Plaindealer

The true definition of a "guitarist's guitarist", Michael Chapman could turn his hand to seemingly any style of music, drawing on jazz, rock and even Indian traditions in order to create a truly unique sound among Britain's late-60s folk scene. A remarkable resurgence in the early 21st century - led by no less an authority than Sonic Youth's Thurston Moore - saw Chapman, then in his 60s, embark on an astoundingly prolific run, with the Plaindealer album emerging as just one of three records issued in 2005 alone. Displaying his deep knowledge of folk-music history, he delivers a lengthy extemporisation on Woody Guthrie's all-too-relevant Deportees ("They chase us like outlaws, like rustlers, like thieves"), and a dig through his own past turns up the ten-minute 'Anniversary', originally laid down as early as 1968 and here racing back into life, Chapman's careworn voice carrying with it all the wisdom of the decades in between. Finding its creator as honest as ever, Plaindealer is an essential part of an ever-rewarding body of work.

1    Streamline Train (for John Pilgrim)
2    Where Does That Leave Me?
3    Anniversary
4    Ramon and Durango
5    Georgia Gibson
6    Deportees
7    Midnight Ride
8    Victory and Defeat
9    Three Sisters
10    Youth Is Wasted (on the Young)
11    Bon Ton Roolay