Jack With a Feather

On their first album, British folk group Spriguns Of Tolgus – the husband-and-wife duo of Mike and Mandy Morton, plus friends – can sound a little tentative, and they seem slightly in awe of the presence of producer Tim Hart, of Steeleye Span. It wasn’t necessary – the Mortons have their own, peculiar chemistry, which is present even in their formative years. Indeed, that uncertainty is part of the fragile magic of Jack With A Feather. The jigs have a lovely, untempered quality to them, as though they’re being played in the back room of an old pub; their takes on traditional songs honour melody and lyric, while allowing the voices of the duo to shine through: Mike’s is earthen and slightly dour, Mandy’s is a feather’s breath, light and lovely.