looked on eBay and there was one copy available in Britain which I bought. It dropped through my letter box yesterday morning. I know what you are thinking, who the hell is Charles Westover? well that was Del Shannon’s real name. The CD which arrived was released in 1998 and as well as the original album it also contains eight bonus tracks. I think it is a British release because the liner notes include the address of the British fan club and all the photos in the booklet were taken in Britain. Del Shannon was always more popular in Britain than his native USA.

I had previously never bought a Del Shannon recording in my life. Everyone knows his great classic hits of the early 60’s though such as Runaway, Hats Off To Larry, Swiss Maid & Little Town Flirt. I remember seeing him on Top Of The Pops singing Keep Searchin’ which I think was his last UK hit in 1964. With the arrival of The Beatles & The Stones, Del Shannon and many other artists of his era entered the wilderness years. The Beach Boys & Bob Dylan were among the few American acts who could compete with the UK invasion. The Charles Westover album was an attempt to re-invent himself for the psychedelic era.

Thinkin’ It Over is the first track and it was released as a single in 1968. This CD was remastered from the original master tapes and I don’t know why, but it seems to make some of the backing orchestration sound fuzzy to me which put me off a bit. There isn’t that problem with any other track. Be My Friend is a bluesy song with great harmonica. Del’s vocals are different to what you would expect, there isn’t the falsetto singing we are used to. Silver Birch is an epic doom-laden song about a wedding that never took place. It is heavily orchestrated with trumpets and a choir. It could have been a bit longer I think. Shades of McArthur Park by Richard Harris maybe, or other great songs of the era. I Think I Love You is very psychedelic without being gimmicky. Del uses the sound of the time to illustrate the songs. Some music of the late 60’s was whimsical just for the sake of it, not so with this album. There are cellos and violins and driving guitars. The song seems to be a protest against bourgeois values. River Cool starts with nice guitar picking and then electronic keyboard but is one of the lesser songs in my opinion. Colour Flaming Hair  is a strange song about a night visitation with lush arrangements of violins which remind me of The Beatles or ELO. Gemini is another song which was released as a single without success. It is a great song though. Running On Back was the B-Side to a single. Maybe this song was slightly ahead of it’s time. It seems a little bit reminiscent of when psychedelic turned to underground rock. It is quite heavy with guitars, keyboards and drums. I like the false ending and the distortion. On first listen Conquer reminded me of the Bee Gees song To Love Somebody. It is a song about someone who is suffering with depression. That is a subject Del Shannon was well acquainted with. Been So Long was co-written with Brian Hyland. It is a rocker but isn’t that great. It grinds to a halt at the end. At the beginning of Magical Musical Box you can hear someone winding it up and then the music box playing. This is excellent, possibly my favourite track. It exactly captures the era in which it was recorded. Spacey vocals and violins in abundance make it a wonderful song. New Orleans brings the album to an epic conclusion. Dr John the Gris-Gris man came into my head on hearing this and Walk On Gilded Splinters. Maybe that is just the New Orleans connection though. There are all sorts of things going on in this song. I love it.

That brings the original album to an end but then there are eight bonus tracks. I must say I love Del’s version of What’s A Matter Baby. I have put it below if you want to hear it. It was originally a hit for Timi Yuro in the USA but I think Del’s version is just as good. All of the bonus tracks are great. Others I particularly like are the re-working of Runaway, The House Where Nobody Lives and You Don’t Love Me. Sadly, although the fans and the critics liked this album it didn’t restore Del Shannon’s fortunes and he never re-captured his glory days of the early 60’s when he topped the charts on both sides of the Atlantic. He slowly succumbed to alcoholism and depression and took his own life in 1990. I’m glad I got to hear this album  and although I don’t think it is one of the best albums ever, there are some great songs on it. It is well worth checking out if you haven’t heard it before.