John Renbourn Group – The Enchanted Garden (Transatlantic 1980)

This was what you could call a folk rock supergroup, fronted by one of the brilliant guitarists from legendary Pentangle. The absolutely wonderful Jacqui McShee, from the same band, joined in as well. John Renbourn Group only released two studio albums (this being the second) and one live album. t’s classic stuff all the way, and very much in the Pentangle vein. That means superb folk with inspirations from both jazz and medieval music. But on this album, you’ll also find a clearly raga-inspired instrumental called ‘Sidi Brahim’. This epic number, which closes the album, swings in its own peculiar way. Very inspired playing. But my absolute favourites here, are the two McShee-sung numbers: ‘The Plains of Waterloo’ and especially ‘The Maid On The Shore’. The latter I could easily have listened to over and over through a whole weekend without getting tired of it. McShee could very well be my favourite female vocalist in all classic folk/folk rock, with her crystal clear tones and wonderful phrasing. I also love the very medieval/early renaissance sounding introduction to the album, namely ‘Pavane’. These guys (and gal) were clearly born to perform this kind of music. You’ll surely feel you’re being transported to an age looong gone by when you listen to this. Highly atmospheric stuff! ‘The Enchanted Garden’ is without a doubt one of my favourite folk albums ever. If you like Pentangle, or just classic folk music in general, this album is absolutely essential!