Laughing With The Moon
Hilary James with Simon Mayor - CD reviews

The Daily Telegraph
After devoting 30 years to winning belated respect for the mandolin, Simon Mayor is established as the instrument's most eloquent champion. The delightful singing and instrumental contributions of Hilary James have done his campaign no harm, helping the couple to refine a confident, attractive sound.

Mayor and James have chosen their material well. Instantly appealing traditional songs, notably 'The
Shearing's Not For You', a neglected folk club standard
of the early 1970s, and a sparkling version of 'Carolan's
Concerto', among the best-known of the 18th-century
blind harpist's charming little pieces, mix effectively with
newer works.


Irish Music Magazine
This is pure joy. The voice, the instruments and the choice of tracks are hard to fault. Mixing new and traditional songs and tunes, this virtuoso pair will lift your spirits in almost any circumstance. The opening track, "The Dream," sets the tune and tone. It is simple but entrancing.

The magic of this pair is that they make it seem so easy; we all think we could do it. "The Reel Thing" is an instrumental set that will have the traditional "air mandolin players" tweaking and twiddling.

I sat listening to "The Shearing's Not For You" for a full four plays -- for two reasons. The tune is fantastic, but I had heard it somewhere else in a different arrangement and with different words. Don't you just hate that? Eventually I realised it was used by Steeleye Span on "My Love." The notes inform us that these lyrics date back to Scotland in the 19th century. That is another one of the joys of this CD; the notes tell us in precise detail where the traditional pieces originated.

Their version of the famous "Carolan's Concerto" is faster than we are used to, but it works very well. It is a hallmark of the album that many tunes are given in what the duo feel is the original arrangement. To this end, "Hey Johnny Cope" is played at a much slower pace than we expect. Another well-known piece getting this treatment is the song "Shenandoah."

This is an exciting album bringing new perspectives and new life to some songs that we may have grown tired of, as well as introducing new works.
Nicky Rossiter


Living Tradition
Listening to this elegant album of lively traditional and original folk-based music and song is a pleasure - Hilary James' high, pure English vocal radiates light and beauty. This is her fourth solo album, though Simon Mayor's influence is deep-felt.

The traditional tunes come from England, Scotland, Ireland, and from across the Atlantic. Mayor's masterly playing impacts immediately - mandolin is his main instrument; though he also plays mandola, mandocello, violin and guitars here. His influence on the album's bright lyricism is remarkable.

James' lovely vocals radiate and delight throughout, and are supplemented by her not-inconsiderable skill on guitar, mandobass (looks impressive on the album cover!), double bass and bass guitar. Guest musicians lend depth and structure to the ensemble. Her voice rises pure and clear above 'The Dream', 'Fireflies' and 'Laughing With The Moon', and the breezy, fiddle-enhanced 'Newcastle'. Her vocal is beautifully direct (as is the crystalline sound of the mandolin) on broadside ballad 'The Shearing's Not For You', set to a delightful Scottish tune. 'Andrew Lammie' is a traditional Perthshire song telling the tragic tale of Agnes Smith's doomed passion for a lowly Fyvie trumpeter - the very effective use of military-style drums in this song creates quite a 'doomed' feel, whilst Mayor's fiddle adds more than a touch of emotion. 'Shenandoah' (probably from Canada or the US) is sung as a lullaby, and features some fine soprano sax.

The four instrumentals are equally enjoyable. Top of my list are the jigs 'Hey! Johnny Cope/Athol Highlanders', stirring pieces that gather considerable momentum - Mayor's agile mandolin picks astonish, and the piece is rounded off with a big, satisfyingly-resonant pluck of the mandobass' strings. Centuries old 'Hunt The Squirrel/Long Odds' is from Playford's Dancing Master, a collection of English dances and tunes. Images of film adaptations of Austen's magnificent novels spring to mind, as I imagine this tune alongside 'Mr Beveridge's Maggot' and 'The Barley Mow'. Mayor's 'The Reel Thing' creates exactly the same effect! There's a nod to Ireland with the jauntily buoyant 'Carolan's Concerto'.

This is an album I'll return to again and again - immensely enjoyable.
Debbie Koritsas


Green Man Review
(online magazine)
Both James and Mayor are ace multi-instrumentalists, with James the owner of a fine, smooth soprano voice, and Mayor a very capable vocal harmony supplier. At the heart of their music you find mandolins in various forms and sizes, but they also play guitars, violins and bass. Between them they have produced about ten albums.

The two produce music that to me is folk music with a slight classical touch. They steer away from the rawness you find on some other albums. Instead you get the feeling that each note they play or sing is carefully planned. The mix is crystal clear. You can hear every instrument or vocal harmony. It all sounds very fresh.

Laughing with the Moon is a mixed album. There are four James compositions on it, the title track being one. It is an up-tempo song built around a Scottish tune, with the verses mixed with instrumental interludes. On this Mayor, who is mostly known as one of England's best mandolin players, gets to shine on fiddle.

"The Reel Thing" is an instrumental that sounds more swing than reel. It has the same feel to it as Fairport's "Woodworm Swing" and gives both James and Mayor a chance to stretch as instrumentalists.

