I received a guitar from an anonymous donor for my 42nd birthday, and to whoever sent me such a mysterious and wonderful gift, which very much led to this album being written, great thanks are due indeed.
All music played, recorded, produced and written* by Roo:
nylon string guitar, banjo, melodica, voice, (and piano on one song)
*Animal fair’ was written by an anonymous somebody, it was heard in ports in north america in the late 1800s and came to me via my mother singing it to me when i was younger.
The issue of the eutrophication of Lough Neagh, raised in song 5 (‘Lament for a mermaid’) is resolvable if enough people get involved proactively.
I am not so sure about some of the issues raised in the other songs.
There is a very brief quote from Charles Dickens’ novel ‘Oliver Twist’ in the song ‘The Rookeries’ (i.e. ‘look upon the slime beneath’) because the song is also about that area of London.
Artwork by Roo
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If you navigate to Bandcamp, hover over the song titles, and click on ‘lyrics’ of each song individually, you will find not only the lyrics but also some more information about the song.
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Released: January 14, 2024
License: All Rights Reserved