BOO HEWERDINE – Open (Reveal REVEAL055CDX)

BOO HEWERDINE OpenBack in 2003, Boo Hewerdine recorded a batch of songs but few of them went any further than a master tape. This is the basic Hewerdine, acoustic and mostly solo with some extra vocals from Rosalie Deighton here and there and contributions from Neil MacColl. We might think of them as sophisticated demos as three songs: ‘Geography’, ‘Rags’ and ‘Muddy Water’ later appeared on God Bless The Pretty Things.

Here now are the original studio versions. These are songs which say a lot with the greatest economy of writing. ‘Microfilm’, a song about the painful memories we all have, takes just seventy-eight seconds and there is no need to say any more. ‘Muddy Water’ is gorgeous, almost the album’s production number with MacColl’s electric guitar and Deighton’s voice supporting the fragile lead vocals. There’s slide on ‘Stone In My Shoe’ and Boo adds keyboards for the closer, ‘North & South’. Another stand-out track is ‘1981 #2’ which refers to hearing Graceland playing for the first time – the experience giving rise to The Bible’s first (just about) hit single.

Open is a good companion piece to My Name In The Brackets although the songs that went on to full recording stand out immediately. Other titles, it has to be said, come and go but the album drifts by very nicely and is done before you know it.

Dai Jeffries

Artist’s website: www.boohewerdine.net

It’s difficult to find quality video of Boo but this version of ‘Muddy Water’ ticks all the boxes:


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