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I unintentionally got brainwashed. I educated myself on monstrously technical and talented rock/metal bands, perfect on an instrumental level and perfect on a textual-vocal level. I let this obsession last so long that I started to reject band after band, sometimes even quite interesting ones. Rejections made through (incorrect) reasoning like: "What can these guys do? They can't even look Dream Theatre in the face," "And what do these others want to sing about since Children Of Bodom are around?" But then, as I grew older, I realized that sometimes the sense of musical ecstasy, that moment of full enjoyment, and acoustic satisfaction can also be perceived in bands that reach extremism without proving to be inhumanly good with guitars in hand.
Donovan made me (re)discover the taste for well-made music, for calm, slow, tranquil music, for that fascinating music which, without being too classical, hides many secrets within itself and is capable of making you dream. This album, in my opinion, is fantastic. Classical guitars, flutes, clarinets, tambourines, and many other special instruments compose wonderful and well-crafted melodies. The voice is a bit whispered, and that's precisely why it's very engaging. Finding a single bad song on this CD is nothing short of impossible; every song is beautiful in its own way. I, who (without shame) always listen to music when I'm a bit out of it, have had the best psychological trips with this album.
It is the rediscovery/homage in the "Donovan" manner to Folksingers, present even before the Beatles revolutionized and confirmed the beat fashion, even before Bob Dylan, a music that seems always to have been present in our heads across centuries.
Surely the '60s were the years when singer-songwriters/troubadours conquered the world with their innovative artistic expression. But no one, and I confirm no one, was like Donovan; no one ever put together a folk raga with blues/pop nuances and old piano bar rhythms. And this album is its maximum expression.
It starts with "Hurdy Gurdy Man," a surprising track, with classical guitar and almost mysterious voice, featuring sound distortions that ensure a certain "psychedelia." Then follows the fantastic "Peregrine," where the mystical voice accompanies the background of a keyboard with accordion/bagpipe effect that seems to narrate an ancient Scottish dramatic atmosphere, with sounds like castanets and bongos contributing. "The Entertaining of a Shy Girl" is just a small, relaxing two-minute ballad in perfect style, which precedes "As I Recall It," a perfect light-hearted and melodic blues; and analyzing the songs becomes increasingly difficult, from a very relaxing "Get Thy Bearings" to a song in baroque/medieval style called "Hi it's Been Long Time," which sonically is practically the answer to a hypothetical question like: "Why is Donovan considered a minstrel?" Then a gem with true raga-folk: "West Indian Lady" and "Jennifer Juniper," which perhaps we all know because it was the soundtrack of a famous snack commercial (if I'm not mistaken, they were rusks). Many more follow which deserve a mandatory listen.
In conclusion: "Hurdy Gurdy Man" is something everyone should listen to, an example of alternative music as no one in the modern era could ever represent.
Tracklist Lyrics and Videos
01 Hurdy Gurdy Man (03:17)
Thrown like a star in my vast sleep
I opened my eyes to take a peek
To find that I was by the sea
Gazing with tranquility
'Twas then when the hurdy gurdy man
Came singing songs of love
Then when the hurdy gurdy man
Came singing songs of love
Hurdy gurdy, hurdy gurdy, hurdy gurdy gurdy, he sang
Hurdy gurdy, hurdy gurdy, hurdy gurdy gurdy, he sang
Hurdy gurdy, hurdy gurdy, hurdy gurdy gurdy, he sang
Histories of ages past
Hung in light and shadows cast
Down through all eternity
The crying of humanity
'Tis then when the hurdy gurdy man
Comes singing songs of love
Then when the hurdy gurdy man
Comes singing songs of love
Hurdy gurdy, hurdy gurdy, hurdy gurdy gurdy, he sang
Hurdy gurdy, hurdy gurdy, hurdy gurdy, hurdy gurdy, hurdy gurd
Hurdy gurdy, hurdy gurdy, hurdy gurdy gurdy, he sang
Hurdy gurdy, hurdy gurdy, hurdy gurdy gurdy, he sang
Here comes the roly poly man
He's singing songs of love
Roly poly, roly poly, holy holy poly, he sang
Hurdy gurdy, hurdy gurdy, hurdy gurdy gurdy, he sang
Hurdy gurdy, hurdy gurdy, hurdy gurdy gurdy, he sang
Roly poly, roly poly
02 Peregrine (03:36)
From the album the hurdy gurdy man
Peregrine falcon hooded and flying
Whither you go blindly over the mountain.
