Nowadays, it’s almost unimaginable to have an artist on a major label put out more than one album in the span of a year. In 1969, Fairport Convention released three studio LPs, and at least two of them are regarded as classics of the era. While Liege and Lief is considered to be the one to buy, to me Unhalfbricking is the record that should be considered the quintessential Fairport album.
Unhalfbricking is where they started to use notes and scales heard within ancient folk ballads while also injecting their music with the energy and inspiration of the best psych-rock of the day, like Pink Floyd and Tomorrow. In my opinion, transition albums — when they work — have the biggest potential to become important records; the ones that transcend time and change the rules of the game, not only of the band but of everyone who comes in contact with them.
For the album’s centerpiece, the band plays a version of the traditional ballad “A Sailor’s Life” and it is significant for many reasons. Future violinist Dave Swarbrick makes an appearance, but, more importantly, the band makes the song their own, starting it with droning tones over which Sandy Denny sings the lyrics. Slowly, the band builds the song until they are all playing off each other, making it seem like the most exciting thing in the world. And this is hardly the only instance of such inventiveness and excitement on the record.
While it’s true that, in cold terms, Fairport’s importance falls on their electrification of traditional British music of yore, what really made them special was their ability to infuse it not only with the furor of the best rock n’ roll but also the intensity of jazz instrumentalists and blues singers. The element of emotion escaping the realms of song is present throughout the record. It’s there on the joyful choruses of “Million Dollar Bash.” It’s on the middle section of “Autopsy.” It’s right there on the final verses of “Percy’s Song.”
Perhaps Fairport Convention found a way to tap into the emotional well, the raw nerve core of hundreds of generations past who felt a religious release in music. A sentiment that has remained in humanity’s backbone, yet is sadly absent in many contemporary artists. Fairport were not only an amazing band, they were archeologists of sound and sentiments.
