Author: Peter Podbrežnik
Artist: Barclay James Harvest
Label: EMI Records
Released: 1971
Rating: 4/5
Barclay James Harvest, known in their early years as symphonic idealists chasing the mysticism of Celtic moors, fields and forests, took an ambitious approach to their third album “And Other Shorts Stories” too, carrying on with the symphonic orchestral direction of both its predecessors. After the superb “Once Again” (1971), where they first caught the attention of a wider audience, they stuck to their tried-and-tested recipe again: blending symphonic music with classic melodic rock. The grand baroque orchestral arrangements, which were largely the work of their own orchestra (the latter, of course, was a hugely expensive indulgence on the tours of the time) as well as of the indispensable keyboardist Stuart “Woolly” Wolstenholme on mellotron and Hammond organ, kept getting woven successfully into their interesting mix of hard rock with a strong emphasis on pastoral acoustic elements. Robert Godfrey was replaced on this album in the role of orchestra conductor and musical arranger by Martyn Ford, which didn’t change the nature of the arrangements much. Guitarist John Lees and bassist Les Holroyd, each with their own melodic vocal style (the former with a punchier, slightly soulful approach, the latter with a more “angelic” one), are once again the main rock elements of their music (especially some of Lees’ distorted passages). As usual, they also share some very pleasant folky acoustic guitar arrangements. Drummer Mel Pritchard mostly keeps a solid rhythm and shines with his layered transitions wherever needed. Apart from Woolly, BJH as individuals were never exactly masters of their instruments, but as a collective they were always able to conjure up unforgettable magic without any trouble.
The album opens with one of the best and most ambitious pieces in their history, the epic “Medicine Man”, inspired by Ray Bradbury’s cult novel “Something Wicked This Way Comes” (its title, incidentally, is a quote from Shakespeare’s Macbeth). Bradbury is generally best known as a writer of science fiction novels. This one tells of a special carousel whose flying horses can make their rider younger or older. Deep romanticism and melancholy mingle throughout the epic, the trademarks of classic, symphonic BJH. The composition is steeped in dramatic, tasteful orchestral arrangements that neatly tie the central melody together the whole way through. Despite the lofty symphonic ambitions, the rock element of their music is clearly audible throughout, thanks to excellent vocal harmonies and a solid rhythmic foundation. Fans of symphonic prog rock won’t be left cold by this one. Even though it’s one of their classics, the band wasn’t happy with the main arrangement, which was the main reason they later re-recorded it as the B-side of the single “Thank You”.
On “Someone There You Know”, which is about a failed love affair, Woolly, who also handles the excellent vocal melody, creates melancholic soundscapes on the mellotron while bassist Les keeps him company on piano this time. John’s slippery riffs give the song a slightly wistful edge. Despite its extreme simplicity and slight naivety, the very good lyrical expression is impressive. Unfortunately, BJH have a weak spot: on almost every album they turn out at least one rather mediocre piece, and this time it’s “Harry’s Song”, an acoustic-leaning folk rocker that came about, believe it or not, as a posthumous tribute to John’s parrot (!). The rather dull, monotonous central motif on the bar piano is livened up a bit by good drumming and lovely multi-part vocal harmonies, which fix the impression. Next comes the romantic love ballad “Ursula (The Swansea Song)”, whose lyrics grapple with the same problematic theme as “Someone There You Know”. BJH are masters of this kind of romantic, pastoral ballad, and once again they successfully combined acoustic guitar melodies with lovely orchestral arrangements that melt even the coldest maiden’s heart, without containing the slightest hint of pathos. Les’s romantic ballad “Little Lapwing”, where besides bass and lead vocals he also played most of the instruments himself, is another simple, melodic little number dressed up with acoustics and symphonic touches. Its lyrics are dedicated to birds, the great love of guitarist John Lees. After an extremely simple folky opening melody on acoustic guitar, grand orchestral arrangements kick in during the second half (the trumpets even add a slight jazzy flavor), lifting the piece up at least one notch in intensity.
