The lie wasn’t meant to be believed. It was just social grease, intended to keep wheels turning. — Aliette de Bodard’s Fireheart Tiger
Ahoy, matey! Gary, music editor, here with another new edition to shiver yer timbers. With International Talk Like A Pirate Day just around the corner, I’ve ransacked the Archives for some of GMR‘s reviews of books, movies, and music with a piratical theme. That includes everything from the wide range of books and movies inspired by Peter Pan, to space operas, high seas adventures, romantasy, sea chanteys and more. And there’s a whole raft of new music reviews by Daryana and me. So let’s dig into this treasure chest together.
Cat in his review of J. M. Barrie’s original Peter Pan book (based on his earlier play) to be rather darker than the Disney version (big surprise there!). ‘Hook and his crew of pirates are predictably nasty, but so are the Lost Boys, who ‘are the children who fall out of their perambulators when the nurse is looking the other way. If they are not claimed in seven days they are sent far away to the Neverland to defray expenses.’
I found pirates known as Freeporters in Elizabeth Bear’s latest space opera The Folded Sky. ‘Dr. Sunya Song is an expert at teasing information out of ancient archives. She has travelled long and far to an exotic location to do just that, surviving an attack by pirates along the way, only to discover that her wife and their two children have unexpectedly arrived before her, as a surprise.’
In S.E. Hinton’s Hawkes Harbour, the protagonist Jamie is recounting to his doctor what led up to his being in a mental hospital, says reviewer J.S.S. Boyce. ‘Jamie regails us with exciting tales of the high seas. Pirates, smuggling, and reckless scams attempted by him and his partner in crime are recounted immodestly. I was drawn in immediately and could have read without stopping if I’d had a large enough block of time available to me. As it is, the book went by far too quickly.’
Jayme dug into William Goldman’s The Princess Bride (that’s right, the book; see below for a review of the movie). ‘There’s a lot of fun here, and anyone looking for a straightforward narrative is likely to be very confused. There are no dark overlords, no magic rings to be thrown into burning mountains. Anyone not looking for those things will be pleasantly surprised. Goldman proves you don’t have to be a Tolkein clone to write rousing fantasy. It’s just too bad that more writers today don’t seem believe that.’
‘Xich Si is a tech scavenger, living in Triệu Hoà Port, and scavenging tech to sell and support herself and her daughter, when she’s captured by pirates.’ Thus Lis begins her review of Aliette de Bodard’s romantic space opera The Red Scholar’s Wake. ‘I love these characters, their world, and their struggles to make it better.’
Robert was not entirely satisfied with Kage Baker’s short novel Or Else My Lady Keeps the Key. ‘The supernatural elements that provided strong resonance in “Maid,” an other-worldly quality to the narrative, are not so pervasive here, and have little effect on the mood of the story. There was a certain surreality there that doesn’t survive here, and I, for one, missed it — it somehow sparked “Maid” up a level, added an air of numinosity to the story that infused the whole tale.’
Finally, Warner took a look at an academic work on pirates and piracy, Gabriel Kuhn’s Life Under the Jolly Roger: Reflections on Golden Age Piracy. ‘Overallii, Life Under the Jolly Roger is an excellent look at the golden age of piracy from a somewhat political point of view. The book cites sources well, makes arguments cleanly and succinctly, and has the integrity to admit when an answer is not clear.’
Gary here with music. Daryana is back with another artist interview, this time with Patrick Vignoli, one of the voices in the Corsican vocal group Tempvs Fvgit. Patrick says, ‘In our concerts, it is not merely a question of performing musical pieces, but of sharing a moment of truth and humanity. Every voice, every breath, every silence becomes an invitation to enter into an emotional communion. We aim to offer the audience an experience that goes beyond listening — a space where they can recognize themselves, be moved, find calm, reflect, or simply feel.’
In new music, Daryana has a review of an album of Balkan music, Kulin Ban’s Ad Drinum. ‘Unlike the more accessible world music approach of their 2006 debut, Ad Drinum dives into the raw depths of sevdah. It tells local stories of Zvornik and Bosnia while echoing universal themes of longing, love, and spirituality. Byzantine modes, Sufi traces, Orthodox chants, and Ottoman echoes intertwine with saz, kaval, and bendir, yet also with guitar and piano motifs.’
