Steeleye Span Parcel Of Rogues CD

Personnel: Tim Hart (vocals, guitar, dulcimer); Bob Johnson, Bob Johnson (vocals, guitar); Peter Knight (vocals, violin, keyboards); Rick Kemp (vocals, drums); Maddy Prior (vocals).
Liner Note Author: John Tobler.
Recording information: Sound Techniques, Chelsea, London, England.
Unknown Contributor Roles: Peter Knight; Bob Johnson.
Arrangers: Bob Johnson; Maddy Prior; Rick Kemp; Tim Hart.
Parcel of Rogues is the group's first real rock album, featuring a sound clearly rooted in modern sensibilities, with the guitars turned up very loud for the first time. The singing is still modeled on traditional patterns, and is quite beautiful (especially "One Misty Moisty Morning" and "Allison Gross"), but the resonances and undertones of electric guitars are everywhere -- the result is a record that, in some ways, recalls Fairport Convention's Liege & Lief (the record that led indirectly to the spawning of Steeleye Span in the first place), with some very flashy playing by Bob Johnson on some of the breaks. The rousing "The Ups and Downs" is played on acoustic instruments, and the atmospheric "The Weaver and the Factory Maid" could have come off of any of the earlier albums, while "The Bold Poachers" is more traditional sounding, starting out on acoustic instruments before the amplified guitars chime in. It sets the tone for the album, as wah-wah pedals punch up instrumentals such as "Robbery with Violins" and "The Wee Wee Man" (which includes drums). A lot of the time it works -- the ominous and dazzling "Cam Ye O'er Frae France" would not have succeeded half as well without amplification, and every fan of the group should hear this track at least once. ~ Bruce Eder
1973's PARCEL OF ROGUES is one of Steeleye Span's best albums, representing the era when the group's balance between traditional English folk music and good ol' rock and roll was at its surest. Neither too rock for the folk purists nor too twee for the rockers, PARCEL OF ROGUES has charms to delight both camps.
This is most clear on the opening track "One Misty Moisty Morning," one of Steeleye Span's finest songs. Maddy Prior's beautiful, clear voice mixes with the half-acoustic/half-electric arrangement seamlessly, and the song's haunting refrain becomes a actual pop hook by its second appearance. The album also features excellent vocals by Tim Hart and the band's other members, including Peter Knight and Bob Johnson's excellent rendition of "Hares on the Mountain." The album's other highlight, "Alison Gross," is probably the closest thing to an all-out rock song the group ever recorded.Rolling Stone (7/5/73, p.65) - "..the current masters of the trad formula...["The Weaver & The Factory Maid" is] one of the most chilling and gorgeous sounds we've heard come out of a studio lately...the champion of the little movement that spawned it.."