Browse by Artist: JANSCH, BERT

Artist:	JANSCH, BERT
Title:	The Black Swan
Label:	DRAG CITY
Format:	CD
Price:	$13.50
Catalog #:	DC 325CD

"Bert Jansch has enjoyed a musical career that stretches right back to the early 1960s. His debut album was recorded on a Revox tape deck in the kitchen of a London flat, played on a succession of borrowed guitars and reputedly sold to Transatlantic Records for £100. The likes of Jimmy Page and Neil Young have all acknowledged how important Jansch's work was in shaping their musical development. Neil has been quoted as saying, 'As much of a great guitar player as Jimi was, Bert Jansch is the same thing for acoustic guitar...and my favourite.' Today, new generations of acolytes, including Johnny Marr and Bernard Butler, cite Jansch as a true musical innovator. Records made forty years ago with the band Pentangle and under his own name are now classics being listened to by a new generation of fans. Over the past five years, he's received tributes and awards from the BBC, Mojo magazine and musicians whose music has been influenced by his. Lifetime achievement awards are given because of a lifetime of achievements -- and Bert Jansch has continued to write and record all down the years, creating fresh sounds within the context of traditional music. This essence is fully evident in his fine new release The Black Swan -- which, not unlike his first album, was recorded (partially) at home. The Black Swan features a number of guest appearances from contemporary musicians (such as Beth Orton, Devendra Banhart and members of groups such as Espers and Mazzy Star) living the dream of playing with the master, Bert Jansch."

Artist:	JANSCH, BERT
Title:	L.A. Turnaround
Label:	DRAG CITY
Format:	CD
Price:	$13.50
Catalog #:	DC 413CD

"Drag City is 'chuffed' to announce the firsttime release on CD of the three albums Bert Jansch recorded for The Famous Charisma Label in the 1970s: L.A. Turnaround, Santa Barbara Honeymoon and A Rare Conundrum, all of which have been out of print for decades and are among the most sought-after Jansch albums among fans and collectors. For these new releases, Bert Jansch handpicked the bonus material, much of which is previously unreleased. In some cases this material has been unheard by anyone in thirty years, including Bert himself. Bert Jansch was signed to Charisma by label boss Tony Stratton Smith in 1973, the year that Pentangle decided to go their separate ways. L.A. Turnaround appeared in September 1974 to great acclaim, hailed in the press as 'not far off from being the perfect album.' It was produced by former Monkee Mike Nesmith at Stratton Smith's house in the country in Crowbridge, Sussex, and in Los Angeles, and features not only Nesmith on guitar but also pedal steel guitar maestro Red Rhodes, then in Nesmith's group. Rhodes' presence gives the album a unique sound enhancing Bert Jansch's own songwriting and performance skills with his haunting steel guitar. Other tracks on the album were completed by a group including Klaus Voorman on bass and, on certain songs, slide guitarist Jesse Ed Davis and fiddle player Byron Berline, giving this album an authentic L.A. '70s vibe, despite its UK origins. This edition of L.A. Turnaround is also enhanced to include a previously-unseen 13 minute cinema-verité film, made during the recordings at Stratton Smith's Sussex mansion and featuring Bert, Mike Nesmith and Red Rhodes recording and performing four songs including 'Fresh as a Sweet Sunday Morning.' This charming, informal film -- a wonderful historical document -- also sees everyone chatting, dining and playing billiards at the pub -- brilliantly capturing the atmosphere of the sessions. Each of these new editions is packaged using the original artwork along with contemporary photos, etc." Includes commentaries by Mick Houghton and Tony Stratton Smith.

Artist:	JANSCH, BERT
Title:	Santa Barbara Honeymoon
Label:	DRAG CITY
Format:	CD
Price:	$13.50
Catalog #:	DC 414CD

"Santa Barbara Honeymoon was recorded in America over a two-month period the following year and is a further departure for Bert Jansch, mixing his familiar style with a definitive L.A. over-the-top production sound, featuring backing singers and session players including horns, steel drums and a Dixieland band. This wasn't what most people wanted or expected from a Bert Jansch album, but time has kindly tucked the outrages of three decades ago beneath the intrigue of the sound, accenting some of Jansch's best songs of the period. An added bonus is the handful of previously unreleased solo tracks recorded live at the Montreux Festival in the summer of 1975." Includes original artwork, lyrics and commentary by Mick Houghton.

Artist:	JANSCH, BERT
Title:	A Rare Conundrum
Label:	DRAG CITY
Format:	CD
Price:	$13.50
Catalog #:	DC 415CD

"A Rare Conundrum was recorded in a more familiar style in the UK during 1976 and released by Charisma in May 1977. The majority of the album features Bert with a group he'd put together consisting of Rod Clements on bass, Pick Withers on drums and Mike Piggott on violin. By the time the album was released the group had split after Clements returned to a re-formed Lindisfarne and Withers joined Dire Straits. A Rare Conundrum marked a return to a simpler style: it includes delicate instrumentals, Irish traditional songs, a couple of slow blues and some of Bert's most overlooked songs which look back to his childhood ('One To A Hundred') and his early days on the folk scene in Edinburgh ('Three Chord Trick' and 'Three Dreamers')." Includes original artwork, lyrics and commentary by Mick Houghton, as well as notes on each track by Bert Jansch.

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