Downes & Beer - Live At Nettlebed Ric Sanders - Still Waters (Talking Elephant Records) Paul Downes and Phil Beer have been around for a number of years as both solo artists and as members of The Albion Band and Show Of Hands. Occasionally they come together, and Live At Nettlebed (in fact, at the Nettlebed Village Club in Oxfordshire) is the result of a 2007 tour the pair did together. They’re both excellent musicians and hearty singers, and they perform an interesting set which is hardly predictable but plays to all their strengths. Opening cut, the Bruce Cockburn number “Coming Rains” provides an instant high water mark, but they deliver plenty more. The traditional “Sheath and Knife” is particularly stirring as is Si Kahn’s “Go To Work On Monday”, and a special mention is reserved for their version of Phil Ochs’ “There But For Fortune”. If you’re yet to experience these two in the flesh - so to speak - this recording is a fine place for introductions. Ric Sanders is primarily a jazz violinist but he’s worked with a whole host of performers from the British folk idiom, including an extensive period with the Fairports. But it’s his association with artists such as Pentangle and John Etheridge (Soft Machine) which provide the most clues to the content of Still Waters... That and the fact that it says “Instrumental Ballads 1980-2008” on the back cover. The recordings include contributions from Etheridge, Gordon Giltrap, Tull’s Ian Anderson and all of Fairport Convention. Much of the material combines folk, jazz and ambient textures, is as relaxing as the title suggests, yet manages to remain utterly engaging throughout. All in all, a quality release from one of the World’s premier fiddle players. www.talkingelephant.com Rob F. Next