Martha's Vineyard
In September 1989 I moved out of home for the first time and went to live in a small coastal village called Plockton in the western Highlands of Scotland to work as a waiter in a small family-run hotel. I was twenty years old. I'd subscribed to the music magazine 'Q' a few months before in an effort to get more acquainted with new music and one month (I can't recall which) there was a review of the self-titled album by a new Australian band who had called themselves 'Martha's Vineyard'. For some reason the review caught my attention and I bought the album - without even hearing it! Maybe it was the album cover which intrigued me... This was the days before the Internet so I couldn't Google the band, watch promo vids on YouTube or subscribe to their Twitter account or Facebook page! I bought the album 'blind'. But what a wise purchase it proved to be - and one I have never regretted!
About the band
Martha's Vineyard were an Australian rock band, formed in Perth in May 1986 by lead singer, Peggy Van Zalm. In June 1989 the group issued their debut self-titled album on rooArt, which was produced by Nick Mainsbridge. It peaked in the top 100 on the Kent Music Report Albums Chart. Australian musicologist, Ian McFarlane, described their sound as "reflective folk rock [which] mixed melancholy vocals, acoustic and electric guitars, gentle percussion and spacious arrangements to arrive at a harmonious and intriguing whole". They shared a similar sound and outlook to that of fellow Perth bands like The Triffids, The Honeys and Chad's Tree. Van Zalm's vocals drew positive comparisons with Patti Smith, Chrissie Hynde and Joni Mitchell. The group had toured nationally supporting Simply Red, INXS, Eurythmics, The Go-Betweens, Paul Kelly, The Triffids, Mental as Anything, The Saints and Weddings, Parties, Anything, before disbanding in 1990. By 1994 Van Zalm had launched her solo career. [Wikipedia]
Two tracks from the album were released as singles: 'Old Beach Road' and 'More Of the Same'.
The album was the perfect soundtrack to the summers of 1990 and 1991 when the temperatures in the village I was living in hit the 30 degrees - thanks to the Gulf Stream! I worked morning and evening shifts in the hotel so the sun-drenched afternoons were my own and I would walk out to the island in the bay (when the tide was low, at high tide it was cut off from the village) and sit enjoying the sun and listening to this bright, colourful, vibrant album.
Apart from the two singles tracks, I have one very special favourite track on the album. It's called 'Shadows' and is one of the most hauntingly intimate and moving songs I've heard, anywhere. It features Peggy van Zalm and paino accompaniment - but begins with some haunting sounds created by the pianist strumming and plucking the piano strings inside the piano itself...
Here is 'Shadows' so you can what I mean:
Peggy van Zalm is still involved in the music scene, and is on Facebook.
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/5FAMRUJUSKLncLMZiIDhRo?si=ilTjAJ9bSfqCRTh-MSd-CA&utm_source=copy-link
The CD of 'Martha's Vineyard is available on Amazon:
Comments
Post a Comment