Pentangling

iTunes Review

Any number of collections nicely represent the British folk music scene of the late 1960s and early 1970s. This 3-CD collection features 17 tracks from Pentangle and then 22 cuts apiece from the band’s founders, John Renbourn and Bert Jansch. The 1968 non-album single, “Travelling Song” begins things before representative cuts from The Pentangle, Sweet Child, Basket of Light, Cruel Sister, Reflection and Solomon’s Seal fill out the Pentangle portion, with the other non album B-side “Cold Mountain” added for good measure. Singer Jacqui McShee is the added ingredient and she occasionally visits Renbourn’s recordings. For acoustic guitar playing, Jansch and Renbourn can’t be outdone. “Judy” from Renbourn’s self-titled 1966 debut sets the tone; in two minutes, he explodes with his generous dexterity. (“One For William” and anything from his 1968 album Sir John Alot are essential.) Jansch collaborates with Renbourn on the instrumental “Lucky Thirteen” and shines on the solo work, ranging from “Needle of Death,” recorded with a single microphone in his apartment to the traditionally influenced folk of 1971’s Rosemary Lane.