Spirit of the Inland Sea
David Archibald
Rogues' Hollow Music
2000
14 tracks
David Archibald's Spirit of the Inland Sea (songs of the Great Lakes) falls somewhere in the same genre as Stan Rogers' songs of the sea or Gordon Lightfoot's songs of the Great lakes. However, it can't really be compared to either of these any more than they can be compared to each other. It seems that the subject matter is so broad and compelling that each artist brings to it his own sensibility and draws from it his own unique vision.
Whether performing for adult audiences or for children, Archibald is known as a teller of stories in song. He is quite popular in his local and regional area, providing entertaining and sometimes thought-provoking performances. This release is, in that sense, more of the same. That the songs are built upon the single theme of Great Lakes shipping brings unity to what might otherwise have been a diverse set of stories.
The songs on Spirit of the Inland Sea are the result of a commission by Eastern Ontario's Bruce County Museum to celebrate the unique marine heritage of the Bruce Coast. As such, at least some of the songs feel more academic, indeed almost pedantic, than the work of Rogers or Lightfoot. Some, and "The Ballad of Pirate Bill" is a prime example, sound like musical history lessons couched in musical terms to appeal to grade school children. There's nothing wrong with that, but it certainly gives this release a different atmosphere than most collected songs of ships and the sea.
Archibald's songs never achieve the rollicking joy often found in even the saddest of Rogers' songs or the dark gloom that can underscore a song like "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald" by Lightfoot. Rather, these songs ride the middle ground of easy listening. For the most part, these are quiet songs satisfied to simply tell their tales without a lot of fluorish or ornament. For the most part, this approach works.
"When the Ship Comes In" is one of the livelier tunes in the set. It's a jumpy little hoedown number that should set the listener's toes to tapping. This spritely tale of children rushing to see a ship sailing into the harbour makes a cheerful ending to an interesting collection of local history.
Written for the lighthouse and keepers of Flowerpot Island, "The Rocks of Tobermory" is a sweet, lyrical song with a soft Irish sound. A string section fills the spaces in Archibald's guitar without ever becoming too lush or saccharine. The result is a quiet yet moving performance. This is one of the prettiest songs on this release.
"Wind and the Chill" is a haunting song featuring sweet poetic words drawn from the gravestone inscription of a young sailor who had died at sea. The shortest song in this set, "Wind and the Chill" is also one of the most powerful.
Midway through the set, "The Wildman's Broken Heart" provides a sort of intermission, a break from Archibald's vocals. This tender mix of piano and strings represents without words the story of a man who had left civilization to live in the wild and during a storm one night had vanished without a trace. The pathos and sorrow of his story is present in every note.
"The Chantry Light" provides a second instrumental break, its peaceful strains of piano and strings meant to evoke a sense of the majestic 19th Century lighthouse on Chantry Island on the shores of Lake Huron. The melody is moody and almost new-age in its gentleness.
"The Nags that Saved the Schooner" is perhaps Archibald's best attempt at humour on this release. Here's Archibald's retelling of the story on which the song is based: "As the leaky schooner was moored to the dock, the lads would bring a load of horse manure onto the pier. The manure was shovelled against the side of the ship. The water, which was drawn into the boat through splits in the hull, would suck the manure into the cracks, the manure would then expand with the moisture and provide a seal that would last until the process could be repeated at the next port." Archibald has great fun with the possibilities this tale presents.
That description is a fine example of Archibald's unique presentation in the liner notes of his songs. Instead of including lyrics, he gives a brief, interesting background on the song and its sources, including his personal reminiscences of growing up on the shores of Canada's Great Lakes. For those interested in also reading the lyrics, he gives his e-mail and snail-mail addresses.
Spirit of the Inland Sea may be of as much interest to those concerned with the history of Great Lakes commerce and the lives that revolved around it as to those seeking original Canadian folk music. The writing, performance, and production of this release is better than many independent releases. However, and it may be a result of their academic origin, with the possible exception of "Wind and the Chill" and the two instrumental numbers, these songs don't have that indefinable something that will raise them above the run of the mill.
By the same token, this release makes a pleasant enough listen and can provide an impetus for family or classroom discussion of Great Lakes history as seen from the Canadian shore. Who knows what positive directions that might lead?
For more information on this Eastern Ontario songwriter and performer, you can check out the website for David Archibald.
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