The female voice found a whole new way to flower in the world of folk music during the 60s – a style that helped women get past some of the more standard sultry modes of postwar pop, and hit the kind of righteous currents and deeper themes that helped transform a generation! The moment began with early folkies like Joan Baez and Odetta, then expanded by the end of the 60s to include incredible young talents who were carving out new styles of their own – singers who were inspired by the freedoms and deeper intellectual currents of folk, but who moved into styles that changed strongly with the heady times! This wonderful box set is a great examination of the moment, and really charts its growth – pulling together well-known artist and some lesser-knowns who include some great female singers from the UK. Titles include "Flying Away" by Serpent Power, "Foolish Seasons" by Dana Gillespie, "Light Flight" by The Pentangle, "Please" by Eclection, "Jesus Was A Cross Maker" by Judee Sill, "Who Has Seen The Wind" by The Simon Sisters, "Red Wine & Promises" by Norma Winstone, "Mr Fox" by Mr Fox, "By The Sea" by Wendy & Bonnie, "Come Into The Garden" by Chimera, "Early Morning Blues & Greens" by Diane Hildebrand, "Autumn Lullaby" by Bridget St John, "The Lonely" by Design, "If Not By Fire" by Mandy More, "Autie Aviator" by Beverley & John Martyn, "Mr Rubin" by Lesley Duncan, "Morgan The Pirate" by Mimi Farina, and "Murdoch" by Trees. (Rock, Folk/Country) CD

A pair of early 70s albums from Tom Rush – back to back on a single CD! First up is the self-titled Tom Rush album for Columbia – maybe the biggest album ever from Tom Rush – a set that pushes the singer strongly past his more folksy roots, and seems to set him up for a bigger career in the 70s mainstream! And yet the record's not commercial at all – done with a laidback instrumental style that moves into rock from folk, with occasional rootsy elements, but passages of softer phrasing that really work well with Tom's vocals too. Titles include "Old Man Song", "Livin In The Country", "Driving Wheel", "Rainy Day Man", "Drop Down Mama", and a really great take on "These Days". Wrong End Of The Rainbow is an album that lets Tom Rush bring in a lot more of his own songs than his Columbia Records debut – a great reminder of the early years of his career, when Tom gave the world a few songs that were picked up and redone by some of his key contemporaries! The style moves Rush even more past folk than before – still done with an intimate sense of instrumentation, which includes plenty of acoustic elements – but handled with phrasing that's very different than it would have been in the 60s, as Rush and his generation find a new way to move forward with more mature modes and a stronger sense of variety. Titles include "Starlight", "Jazzman", "Rotunda", "Biloxi", "Merrimac County", "Wrong End Of The Rainbow", and "Gnostic Serenade". CD

A pair of country gems from the great Gary Stewart – back to back in a single set! First up is Out Of Hand, a seminal album from Gary Stewart – one of those key 70s records that helped establish him as a rising star on the bandstand and the barrooms – thanks in part to some very booze-oriented tracks on the set! The record's got two classics that really define Gary's sound – the seminal "Drinkin Thing" and "She's Actin Single (I'm Drinkin Doubles)" – which are a great update of older drinking themed country cuts, but with a much more vibrant 70s approach, one that shows the way that rock music was sliding in to influence crossover stars like Gary! The whole thing's great, though – and the record's filled with other great tracks that include "Sweet Country Red", "Back Slider's Wine", "Draggin Shackles", and "Out Of Hand". Brand New is a set that Gary Stewart cut away from some of his major label fame, and a record that maybe has him burning even more strongly in the setting – working with a leaner sort of production that puts him in the territory of some of the younger up-and-comers of the generation, and which also shows just how much his 70s material might have been an influence to them! Stewart's still got that incredible voice that few others can match – inflections that really send the tunes home – on titles that include "Son Of A Honky Tonk Woman", "Brand New Whiskey", "An Empty Glass", "Murdered By Love", "Romona", and "I Get Drunk". CD