Down In The Valley by Charlotte Greig.

Today I thought I’d tell you about an album that I’m listening to at this very moment. The mood of it is quite fitting for this cold and cloudy December day. It is called Down In The Valley by Charlotte Greig recorded in 1999. I discovered her music while reading about another singer Anne Briggs. The article said that Anne was an influence on Charlotte, so I checked Charlotte out on YouTube and decided to order an album. I also discovered that Charlotte Greig was a bit of a polymath. As well as being a singer songwriter, she was also a playwright, novelist, and journalist.  On this recording there are eight songs written by Charlotte plus four traditional songs. As well as singing, Charlotte also plays harmonium and dulcimer which reminded me of Nico and Joni Mitchell. I did read that Charlotte also cited Nico as an influence. She is accompanied by Julian Hayman on guitar; there is also bass and drums.

The opening song Trees has a pastoral and melancholy mood and contains samples of a traditional folk song The Trees They Do Grow High sung by Walter Pardon. Trees are a recurring theme through several of these songs. The Cruel Mother is a traditional song that has been recorded by many artists over the years including Shirley Collins, Joan Baez and my personal favourite Anne Briggs. The title song Down In The Valley to my ears is the most accessible song on first listen with the title being the refrain last line of every verse. Black Name is quite a brooding song as the title would suggest. Take Me Home is an intimate love song (See video below) The next track The Wondrous Cross is a well-known hymn written by Isaac Watts in 1707. House Of Pain and Here I Stand continue the mood of underlying melancholy that pervades many of the songs. 

I much prefer To Make You Stay composed by Lal Waterson who I have written about previously on this site. The Bells Of Paradise is another trad song given a drone like arrangement by Charlotte. All Through The Night is like a sister song to Down In The Valley where high trees are again mentioned. Shadows as well as trees are a recurring image throughout these songs as in Shadows In A Dream  a short and sweet song to bring the album to a close. Sadly, Charlotte died at the relatively young age of 59 which is a tragic loss because she was obviously a very talented creative artist in many fields of expression. I was pleased to see on Wikipedia that both her sons are musicians as well. I have enjoyed listening to her music again this afternoon. 

However, I suspect that this recording doesn’t represent her best work. I wonder if listeners who are more familiar with her work than me would consider it one of the best of her six albums. I say that because when I first searched her music on youtube I liked other songs like Rosalie, I Wish, I Wish, Seven Seas, and Twin Stars (Shared Below) more than many of the songs on Down In The Valley. I don’t regret buying this album though and am very grateful to have discovered her music. Listen to the videos below and decide for yourself. Cheers.