Judee Sill - Disc of the day

Judee Sill
Judee Sill

(Asylum, 1971)

Laurel Canyon’s lost heroine soars skywards with her celestial debut of hymnal delights.

Unlike many of the country-folk troubadours who signed to David Geffen's nascent Asylum imprint in the early ‘70s, the bespectacled Judee Sill spent much of her short life in sunny California under a cloud of darkness. Alcoholism, violence and drug abuse constantly rattled her family (Sill eventually died from an overdose in 1979), which makes the spiritual highs and lulling melodies of her debut LP all the more intriguing. Amid gospel-piano changes, west coast acoustic arpeggios and swooning orchestral arrangements, an inviting sense of lunar-calm sits at the centre of every track – astounding considering the horrors of her early life. Her voice alone is worth the price of the currently available CD reissue and with everyone from The Magic Numbers to XTC referencing her in interviews, these songs are now once again free to radiate their crepuscular beauty. Besides which other artist in your record collection has cited "Bach, Pythagoras and Ray Charles" as their primary influences? A bewitching experience.

Ross Bennett

Posted by Ross_Bennett at 6:00 AM GMT 30/11/2007

Further Listening

Judee Sill – Heartfood (Asylum, 1973)

Joni Mitchell – Ladies Of The Canyon (Asylum, 1970)

Carole King – Tapestry (Ode, 1971)

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Almost anything that gets the name of Judee Sill a higher profile is good news, be it The Magic Numbers, XTC or whoever. She was a great artist who, if a little more stable as a person, could've given Joni Mitchell a run for her money, for a while, at least anyway.

Posted by at 6:41 PM GMT 30/11/2007 Report Abuse

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