Arriving home from an excellent lunch in the Cafe Bluebell in Campbeltown, it was good to find the latest CD from Oka Vanga in the mailbox. Would 'Dance Of The Copper Trail' live up to expectations resulting from playing tracks from their EP 'Tales of Eyam' and first album 'Pilgrim', wondered I. The answer is "Oh YES".
For some reason I played the last track first, a delightful interpretation of the Sister Rosetta Tharpe classic 'This Train'. Immediately the album went straight into my 'must play' mental bucket. A scan of the CD booklet revealed that Angela Meyer herself had written, co-written or arranged each track. A tour de force.
With nine original songs and two great renditions of traditional classics, 'Dance Of The Copper Trail' really is an outstanding album. Every track shows the musicality and musicianship of Oka Vanga, with Patsy Reid on fiddle and Oliver Copeland on double bass joining the core duo of Angela Meyer and William Cox.
The album goes straight onto my feature and rotation lists for Folk At Five on Argyll FM.
Folk Show and Teatime Show presenter on Argyll FM. Enjoying music and technology. Supporting environmental and sustainability campaigns.