Most of the tracks are "trad arr." There is a beautiful version of "The Shearing's Not For You" and a slow instrumental treatment of the old Scottish "Johnny Cope." They have also reworked "Carolan's Concerto" slightly and perform it at a breathtaking speed.

My favourite traditional tracks on the album are "Andrew Lammie" and "Shenandoah." The former is an ancient ballad, performed in a slow delicate style. The latter also gets a slow treatment, with James double tracking some marvellous vocal harmonies. They really breathe new life into this much-performed song.

Hilary James and Simon Mayor have spent the last month acting as support on Fairport Convention's winter tour in England. People have described their opening sets as a great success. From these albums I can understand why.

They are two damn good musicians playing damn good music, and that will take them a long way. Clearly worth checking out.
Lars Nilsson


Kevin’s Celtic & Folk Music CD Reviews
(online magazine)
Touchingly, Simon Mayor doffs his cap to Hilary James before a note is played. Whereas I had always previously seen them billed as 'Simon Mayor & Hilary James', here, not only does Hilary get precedence, but Simon has the word 'with' as a prefix to his name: thus almost relegating him to the status of an accessory!

I jest to a degree. He is of course Britain's foremost mandolin player on the Folk Scene, and is generally considered to be amongst the top three British exponents of the instrument in any genre.

But here, although his mandolin, mandocello, mandola, fiddle and guitar work are as always, impeccable in both their intelligent musicality and their outstanding element of support for the vocals, the fact is that he leaves all lead vocals to Hilary, and so in a very real way it is HER
record.

Not that she is a one-trick pony! Au contraire. She is a rival to Simon in the 'multi-instrumentalist' game. Here we see her playing guitar, double bass, mandobass and bass guitar! But it is her pellucid delivery of the song lyrics that jump out at you from this record.

Whereas Simon Mayor has an almost clinical way with his playing - never any question of duff or muffled notes: one always gets the impression he has washed his hands in strong disinfectant before he picks up his instrument - Hilary James has the warmest of voices: like she's a nurse who has abandoned 'hospital tucks' to spend time holding the hand of the patient.

A voice that one just knows could easily adapt itself to a classical repertoire: but if it ever did, there would never be any danger of her singing opera in that affected way some of the lesser British opera singers adopt.

This album is a delightful mix of traditional ballad and instrumental Not a weak track in evidence. The cuts that did it for me were that splendid North American song 'Shenandoah' (sung here as a lullaby); a refreshingly faithful version of that old war-horse by Turlough O'Carolan, 'Carolan's Concerto'; and above all that fine traditional song 'The Shearing's Not For You', which is one of those rare songs that are deeply affecting WITHOUT them making any apparent deliberate assault on the listener's sensibilities.
Worth buying.
Dai Woosnam


Net Rhythms
(online magazine)
Laughing With The Moon is a quality new album of songs and instrumentals from these self-styled "mandolinquents" (it's the latest in a long line of over twenty releases on their own label, in fact!), containing both traditional and original material in almost equal measure.

As you'd expect if you've previously encountered their music, each and every selection is elegantly sung and/or expertly played, and so is unlikely to disappoint in any way. Simon and Hilary are helped out a bit by Frank Kilkelly (guitar), Phil Fentimen (guitar, double bass), Alan Whetton (soprano sax) and Simon Price (drums), one or more of these musicians appearing on around half of the tracks, so the emphasis isn't overwhelmingly on the duo's penchant for anything "mando".

The disc therefore turns out to be more well-balanced than the idea of an unadulterated mando-fest might at first convey to the uninitiated, and it's actually all quite fun to listen to – light-textured, fleet of foot yet never insubstantial.

Hilary's clear-toned vocals fit just right with the lithe and skilled instrumental playing too. Herein may not quite be the finest versions of familiar repertoire pieces such as Carolan's Concerto or songs such as The Shearing's Not For You that you'll have heard, but they're nowhere near the bottom of the pile and Simon and Hilary invariably find something fresh in their chosen material.

This sparkling release should win Simon and Hilary some
new admirers.


Babysue (online magazine - USA)
Laughing at the Moon / Lullabies With Mandolins

Hilary James and Simon Mayor make music for all the right reasons. While most folks in the United States may not be familiar with these two individuals, they are well known in Great Britain. The two have been recording and touring together in various stages of their careers since the 1970s. James sings, plays guitar and bass guitar while Mayor is a mandolin virtuoso.

Laughing at the Moon is a lighthearted romp through a variety of traditional and original tunes. Hilary has a voice that is perfectly smooth and always on key... slightly reminiscent of Alison Krauss. Mayor's playing is personal and spirited throughout.

The instrumentals sound just as good as the vocal tracks and vice versa. On Lullabies With Mandolins, the duo covers songs that will appeal to children as well as adults. The album reminds us of The Innocence Mission's Now the Day Is Over. James and Mayor chose to cover timeless lullabies that will sound great decades from now.

Both of these discs showcase two musicians who truly love what they do. In their spare time, these folks even play for children in schools. How cool is that? Completely genuine and real in every way.

Excellent.
(Rating: 5+)


Acoustics Records
PO Box 350
Reading RG6 7DQ
England
Tel: +44 (0)118 926 8615
www.acousticsrecords.co.uk