Moira Cameron,
Lilies Among the Bushes
(independent, 1997)


Moira Cameron followed up her first album, One Evening as I Rambled..., with a second featuring more of the same. That's not to say it's not fresh and new; it simply is another example of excellent balladeering. Cameron, a native of Toronto who relocated to the Northwest Territories, has a talent for telling stories in song, drawing largely on the British Isles for her source materials, and she does it well indeed.

"Crafty Maid's Policy," for instance, is a variation on the old tale of a woman who lures a man off his horse for a bit of fun, then gallops away on his steed. "Daemon Lover" tells of a woman lured away from her husband and child by the aspect of her former love -- a decision with dire consequences. "Love Henry" shows what woe a tease may bring when directed at a jealous woman.

Except for a bit of guitar (Steve Lacey) and cello (Chic Callas), the instrumentation here is all Cameron, and she does nice work accentuating the songs without ever overwhelming her own voice. She does some particularly nice work on "Barbara Allen," playing the Appalachian dulcimer throughout and inserting some striking lines of the alto recorder for extra effect. Her autoharp and recorder work nicely with Callas's cello on a song of untimely pregnancy, "Willie of Winsbury."

Often, however, Cameron sings purely a cappella, as in "Lady Diamond," "Brown Girl," "Martha" and "Jock O'Hazeldean." She sings a cappella twice (double-tracked) for a tale of a woman's seafaring and revenge in "Bold William Taylor." "Elfin Knight" and "Well Below the Valley" both make excellent use of Cameron's backing singers (Lorelei Andrews, Susan Keogh, Steve Lacey, Dawn Lacey and Steve Goff) on the repetitive chorus lines.

There are a few instrumentals as well. On "Grit's Tune," Cameron double-tracks her Appalachian dulcimer for a lovely, lively duet with herself. She plays hammered dulcimer, soprano recorder, spoons and egg (along with Lacey's guitar) on the bouncy "Jenny Lind Polka/Halting March."

All in all, it's another fine recording from an excellent Canadian balladeer. Anyone with a love for these old story-songs should pay heed to Cameron's voice; she tells them very well.




Rambles.NET
music review by
Tom Knapp


20 January 2000


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