Steeleye Span - Ten Man Mop or Mr. Reservoir Butler Rides Again (1971)

Ten Man Mop or Mr. Reservoir Butler Rides Again is the third album by Steeleye Span, recorded in 1971. Of all their albums, it is the most acoustic and it also has considerable Irish influence, second only to Horkstow Grange. Tracks like "Four Nights Drunk", "Marrowbones", and "Wee Weaver" are essentially pure folk. It was the last album to feature founding member Ashley Hutchings, who left the band in part because he felt that the album had moved too far toward Irish music and away from English music. The band was also considering touring America, and Hutchings was reluctant to make the trip.

The album begins with an adaptation of the Christmas carol "Gower Wassail". "When I was on Horseback" is one of the few folk songs to have an alternative existence as a blues song, sometimes known as "Six White Horses". It is also an Irish variant of a tune that inspired "Streets of Laredo" and "St James Infirmary". The last song, "Skewball" is one of the album's highlights, employing an effective counterpoint between a banjo and an electric guitar.

The album was notable for having a textured "gatefold" sleeve and inner pages on its original release. This was paid for by the band but cost more to print than the album generated in profits, meaning the band lost money on each album sold. None of the re-releases have included the original number of pages of liner notes.

The album's curious title and subtitle require some explanation. A 'mop' or 'mop-fair' is a late medieval term for a job fair, where laborers come looking for work. (The song "Copshawholme Fair", from the band's first album, is about such a fair.) The conceit was that the band was out of work and job-hunting. A 'ten man mop' would be a very poor show, since there would be few potential employees to choose from. The even more curious subtitle is a reference to Reservoir Butler, who had originally performed one of the songs covered on the album. The band was so struck by his unusual name that they decided it needed to be saved from obscurity.

When Castle Music re-released Ten Man Mop..., they added a substantial number of bonus tracks. On the first disc, the bonus tracks included "General Taylor" and three versions of the Buddy Holly song "Rave On". A second disc was included that contained a recording from "Radio One in Concert with John Peel", dated 26/9/71 (following British dating conventions). The quality of the recording was quite variable, but the bonus tracks include a number of pieces not released on any album. (wikipedia)

Disc One:
1. Gower Wassail
2. Jigs: Paddy Clancey's Jig/Willie Clancy's Fancy
3. Four Nights Drunk
4. When I Was On Horseback
5. Marrowbones
6. Captain Coulston
7. Reels: Dowd's Favourite/10 Float/ Morning Dew
8. Wee Weaver
9. Skewball
10. General Taylor (Studio Outtake)
11. Rave On (Single)
12. Rave On (Alternate Version)
13. Rave On (Alternate Version II)

Disc Two BBC Radio One In Concert 9-26-71:
1. False Night On The Road
2. Lark In The Morning
3. Rave On
4. Three Reels (Dowd's Favourite/10 Float/Musical Priest)
5. Captain Coulston
6. Handsome Polly-O
7. Two Sea Shanties (Bring 'Em Down/Haul On The Bowline)
8. Four Nights Drunk
9. When I Was On Horseback
10. I Live Not Where I Love
11. Three Reels (Wind That Shakes The Barley/Pigeon On The Gate/Jenny's Chickens)
12. Female Drummer
13. General Taylor
14. Four Reels (College Grove/Silver Spear/Ballymurphy Rake/Maid Behind The Bar)

Maddy Prior - vocals, spoons, tabor
Tim Hart - vocals, dulcimer, guitars, organ, 5-string banjo, mandolin
Peter Knight - fiddle, tenor banjo, mandolin, vocals, timpani
Ashley Hutchings - bass
Martin Carthy - vocals, guitar, organ

EAC-FLAC-LOG-CUE-SCANS 574 MB

Part 1__Part 2__Part 3__Part 4__Part 5__Part 6

Later.