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Binding: Audio CDEAN: 0601143108020 Label: Zoe Records Manufacturer: Zoe Records MPN: 431080 Number Of Discs: 2 Publisher: Zoe Records Release Date: October 25, 2005 Studio: Zoe Records Editorial Review: Amazon.com: A band that has made a name for itself since 1992 by updating the Celtic and, more specifically, Cape Breton tradition, Great Big Sea has long mixed poppy original tunes with traditionals goosed up to fit a more modern aesthetic. On the band's eighth album, The Hard And The Easy, the Canadians focus wholly on traditional Newfoundland folk tunes of all shapes and colors. All the music is acoustic and most (surprise!) have a seafaring theme to them. These are tunes that band-members grew up playing at home with family and friends, and there is no pretension or airs. The band¹s sense of humor comes through on gems like country-ish "Concerning Charlie Horse" and "The Mermaid," while "Graceful & Charming" is a sentimental ballad. The Breton tradition comes through strongest on "Harbour Le Cou" and "Tishialuk Girls Set." Adding its musicianship and excellent vocals to the Celtic continuum, Great Big Sea has come up with one for and of the ages. --Tad Hendrickson Album Description: Includes bonus DVD -- an exclusive concert and conversation with the band! The Hard and The Easy is the ninth album from Great Big Sea, the Juno-nominated band that fuses Newfoundland traditional music with modern pop in a crowd-pleasing formula both heartfelt and vital. A pure force of nature - much like the ocean surge they take their name from - Great Big Sea's blend of instruments such as guitar, mandolin, bodhran, fiddle, and concertina, along with their vocal harmonies, revels in the melodies they create and the Newfoundland tunes they love. Their sound bellows joy. After almost thirteen years together, Great Big Sea is releasing a new kind of album, one that spans the spectrum of the Newfoundland songbook. This all-acoustic album of traditional and local songs is a first for singers and multi-instrumentalists Sean McCann, Alan Doyle, and Bob Hallett, but it's also a logical progression. Newfoundland music and Newfoundland culture are both their genesis and their raison d'etre. Average Rating:
 Rating:  - Excellent CDThis is a band I have newly discovered and boy am I glad I did. If you like witty folk music with an irish/scottish twist, then they are for you. The tongue in check songs make me smile while I am driving to work. A very nice CD! Rating: - Freakin' AWESOMEAs always, Great Big Sea put out a fantastic record. This CD touches a little more on inland Newfoundland. It speaks of logging, horses falling through ice and river driving, to name a few things. Of course the record is still full of nautical themes, too. Rating:  - An all-acoustic, all-folky outing (no original material), very enjoyableThe normal Great Big Sea album contains both original material written by the band and more traditional (mostly Newfoundland) folk songs. When preparing their latest album, according to interviews at the time, they had so much material they decided to split the album in two - one dedicated more to the new music (which, I guess, became the album "Something Beautiful") and one dedicated to all folk songs. While I like Great Big Sea's original material (at least, some of it!), I usually prefer the ... Read More Rating: - BrilliantBrilliant. It is back to the form shown in their early CDs and encapsulated in the "Road Rage Live" album. The track "The Mermaid" is wonderful. The accompanying DVD is excellent. As you can see I am a fan after seeing them live in Glasgow in 2001 with Runrig. Rating: - A New Direction For the Boys!I was very much looking forward to this disk because GBS sang many of the songs on their tour this spring. And it is new ground. From the mysterious "12 Apostle" shanty to the bawdy "Mermaid" (which will explain the cover)to the eponymous "Graceful and Charming" (which I swear I have somewhere by Triona ni Dhomnail, but I can't prove it). All acoustic, all pure Newfoundland folk. I hate taking that 1 star away from my hard playing, hard working tundra troubadours. But there's just that little smidgeon ... Read More |
