Track Listing

1. Here We Come A Wassailing
2. Sweet Bells
3. Poor Old Horse
4. Hark The Herald
5. Holly And The Ivy
6. Hark Hark
7. Candlemas Eve
8. Hail Chime On
9. Serving Girls Holiday
10. Awake Arise
11. Miners Dream

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #19565 in Music
• Released on: 2008-12-15
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: .23 pounds

Amazon.co.uk Review

Carol singing and Yorkshire would seem to go hand in hand. Who better to record an album of Christmas carols then, than South Yorkshire’s own Kate Rusby? Regarded as one of the UK’s best folk singers thanks to breathtaking albums like Hourglass, Sleepless and the recent Awkward Annie, Sweet Bells gives us Rusby’s own repertoire of Christmas favourites. She mostly keeps things pared down to voice, guitar and accordion (played by frequent collaborator Andy Cutting), as well as the odd splash of brass from the Grimethorpe Colliery Band. Festive favourites mingle with lesser-known songs like “Poor Old Horse”, “Serving Girl's Holiday” and “A Miner's Dream of Home,” as well as reworked classics like her reflective version of “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing” and interesting – and, some might say, irreverent - treatments of “While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks” and "The Holly and the Ivy". A mix of joyous celebration and melancholy moods, Sweet Bells makes for an all-round Christmas treat. --Danny McKenna

Robin Denselow, The Guardian, 12/12/2008
This is something of a rarity: a Christmas album that is actually worth listening to...this deserves to become a seasonal favourite - ****

CD Description
England's finest and most popular female Folk singer, Kate Rusby, presents a very special collection of South Yorkshire Christmas carols in her own glorious style. South Yorkshire has a very strong tradition of carol singing starting early November. Sunday lunchtimes see 100s of carollers cram into various pubs in the locality to join in the unashamedly joyous singing standing room only! At its heart, it represents an oral tradition, constantly evolving, passed down from generation to generation, with roots dating back over 200 years.

Customer Reviews

Breathtaking ... as Always
May I begin by confirming that I am from Lancashire.

In much the same way as she has defied the Folk Police to make 'folk music' appeal to a wide audience without compromise, Kate Rusby's "Sweet Bells" will even beguile those who "don't do Christmas." I first enjoyed the songs on this thoroughly inspired seasonal collection during Rusby's "Christmas Kate" tour and have been eagerly awaiting their release on CD ever since.

Whilst I'll concede that I might receive concerned and sympathetic looks from others if discovered savouring the delights of "Hark The Herald", "Sweet Bells" and "Here We Come A-Wassailing" in mid-July, I don't care. I'll just draw the curtains, sit next to the fridge and turn up the volume to drown out the buzzing bees.

Such is the beauty of Rusby's voice and the originality of the instrumentation - provided by diehards Andy Cutting, Ian Carr and Andy Seward amongst others including two brass bands (from Yorkshire naturally!) - that the eleven songs on "Sweet Bells" will continue to delight long after the last Christmas tree has been dismantled and resolutions forgotten.

In fact, several songs have their roots very much in the winter but convey sentiments which aren't exclusively the preserve of the festive season. "Serving Girl's Holiday", hauntingly sung to the pure accompaniment of Andy Cutting's diatonic accordion is a good example. Likewise the exquisite "Miner's Dream Of Home" and the charming "Poor Old Horse".

Unusually, there are no entirely Rusby originals here. However, as always she makes each and every song her own; living and breathing every word, hitting each note perfectly as on "Candlemas Eve".

The Best Christmas Album ... Ever? Oh yes, by a Yorkshire mile. And the best version of "The Holly & The Ivy" you'll ever hear.

Breathtaking ... as always. Thanks Kate.

A Christmas Treat
A new Kate Rusby Album is an event at the best of times, but in the dark days of December, something to warm you as you struggle through the snow...a collection of South Yorkshire Carols, that bring to CD the feel of sitting in the village pub as the carols ring out. What about a wonderful version of "The Holly and The Ivy" or "Hark the Herald" ? Or a couple of moving social conscience songs like "The Miner's Dream of Home" or "Serving Girl's Holiday" ? Or something to push you through to spring, like "Candlemas Eve" ? Personally I could listen to Kate singing the Cawthorne Phone Book, but the new album showcases her voice beautifully against the Grimethorpe Colliery Band and her folk staples. I for one will be listening well into the cold days of February..

Christmas (& credit crunch) cheer
I saw Kate Rusby perform most of the songs from this album last night at Blackheath Concert Halls in London. She seemed a bit nervous in the first half of the concert, as well she might given that she was, in effect, performing a new album in its entirety for the first time. She needn't have worried, as this record is just as adorable as all the others: Kate's beautiful soaring voice, gorgeous arrangements, genuine respect for the material, both old and new. Christmas albums can always be a little risky, as the themes can become repetitive after a while, and I can't honestly say that this album will replace classics like "Awkward Annie" and "Sleepless" in my affections. But as Christmas albums go, this is as good as it gets. Kate's lovely voice and music continue to cheer me through the dark days of the credit crisis, with its gloomy newspaper headlines.