Strangely Strange Yet Oddly Normal.

I’ve got some big news this morning. I’m going to see Robert Plant next week. Yesterday I saw a rumour on the internet that he has got a new band together called Saving Grace and they were playing a low-key date on 16^th February. When I investigated further, I found out that have been added to the bill when Fairport Convention play at Bath Forum. I managed to snap up a ticket. That should be a night to remember. Robert Plant and Fairport go back a long way. Sandy Denny sang on a Led Zeppelin song and Robert Plant has played at their annual Cropredy festival. I wonder if Robert might sing with Fairport? All will be revealed in due course. I’ll tell you all about it at the end of next week.

This morning I have been listening to yet another new album that came in the post yesterday. It is by Dr. Strangely Strange and is called Kip Of The Serenes. I first heard of this band in 1969 when I was still at school. Island Records brought out a sampler album called Nice Enough To Eat. Those sampler albums were great, they only cost about 14/6p. I first heard Nick Drake on that album and King Crimson, Quintessence and lots of other great music. The track by the Strangelies was called Strangely Strange Yet Oddly Normal. I forgot about them for decades. I was reminded of them again recently when I was reading the Joe Boyd book White Bicycles because it was Joe Boyd who produced this album in 1969. I looked on eBay and bought a copy.

I am on my second listen now and I like the album. It comes with bonus tracks and a lavish booklet which gives you all the info you might need. The obvious comparison is with the Incredible String Band and it was actually Robin Williamson of the ISB who recommended them to Joe Boyd. I don’t think they are as good as ISB though, neither in musicianship or song writing ability. It’s not fair to make comparisons though. When I heard the opening track and the recorder playing it reminded me of Vashti Bunyan. The band evolved out of the Dublin hippy counter-culture scene of the 60’s but like two other Irish bands of that period that I like, namely Mellow Candle and Tir An Nog they don’t sound particularly Irish, although there are lots of Irish references in the lyrics. They have a medieval sort of sound which was popular at the time and suited the lifestyles of when everyone wanted to get back to the land and live in communes. Anyway, I think it is a very pleasant charming album. My favourite track so far is Donnybrook Fair  and I have enjoyed listening to it on this nice spring-like Wednesday morning. I see there is a book coming out soon about this band and the Dublin scene of the time. It’s called Fitting Pieces To The Jigsaw by Adrian Whitaker. I might buy it, or I might not.