Recorded in July 1964, Callier’s debut finally reached a wider audience after his mid-’90s re-emergence from years in computer programming exile and the patronage of Beth Orton. Now bolstered by three extras (including a breathtaking reading of Judy Collins’ “The Golden Apples Of The Sun”), this is unsinkable stuff, Callier purring like a male Nina Simone over spartan arrangements of traditional ditties, spinning folk standards into soulful spirituals. Exploring his love of Coltrane, Callier fingerpicks over the twin basses of Terbour Attenborough and John Tweedle to create a skin-pricking intimacy, not least on “Spin Spin Spin” and the epic “I’m A Drifter”.
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