Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10
Some names are just too important for Time to let go. We might not have heard the designations or titles for an age, maybe not at all, after all we cannot be expected to know to everyone and what they have contributed to the betterment of humanity in their lifetime.
Still, Time never forgets, and in the Spirit Of Love and the groove that binds us like an intricate cobweb to the power and pull of the artist, each strand being gently plucked by our own souls as we slowly cave in wonder to the moment, it is to the late and sadly missed Clive Palmer, founder member of the Incredible String Band and then the eponymously driven C.O.B (Clive’s Original Band, that the 1971 album release of Spirit Of Love is finally given its rightful place in the canon of British folk with its timely 50th anniversary release for the first time on vinyl and C.D.
Produced by the superb Ralph McTell, the album is a reflection of the man himself, an enigma, a question of beauty wrapped in paradox, and as such the march of the unofficial hippy anthem of the time, acquires its true status beyond the cult classic status that it had lovingly held in the hands of the collector and music lover.
The adopted son of Cornwall’s presence in British music cannot, and must not, be excused or overlooked, and whilst albums such as Spirit Of Love may be in some way draped in the mists of time, tracks such as Music of the Ages, Banjo Land, Scranky Black Farmer, the excellent Serpent’s Kiss and When He Came Home all combine to bring Clive Palmer with a hero’s return, back into the limelight.
Sadness is always inevitable, but it is memory that makes it take on a different hue, one that changes the outlook to the cheer of having lived, and in the spirit of love it is to be taken that Clive Parker’s own life was one of eternal fascination, and the music he recorded is one of absolute attraction and interest.
Time is always eating away at our memories, yet every so often we are reminded of what greatness we have in our mutual heritage, of what came before. Time is the epitome of Spirit Of Love, and in this re-issue of C.O.B’s seminal album, Time offers us a chance to reacquaint us with glory.
Ian D. Hall