Stackridge

There is a strain of English – and it is very English, not Welsh or Scottish - music that I would best describe as Charming Whimsy. On the face of it, light and almost inconsequential but that is loaded with subtleties and hidden depths.
Artists such as Kevin Ayers, Robyn Hitchcock, Vivian Stanshall even Supertramp and most definitely Stackridge.

They produce some wonderful melodies, lyrics that take you around the world, influences that range from folk, through baroque and into pop and light elements of rock and their songs can surprise and astonish. This set celebrates 50 years – a half a bloody century – of one of the most delightful and sadly underrated bands on the scene.

They released their debut album in 1971 after a couple of years of relentless gigging - in 1970 they both opened AND closed the first Glastonbury Fayre - and in those couple of years they managed to garner a staunch following but never quite enough to hit the heights of some of their contemporaries.

This boxed set captures the essence of the band beautifully.
The musicianship is breathtaking and the bands most revered songs – ‘Fundamentally Yours’, ‘The Last Plimsoll’, ’32 West Mall’, ‘Do The Stanley’, ‘Who’s Up There With Bill Stokes’, ‘The Steam Radio Song’ – are all included.
The spirit of The Goons and Monty Python is upheld by some positively surreal lyrics but the deeper you go into this compilation, the more you get the sheer quality on show.

The third CD is a lie set from the BBC and captures the band at their best.
If you know of Stackridge this is a fine compilation but if you are hearing of them for the first time is is bloody near essential and a great introduction to a wonderful band.