This CD is subtitled "songs we sing and play in our house" and I want to visit their house.

These are the forgotten, well-known songs that deserve better. Familiarity does breed contempt and we can be very blasˇ about music we associate with our youth and we forget how good those simple songs were. Do you remember "Red Wing"? It is a simple song to a simple tune but listen to it anew and be amazed.

Every child was once captivated by "The Grandfather Clock," and if a child of the 21st century is exposed to the Cornells' singing of that old favourite, I guarantee that it has not lost its magic even if the clocks are now consigned to antique shops.

I would ask you to get this CD and put it on the player without reading the listing and see how much of your early life comes back as you listen and identify the tunes. "Ghost Riders in the Sky" is not the Blues Brothers version but a much cleaner, crisper song with guitar and percussion. Woody Guthrie is represented here with "Talkin' Dustbowl" and "Do Re Mi" to great effect. There are also some new tracks by the performers called "Little Maxie" and the eponymous "Glass Door," which apparently was inspired by an old door, rescued from a demolition site.

This CD will not feature in the hot 100 but it is definitely worth a close listen to relive those songs from a time of innocence now long past.

[ by Nicky Rossiter ]
Rambles: 3 August 2002