Album Review: Kate Rusby, Life in a Paper Boat

Arguably the quintessential UK female folk artist, Kate Rusby’s elegant and charming voice makes almost everything she sings sound like a sheer delight. But if that wasn’t enough, her albums have always been exquisitely produced, with stellar musicianship and strong performances – and her latest is no exception.
The poignant title-track was inspired by watching a TV report of migrants making the perilous journey across the Mediterranean: in particular a vision of a woman holding a tiny baby in a “paper boat.” It’s a stark reminder, if one were needed, of history unfolding before our eyes and of the hordes escaping “an ancient land left behind in ruins.”
On the gently-strummed ‘Hundred Hearts’, Rusby’s crystalline voice shines even stronger, a chiming electric guitar and shimmering accordion adding texture to the gorgeous melody. Elsewhere, fables of yore are explored in the haunting ‘The Witch of the Westmoreland’, originally written by Glaswegian folk legend Archie Fisher, while the Rusby-penned ‘The Mermaid’ offers deft harmony vocals courtesy of US bluegrass musician and Alison Krauss sidekick, Dan Tyminski.
It doesn’t get more traditional than the oddly-titled ‘Pace Egging Song’, apparently an old Lancashire tradition that is still practiced, and which here tells the story of “three jolly lads” in their quest for “eggs and strong beer.” A string section backdrops the final ‘Nigh Lament’, which blends Christmas sentiments and winter imagery – the perfect song for the cold dark nights.