The compiler Richard Norris says he’s slightly shifted the emphasis from the traditional folk of previous box ‘Deep In The Woods’ (2022) toward period singer/ songwriters alongside bands in more acoustic mode. Fair enough, because both compilations rate as high-water marks of their respective years that also show the depth of the parent label’s vaults.

No 3-CD set can be all-encompassing and there’s no such claim. The rather loose subtitle—in the music context of the time at least—leads to why the slant toward obscure is so prevalent despite their excellent merits along with a few pivotal omissions from the time. Why no Nick Pickett, Marc Brierley (both of whom at the time of writing survive today), Mick Softley or his friend Mac MacLeod (though Amber is here from an EP that’s their only recording), Mike Hart or stablemate Beau (who still records today) but their Dandelion features with Bridget St. John, Siren, Occasional Word a collective mixing music and theatre for a neglected outing with great lyrics and energetic guitar, even Clifford T. Ward: the booklet errs by saying he was liked by John Peel, the DJ thought him too commercial and the pre-Charisma debut was because Ward was managed by Dandelion partner Clive Selwood.

Of course, these are just additional names On the band front, a bit surprisingly are the trio Jade Warrior, Zior, Ancient Grease who did one good LP before joining Gentle Giant and Racing Cars for ‘They Shoot Horses Don’t They?’, Affinity, Fairfield Parlour, Comus, even the out-of-place Snafu’s debut with Procol Harum /Freedom members including Juicy Lucy’s Mick Moody but neither pastoral or folk, and no headliners such as Strawbs, Amazing Blondel, Dr. Strangely Strange or Trees. Part of the beauty of that period, however, is that all choices are first-rate and interesting for their own sound, perspective, and background.

Probably the most famous are Family from Leicester, whose hits from six Reprise LPs (1968-72) are well-known, but here is their last, which failed to chart despite the superb mandolin. From the folkier end of the spectrum, Pentangle—who released almost as many albums in that period on Transatlantic—is featured here from their sole Reprise album, a year before splitting and lasting fame for their legendary guitarist John Renbourn, adding sitar and flute to a 19th-century English classic. In a similar vein is the northern group Prelude, who hit with Neil Young’s ‘After The Gold Rush’ and are the backing band on McTell’s ‘Streets Of London’ hit (they also toured as his support band, as well as Don McLean’s); “God” is from their trio of LPs on Dawn.

Fat Mattress are now highly regarded, partly because of Hendrix’s sidekick Noel Redding though the Kent band issued only two albums in their two years. They provide the package title with their lyrically lysergic 60s beat, though the Woods Band (Gay and Terry Woods) are more in keeping with the evolving ethos via multiple guitars and mandolin picked or strummed. The couple played with various folksters including a tour in Dr. Strangely Strange: Dreams was in the repertoire of Irish legends Sweeney’s Men. The Scottish trio Natural Acoustic Band often gigged while releasing two prestigious RCA albums before two of them joined Magna Carta, not here represented. The Peel-and-mine-fave Forest showcase their groundbreakingly dreamy, layered but raw prog folk Harvest debut, Kevin Coyne’s ‘Siren’ with Asylum from ’69 sounds like his first solo ‘Case History’ (surely important enough to feature alone?), also the almost orchestral Mellow Candle from their sole LP a year before ceasing, alongside Comus’s B-side of the single ‘Diana’ which opened their debut LP seeking to fuse acid folk with prog elements using elaborate material.

And the now collectibles of that style are here too: from influential Vertigo are Affinity (the Sussex University jazz-infused band liked by the helping Ronnie Scott), Jade Warrior (ex-July), surprisingly, and the short-lived Fairfield Parlour (ex-Kaleidoscope), who broke up when the label was indifferent to their follow-up, which they then self-financed. Zior, on Nepentha (a Southend quartet with one of their pretty ballad sojourns, they later recorded as Monument), the open-air pastoral recording of Heron, Fresh Maggots, whose Rosemary Hill is often on compilations yet lasted just a year, plus the underwhelming but overstretched Jade, and The Coterie, an Irish female quartet whose only album featured covers.

More 60s fare includes Honeybus, with a jaunty B-side not from their one hit, ‘Mortimer’ (formerly The Teddy Boys) with a gumbo-style demo for Apple before moving to Philips, and Majority One, whose eight Decca singles flopped and so opted only for foreign labels (their assured ‘Rainbow Rockin’ Chair’ from Brazil!). HMS Bounty were allegedly on Uni, but I can find no proof, so they were probably redirected to Shamley because UNI was an arm of MCA, which issued pre-ZZ Top and Warm Dust. They have since been reissued on Gear Fab Records. Also included are the even more obscure Music Box (from Coventry), Paper Bubble (one Deram LP produced by Strawbs’ Dave Cousins, but here unreleased), the Brum quartet The Ghost, from their female vocal LP on Gemini, and Oberon’s self-made 99-copy issue ‘A Midsummer’s Night Dream’ (1971) by a group of Oxford students, which has also been re-released.

