MEIC STEVENS Outlander NM UK 1970 Welsh acid folk psych monster sitar OOP RI LP

	£		55
	$		73

MEIC STEVENS - Outlander (Fan Club WS-3005, EU)
Here we have a Reissue, released in the early 90ies, of one of THE European psych folk albums, a milestone in it´s own field - the legendary "Outlander" LP from the Welsh artist Meic Stevens. An acoustic / electric psychedelic folk masterpiece with drums, bass, various guitars, organ, piano, flutes, sitar etc. Great psychedelic folk ragas and Dylanesque vocals.
Originally released 1970 on the "Warner Bros" label, but this is the long gone early reissue on the Fan Club label.

Condition:
The sleeve is in EX condition.
The record is in NEAR MINT condition.
As a bonus it has a xerox copy of the lyric insert included that did not came originally with this issue.

 
 

Originally released in the early 70's Outlander is Meic Stevens' only record in English that I know of. For over 30 years he's been Wales' answer to Bob Dylan. Lyrically though, I'd say he has far more in common with Welsh poet Dylan Thomas. Vocally, I suppose one could compare him to Robert Plant in terms of dynamics, but Stevens is far more feral & edgy.
Signed with Warner Bros in the late 60's, Stevens could have been as huge as Van Morrison or Neil Young. According to an interview, he said he just didn't have it in him to play the game. Emerging from the same scene that gave rise to Bert Jansch & Davy Graham, Stevens was certainly a major influence the likes of Led Zepplin, Fairport Convention & Pink Floyd's Syd Barrett.
But enough background & name dropping. This is an incredible album. A misty haunted moor of a record with a garden maze of imagry. The manic acoustic strumming & howls & yelps of "Rowena" are a pretty accurate depiction of what awaits the unsupsecting listener.
Gorgeous balladry like "Loved Owed" & "Left Over Time" rival the likes of Dylan's "Don't Think Twice, It's Alright". I could go through each track & pontificate on how great this is, but just the fact I took the time out to write this review should be enough. It's gem. Musically, it borders on Psychedelica at times, especially on mad headspinners like "Yorric". Whether Stevens chooses to strum a lone acoustic guitar or break out the sitars for a raga freakout, he's never jamming for the sake of jamming. There is a focus here. Though things may appear raw & off the cuff, it's only because Steven's knows exactly what he's doing.
At heart, I'd say Stevens' own influences lie somewhere between Woody Guthrie & the Welsh Folktale tradition. True, the fact that Stevens has dedicated most of his career to keeping the Welsh language alive has resulted in limited global accessibility. Still, we should be grateful for this reissue of his one English record. In any language, Steven's talent can't be denied. Any fan of Syd Barrett Psychedelica or Richard Thompson won't regret hitting the purchase button. One of the best Folk records I've ever heard.

AllMusic Review by Richie Unterberger:
Meic Stevens' debut LP (preceded by a 45 and several EPs in the 1960s) was period folk-rock that inspired unfavorable comparisons to numerous much bigger names without coalescing into a style of its own. On several tracks, he sounds like a Welsh Bob Dylan. "Left Over Time" sounds far too close to Dylan's "Visions of Johanna" to inspire admiration; "Oxblood," on the other hand, is a throwback to the early-'60s pre-rock Dylan or perhaps even Ramblin' Jack Elliott and Woody Guthrie. On the slightly more psychedelic-influenced front, there are some similarities to Donovan and (more distantly) Syd Barrett, but without the magical aura that hovered over the best of those two figures' work. Trance-like raga-rock elements make themselves heard on "The Sailor and Madonna" and "Yorric," with their sitar, tabla, and zigzagging flute. "Midnight Comes" changes paths yet again and sounds pretty close to early Simon & Garfunkel. It's an erratic album, and one without outstanding songs, in spite of Stevens' acceptably world-weary, folk vocals.

NOTE! Postage indicated in the auction is not the actual postage as ebay doesn't allow a higher postage then 4 GBP in this category. Postage for this item is 8 GBP to most countries within Europe and 16 GBP for the rest of the world. This is up to 2kg, so you can add up to 6 more LP's for the same postage. Postage for 7 LP´s is the same as for 1 LP, so buy more to save on postage!

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POSTAGE COSTS FOR THE BUYER:
Postage for 1 LP is the same as for 7 LP's (<2kg), so please order more LP's to save on shipping!
1-7 LP's priority mail:

EUR1: 8 GBP
EUR2: 9 GBP
EUR3: 10 GBP
Rest of the world: 16 GBP

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EUR2:
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