No One But Me

There's an enormous five disc edition of The Wicker Man out this week, a 50th anniversary celebration of the film. The box contains three versions of the film (Director's Cut, Theatrical Cut and The Final Cut) along with all manner of extras- interviews, trailers, documentaries, commentaries and photographs. There's more info at the BFI shop. The final disc is a CD which has grown from a Katy J Pearson cover of Willow's Song which was on her Sound Of The Morning album. Willow's Song is from the film and supposedly sung by Britt Eckland, played by the band Magnet (Britt apparently struggled to hold a tune even when equipped with a bucket and Willow's Song was actually sung by Rachel Verney. Or possibly Annie Ross). Written by composer Paul Giovanni, Willow's Song is haunted 1973 psychedelic folk, genuinely beautiful, a moment of calm with a darkness residing inside it too. 

Katy J Pearson's cover is psychedelic/ motorik, a krauty four four beat kicking up and echo laden guitar. As well as Willow's Song the box contains several other songs from the film covered by Katy. 

The CD also contains a pair of new versions of Katy's Willow's Song, one a far more folky cover done with alt- folk group Broadside Hacks, the acoustic guitars and folk arrangement transporting it back to Summerisle in 1973 with visions of Edward Woodward, pagan rituals and Britt. 

The other is a seven minute remix by Richard Norris, a slowed down dub folk remix with long trumpet notes and deep bass. Katy's voice eventually glides in on top, floating over the dubness. Richard's recent immersion into dub sounds and production as seen in his new Oracle Sound label, is paying off massively with this remix, a track crying out for a vinyl release. 

Credit where it is due- earlier this week Khayem featured the Richard Norris remix over at Dubhed as part of a 2023 mix he put together, marking the slow fade from summer to autumn. All three versions of Katy J Pearson's cover have the shiver of autumn about them, the dusk falling sooner and the mornings cooler and mistier even if the trees are still full of green leaves. 

Back at the tail end of 2021 Sean Johnston put Hardway Bros aside for a while and released a cover of Willow's Song as The Summerisle Trio, a collective formed with Duncan Gray and singer Sarah Rebecca (later expanded to The Summerisle Six for the This Is Something 12"). Willow's Song was only available as 7" vinyl on Golden Lion Sounds, backed with The Emperor Machine's chunky self explanatory dancefloor monster Dance Your Tit Out. The Summerisle Trio's cover is less folky than Katy's cover, the drum machine and synths casting an electronic shimmer behind the vocal. You can listen to it here. 

Holmes And Robertson And Willow

Music is a really useful distraction at the moment, a good displacement activity. Some of it genuinely helpful, a balm of some kind (or respite from tinnitus), and some of it just allows my mind to go elsewhere for a while. Later on of course it all suddenly crashes back in unexpectedly and you're crying while eating your tea. 

Two long mixes to take you/ me elsewhere on 23rd December. First, last month's edition of God's waiting Room, David Holmes' monthly visit to NTS radio. David is a star. This month's two hour show takes in everything from the cinematic sounds of Pierre Barouh, psychedelic folk and off kilter 60s pop to Don Cherry, African Head Charge, Daniel Avery and Chris Carter, a wealth of sounds from around the globe and at the end Sault and Group Zero. You can listen here and the tracklist is here. 

Meanwhile over at The Rotating Institute on Soho Radio Justin Robertson takes the controls for two hours of fun starting with Tangerine Dream and scooping up a chugging, shuffly, psychedelic and cosmische selection with tracks from the likes of Jezebel, Mugwump, Komodo, Pye Corner Audio, Jas Shaw, Tokyo Offshore Project and Curved Light before finishing with the latest release on Golden Lion Sounds, the label running out of The Golden Lion in Todmorden- the B-side of the forthcoming 7" is from The Summerisle Trio, a three-piece comprised of Sean Johnston, Duncan Grey and Sarah Rebecca and their cover of Willow's Song from The Wicker Man. 21st century psychedelic folk- it'll make perfect sense when you hear it. Listen to Justin's mix here. 

Willow's Song in the film The Wicker Man was written by Paul Giovanni and played by Magnet (there's some dispute about who sang it). Willow (Britt Ekland) sings it to Sergeant Howie (Edward Woodward, the actor not the useless chief executive at Manchester United). Haunting, lilting, slightly trippy and somewhat entrancing.