Celtic Folk/Rock

17 MP3 Songs
FOLK: Folk Pop, WORLD: Celtic



Details:
1992 review from DIRTY LINEN Folk Music Magazine
The Ruminators
[Jackalope Records]
The Ruminators are a talented quintet from the wine country of Sonoma County, California. Their eponymous debut CD contains a generous 17 tracks, all but two of which were written by guitarist/leader Greg Scherer. The Ruminators' sound is deeply rooted in the late sixties, but their largely acoustic chamber rock sound belies influences like early Fairport and Pentangle rather than the various California bands. The Ruminators succeeds because of Scherer's finely crafted songs, the strong voices of Scherer and new lead vocalist Jennifer Goudeau and the sterling production. The main instrumental virtuoso in the group is Roxanne McCurdy, who plays accordion (most notably on an ethereal instrumental rendition of "Quiet Joys of Brotherhood") and recorder. Seven of the tunes here appeared on a demo tape by an earlier, three-person version of the Ruminators that I reviewed a couple of years ago, and the instrumental and vocal execution have improved. "Trouble in Ireland," "Tis the Season," and "They Say All is Fair" are the best of the generally very good crop of Scherer originals included here. Many of these belie '60s UK folk roots, but others, like the poppish "You Better Not Run Too Fast," the Pogueish "It's a Hard Life," and the blues shuffle "Don't Make Me Mad" sound more contemporary. A jazzy, syncopated version of "You Can't Do That" is more inspired and interestingly mutated than most Beatles covers. Actually, there isn't a weak track on this CD, and experience has shown that it stands up well to repeated listenings. If you are looking for quiet, hypnotic music with rock sensibilities and well-crafted songs, the Ruminators might be the solution. --MIKE PARRISH (St. Charles, IL)