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Short
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Ralph,
Albert & Sydney
Slide
Away The Screen |
RALPH, ALBERT & SYDNEY
The Shorts
shorter album reviews
starting with
Ralph, Albert & Sydney
& Slide Away The Screen
RALPH,
ALBERT & SYDNEY
The
Garel (The Polytechnic of Central London Students Union magazine)
17 October 1977
Ralph McTell: Ralph Albert & Sydney (Warner Bros)
All sixteen tracks on this album were recorded at two of McTell’s 1976
concerts, one at the Royal Albert Hall, the other at the Sydney Opera
House – hence the title.
With McTell in concert there is no flash lighting, no backing band, no
frills. He is a natural performer and the music, humour and repartee
that is McTell is captured here. It
must be the nearest you can get to a concert without actually going.
My only complaint is that the second side has been ‘cut up’ so much
that there appears to be an excessive amount of the ‘duplicated
applause’ that it becomes an irritant.
However, that said, there are tracks in abundance – only one, Sylvia,
from the recent Right Side Up*
album and Grande Affaire and the
title track from Streets. If you went to one of the 1976 concerts, then you’ll
remember the humorous songs, the anecdotes and the Rags.
Richard Gough
RALPH,
ALBERT & SYDNEY
Motherwell
Times/Belshill Speaker
3 October 1977
Interesting ‘live’ album this week is by Ralph McTell.
Entitled Albert and Sydney
it’s the best of performances given at London’s Royal Albert Hall and
Sydney Opera House. Favourites
for us were his classic Streets of London and Let Me Down Easy, but when
there are a total of 16 tracks we’re certain you’ll find your own.
Great!
(Warner Bros: K 56399)
RALPH,
ALBERT & SYDNEY
“She”
magazine
January 1978
Ralph Albert & Sydney (Warner Bros K56399, £3.49)
gets its title because all the tracks were recorded ‘live’ by the
talented Ralph McTell either at the Royal Albert Hall, London, or the
Sydney Opera House. It’s a
warm mixture of old and new songs including, of course, Streets of London,
but also such outstanding tracks as When I Was A Cowboy and Dry Bone Rag.
The album faithfully captures the warm atmosphere of any McTell
concert.
RALPH,
ALBERT & SYDNEY
Southport
Visitor
29 October 1977
Ralph McTell’s latest Warner Bros LP was recorded live at the Albert
Hall, London, and Sydney Opera House, Australia, and is called,
appropriately, Ralph Albert & Sydney.
Most of his best-known songs are here – Grande
Affaire, Michael In The Garden, Zimmerman Blues, Maginot Waltz, Streets
of London and a beautiful Let Me
Down Easy.
It’s an LP that’s infinitely pleasant, easy to sit back and relax
with, nothing difficult or intense. It’s
not exactly riveting music, but there’s both a need and a market for
this kind of performance – and Ralph McTell fits the bill perfectly.
RALPH,
ALBERT & SYDNEY
Redditch
Indicator
December 1977
Ralph McTell: Ralph Albert & Sydney (Warner Bros)
Premier popular British folk singer, this is a live album from Ralph
McTell, recorded at the Royal Albert Hall and Sydney Opera House during
concerts last year.
An obvious necessity if you are a McTell fan (and there are many of them),
but not worth it if you aren’t. All
self-penned tracks except a couple of arrangements of traditional tunes
plus, of course, Streets of London.
RALPH,
ALBERT & SYDNEY
“Loving” magazine
31 December 1977
Ralph Albert & Sydney: Ralph McTell (Warner)
Recorded live at London’s Royal Albert Hall and Australia’s Sydney
Opera House, the sound on this album is far superior to most live albums,
possibly because Ralph uses simple – but effective – musical backing.
Pity there’s so much audience sound – and we could have done without
Ralph’s ramblings too, as it does, in our opinion, tend to break the
continuity of the record. But
he sings some beautiful songs – all his old favourites like Streets
of London, Naomi (brings us out in goose pimples, that!), Sylvia and a smashing little country song called Big
Tree that he assured everyone was about his first love affair at the
age of six. Nice sounds from
a classy singer-songwriter.
Our verdict: songs for romantics and cynics alike.
