ANDREW DAVISON – MineFolk (own label BCCD 003)

MineFolkAndrew Davison is half of the duo Brother Crow and he’s also a guide at Kilhope – The North Of England Mining Museum in County Durham. MineFolk brings these two parts of his life together: he now conducts musical tours with songs based on real-life stories.

MineFolk comprises just six songs which concentrate on the people and their work. The opening cut, ‘What You’re Put On This Earth For’ is a scene-setter pointing the finger at the Church of England which owned the land and the piece-work contract that means no pay until the ore is found. Andrew points out that even the pit-ponies have a greater value than the men. Not much changes, does it? ‘Walk On Water’ has a marvellous punchline: “If I could walk on water at least my feet would then be dry” and while you’re smiling at that it hits you with the tragedy of a rockfall and the death of a life-long friend

‘The Stoping Song’ is a jolly piece concerned with a detail of the mining operation (Google it – I had to) and ‘Names Carved In Stone’ is a not-unexpected tribute to the miners. ‘The Man Who Greases The Wheel’ is another upbeat song by the man who would seem to have the best job in the mine; he can stand upright while the others are bent double in the seam. It’s a happy piece – until the bit about the man who fell into the wheel!

Finally, and listed as a bonus track, is ‘My Dad Says (It’s A Hard Life)’. This song is the only one set above ground with the singer’s father remarking on the hardship of life underground and the boy saying that it sounds all right to him. Then he talks about going to sea and his father tells him that sailing is a hard life, too. For the working man, everything is hard.

The album has Andrew singing solo with acoustic guitar and the songs are pre-eminent. Andrew’s voice and diction are clear as a bell as they have to be when he’s using these songs as a narrative underground. Six songs may not seem a lot but they cover all the essentials. Any more would just be covering the same ground.

Dai Jeffries

Artist’s website: http://www.brothercrow.co.uk/

A look at what it’s like underground at Kilhope: