My friend, crony and associate Malcolm Holmes (mogul at Talking Elephant) is releasing this album. Here’s the PR blurb and a promotional video.
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Ruth Angell offers a refuge of calm in the beauty of her debut solo album
‘Hlywing’ the debut solo album by singer/songwriter/multi-instrumentalist Ruth Angell. The album was officially released by Talking Elephant Records on Friday 3 February 2023
All ten tracks – nine of them by Ruth, and one by Joni Mitchell – convey an atmosphere of gentle beauty and calm. Her beautifully crafted lyrics are sensitive – drawing on her own experiences, circumstances and situations, her hopes and her fears. Each story is embellished by inspirations from the wonders of nature and the ever-changing landscapes around her home and encountered on her travels. Classically trained at Birmingham Conservatoire as a violinist and composer Ruth has used her composing talents to focus on using a variety of strings to build stunning landscapes to each of her songs. She explains ‘I knew from the start that using a variety of strings was always going to be an important element of this album – when they are all arranged in one piece the result is intense and conveys exactly what I hoped would represent the settings for each of my songs. My husband Sid Peacock has done wonderful work writing and arranging the strings; they immediately set the scene and lead the listener into the stories.’
The album has already drawn high praise from Ashley Hutchings with whom she has worked on a number of his projects both band and trio formats. He describes Hlywing as ‘a truly wonderful album from my dear friend and terrific musician Ruth Angell who I frequently turn to in performance and recording as an important collaborator in my projects. On this her new album her talent as a singer, songwriter and musician is plain for all to see to enjoy.’
The album’s unusual title Hlywing (pronounced ‘Hu-lee-weenguh’) is from an old English word for shelter and refuge and this album is certainly somewhere to go to escape the rigours and troubles of everyday life.
What a lovely track, beautifully played and arranged.