There can’t be many songs written about the Cornish pilchard industry but the third and final track on The Changing Room’s debut CD, ‘Row Boys Row’, is one such.
At the core of the band are Tanya Brittain, who wrote all the songs on their debut, and Sam Kelly. They started working together on a funded project and it feels like a little musical magic happened. The EP is produced by Boo Hewerdine and guests include Jennifer Crook and the Polperro Fishermen’s Choir but little of that actually matters. This record just isn’t long enough and I’m relieved to read that a full length album is on the way.
The title track presumably refers to the Tamar although I was unaware of such tension between Devonport and Torpoint – or perhaps it’s just the bridge that caused the problem . It’s a song that should have Steve Knightley and 3 Daft Monkeys wondering why they hadn’t written it while ‘Deep Beneath The Sea’ is a warning against dissing a mermaid should you encounter one in Cornish waters. ‘Row Boys Row’ is, as I’ve said, a tale of the lives of Cornish fishermen. It could have been written at any time in the last fifty years and I suppose that one could be critical and say that it paints a rather rosy picture of life between the English Channel and the Celtic Sea but it sounds and feels so good that it would be churlish to do so. Bring on the album.
Dai Jeffries
Artist’s website: www.thechangingroommusic.com
We all give our spare time to run folking.com. Our aim has always been to keep folking a free service for our visitors, artists, PR agencies and tour promoters. If you wish help out and donate something (running costs currently funded by Paul Miles), please click the PayPal link below to send us a small one off payment or a monthly contribution.
Thanks for stopping by. Please help us continue and support us by tipping/donating to folking.com via
You must be logged in to post a comment.