Eddi Reader: The Songs of Robert Burns

Scottish Folk Singer Rediscovers her Roots in this Deluxe Re-issue

Dec 20, 2008

Universally known as the voice behind Fairground Attraction's 1980s pop hit Perfect, Eddi Reader has since maintained a quietly successful, folk-flavoured solo career.

Albums such as 1996's Candyfloss and Medicine have brought her both critical acclaim and healthy sales, while 2006 found Reader named in the UK honours list for her contribution to contemporary folk song. Not a bad return for someone who began her career busking in Glasgow's notorious Sauchiehall Street.

Reader first felt a connection with the muse of Scotland's national icon Robert Burns when she performed one of his songs at an intimate show in Glasgow. “I sang My Love's Like a Red Red Rose to a bunch of 'worse for drink' people in a bar one cold January night,” she reveals (www.eddireader.co.uk/home). “I felt something happening between me...and the people listening, something profoundly moving.” This positive reaction eventually led to an album-length collection of tunes: The Songs of Robert Burns, released by Rough Trade (www.roughtraderecords.com) in 2003.

To commemorate the anniversary of Burns' 250th birthday in January 2009, Rough Trade are re-issuing the album in a deluxe edition featuring 7 additional tunes recorded by Reader in the interim. It's more than reason enough to (re)discover a record which has one foot planted in the past and one very firmly in the open doorway to the future.

The Songs of Robert Burns

The album presents us with an embarrassment of riches. Reader's voice truly soars and whether she's tackling sparse, romantic songs of farewell such as Ae Fond Kiss or getting to grips with the Celtic-infused drama of tunes like Brose And Butter and Aye Waukin-O, she's never less than compelling. Although the instrumentation (acoustic guitars, fiddles, bodhran, accordion) is broadly acoustic and folk-flecked, the production is contemporary and the Royal Scottish National Orchestra are on hand to add sweeping string arrangements where necessary.

From The Bad Seeds to Auld Lang Syne

There are some notable surprises too. Coming in the wake of the romantic Wild Mountainside, the guttural blues of Charlie Is My Darling is closer to The Bad Seeds' lurching intent than anything folk-related; Ye Jacobites is a stirring anti-war anthem you can imagine Billy Bragg attempting and Reader's version of Auld Lang Syne not only rescues it from public domain hell, but even instils it with fresh life.

Scottish folk music undergoing a resurgence

Scottish folk has been re-energised in recent times. Artists as diverse as James Yorkston and Karine Polwart have been re-shaping the genre for modern consumption and holding a torch for individuality to boot. With The Songs of Robert Burns, Eddi Reader not only jumps to the head of this list, but establishes herself as a national treasure of a similar calibre. Spellbinding stuff.

The copyright of the article Eddi Reader: The Songs of Robert Burns in Folk Music is owned by Tim Peacock. Permission to republish Eddi Reader: The Songs of Robert Burns in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.