It sometimes takes a while for a wide audience to appreciate the work of certain singers. To be honest, I'd never even heard of British singer-songwriter Vashti Bunyan before her tune, "Train Song," was featured in a Reebok TV ad that coincided with the start of NFL training camps. The song made me want to know more about her. When she first recorded in the 1960s, she sometimes was billed simply by her first name. As a teen, she had been enrolled in art college, but was expelled for focusing more on her songwriting than on her art. An early champion of her work was Rolling Stones producer Andrew Loog Oldham. She was even given a Mick Jagger - Keith Richards composition, "Some Things Just Stick In Your Mind," to record in 1965 (The Stones' version of the song appeared later). She also recorded for Oldham's Immediate Records, but none of her three Immediate singles were released until 2007, when a compilation of Bunyan's sixties recordings was issued.

By 1968, Bunyan had stopped pursuing musical success. She, a companion named Robert Lewis, a horse, and a dog made a trek across England, with the intention of joining a commune planned by Donovan. She did take a break from the trek, however, to meet with producer Joe Boyd, who'd already had success with albums from Fairport Convention and the Incredible String Band. Boyd, who eventually founded both Hannibal Records and Rykodisc, had wanted to work with Bunyan for several years. It was Boyd who coaxed Bunyan back into music to record her first album, "Just Another Diamond Day," a folk which strayed greatly from some of the pop-oriented music she had made. "Just Another Diamond Day" was first released on Philips records in 1970. The album met with critical acclaim, but weak sales. Bunyan then took a lengthy leave from the music business to raise her three sons and live on a farm in Ireland. It has been said that, before the album's debut on CD in 2000 (on the Spinney label), someone purchased an original vinyl copy of Bunyan's first album for $2000 on eBay. Since 2004, Fat Cat Records in England and DiCristina Records in the United States have kept this CD in print.

"Just Another Diamond Day" has found a new legion of fans, as well as put Bunyan back in a musical spotlight. The album is a collection of beautiful observations based on her travels. The words might remind some of the poets of England's classical period, which came nearly two centuries before this release. Bunyan, who is a direct descendant of 17th century British author John Bunyan, observes nature with a childlike wonder and wisdom once displayed by Robert Burns. Burns celebrated nature in poems such as "To A Mouse" and "To A Louse," and set another poem, "Sweet Afton," to music. Like Burns, Bunyan celebrates the beauty she sees in a way that is accessible to both children and adults. When the CD appeared, the reissue labels added four tracks, three of which come from the mid-sixties sessions she did. They could just as easily have come from the "Diamond" album, as those songs are consistent with the sentiments and observations of the original release.

The album begins with the title track, a look at what a day might have been like with Vashti and her entourage. The travel is slow, but that gives everyone the opportunity to appreciate the details of life on a leisurely pace. An acoustic guitar, strings, and a recorder set a mood of joy as every day is another adventure with the elements of the English countryside. "Timothy Grub" is a delightful fantasy song about how Vashti's animals enjoy themselves in the woods with the small creatures who also made a home in the wagon, and how all of them appreciate the humans who are a part of their lives. "Jog Along Bess" tells the story of what Vashti's horse and dog might say if they could describe being free of the big city that is London, which had been their home before their trip. "Lily Pond" sounds very much like "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star," and describes the actions of a contented frog and a busy dragonfly.

The album also contains tales of the people who have made these rural areas their home. "Rainbow River" tells of a boy who helps to provide for his family by fishing from the river. "Trawlerman's Song" is the story of a man who goes to sea to provide for his family, and the feelings he would have when he returns home to the ones he loves. "Iris's Song For Us" is a song with lyrics by a lady named Iris Macfarlane which is a simple appreciation of the summer that she spent with a new friend. "I'd Like To Walk Around In Your Mind" is an optimistic plea for understanding between a man and a woman. Vashti herself has come to embrace life way from the city, and "Where I Like To Stand" could well be Bunyan's anthem about a quieter life. With a voice that has a hint of Judy Collins, Bunyan sings of the things she enjoys about the road she has taken. She has taken on new chores, but those chores give her the time to enjoy the things a city scape would not provide for her. "Window Over The Bay" talks of the goals she wants to achieve, which include owning a piece of the land that is far away from where she has been. Her voice reflects the joy and the longing to remain a part of this land where she has come.

Vashti is at her most wistful when it comes to the changing of the seasons. "Swallow Song" tells of a mother bird teaching her young how to fly in time for their inevitable migration. "Rose Hip November" describes a time where daylight grows shorter, yet grows more beautiful, as Vashti describes it as gold. "Winter Is Blue" paints a picture of life that has grown dormant from the cold. "Come Wind Come Rain" shows winter coming to an end, and time for more traveling and experiences on the road ahead. Vashti may be saddened by having to curtail her journeys for the winter, but she understands that something special can be had from even the shortest days of the year. She knows the days will grow longer again, and is determined to not let the cold ruin the experience. On this album, Boyd provided Bunyan with help from musicians he had produced. Robin Williamson from the Incredible String Band and Simon Nicol and Dave Swarbick from Fairport Convention contirbute fiddle, banjo, and mandolin playing that enhance the pastoral beauty of Bunyan's vision. Boyd also called on Robert Kirby, who later worked with Nick Drake, for other string and recorder arrangements. These arrangements are sweet and simple, just like the songs on the album.

Recognition was slow in coming for Vashti Bunyan, but it has at come at last. Bunyan, in fact, has had a hand in preparing her old recordings for re-release. After 35 years, she finally released her second album, "Lookaftering." She has also recorded with other artists who have admired her work, as well as returned to the concert stage. She is also said to be working on material for a third album. "Just Another Diamond Day," meanwhile, continues to get critical recognition. "Observer Music Monthly" has put Bunyan's first album on their list of Top 100 British albums. The album has survived both obscurity and water damage to the master tape to show it's still a shining diamond. Vashti Bunyan has gone from recording artist to farmer, mother, grandmother, to recording artist once again. She is a traveler who found the road to musical success to be a long one. The journey she took as a young woman puts listeners in her wagon with her, even though that original trip ended so long ago.

Tracks:

1. Just Another Diamond Day

2. Glow Worms

3. Lily Pond

4. Timothy Grub

5. Where I Like To Stand

6. Swallow Song

7. Window Over The Bay

8. Rose Hip November

9. Come Wind Come Rain

10. Hebridean Sun

11. Rainbow River

12. Trawlerman's Song

13. Jog Along Bess

14. Iris's Song For Us

15. Love Song

16. I'd Like To Walk Around In Your Mind

17. Winter Is Blue

18. Iris's Song For Us (Version 2)

This is an entry in the French & English Write-Off hosted by ifif1938. More entries can be found by clicking on the hyperlink: <a href="http://www.epinions.com/content_437260029572"> </a>.

Thanks Barbara.