Former Albion band member Phil Beer serves up a more than generous helping of music on this double CD – one disc of songs and the other of instrumentals. Best known for his work as one half of the duo Show Of Hands, Beer is an astonishingly versatile musician, handling both lead and backing vocals and playing fiddle, guitar, mandocello, keyboards and drums.
Songs range from the traditional ‘Abroad For Pleasure’ to covers of Bob Dylan, Steely Dan, Jimmy Cliff and The Band; particularly nice is an acappella choral arrangement of Jackson Browne’s ‘Our Lady Of The Well’, with Deb Sandland on guest vocals. The second disc opens with a beautiful finger-picked guitar setting of ‘The Gloucester Hornpipe’ and ‘Off To California’; other highlights include an interesting instrumental version of Linda Thompson’s ‘Telling Me Lies’.