It’s hard to conceive of a song that wouldn’t sound gorgeous being sung by Kate Rusby. Delicate and ever so slightly breathy, her voice is a gentle instrument whose owner clearly doesn’t care to push it beyond a soft, sweet murmur. It’s also unerringly precise and sensitive, and packs a world of emotion into that small but perfect range.
The gestation of her sixth solo album was a difficult one, overshadowed by her split two years ago from her husband and longtime producer John McCusker (who nevertheless guests on several tracks) and by the deaths of two close family members. In her liner notes, Rusby recalls that she “ground to a halt more than once and gave up” and goes on to write that “If it hadn’t been for those around me, especially Joe, this album would never have been finished.” The reference is to her brother, who engineered and mixed the new CD and contributes fine familial harmonies to ‘Farewell’. The production this time round is by Rusby herself, and she’s done a more than wonderful job.
As with her previous album The Girl Who Couldn’t Fly, much of the material consists of original songs written by Rusby in a timeless idiom that’s clearly influenced by, and sits well alongside, traditional ballads like ‘Andrew Lammie’ and ‘John Barbury’. The latter shares its achingly lovely melody with the Sandy Denny/Fairport Convention classic ‘Farewell Farewell’ and the old ballad ‘Willie O’Winsbury’, whose lyrics also resemble Rusby’s version in some respects.
Rusby’s songwriting just seems to get better with every album; prime examples this time round are ‘Daughter Of Heaven’, featuring Eddi Reader on backing vocals, and the enigmatic title track. Included as a bonus track is Rusby’s upbeat cover of the Kinks’ ‘The Village Green Preservation Society’, recorded as the theme tune for BBC sitcom ‘Jam and Jerusalem’.