LPCDreissues: Looking forward to the past

180g vinyl - Gatefold heavy carton sleeve
Meic Stevens may not be a familiar name in much of the world, but in his native Wales the singer-songwriter's stature is often compared to that of Bob Dylan. He was a local legend whose psych-folk influence can be heard in such contemporary Welsh groups as Super Furry Animals and Gorky's Zygotic Mynci. His one English-language album is this 1970 Outlander, an outstanding marriage of musicianship and eclecticism. Its jazz-Indo-psych ragas merge seamlessly with its acid folksongs and Dylan-esque meditations on relationships and politics. Performed by a remarkable cast of musicians hand-picked by English rock tastemaker Ian Samwell, Outlander was created with a minimum of rehearsal and consists largely of first takes.