The Soul of Many Places

The Soul of Many Places

Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
His airy, pure tenor, superb taste in songs from other writers, and wide-ranging knowledge of different pop styles have carried this journeyman English singer and songwriter from the folk rock of the original Fairport Convention, to his own brief chart notoriety as leader of Matthews Southern Comfort, and subsequent experiments all sharing high standards but relative obscurity. This well-chosen summation of his mid-'70s L.A. sojourn captures Matthews's folk and country-rock work of the day to satisfying effect, mingling gourmet covers (Tom Waits, Richard Thompson, Michael Nesmith, Steve Young, Paul Siebel, and Jackson Browne) with his own lissome, mournful, yet gracious originals. A neglected country-rock master, his take on Young's "Seven Bridges Road" was good enough for the Eagles to steal it virtually note for note on their first live album, and he celebrated former bandmate Thompson's brilliance more than a decade before his "discovery" by critics. --Sam Sutherland

Tracks:

Old
For The Second Time
Keep On Sailing
Old Man At The Mill
A Wailing Goodbye
Shady Lies
I'll Fly Away
True Story Of Amelia Earhart
Seven Bridges Road
Biloxi
Propinquity
The Fault
Even The Guiding Light
I Don't Want To Talk About It
Louise
These Days
Call The Tune
Poor Ditching Boy
You Fell Through My Mind

Amazon.com

His airy, pure tenor, superb taste in songs from other writers, and wide-ranging knowledge of different pop styles have carried this journeyman English singer and songwriter from the folk rock of the original Fairport Convention, to his own brief chart notoriety as leader of Matthews Southern Comfort, and subsequent experiments all sharing high standards but relative obscurity. This well-chosen summation of his mid-'70s L.A. sojourn captures Matthews's folk and country-rock work of the day to satisfying effect, mingling gourmet covers (Tom Waits, Richard Thompson, Michael Nesmith, Steve Young, Paul Siebel, and Jackson Browne) with his own lissome, mournful, yet gracious originals. A neglected country-rock master, his take on Young's "Seven Bridges Road" was good enough for the Eagles to steal it virtually note for note on their first live album, and he celebrated former bandmate Thompson's brilliance more than a decade before his "discovery" by critics. --Sam Sutherland

Customer Reviews:

A Celtic Cowboy.......2001-03-19

I've never cared much for British folk music, and I find English band's attempts at country music laughable for the most part,but there's always an exception that proves the rule and this guy might just be it. Matthews Southern Country was Iain's first post-Fairport Convention attempt at country music and the result was pretty tepid. By the time he began recording solo for Electra Records in the early seventies he seemed to have found his voice and his style.There are excellent cover versions here of Tom Waits, Jesse Winchester, and even the dreaded Steely Dan. Iain sails through them with ease and contributes several worthy songs of his own. The version of "Seven Bridges Road" here was lifted intact by the Eagles a few years later.Iain Matthews continues to enjoy modest success to this day and his musical output is never less than enjoyable, but he has never surpassed the music collected here on this highly recommended CD.

Iain Matthews was at his high during his Elektra years.......1998-08-29

Iain Matthews is still around performing and recording, but in my view his best period was in the early 70's, with albums like 'If You Saw Thru' My Eyes', 'Tigers Will Survive' and 'Vally Hi'. The Soul of Many Places is a collection from three albums Iain Matthews recorded for the Elektra label in the early 70's. The first one being a group effort by Plainsong (the underestimated, but still very impressive 'In Search of Amelia Earhart'), the other two solo efforts ('Vally Hi' and 'Some Days You Eat The Bear...'). This collection offers sixteen regular tracks and two never before released songs ('Poor Ditching Boy' and 'You Fell Through My Mind'). Iain Matthews has always been more a singer than a songwriter, and this collection shows his talents going through songs by Tom Waits ('Ol '55'), Michael Nesmith ( 'Propinquity') and Danny Whitten ('I Don't Want To Talk About It'). If you're not familiar with Iain Matthews' music, this is a very good collection to start with.

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