Strawbs - Bursting at the Seams
- FaceOff - עימות חזיתי
- 2 days ago
- 3 min read
Written By: Moti Kupfer
Release date - 26.01.1973
One of the simplest musical styles on the surface, yet one under whose banner immensely talented musicians and melodies have flourished, is folk rock. It is a genre that combines direct, melodic songwriting with the basic rhythms of rock and roll.
In the early 1960s, folk rock began to take shape in the United States with artists such as "The Byrds", Bob Dylan, Janis Ian, and Joni Mitchell.
By the late 1960s, folk rock had also developed in Britain. This British variation blended ancient traditional folk with rock music, and unlike the guitar driven harmonies favored by American artists, its British counterpart leaned toward richer arrangements of acoustic instruments, at times hinting at what would later be identified as progressive rock.
Among the first artists to create British folk rock were bands such as "Pentangle", "Steeleye Span", and "Fairport Convention", led by the London born singer Sandy Denny.
An exception during those years was the band "Strawbs", whose songs were fronted by a male vocalist rather than a female one. Their fifth album, "Bursting at the Seams", was released on January 26, 1973.
"Strawbs" were formed in 1964 under the name "Strawberry Hill Boys", as the founding members Dave Cousins, Tony Hooper, Arthur Phillips, and John Berry were students at St Mary’s College, a teacher training college located in Strawberry Hill, London.
In their early days, they played bluegrass, a style combining musical traditions brought by immigrants from the British Isles with elements of jazz and blues.
As the years progressed, the band’s lineup changed frequently. Even Sandy Denny and Rick Wakeman, later famously associated with Yes, were members of "Strawbs" for a short time. Still, every serious band needs at least one anchor, and for "Strawbs" that figure was Dave Cousins, one of the group’s founders who endured through the many lineup changes across the band’s long career.
From their bluegrass beginnings, the music of "Strawbs" gradually evolved toward prog folk and folk rock, and eventually into the inevitable connection with progressive rock.
After a live album and a third studio release, Rick Wakeman exhausted his partnership with "Strawbs", citing what he described as “artistic differences”. He was replaced by Derek “Blue” Weaver, formerly of the Welsh rock band Amen Corner. Weaver contributed keyboards and mellotron, beginning with the band’s fourth album "Grave New World", an album that pushed "Strawbs" step by step away from folk and closer toward rock.
Another move in that direction came with the band’s fifth album, "Bursting at the Seams", where guitarist Dave Lambert joined the group, replacing founding member Tony Hooper. Lambert brought electric guitar into the mix, but if you expect him to come in swinging hard, not quite. This is still very much Dave Cousins’ band, driven by his songwriting, although there remains space for compositions by Weaver, Richard Hudson, and John Ford across the album.
The single intended to promote the album and target chart success was "Lay Down", but it was the second single, "Part of the Union", that achieved major impact. Fueled by the line “You don’t get me, I’m part of the union, till the day I die”, the song later became a working class anthem worldwide. These two tracks remain the band’s most successful singles.
The album opens with "Flying", featuring a beautiful electric guitar picking pattern, and continues with a blend of banjo, mellotron, and vocal harmonies that lift the listener on wings of imagination right from the outset.
That sense of flight continues with "Lady Fuschia", a masterful folk song written by Richard Hudson and bassist John Ford, before landing abruptly with "Stormy Down", carried by Cousins’ trembling vocal delivery that vividly mirrors the storm itself.
After "The River", which functions as a brief intro, comes what is perhaps the album’s most impressive and darkest composition, "Down By The Sea". It opens with a guitar riff that feels strikingly ahead of its time, one that would sit comfortably within mid 1980s rock. The music itself is ominous, but the lyrics are even more unsettling, telling the story of a massive northern wind tearing an entire building apart, followed by vivid imagery of a violent sea storm, a swirling maelstrom, and lifeboats sinking beneath the waves.
After such darkness comes "Soup For Lunch", a song that always brings to mind early English lessons on educational television. Despite its relatively upbeat mood, the lyrics stand firm in their message. An anthem, perhaps we already said that.
The album closes with "Thank You", carried by piano and a children’s choir, serving as a reflective ending. Its lyrics express gratitude for the simple things in life, offering a thoughtful and gentle conclusion to the album.
For Listening: Spotify, Apple Music
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