PETE LAMBERT – I Told You A Story (Broken Chair Records) 

I Told You A StoryIt’s been a funny old summer, as quiet as I can remember on the folk, as in folk, release front, a varied stew of US releases filling the vacuum, slewing content here ever more toward country and Americana. And that, nominally, is actually where we remain, with I Told You A Story, the debut offering from Pete Lambert. In name only, though, as he hails from York, and, joined by a bevy of the UK’s cream of country tinged folk musicians, it is a very English take on the genre. So you can call it what you like; I simply call it a very good listen.

It is with fingerpicked guitar and mournful campfire fiddle that starts it off; ‘Every Time’ is a song in the key of sad, a template Lambert seldom strays from. His voice is a high and pure tenor, immediately avowing the depth of feeling. A harmony vocal, from Alex Victoria, a regular live fellow conspirator of the singer, ramps up the poignancy, her cello swooping in alongside Emily Lawler’s fiddle, which weaves in yet further melancholy. A pin dropping opener. Lawler performs often as a duo with Dan Webster, and he is a regular at Suffolk’s Maverick Festival, the home of East Anglicana. He also produced this disc.

‘Never Die’ drops in some additional muted electric guitar, Webster again, but sticks to a gentle sway, the lilt of hope over experience. Sam Jackson’s upright bass adds a limber of ballast, Lambert and Lawler maintaining their exquisite vocal union. Accordion, from Joshua Burnell, the unclassifiable maverick genius defying any easy categorisation, gives the next texture met, appearing midway through ‘Drink to the End’, a near standstill waltz. This is also graced by his piano, where the notes are few and all well-chosen. Lambert tackles this one vocally alone. And, lest you worry, it is a drink to the end of the world, rather than an ode to just continuing drinking for the sake of it. (If that helps…..)

‘High Horizons’ nails its melody closest to an orthodox country vibe yet, a simple progression of no small appeal, with fiddle, guitar and bass. Lawler really shows off her flair for countermelody. ‘Waiting For A Fall’ sees a change in cello to Rachel Brown, embellishing a largely otherwise unaccompanied guitar and vocal performance, one of the more beautiful constructions here.

A change in the scenery is applied, next, for ‘Long Shadow’, with some whistling organ, again from Burnell. He manages to be also responsible for the first appearance of percussion across this album. By leaving this to the halfway point, Lambert, and, presumably, Webster, have a keen understanding of sequencing, the gradual build between tracks enough to ring change, without undue disruption to the overall mood. Organ stays for ‘Ghosts’, with piano and the chugging shuffle of a railroad beat, realisation hitting hard as to quite how sophisticatedly has this all been put together. It could be a favourite track, the album a favourite of the year thus far.

The title track sees Jackson strap on an electric bass, for the first time, and is an ensemble effort, with Lawler’s fiddle, Webster’s electric, and Burnell’s organ and drums providing a sturdy envelope around Lambert and then Lambert and, this time, Lawler’s vocals. The momentum shows no sign of slacking, but, rather than up, the mood gets dialled right back down; ‘The Things I Think’, which, apart from being a good title, is a wistful and moving song. Oddly, the closer is a bit of an outlier, the jaunty upbeat feel sounding a little forced. Musically it is fine, fun even, but lyrically it is all a bit too obvious, outlining the perils of whiskey as the third person in a relationship, and blaming the outcome on the pesky beverage, yeehaw. And it actually ends on a yeehaw, at that. Was there, I wonder, a suggestion that I Told You A Story needed to end on a high and humorous note, given all the soul searching before? If so, praise be they left it until last. Which is a shame for the musicians, not least Bella Gaffney, who adds spritely banjo to this otherwise skippable track.

Regardless my harsh assessment on the closer, which elsewhere could be a highpoint, Lambert is to be congratulated on his first foray into recording. Well sung, well played, and, especially, well written, this is a name to watch, are those of his fellow musicians, one and all. Bravo!

Seuras Og 

Artist’s website: www.petelambertmusic.com

‘Never Die’ – official video:

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