This is a two-for-one reissue of both
Sweeney's Men albums. The 1968 self-titled debut was a notable contribution to contemporary
Irish and
British Isles folk in that it gathered some
traditional material from Ireland, not just Britain and America. It also gave some depth to the well-traveled songs -- and songs like
"Tom Dooley," "The House Carpenter," and
"The Handsome Cabin Boy" are extremely well-traveled -- with an admirable assortment of instruments, including mandolin, bouzouki, harmonica, tin whistle, and concertina. Still, it's a rather average
Irish folk record, with just one original song (
Terry Woods'
"My Dearest Dear"), and less striking to audiences of subsequent decades than it might have been at the time.
Jigs,
a cappella songs, and somewhat earthy
folk (on
"The Handsome Cabin Boy" and
"The House Carpenter") all appear. Note that the version of
"Tom Dooley" uses a much more rapid tempo, and a substantially different tune, than the familiar hit by
the Kingston Trio does. The rendition of
"Willy O'Winsbury" is probably the highlight. They were reduced to a duo on the subsequent
The Tracks of Sweeney, with the departure of
Andy Irvine. Actually, their music got more interesting, in large part because it featured mostly original material (often by
Terry Woods) rather than old
folk standbys. The music, while still
folk and not
folk-rock, took on a more personal, moody, and bluesy hue.
"Dreams for Me" and
"When You Don't Care" don't sound too different from some of
Tim Hardin's work, with a bit of a British Isles slant.
"Afterthoughts," with its unusual acoustic guitar sustain, was troubled yet subdued British
singer/songwriter folk, putting
Woods into the same company as
Roy Harper,
Ralph McTell, and others, without being derivative of those composers. There were still some numbers that were in the standard
traditional folk vein, like the instrumental
"The Pipe on the Hob" and
"Pretty Polly," surely one of the most over-covered
folk standards ever. At its best, it's quality, though minor, somber late-'60s
British Isles folk; at its less impressive, it's routine
traditional stuff. The one bonus track,
"Old Woman in Cotton," comes from a 1967 single, and is one of their more memorable and dramatic songs. ~ Richie Unterberger
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