Defending Ancient Springs by Jackie Leven.

Friday afternoon, sitting in my kitchen as sunlight streams through the window, giving the illusion of warmth. I am listening to a CD which arrived yesterday called Defending Ancient Springs by Jackie Leven. I was reminded of Jackie Leven last week when I saw his name on the Village Pump Festival memorial when I was out on a walk. I had heard people speak highly of him and he had been compared to Van Morrison. I decided to order an album and I thought it would give me something to write about and keep my brain working during this lock-down. When I looked at his discography, I did not know which album to get, so I ordered this one from the year 2000 because I liked the name. The CD has an attractive booklet packed with information. The cover is a photo of the Russian poet Marina Tsvetaeva. I had never heard of her, but I have just been reading about her life. She lived through the Russian revolution and committed suicide in 1941 during the Stalin era and is now thought of as one of the greatest Russian poets. It shows Jackie Leven was well read.

The music turned out to be nothing like I expected. I thought it would be a kind of simple folkie, acoustic type sound, but no, it is a very complex album featuring a whole assortment of instruments and sounds. The opening track even surprised me because it is a cover of the Righteous Brothers classic You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feeling. It is a duet with David Thomas from the band Pere Ubu. David Thomas makes quite a large contribution to this album. Most of the album was recorded in Bethesda in North Wales, which is an area I know quite well from my college days. I like this version, but I do not know why he recorded it because nothing will ever top the Righteous Brothers original. Perhaps they just did it for fun and there is nothing wrong with that. Single Father is an upbeat song with a sad message. It is about a broken relationship and coming to terms with not seeing your children. Paris Blues is just what it says, with some very bluesy tasteful guitar. The imagery in some of the lyrics evoked the vibe of Somewhere Down The Crazy River to me. David Thomas is featured again. There are some witty plays on words, such as ‘one horse lonesome sleigh’. It ends with Jackie reciting a stanza of a poem by the Spanish poet Antonio Machado. One of two poets translated by Robert Bly on this album. Jackie obviously liked poetry and it is quite educational for me looking them up.

Village Pump Memorial.

The title track Defending Ancient Springs is next, and he thanks the English poet Kathleen Raine for the inspiration for this song. It is a song about returning to your roots. It begins with the industrial sounds of heavy engineering. I assume Jackie came from an area which grew out of the industrial revolution. The industrial sounds are joined by heavy drumming and crashing guitars. There is another poem by Jun Ramon Jiminez. It is a powerful track. The Working Man’s Love Song by contrast is a simpler affair. It is quite a poignant song about how things will get better….but not today. Listening to it today reminded me of this pandemic we are having to endure, in the hope that things will get better. I Saw My Love Walk Into Clouds is possibly my favourite song after three listens. It is a simple touching love song with exquisite guitar and violin playing. Hand Is Pale With Holy Kisses is adapted from a poem by Marina Tsvetaeva. The words have a desolate feel despite the religious imagery. We can only guess at what Russian people had to endure in those days.

Your Winter Days is another song with lots of snow in the lyrics, which all adds to the feeling of underlying melancholy pervading the album. The Keys To The Forest I found to be one of the most melodic songs on offer. I like it a lot. It almost has the air of an old Scottish or Irish folk ballad, along the lines of Danny Boy or something like that. The song starts as a song of lost love beside the Firth Of Clyde but ends with some harrowing lyrics which suggest it might be from the view of a soldier in World War 1. The final track Morbid Sky isn’t written by Jackie Leven, it is by David Thomas & Keith Moline and features The Pale Orchestra. The arrangement is like avant garde jazz or something that Captain Beefheart might have dreamed up. I quite like it, but do not understand it. Listening to the whole album I have not seen a Van Morrison connection, except there is a line in this track which says, ‘Them days, I feel like a motherless child’. I have now heard the album three times. I am glad I bought it because I have enjoyed listening to it. I think it will grow on me.  Jackie Leven died in 2011, so I wish I had seen him play in concert while he was alive. However, I have a suspicion that hardcore Jackie Leven fans might not consider this album one of his greatest. It would be nice if they let me know which ones they recommend.