Pentangle - The Casbah (1970)

Pentangle were formed in 1967, and the original line-up was unchanged throughout the band's first incarnation from 1967-1973, consisting of Jacqui McShee on vocals, John Renbourn on vocals and guitar, Bert Jansch on vocals and guitar, Danny Thompson on double bass, and Terry Cox on drums, and the name Pentangle was chosen to represent the five members of the band. Pentangle are often characterised as a folk-rock band, although Danny Thompson preferred to describe the group as a folk-jazz band, which is certainly evident when they cover Charlie Mingus's 'Goodbye Pork-Pie Hat' or 'Haitian Fight Song'. John Renbourn also rejected the 'folk-rock' categorisation, saying, "One of the worst things you can do to a folk song is inflict a rock beat on it", and many of their songs used unusual time signatures, such as 'Light Flight' from 'Basket Of Light', whihc includes sections in 5/8, 7/8 and 6/4. Prior to the band's formation, Renbourn and Jansch were already popular musicians on the British folk scene, with several solo albums each and a duet LP, while Jacqui McShee had begun as an unpaid "floor singer" in several of the London folk clubs, and by 1965 was running her own folk club at the Red Lion in Sutton, Surrey, where she met Jansch and Renbourn. Thompson and Cox were well known as jazz musicians and had played together in Alexis Korner's band, and by 1966 they were both part of Duffy Power's Nucleus, alongside John McLaughlin on electric guitar. Although nominally a 'folk' group, the members shared catholic tastes and influences. McShee had a grounding in traditional music, Cox and Thompson a love of jazz, Renbourn a growing interest in early music, and Jansch a taste for blues and contemporaries such as Bob Dylan. Throughout 1967 and 1968 the band undertook tours of Denmark and the UK tour, gradually moving from clubs to concert halls, and their growing reputation led them to be signed to Transatlantic Records, with their eponymous debut LP being released in May 1968. This was an all-acoustic affair, produced by Shel Talmy, and the following month they performed at London's Royal Festival Hall, with recordings from the concert forming part of their second album 'Sweet Child', a double album which was half live and half studio recordings. 'Basket Of Light' followed in 1969, and included their most famous song 'Light Flight', which was a surprise hit single after it was used as the theme music for the BBC television series 'Take Three Girls'. 

By 1970, they were at the peak of their popularity, recording a soundtrack for the film 'Tam Lin', making at least 12 television appearances, and undertaking tours of the UK and America. However, their fourth album 'Cruel Sister' was a commercial disaster, consisting of just four songs, all traditional, and including an 18 and a half minute-long version of 'Jack Orion'. For 1971's 'Reflection' the band returned to a mix of traditional and original material, and this was received with much more enthusiasm by the press and public, but the strains of touring and of working together as a band were readily apparent, and the band withdrew from Transatlantic in a bitter dispute with regarding royalties. The final album of the original lineup was 'Solomon's Seal', released by Warner Brothers/Reprise in 1972, with its release being accompanied by a UK tour, the last few dates of which had to be cancelled owing to Thompson becoming ill. On New Year's Day 1973, Jansch decided to leave the band, and Pentangle were no more. Reunions have been planned for sometimes happened over the next 40 or so years, and incarnations of the band continue to tour today. Their heyday, though was definitely the late 60's/early 70's, and this collection brings together some rare singles, b-sides, soundtrack recordings, and previously unreleased tracks from 1967 to 1970. The band recorded a number of different takes of 'Tam Lin' for the film of the same name, which were scattered throughout the movie, and here they are segued together into two separate tracks. There are also snatches of 'The Name Of The Game' heard in a party scene in the film, and although this was never recorded in the studio, luckily a live take of it has subsequently been discovered, while 'The Best Part Of Me' plays in full over the opening credits. There is also a studio recording of 'Haitian Fight Song' which was only previously available as a live recording on the 'Sweet Child' album, and a much shorter, instrumental version of the notorious 'Jack Orion'. 

Track listing

01 Travellin' Song (single 1968)
02 Poison (previously unreleased 1967)
03 Koan (previously unreleased 1967)
04 The Wheel (previously unreleased 1968)
05 The Casbah (previously unreleased 1968)
06 Haitian Fight Song (previously unreleased 1968)
07 I Saw An Angel (b-side of 'Once I had A Sweetheart' 1969)
08 Cold Mountain (b-side of 'Light Flight' 1969)
09 Jack Orion (previously unreleased instrumental 1970) 
10 Tam Lin - Part I (from the film 'Tam Lin' 1970)
11 Name Of The Game (live version of song from the film 'Tam Lin' 1970)
12 The Best Part Of You (from the film 'Tam Lin' 1970)
13 Tam Lin - Part II (from the film 'Tam Lin' 1970)