Faith Cormier wrote this review.
The Sharecroppers (Guy Romaine, Mike Madigan and Ed Humber) are three teachers from Pasadena, Newfoundland. This, their first album, contains a variety of styles.
The first cut, “One Room School,” is very country and sounds like it comes from the Appalachians rather than the Long Range Mountains of Newfoundland. “My Grandfather’s Fiddle” shares the same sort of country rhythm, with less of a twang.
“The Kyle,” a sadder song, shows much more Celtic influence, as does “Newman’s Reel” – one of only two instrumental pieces on the recording – with its soaring woodwinds.
If one thing unites this album it’s nostalgia. “One Room School,” “Newfoundland Autumn” and “The Mill Whistle” are full of longing for the good old days (or at least the better aspects thereof) and a vanishing way of life. “Engineer’s Song” and “Yesterday’s Fishermen” deal with the loss of a way of earning a living. The hero of “Yesterday’s Fishermen” is “too old to fish, too young not to care,” and he longs for the career he can no longer follow as he watches his sons set out to sea.
“The Legionnaires” is a tribute to veterans. It starts with “Taps” and includes references to McCrae’s “In Flanders Fields.” “Katie’s Tune” is a lively instrumental and “Freddie’s Tune” has an infectious nonsense chorus. The “Mermaid” is a pretty straight rendition of an old standard. “Twenty-five Miners” recounts the tragedy of a mining accident that killed twenty-five men, told from the perspective of the son and brother of two of the victims.
Does this variety of styles show the Sharecroppers’ versatility, or that they were struggling to find a voice? Probably a little of both. Their later albums are somewhat more homogenous, but I also detect a hint of refusing to be locked into a category. You decide.
I love liner notes that include lyrics, especially if I’m not sure I’m going to catch everything in the singer’s accent or dialect, and “Natural” has them. The cover is a montage of pictures that illustrate their songs.
The Sharecroppers have two other CDs, This New Founde Lande and Home, Boys!. They are hard to find outside of Newfoundland, but ordering information is on their Web site.
[Update: You can’t order CDs from The Sharecroppers’ Facebook page, but you may be able to by using the contact information you’ll find there. It’s also available on Amazon.]
(Ibycus Music, 1993)
