The Fragile (O'Hooley & Tidow album)

The Fragile, the second album by the folk music duo O'Hooley & Tidow, was released on 9 February 2012 on the No Masters label. It received a four-starred review in The Guardian. The album's title is derived from the words of one of its songs, "Mein Deern", about the dying hours of Heidi Tidow's German grandmother.[1] The album features guest performances by Andy Cutting, Jackie Oates, Jude Abbott, Cormac Byrne, Anna Esslemont, Sam Pegg, The Solo Players and London's Diversity Choir.

The Fragile
Studio album by
O'Hooley & Tidow
Released9  February 2012 (UK)
RecordedGolcar, Huddersfield,[1] West Yorkshire
GenreFolk; chamber folk
Length50:48
LabelNo Masters (NMCD39)
O'Hooley & Tidow chronology
Silent June
(2010)		 The Fragile
(2012)		 The Hum
(2014)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
The Guardian[2]

Theme and songs

According to O'Hooley & Tidow, all the songs on The Fragile are linked by the common theme of vulnerability.[1]

A single from the album, "The Last Polar Bear", was released in November 2011. The track was reissued on 1 November 2012 as a double single with "Gentleman Jack".[3] This is a song, also from the album, about Anne Lister, an early 19th-century Yorkshire lesbian gentlewoman.[4]

The words of "Little Boy Blue" are from a 19th-century poem by the American writer, Eugene Field. The poem, about a young boy and his toys, suggests that he dies and is taken by angels and his toys wait for him to return.

"She Lived Beside the Anner" is a traditional folk song from Tipperary, Ireland.[5]

Reception

In a four-starred review, Robin Denselow of The Guardian described The Fragile as an "intriguing, ambitious set" and said that the album's cover version of Massive Attack's "Teardrop" was "an exquisite reworking".[2] Guardian music critic Jude Rogers voted it as one of the best tracks of 2012.[6]

Northern Sky praised the album's "complex string arrangements and fine instrumental accompaniment" and "highly accomplished pieces of musical composition; you can never second guess what's around the corner in terms of sonic exploration".[7] Reviewing the album for Folking.com, Dai Jeffries said "The confidence, power and earthiness of their voices both solo and in harmony are what shine through this excellent album.[8] Folk Wales Online described the album as a "beautiful, entrancing, hypnotic CD" and "breathtakingly original".[9]

Northern Sky music magazine's reviewer described the song "The Last Polar Bear" as "utterly beautiful", saying "This is how love songs should be written".[10]

Holger Brandstaedt, reviewing the album for FolkWorld, said: "The influence of the producer is unmistakable. Some of the tracks sound clearly by Chumbawamba, others have their godfathers in The Beautiful South".[11]

Track listing
  1. "The Tallest Tree" (Belinda O'Hooley/Heidi Tidow) 4:34
  2. "The Last Polar Bear" (Belinda O'Hooley/Heidi Tidow) 3:25
  3. "Gentleman Jack" (Belinda O'Hooley/Heidi Tidow) 2:47
  4. "Teardrop" (Robert Del Naja, Grantley Marshall, Andrew Vowles, Elizabeth Fraser) 1:33
  5. "Little Boy Blue" (words from an 1888 poem by Eugene Field; music by Belinda O'Hooley/Heidi Tidow) 4:27
  6. "Calling Me" (Belinda O'Hooley/Heidi Tidow) 5:52
  7. "Mein Deern" (Belinda O'Hooley/Heidi Tidow) 7:20
  8. "A Daytrip" (Belinda O'Hooley/Heidi Tidow) 4:15
  9. "Pass It On" (Belinda O'Hooley/Heidi Tidow) 3:14
  10. "She Lived Beside the Anner" (traditional, arranged by Belinda O'Hooley/Heidi Tidow) 4:17
  11. "Ronnie's Song" (Belinda O'Hooley/Heidi Tidow) 6:28
  12. "Madgie in the Summerlands" (Belinda O'Hooley, Heidi Tidow, James Dumbelton, Jackie Oates) 2:32

Total album length = 50:48

Personnel

O'Hooley & Tidow

Other musicians
  • Jude Abbott – euphonium, flugelhorn, cornet
  • Cormac Byrne – bodhrán, drums, percussion
  • Andy Cutting – diatonic button accordion
  • Anna Esslemont – violin
  • Diversity Choir – vocals (arranged and directed by Andrea Brown)
  • Jackie Oates – bass; lead vocals on "Madgie in the Summerlands"
  • Sam Pegg – bass
  • Solo Players – strings (Adam Robinson, James Pattinson – violin; Jayne Coyle – viola; Martin Couzin – cello; Melanie Purves – arrangements)

Production and release

The album was recorded at Belinda O'Hooley and Heidi Tidow's home in Golcar, West Yorkshire, in September and October 2011 and also at Hill Top Studio, Leeds. Diversity Choir's contribution was recorded live at St Anne's Church, Soho, London. The album was mixed and mastered by Neil Ferguson of Chumbawamba at Hill Top Studio, Leeds.[12] and was released on 9 February 2012 on the No Masters label.

The illustrations on the cover, which was designed by Boff Whalley, are by Kate Aughey.[13] The photographs of O’Hooley & Tidow standing in the sea were taken by Casey Orr at Sandsend in Whitby.[14]

References
  1. "O' Hooley & Tidow interview". EFDSS News. English Folk Dance and Song Society. 19 April 2012. Retrieved 18 May 2012.
  2. Robin Denselow (2 February 2012). "O'Hooley & Tidow: The Fragile – review". The Guardian. Retrieved 22 March 2012.
  3. "Music and Performance: Interview with O'Hooley and Tidow". When Sally Met Sally. 12 September 2012. Archived from the original on 17 September 2012. Retrieved 15 September 2012.
  4. Elizabeth Mavor (4 February 1988). "Gentleman Jack from Halifax". London Review of Books. 10 (3): 18–19. Retrieved 19 March 2016.
  5. Reg Keating. "She Lived Beside the Anner". County Songs. Retrieved 13 September 2017.
  6. Jude Rogers; et al. (17 December 2012). "The best albums of 2012: our critics' individual choices". The Guardian. Retrieved 4 January 2013.
  7. Allan Wilkinson (12 February 2012). "Album Review: O'Hooley & Tidow – The Fragile (No Masters)". Northern Sky. Retrieved 18 May 2012.
  8. Dai Jeffries (17 January 2012). "O'HOOLEY & TIDOW – The Fragile – NO MASTERS NMCD39". Folking.com. Retrieved 19 May 2012.
  9. Mick Tems (September 2012). "CD Reviews". FolkWales Online Magazine. Retrieved 5 September 2017.
  10. Allan Wilkinson (22 November 2011). "Single Review: O'Hooley & Tidow – The Last Polar Bear (Download)". Northern Sky. Retrieved 27 November 2011.
  11. Brandstaedt, Holger (November 2012). "O'Hooley & Tidow The Fragile". FolkWorld. No. 49. Retrieved 5 November 2018.
  12. Album sleeve notes
  13. Kate Aughey (10 January 2012). "More from the O'Hooley and Tidow Commission". Kate Aughey Illustrations. Retrieved 15 September 2016.
  14. "The Fragile". O'Hooley & Tidow website. 2012. Retrieved 29 November 2015.
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