The psychedelic-pastoral rocker “Song With No Meaning” is another bow to their great idols the Beatles, graced with outstanding melodic sensibility and a string of interesting instrumental flourishes. Les again plays most of the guitars and handles the lead vocal. The excellent vocal melody is one of the best on the album, and the wah-wah effect on the guitar and good use of percussion add their own touch. It’s a track that Uriah Heep fans will surely grin at too. “Blue John Blues” expresses the band’s disappointment with their management at the time, who by the look of it didn’t look after them very well. Despite a rather unpromising, sleepy bluesy intro, a good melody follows, ruled by excellent layers of Hammond organ and solid piano, all accompanied by John’s energetic vocal and good guitar passages. In the final part the song gets an interesting bar-room, bluesy twist, where the vocal turns deliberately raspy, backed by hand claps and an emotional closing guitar solo. Certainly not one of the album’s highlights, but a very solid testament to their versatility.
Two closely linked, symphonic-orchestral pieces under Woolly’s direction follow, whisking BJH off for a short while into the world of symphonic progressive rock again. Both pieces radiate extraordinary melancholy and sound pretty apocalyptic. “The Poet”, originally written back in 1967, is stuffed with a series of melancholic orchestral arrangements and Woolly’s far-from-optimistic vocal. The lyrics express loneliness and disillusionment with an increasingly individualistic humanity. After an excellent closing arrangement, “The Poet” flows straight into the ultra-dramatic “After The Day”, seasoned with mighty orchestral arrangements, which is John’s vision of the apocalypse and which ends the album with a big bang. It’s by far the most melancholic piece on the album, with dramatic orchestral arrangements, weeping triple harmonies on guitar, a delicate layer of mellotron and a vocal that couldn’t carry a sadder note. Although BJH are generally considered positivists, given the fatalism of this tragic epic I could compare them to the likes of King Crimson (especially via the mellotron). In my opinion it’s certainly one of their best and deepest works, the one that was most popular with audiences back when they still performed with the orchestra, and the peak of their flirtation with symphonic progressive rock. Without this closing apocalypse, “And Other Short Stories” would surely be a much more average piece of work.
The 2002 reissue of the album also contains six bonus tracks, of which only the demo version of John’s “Brave New World” stands out; many years later it was re-released as an integral part of his project of the same name, under the name BJH. The rest are BBC recordings of some of their classics such as “She Said”, “Galadriel”, “Medicine Man”, etc., which will surely delight any fan of the band.
“And Other Short Stories” doesn’t represent any great artistic leap compared to its predecessor, since it sticks to an almost identical recipe, but you can tell the band gained a bit of maturity and confidence, which also shows in the noticeably more cohesive use of orchestral arrangements. On that count it’s entirely on par with its superb predecessor and ranks among the best works of their career, although like most of their albums it’s not without its weak spots. Because the orchestra nearly bankrupted the band on the road, BJH would noticeably scale it back on the next album and put the rock elements of their music a bit more up front again, so in this respect “And Other Short Stories” represents the orchestral peak of their career.
Lineup
John Lees – vocals (1,3,7), guitar, percussion (4)
Les Holroyd – vocals (5,6), bass guitar, piano (2,3,5), guitar (5,6)
Stuart Wolstenholme – keyboards, mellotron, electric guitar (1), vocals (2,8,9), drums (3), acoustic guitar (4-6)
Mel Pritchard – drums, percussion, effects (1), conga (6) timpani (9)
GUEST MUSICIAN:
Martyn Ford – tambourine (5)
Production
Wally Allen and Barclay James Harvest
Tracklist
1. Medicine Man (3:56)
2. Someone There You Know (3:47)
3. Harry’s Song (3:52)
4. Ursula (The Swansea Song) (2:54)
5. Little Lapwing (4:56)
6. Song With No Meaning (4:21)
7. Blue John Blues (6:50)
8. The Poet (5:33)
9. After The Day (4:05)
Album length: 40:14
Bonus tracks from the 2002 reissue (2002):
10. Brave New World (DEMO)
11. She Said
12. Galadriel
13. Ursula (The Swansea Song)
14. Someone There You Know
15. Medicine Man
