This is my fifth album. The others featured me as a singer and acoustic guitarist, performing my own songs, and reflected the stuff I was playing live. But the stuff I’m playing now has moved on.

You could call it Anglo-Americana. An English guy, with definitely English roots, influenced by the Americana genre of the last 15 years. Adding mandolin and dobro to my repertoire, playing in bands as well as performing solo, listening to a great range of tracks on Bob Harris, being inspired by the BBC’s Transatlantic sessions, getting a new musical lease of life, creating a new sound.

You can see the fusion of English and Americana influences in the choice of instruments on the album - acoustic guitar, mandolin, dobro, lap steel, electric guitar, harmonica, all played by me, plus electric guitar, organ, accordion, tuba, and string and brass arrangements by friends.

And in the choice of songs - sevenof mine, five written recently, plus ‘Castle Hill’ from the eighties and ‘Red Sunset’ from the early seventies, all with new arrangements. And five other brilliant songs - by
Catie Curtis, Eliza Gilkyson, and two of the Po’ Girls, plus two classics by Kate Wolf and Ian Tyson.

They are about fate, and moving on, and looking back, and slowing down, and love - mostly about love.

This is ‘One Fine Morning’.

I hope you like it.

I hope you think it’s a bit special.

Chris

JANUARY 2012