Simplicity can often be the face of a more complex constitution. The ease at which experienced musicians convey their work in a live setting may belie the intricacies woven together and harnessed away from the spotlight. Matching melodies with words and many painstaking hours perfecting the art of vocal and instrumental delivery reach a pinpoint when nakedly exposed to a paying crowd. Experiencing live music evokes impressions on multiple senses and when it effortlessly unveils, the ears, eyes and inner feelings feed a sense of satisfaction. A high water table of talent is an essential starting point that counts for nothing without an ability to connect. Sometimes you feel in the right place at the right time. From a left field pool, the collaboration between Catherine MacLellan and Lucy Farrell found the pinnacle of comfort, guile and connection.
The Kitchen Garden was in a middling mood for this show. Neither bursting at the seams nor spaciously quiet, just its attentive self, populated with likeminded folks sensing something special. Similarities and differences floated from the performing space complementing and blending when needed. One Brit and one Canadian bound by a residence in the latter’s homeland alongside a love of folk music moulded by a nation’s identity. Lucy Farrell, steeped in the English folk tradition and a much admired participant on the scene for many years in several guises. Catherine MacLellan, born into folk royalty and using every inch of a precious gift to craft a gilded canon of songs. The former interprets and writes; the latter writes and interprets.
For the uninitiated, bios were left to be sourced elsewhere. Farrell and MacLellan dropped snippets of who they are in between a raft of moving songs. Family was a recurring link. It was the driver moving Farrell thousands of miles west to set up a new base, although modern life can render a world smaller. It formed songs like ‘Edwin Lullaby’ inspired by her son. MacLellan used the link to introduce ‘Tell Me Luella’ about her grandparents and a later number based on ‘re-friending’ a sister. Whatever song the pair introduced, the benchmark soared in the first set with a version of the Canadian classic ‘Snowbird’ written by Gene MacLellan, whose work lives on in his daughter’s voice.
To balance the Canadian perspective, which also closed the show in the shape of Kate & Anna McGarrigle’s ‘(Talk to Me Of) Mendocino’, Farrell’s impromptu invitation to sing an unaccompanied version of Molly Drake’s ‘Happiness’ drooled with class and pristine English folk heritage. This act of vocal excellence added to the exquisite fiddle and intrinsic tenor guitar playing from an artist best known in recent years as a member of the Furrow Collective. Solo seems to be the current focus, although we were tantalisingly teased with the prospect of a duo album. Evidence leant further with the pair hastily recording a tour only EP.
Recordings have been relatively scarce from Catherine MacLellan in recent times. COYOTE was her last album in 2019 and prior to that it was 2014 for the highly acclaimed THE RAVEN’S SUN. Interspersed between these two was a reworking of some of her father’s songs. However this is the second UK visit in just over a year showing a commitment to travel after a patchy period. Maybe something is on the horizon.
The show’s momentum was reflected in a longer second than first half alongside the evening passing through too quickly. Three weeks into a four-week UK tour had obviously aided the gelling process so for once a benefit of not seeing a jet lagged opening date from what was still a new performing format for the pair. The venture may have been left field on the surface but the product was right at the heart of what makes live music special. Two obviously talented musicians showing where working together can lead. The destination this evening was right into an intimate venue’s sweet spot.
