Plainsong - In Search Of Amelia Earhart (1972)

"By 1972 Ian Matthews had played in four different incarnations within three years. He’d left Fairport Convention for his own band, Ian Matthews Southern Comfort, put out two solo LPs for Vertigo Records, and then started the band Plainsong.

It is probably fair to say that Plainsong - In Search Of Amelia Earhart is the pinnacle of his work in the ’70s. Working with producer Sandy Robertson (Hard Meat, Steeleye Span, Shirley Collins), Ian and bandmates, notably Andy Roberts who shared vocals on the album created an a-typical British folk album conceived around the idea of the legends surrounding Amelia Earhart and her supposed demise. Not all of the songs on the album are directly about Amelia Earhart. But the album carries that somber, mellow tone that so much great folk music of the early ’70s was in touch with. Many of the songs are about seeing and reaching for light, whether they be the light of day or the light of death. So in a way the album is more about the way people felt about, cared about and thought about Amelia Earhart and her death. That she is still considered a heroine of aviation and a distinctly american hero keeps the mystery of what happened to her in the greater cultural imagination.

Matthews and mates’ album does a great job of melding the more roots style of American folk with his rockier British folk sound on the album, even including a southern gospel tune, “I’ll Fly Away.” While Matthews has five originals on the album, they all sound perfectly in tune with the covers the band performs.

I think the best cover on the album is of Judy Henske’s “Raider.” Matthews brings a distinctly British folk vibe to this American’s gothic folk tune. It is a near perfect British/American acid folk creation.

Had Plainsong truly lasted as a band, their’s no doubt they’d be known as something akin to the British Eagles. But alas, someone’s drinking problem (just whose is never mentioned) got in the way, the band argued, broke up, and never toured the album or made another. This album is a truly great find, search for it and you’ll be rewarded." (Terry Miller lineout.thestranger.com)

1. For the Second Time
2. Yo Yo Man
3. Louise
4. Call the Tune
5. Diesel on My Tail
6. Amelia Earhart's Last Flight
7. I'll Fly Away
8. True Story of Amelia Earhart
9. Even the Guiding Light
10. Side Roads
11. Raider

Ian Matthews - Guitar, Vocals
Dave Richards - Keyboards, Vocals
Andy Roberts - Guitar, Vocals
Bob Ronga - Bass, Vocals

Separate Flacs-Covers 280 Mb

Part 1__Part 2__Part 3

Mp3 @ 320

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