Signs of Life (1999)

About this title: After far too long between solo outings, England's leading man of folk returns with a surprisingly relaxed, refreshed set, Signs of Life. While there's plenty of traditional material, like the epic revisiting of "Prince Heathen," which Martin Carthy first recorded with musical partner Dave Swarbrick back in the '60s, and a wonderful take on "Sir Patrick Spens," the emphasis is far more on the modern, be it Hoagy Carmichael's "Hong Kong Blues," a tune he recalled from childhood, or Elvis' "Heartbreak Hotel," beautifully rendered as country blues, or most unusual of all, a very moving version ... read more

Tracks:

1. New York Mining Disaster, 1941 [Gibb/Gibb]
2. Georgie [Traditional]
3. Sir Patrick Spens [Traditional]
4. The Deserter [Traditional]
5. Heartbreak Hotel [Axton/Durden/Presle]
6. The Bonny Hind [Traditional]
7. The Wife of Usher's Well [Traditional]
8. John Parfit [Flynn]
9. Barbary Ellen [Traditional]
10. Hong Kong Blues [Carmichael]
11. The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll [Dylan]
12. Prince Heathen [Traditional]
13. Jim Jones in Botany Bay [Traditional]

Note: This is a general synopsis. Each listing is further described below.