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SLIDE
AWAY THE SCREEN
Denby Telegraph
March
1979
Enjoyable all round
The essential thing about Ralph McTell is that he is one man with a guitar
making music that he enjoys so obviously that all who hear it cannot fail
to enjoy it as well.
Slide Away The Screen
(Warner K56599) has full backing with all the wonders of electronics but
it is that steady beat, that insistent voice that has made McTell an
international star for so long and, on this showing, will keep him at the
top much longer yet.
Gold in California, Autumn
and Promises are numbers to
note.
D.G.
SLIDE
AWAY THE SCREEN
Publication
Not Known
April 1979
Slide Away The Screen by Ralph McTell (Warner Brothers):
You will get a lot of enjoyment out of this thoughtful and smooth LP from
the man who shot to fame with Streets
of London.
McTell had been singing around folk clubs for years before walking
into the spotlight and his experience is put to good use.
So are his friends Richard Thompson, Dave Pegg, Telephone Bill,
Dave Mattacks and Simon Nicol.
SLIDE
AWAY THE SCREEN
Ealing
Gazette
April 1979
Ralph McTell: Slide Away The Screen (Warner Bros K 56599):
Ralph McTell has got together with some very capable musicians to produce
a presentable collection of new material.
Dave Mattacks’ drumming gives the typically wistful songs a
welcome fullness and electric guitar from Jerry Donahue and Dave Pegg adds
depth to the arrangements.
But, pleasant though the performances are, the songs themselves seem to
lack McTell’s old spark. Traces is a plaintive, melodic song that succeeds through its
simplicity as he accompanies himself on a solo piano. But the other songs are often uninspiring and
inconsequential, adding up to an album that it’s hard to stay awake
through.
SLIDE
AWAY THE SCREEN
Record
Mirror
17 March 1979
by Susan Kluth
Ralph McTell: Slide Away The Screen (Warner Bros K56599):
It’s been a long haul since the Streets
of London, but if he has lost popular favour, Ralph McTell has
certainly held his place in the league as an honest songwriter.
The songs on Slide Away The
Screen tend to be less intricately personal than those on, say, Right
Side Up, of three years back.
Self-obsession never entered into it, but nonetheless tracks like the
opening Love Grows and One Heart
have that reassuringly broader, more detached slant that presumably
arrives with the onward march of the years.
I know it’s all symbolism annat, but I rather wish those rather
haggard Gold In California
images had stayed at home. The
tailpiece of Save The Last Dance For
Me (a la Drifters) is a nice touch of what-the-hell.
Any alleged failings Ralph McTell restores in the deep brown charm of his
singing, plus a nice slice of acoustic guitar on London
Apprentice. The highly
recognisable Jerry Donahue, various other ex-Fairport folk and Telephone
Bill (all three of them) are among the supporting cast.
A hard path to tread in these disco years, but then he’s not
really in competition.
P.S. My first ever interview was with Ralph McTell, and he behaved
impeccably. Thanks.
SLIDE
AWAY THE SCREEN
Tune
In
June 1979
Ralph McTell: Slide Away The Screen (Warner Bros K56599):
Ralph McTell is a survivor from the Sixties, a singer-songwriter
living on in a world full of punk rockers and John Travolta.
He is a brave man and a talented artist.
Although he is still tagged as the Folk Singer who wrote the
classic Streets of London, McTell is producing good songs for modern
audiences and his concerts and albums are still very popular.
Apart from a version of the classic Pomus/Shuman number Save
The Last Dance For Me, all of the tracks are compositions by McTell.
Traces is a moving love song delivered by the writer over his
own piano work. Other
highlights include the melodic Love
Grows which would not be out of place on an Eagles’ album, and the
exotic Harry (Don’t Go). It’s
good to hear McTell’s version of the beautiful song White Dress which he and Dave Swarbrick wrote for the late Sandy
Denny. Other tracks include One
Heart, Gold in California, Van Nuys Cruise Night, London Apprentice,
Heroes & Villains, Autumn and Promises.
Dave Mattacks plays drums, Jerry Donahue plays electric guitar, Richard
Thompson plays lead on a couple of tracks and Ralph McTell plays himself. To perfection.
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