REVIEW FROM www.livingtradition.co.uk

TOM PATTERSON & DAVE MORTON - Just The Way It Is
Private Label

I met these two boys at a songwriting competition at Cork Folk Festival after which we enjoyed a few songs together. They told me they were planning to record some of the songs and this CD is the result.

Tom and Dave are based in the Midlands, but most of the songs here (all written by Tom) are about the north east of England, his homeland. Tom sings and plays nylon strung guitar while Dave also plays guitar along with concertina and mandolin.

Tom is a skilled songwriter, ably painting pictures of characters, stories and places he has come across over the years, all in the traditional idiom. In particular, he has the knack of writing a good chorus that stays with you for some time after.

The Coaly Tyne is one such, celebrating the sights and sounds of the famous river. Telling Me To Stay is a beautifully descriptive song about the Dingle Peninsula in the west of Ireland. In a CD of great songs, The Town The Railway Left Behind stands out, giving a different perspective on the legacy of ‘the golden age of steam’ – thoughtful, perceptive and emotional.

Sometimes, when the two guitars play together, there are timing issues and the sound can be a bit cluttered as a result. Personally, I prefer when Tom and his guitar are accompanied by Dave’s concertina, such as on Black Gold, it gives a simpler, more traditional type of sound and there are fewer timing issues.

This is very much Tom and Dave ‘as live’, with no fancy over-dubbing or supporting musicians. It is not perfect, but I like it ‘just the way it is’ – an honest recording of well written, well thought out songs in the traditional folk vein. It would be a good find for singers looking for new material.

Fiona Heywood