There is a good selection from duos, with and without backing (no Dulcimer, Medicine Head, or Tractor though). Probably the most renowned today, thanks to collectors and reissues, is Agincourt from Sussex, i.e. Peter Howell and John Ferdinando, with ‘Barn Owl Blues,’ which isn’t blues but an instrumental with period sounds. They preferred the studio to gigging between 1968-74 and also played as Ithaca. On CD three is their ‘Questions,’ which had a backing band and subtle female vocalist for the rare ‘A Game For All Who Know’ (rather overegging it, as the duo appears under their own name too), and name-changing ‘Friends’ from their own-label Fragile. The airy duo Muldoon were once Bodast with Steve Howe and surprisingly worked with Deep Purple’s label. The oddly named but versatile Knocker Jungle duo did one album on Ember in 1970, backed by some of Fairport Convention, but split too soon.

As with the groups, the solo minstrels range from more to little known. Yorkshireman Bill Nelson hit the heights with Be-Bop Deluxe (and the occasional pub rock gig), veering to a solo career that begins here with a brief cut from his first solo (‘Northern Dream,’ 1973 Harvest). Ditto for Alan Hull, the main writer for Lindisfarne, from his pretty second solo effort before the band reformed in 1977. Roy Harper’s debut on ‘Strike’—in his best Dylan voice—was a decade before he worked with such as Pink Floyd. Solo Sandy Denny (here string-adorned from a stand-alone Island release with ‘Next Time Around’) is being reappraised nowadays rather than limited to her renowned career with Strawbs, Fairport Convention, and Fotheringay (also here) before her early death in ’78.

From their sixties heights come Keith West of Tomorrow, who split due to the success of his ‘Excerpt From A Teenage Opera,’ which hit #2 in the UK charts and higher in Holland (he also wrote the theme tune for Beat Club and Musikladen), and Gary Farr’s ‘Take Something With You’ (1969) while with his band in famous clubs of the era. Marsha Hunt was a much-in-demand backing singer then before her solo (Neil Young’s uncredited ‘Southern Man’ ’73), as was the late Paul Brett, a 12-string maestro who co-operated with Roy Harper, Lonnie Donegan, Al Stewart, Arthur Brown, Strawbs, and Barclay James Harvest, among others, as well as gigging and recording as Paul Brett’s Sage, here selected from his 1973 debut.

Carolanne Pegg was in the cult folk band Mr. Fox with her husband for two well-regarded Transatlantic discs, while Julian Jay Savarin (‘Waiters On The Dance’ 1971) graced Julian’s Treatment before the Auger-inspired keyboardist fronted a band to highlight a love for sci-fi, which turned him into a writer. Bridget St. John was on Dandelion (it’s said it was established to produce her music in ’69), and here is a title track featuring her friend John Martyn. The introverted Edinburgh singer Shelagh McDonald has a stellar cast (some of Fairport Convention and Mighty Baby) for the title track ‘Stargazer’ (1971 B&C) from her second album before vanishing during the recording of its follow-up until this century. Cello is joined by other strings for a quest ballad, a bit like Dead Can Dance in current parlance.

Less known are Aidan Nolan, an Australian who recorded the confident ‘Tales From The Sun’ before settling in New York; Oldham-born Kevin Lamb’s beautiful single from ‘Who Is The Hero’ (1973) before also emigrating there; Barrington Davis, an Australian living in sixties London, who sumptuously recorded for the little-known Montagu roster; John Williams, who was in the early Marquee resident combo The Authentics, unreleased on Immediate, then a solo act on high-flying Columbia here; Tim Hollier, once of The Sovereigns; Chris[tine] Harwood with another great backing band (Yes, King Crimson, etc.); and John St. Field, who was Jackie Leven and later formed Doll by Doll in the ’70s. This is from a Spanish label release deemed classic by many.

Bruce Spelman remains mysterious; he also recorded epically for Montagu and the more prominent Beacon label (the original UFO, etc.). Much better known are Ian A. Anderson, who was a key player in the folk boom of those decades (he owned the important Village Thing label and edited a leading magazine), with a single (‘One More Chance’), and Tim Rose, who wrote many famous songs but NOT ‘Morning Dew,’ often falsely attributed to him and covered by such as Uriah Heep. ‘If I Were A Carpenter’ is backed by Spooky Tooth. Probably the closest performer to the collection’s title is Mark Fry, who recorded his atmospheric key classic ‘Dreaming With Alice’ in Italy while following his first love of painting. A suitably throbbing, hypnotic, nay mesmeric, track is here, ‘The Witch.’

This is an interesting box set, although the booklet sketching all the contents is a little lightweight—dare I say, a bit too much gravy rather than meat or more watercolour than oil, especially as it looks like rain is coming, ignored by the internet. But still, a good guide for newcomers to the genre. (I thus mention labels to provide a background of status then and subsequently.) But it does boast gems and nuggets from long-collectible and not-yet-collected acts, with over 60 songs in a gatefold, fetchingly decorated with pastoral scenes: a superb addition to any collection that will surely provide fulgent offshoot buds for any pastoral wander

Brian R. Banks

The Magic Forest: More Pastoral Psychedelia & Funky Folk 1968-1975 (Strawberry Records / Cherry Red)