I have a stack of new reviews this time. I’m leading off with a new one from Oregon’s Anna Tivel, which often puts a tear in my eye, as I point out. ‘To be fair, I generally get weepy when I listen to any of her records, but the songs on Animal Poem are right up there with her most poignant.’
I reviewed a new album, Mirra, from the progressive Norwegian Hardanger fiddler and composer Benedicte Maurseth, whose 2022 album Harr was one of my favorites of that year. ‘This is a deeply immersive work, its themes, motifs and sounds moving in patterns that repeat and modulate. The entire work follows the reindeer’s annual cycle of birth, searching for food, near constant movement, and grazing, and incorporates the grunting and pawing sounds they make as they feed and interact. The titles of the eight pieces that make up this suite reflect this cycle, such as: “Windy Days,” “The Calf Rises,” Hunting March,” “Fresh Snow Over Reindeer Moss,” “A Flock Of Birds Under The Moon.” ‘
Next from me is an omnibus review of two Latin jazz albums, Roger Glenn’s My Latin Heart, and Miguel Zenón Quartet’s Vanguardia Subterránea: Live at The Village Vanguard. Of the former, I note, “… it’s just one incredible groove-filled tune after another, laid back, tropically warm and beaming with good vibes. The three opening tracks, “Zambo’s Mambo,” “Cal’s Guajira” (an homage to Tjader), and “Brother Marshall,” feature Glenn on flute, vibes and alto sax, respectively. All three are beautiful tunes and showcase Glenn’s signature flawless improvisations — and will probably show up on my year-end favorites playlist.’ And of the latter: ‘The tracklist is mostly originals and all new material, six compositions by Zenón, plus his arrangements of a couple of Latin jazz classics: Willie Colón and Héctor Lavoe’s “El Día de Mi Suerte” and Gilberto Santa Rosa’s “Perdóname.” ‘
I also reviewed a couple of new piano trio releases, John Taylor’s Tramonto, and Liv Andrea Hauge Trio’s Døgnville. The late U.K. pianist Taylor was an excellent composer, but as I note in my review of this live set, ‘He was also a superb interpreter of others’ works, of which two excellent examples are included on this album, the title track by Ralph Towner and Steve Swallow’s amazing “Up Too Late.” ‘ I was already familiar with the Hauge trio, and really enjoy this album and its dreamy atmosphere. ‘According to the album notes, it “…explores the feeling of being “døgnvill” – a Norwegian term describing the sensation of being out of sync with time and reality, like during jet lag or insomnia,” as much of it was composed by Hauge while she was in bed with a high fever.’
New York based roots musician Hilary Hawke has a new album out, which I review. ‘Her latest solo album Lift Up This Old World consists mostly of original material that I’d call indie folk with old time or bluegrass instrumentation. It has really grown on me over the past couple of months. There’s a theme here, of finding your own path and trusting your instincts as you follow your muse where it takes you, and this is an excellent album throughout.’
I dusted off my archival review of the second volume of Rogue’s Gallery, a star-studded compilation of pirate ballads, sea songs and chanteys. ‘Like a pirate chest dug up on the beach of a desert island, this set has riches galore. One of the best is the opener of the first disc, a rocking reel by Shane McGowan, “Leaving of Liverpool.” Others in this vein include Todd Rundgren’s dance hall take on “Rolling Down to Old Maui,” (Richard) Thompson’s “General Taylor,” Robyn Hitchcock’s electrified chantey “Sam’s Gone Away,” and a creative version of “Sally Racket” by New Orleans bounce artists Katey Red & Big Freedia with experimental folk rockers Akron/Family.’
Our What Not is from Kage Baker who was a storyteller beyond compare, be it in emails as Cat can well attest, at Ren Faires with her sister Kathleen serving up ale, lovingly critiquing quite old films, writing stories of chocolate quaffing cyborgs, whores who decidedly didn’t have hearts of gold, or space raptors who are actually parrots now. So it won’t surprise you that was a master narrator of her own stories as you hear as when she reads The Empress of Mars, a novella she wrote.
Now let’s see what we’ve got got a performance recording for you his time… Hmmm… That’ll do nicely. Here’s Iron Horse, the great Scottish sort of trad group, performing ‘The Sleeping Warrior’ at the Gosport Easter Festival in April of ’96.
