Shirley is a time traveller, a conduit for essential human aches, one of the greatest artists who ever lived, and yet utterly humble - Stewart Lee.
Shirley Elizabeth Collins MBE is an English folk singer, song collector and perhaps the greatest living embodiment of the musical threads that connect the country with its history. As a significant presence during the Second English Folk Revival, Shirley formed a duo with her sister Dolly, who accompanied Shirley's raw and direct voice on piano and portative organ; together they recorded the startling Anthems In Eden and Love, Death & The Lady. Following a period of silence spanning three decades during which she barely sang, Shirley released Lodestar, her first new material since 1978. The record is a collection of English, American and Cajun songs dating from the 16th Century to the 1950s, recorded at Shirley’s home in Lewes, East Sussex - the work of an icon of British music who has never stopped exploring the power of the voice.
On Heart’s Ease, Shirley delivers a record even stronger than Lodestar having completely regained her confidence, and singing so well that you can’t believe she was away for so long. As Shirley put it, “Lodestar wasn’t too bad, was it? But when I listen to it, it does sometimes sound rather tentative. I had to record it at home because I was just too nervous to sing in front of somebody I didn’t know. This time I was far more relaxed – even though I went into a studio.” Recorded at Metway in Brighton, Heart’s Ease is as compelling and original as Shirley’s great albums from the Sixties and Seventies. There are traditional songs, of course, from England and the USA, but there are also more new songs than in the past (four non-traditional tracks) and there’s even a burst of experimentation that hints at possible new directions to come.
Shirley Collins has just announced her new album Archangel Hill, her third album for Domino. It showcases another peerless collection of songs chosen by Collins, most from traditional sources but others from her favourite writers.
Archangel Hill is named in honour of Shirley’s stepfather who called Mount Caburn, a landmark close to Collins’ home in Lewes, Archangel Hill. Shirley imparts some context: “Whenever I walk Mount Caburn, I give a silent greeting in memory of my stepfather Bill and his horses. I’ve picked sloes there in autumn, sat watching sheep and the occasional chalk hill blue butterfly in summer, but Bill had ridden over it many times in the 1920s, walking horses from Bishopstone to the Lewes races.”
Archangel Hill is twilight teaching, an end of time reminder from Shirley about being a good ancestor and paying your respects to the generations before. Shirley has done a lifetime of this work and with this record asks of us to do the same.