Track Listing

1. Playing Of Ball
2. I Courted A Sailor
3. Withered And Died
4. Merry Green Broom
5. Let The Cold Wind Blow
6. Caanan's Land
7. Some Tyrant
8. William And Davy
9. Who Will Sing Me Lullabies?
10. Matt Hyland
11. My Young Man

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #24370 in Music
• Released on: 2001-06-04
• Number of discs: 1

Amazon.co.uk Review
Kate Rusby's fragile, haunting voice is only the first reason among equals that makes Little Lights such an unmitigated delight. Just as wondrous are her delicate acoustic arrangements of traditional tunes, the sensitive musicianship of her collaborators (notably guitarists Ian Carr and John Doyle, and the refined backing vocals of Eddi Reader) and, last but definitely not least, her burgeoning songwriting skills. There are more Rusby originals here than on her previous two solo albums, with the catchy story-songs "I Courted a Sailor" and "William and Davy" proving standout items. That is until the extraordinary climax of the album and "My Young Man"--a deeply personal song about Rusby's own grandparents--in which her molasses-rich voice is accompanied by a heavenly brass choir. Elsewhere an achingly mournful cover of Richard Thompson's "Withered and Died" once again demonstrates Rusby's subtle magic with other people's material. (As a bonus track, the Rusby clan get together for an impromptu family rendition of "The Big Ship Sails".) Anyone charmed by Rusby's Mercury Award-nominated Sleepless or her mature debut Hourglass need not hesitate. Those yet to discover one of the finest voices in British folk should rush to acquire all three. --Mark Walker

fRoots, August/September 2001
Kate Rusby knows a thing or two about breaking your heart with a morose ballad. If the difficult third album held any fears there's little evidence of it as she simply sticks to the principles that have served her so well before, enhanced by a grander supporting cast that includes Ian Carr, Danny Thompson, Mairtin O'Connor, Michael McGoldrick, John Jones and Eddi Reader. Inevitably it's more sophisticated than its predecessors as a result, but few chances are taken and the intimate guile which initially marked Rusby as a storyteller of such rare sensitivity remains unblemished and as potent as ever. Her own songwriting, too, has developed a calm assurance which suggests she has the potential to expand her approach without sullying the natural warmth at her core. In "Who Will Sing Me Lullabies"--an emotional tribute to the late Battlefield Band singer Davy Steele--she has surely written her first classic destined for a life of its own. And if there were any remaining doubts that it's even better than her previous two albums, her plaintive interpretation of Richard Thompson's "Withered And Died" lay them to rest.

© fRoots Magazine all rights reserved

CD Description
Third solo album from one of Britain's brightest young folkartists, playing guitar and singing a mix of standards and her own material. Features guest appearances from Eddi Reader and Tim O'Brien. Rusby is a member of the all-female folk-rock ensemble The Poozies.

Customer Reviews

It's all true.
Everything you've heard of Kate Rusby is true. And it's had no better demonstration than on this disk.

Song after song of her blissful voice and a band absolutely on the top of their game. The combination may just leave you in slack-jawed bewonderment.

I suppose the thing that really resonates from the experience of listening to "Little Lights" is that you have an over-riding sensation that the songs were all written two hundred years ago and you've heard them throughout your entire life. You haven't, and five of these were penned within the last few years by Rusby herself. But there's a timelessness here (in its most faithful meaning - absolutely defying chronological positioning) which fosters a weight of history, a sense that they're all part of your life.

It sounds pretentious, I know.

But hear me out. The album flows perfectly and there is no weak track. And just when you think your sweet-melancholy can't be any further rung from you, she finishes off with "My Young Man", recorded with the brass of the Grimethorpe Colliery Band. The song just staggers your legs and knocks the wind from your chest. No fancy production but, building from an a capella opening, the most subtle and moving arrangement imagineable. It's the song that nails the fifth star to this review.

I don't like to award five stars to anything but as the album winds up and I've got this knot in my chest, I just can't not.

Do yourself a favour. Click "Add to basket".

Head and heartfelt
I have listened to Irish Folk for over twenty years... Condemning the English equivilant as tuneless and rough. Kate Rusby has won me over. This amasing album has not been off my CD player since I purchased it three weeks ago. "My young Man" brings me to tears every time I hear it. Folk music is alive and well in England, and it Hails from Barnsley.

Hauntingly beautiful
The opening strains of this CD let you know what to expect: a hauntingly beautiful, natural voice along with simple accompaniment that together send the songs right into your heart.

Kate Rusby specialises in heart-breaking songs, whether "traditional" or originals - of which more later. This distinction is actually quite hard to make, as some of Kate's songs sound traditional but are her own compositions - a testimony to the way that she has imbibed folk music until it permeates her completely! In some cases she takes a traditional song but sets it to her own tune, either because the original tune is now lost, or simply because she wants to breathe fresh life into it.

This is at least as good as her two earlier albums. It is hard to articulate the appeal of her music. Her singing is very natural and, I suppose, understated - her voice seems to allow the songs to speak almost for themselves. I am reluctant to make comparisons, but the emotional power of her singing seems to "work" in much the same way as that of Sandy Denny.

It is hard to choose highlights. "Matt Hyland," "Withered and died", "My young man"... My absolute favourite is easily stated, however. "Who will sing me lullabies" is a heart-rending tribute to one of the backing singers on her first album. Here you see the skill of Kate's songwriting and singing as she invokes the angels who "heard my heart breaking, for it rang through the skies.." From anyone else a line like "The Man in the Moon, oh, he can't help but cry.... for there's no-one to sing me lullabies.." would sound corny, but from Kate it sounds just right, and unspeakably sorrowful. Even her vocalisation of the word "lullabies" gets right inside you... Many of her songs have the same effect!

I can't really say any more... just get this album and delight in it! And if you get the chance to see Kate in concert, don't miss out! She is down-to-earth and appealing on stage. One moment she is tearing your heart out with her singing, the next she is making you laugh out loud with some anecdote or other!