John Renbourn Faro Annie

I first heard John Renbourn singing on the Pentangle song ‘Lord Franklin’ which I was obsessed with until I then found his solo stuff. On this record in particular I think a lot of Pentangle purists aren’t so into because it has a lot of wah-wah guitar, sitar and groovier elements and that’s part of the reason why I love it. But mainly I love it because it’s quiet; it sounds like he’s singing really quietly but it’s been brought up in the mix. There’s something about the way his singing voice sounds that taunts me and makes me want to hear what he’s singing. And what’s he’s saying is really dark and off-kilter although there are a number of upbeat, happier songs on this record. I love this record.

When I met John Renbourn - and this is only the second time that I’ve done this to anybody; I don’t want to make out that I approach all my musical heroes! – at a Jools Holland show when Pentangle were on it that I wanted to have my photo taken with him, I told him that Faro Annie was one of my all-time favourite albums and he said, ‘Well, what are you doing looking in the oldies bin?’ [Laughs uproariously]. That was totally cool!