Oh your boats upon the sea are very beautiful to view
By me, by me, by me, by me, I hope by you.
Oh your boats upon the sea are very beautiful to view
By me, by me, by me, by me, I hope by you.
Once I tried to be your friend, but I was undergoing change
The same as you, the same as me, the same as you,
The same as me, the same as you.
And from what I've read you say
You feel quite certain of the way
The world will go, the world will go,
The world will go, the world will go, and so am I.
Oh, oh and there will come a time
When to each other we'll be kinder
Than we were, than we were
And there will come, and there will come
A peace of mind, a peace of mind, a peace of mind.
04 As I Recall It (02:09)
As I recall it, the sun was high,
Yellow in the blue, blue sky.
You couldn't quite make out this boy,
He used life as a toy.
In a Marie-Antoinette room
We were introduced soon,
I was me and you were you,
How do you do ?
Raggedy and tousle-haired
He looked as though he never cared
To run a comb where a comb should run,
Freckles from the sun.
Many good times we have had,
We been happy, we been sad,
But I think we both feel glad
That this life is so mad, mad, mad.
As I recall it, the sun was high,
If I remember, the sun was high,
You couldn't quite make out this boy,
He used life as a toy.
Many good times we have had,
We been happy, baby, we been sad,
But I think we both feel glad
That this life is so mad.
As I recall it, the sun was high,
Yellow in the blue, blue sky,
You couldn't quite make out this boy,
He used life as a toy.
Yeah!
05 Get Thy Bearings (02:49)
From the album the hurdy gurdy man
Get your bearings, know your time.
Don't you worry, weather's fine.
All the world knows what I'm saying,
All the world knows what I'm saying,
The world knows fine well.
Get together, work it out,
Simplicity is what it's about.
All the world knows what I'm saying,
All the world knows what I'm saying,
The world knows fine well.
08 Jennifer Juniper (02:43)
Jennifer Juniper lives upon the hill,
Jennifer Juniper, sitting very still.
Is she sleeping ? I don't think so.
Is she breathing ? Yes, very low.
Whatcha doing, Jennifer, my love ?
Jennifer Juniper, rides a dappled mare,
Jennifer Juniper, lilacs in her hair.
Is she dreaming ? Yes, I think so.
Is she pretty ? Yes, ever so.
Whatcha doing, Jennifer, my love ?
I'm thinking of what it would be like if she loved me.
You know just lately this happy song it came along
And I like to somehow try and tell you.
Jennifer Juniper, hair of golden flax.
Jennifer Juniper longs for what she lacks.
Do you like her ? Yes, I do, Sir.
Would you love her ? Yes, I would, Sir.
Whatcha doing Jennifer, my love ?
Jennifer Juniper, Jennifer Juniper, Jennifer Juniper.
Jennifer Juniper vit sur la colline,
Jennifer Juniper assise très tranquille.
Dort-elle ? Je ne crois pas.
Respire-t-elle ? Oui, mais tout bas.
Qu'est-ce que tu fais, Jenny mon amour ?
Jennifer Juniper, Jennifer Juniper, Jennifer Juniper.
10 Tangier (04:12)
From the album the hurdy gurdy man
In Tangier down a windy street
Where beggars meet and on old rags do sleep
The women dressed in soiled white sheet
With starving kids by their side.
With staring eyes that never weep
Old Moroccans with their elephantiasis feet
Who life and death treat so cheap
Happy in their hunger
For they live longer than their fathers.
In Tangier down a windy street
Where beggars meet and on old rags do sleep
The women dressed in soiled white sheet
With starving kids by their side.
With staring eyes that never weep
Old Moroccans with their elephantiasis feet
Who life and death treat so cheap
Happy in their hunger
For they live longer than their, than their, than their fathers.
13 Teas (02:30)
From the album the hurdy gurdy man
I strolled into a deserted seaside café
All on a winter's day.
I ordered up a cup of rich brown steaming tea
>From an old lady.
What happened to you, man, you used to be so free,
Now all you do is sit and dream
Of a fay girl green
By a mountain stream.
I strolled into a deserted seaside café
All on a winter's day.
I ordered up a cup of rich brown memories,
Sat and I watched the sea.
What happened to you, man, you used to be so free.
When you were as a mountain stream
Following a dream,
Following a dream.
What happened to you ?
What happened to you
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