What does it sound like?:
Around a hundred years ago (well, 30) I had a garage band. The drummer was a hippyish character who had once played with local guitar legend Ivan Muirhead in his hard-rock gospel act SOS. Ivan’s sister Janet – vocally brilliant and strikingly beautiful, which only added to the awe – sang with SOS; in the early 80s they had released a single on vinyl, no less, and appeared on local TV. Heady stuff in those days. By the late 80s, SOS seemed to have hit an iceberg and sunk without trace. I asked the drummer if he thought Janet might be persuaded to join our band. He passed on a demo tape; she politely passed it back. We got the man who became Duke Special instead, played a bit and then stopped. I never really had it in me to perform on stages, though I couldn’t help writing songs.
Twelve years later, around 1999/2000, I finally got Janet ‘in my band’ in a way, covering a Pentangle song for a Bert Jansch tribute album I was organising. She was effortlessly brilliant. Off the back of that, I was trying to help British 50s/60s rock’n’roll and blues legend Duffy Power with a comeback album – and he really dug Janet’s voice. We created a couple of Janet/Duffy duets by post but the project faltered with the logistics. A version of the album was released as a public service by Market Square svengali Peter Muir as ‘Tigers’ a few years later, but back in 2001 I felt I owed it to both Duffy and Janet to salvage something for each of them: hence, I did some archaeology and created ‘Sky Blues’ for Duffy, a collection of BBC recordings, and began a studio project for Janet, which became ‘The Road to the West’ – released under the name Janet Holmes.
Part of the motivation for me was that I had some songs I wanted to get out there, but I was no singer or performer; but the other part was that I felt Janet was world-class and I wanted to do what I could to get her heard. Aside from some of my own songs I had selected a bunch of what I felt were interesting covers from the British/Celtic folk and rock worlds – Anne Briggs, Gay & Terry Woods, the Smiths, the Beatles – and Janet brought in a few others from her areas of interest – Isaac Guillory, Ralph McTell, Lyle Lovett. Her instincts were right and mine were largely wrong.
I was consciously trying to stretch her away from her natural tendency towards slow-to-mid-tempo Americana-type songs. I was probably misguided in trying to do this, or at least in stretching the elastic too far, and some of my own songs were probably too slight. But you roll your dice in what seems the best way you can at any given time. The local TV/radio ‘hit’ of the album was Janet’s version of Lyle Lovett’s ‘If I Had a Boat’ – her natural territory, and classy material – but perhaps the important thing was that during the album process she had suddenly started writing songs, out of nowhere. She hadn’t even played guitar before. Her first one made the album, but since then she hasn’t stopped. And she was instantly fantastic at it. It was astonishing, and it still is.
There was another album shortly after that, ‘Wonder Why’ – brilliantly produced and full of original songs (only locally released but hopefully coming to iTunes this year) – but family life intervened and bar occasional gigs at bluegrass festivals, cafes and the like, Janet faded from view. Until now…
‘Going Home’ features 12 of Janet’s best songs – now trading under her married name, Janet Henry – which have been accumulating for years. This a magnificent record – by turns serene, profound, vulnerable, empowered, epic and homely, inspiring and comforting and exquisitely produced by Dean Stevens throughout. Janet was a world-class singer 20 years ago and nothing has changed. She was a promising songwriter 20 years ago but she’s a great one now. Her artistic vision is mature and finely-honed – balancing aspiration and reflection and making the personal universal. The musicianship on the album is in service to the songs but players stretch out just when you want them too – Colin Henry on Dobro, John McCullough on keys, Dublin Dick Farrelly and Ivan ‘the Guv’nor’ Muirhead on lead guitars. It all feels like an effortless magic yet I’m sure careful decision-making was involved. That rabbit didn’t into that hat by itself. In some places, like ‘1999’, the Delphic tale of a turbulent year for her, Janet’s confidence and experience shines in opting for the starkest, airiest of piano backing where others might have layered on choirs and string sections.
Half of the album’s songs grabbed me immediately and I was intrigued – actually, relieved – to find that the songs that struck me at once are exactly the ones Janet rates highest herself. These tend to be the slower, broodier or more profound numbers: ‘Scared’, ‘Hardest Place to Fall’, ‘1999’, ‘Sonny Boy’, ‘River is Rising’, ‘Going Home’. In places these recall to me great moments by Emmylou Harris, Neil Young (his writing, not his voice), and the country/soul writing of Dan Penn & Spooner Oldham.
On repeated plays, I’m finding that the whole thing works as a 50-minute listening experience, including what felt initially like the fluffier songs – a couple that share something of a Van Morrison Celtic-soul feel (‘Then There’s You’, ‘Slow Down’), although this is actually more in the arrangements and sounds than in the writing, and two or three that are a little too ‘Nashville’ for my tastes, including the opening track ‘Hello Radio’. But I understand why they’re there. It’s a question of balance and radio is far more likely to play these songs than the dark and mysterious ones. And I really hope she gets that radio play. Janet Henry is far too great a talent not to be heard.
What does it all *mean*?
There seem to be lots of artists in Northern Ireland chasing some kind of dream in Nashville these days. Janet Henry has taken her time, done her own thing, balanced other responsibilities and doesn’t have much interest in hustling around in Americana central. Perhaps 20 years ago I was too worried that she’d just be seen as another Irish woman singing Americana (of which there are many). How wrong I was. The likes of Emmylou Harris and Alison Krauss transcend the genres they tend to be put in, or at least from where they began; I think the same of Janet. She doesn’t have the drive or pushiness or whatever it is that is necessary to be a contender in terms of the business of music so you won’t be seeing her on ‘Later… with Jools’ anytime soon. But she’s comfortable in her own skin and has a created an album that bottles her gentle magic – and it’s available to buy if anyone wants it. And that’s enough to be going on with. It’ll be on iTunes etc soon but the (wonderfully packaged) physical item is available now from: www.facebook.com/janethenry music or coachhouse1@hotmail.com
Goes well with…
Driving in the country, sipping whisky with your feet up letting the cares of the world slip away…
Release Date:
Might suit people who like…
Emmylou, Alison Krauss, Mary Chapin Carpenter, non-formula American-influenced roots music, Celtic-soul…
Colin H says
As mentioned above, I think this song (which opens the album) is pretty lightweight, but it’s the only one on YouTube and gives a good idea of her voice.
Colin H says
Here’s a sample of Janet singing live. I didn’t mention that Janet very kindly performed ‘City Women’, one of the handful of Duffy Power/John McLaughlin co-written songs from the mid 60s at a launch event for my first McLaughlin book. Brilliant…
Blue Boy says
Lovely review Colin; certainly sounds worth checking out – hope it does well!
Colin H says
When it’s on iTunes I’ll post a link – hearing 30 seconds of each track will decide anyone who might be half interested, either way!
Here’s a lovely outtake from the first album, used on a wildlife compilation a couple of years later – the Beatles’ ‘Long, Long, Long’:
Vulpes Vulpes says
I’m in Colin. I’ve dropped a line to the address you gave. Tigers remains one of my all time favourite albums, and The Road To The West is now an old friend too; anything sprinkled with some of the same magic is welcome here!
Colin H says
Splendid, Vulps – I think you’ll enjoy ‘Going Home’. Especially after a hard day’s graft. Pun intended, of course.
Vulpes Vulpes says
Nurse has shown me how to order the disc. She assures me it is on its way. With luck, I’ll still remember what it is, and that I ordered it, when it arrives.