by Manila #11
Richard & Mimi Fariña "Reflections In A Crystal Wind" 1965
Manila said...
Listening to them now, there are times when Richard & Mimi Fariña veer dangerously close to the male/female duo in Christopher Guest's mockumentary 'A Dangerous Wind' and I wonder if Guest had them in mind when planning the project. Having said that, 'Reflections In A crystal Wind' sees the Fariñas with numerous backing musicians who pull them out of the 'twee' zone into much more of an early Fairport Convention category (though, of course, Fairport were simply drawing on their American influences, so you could say it's the other way around.) Whatever the case, Richard and Mimi influenced many a 60s folk musician and this blog would be lacking if it didn't include at least one album by them.
Manila said...
Listening to them now, there are times when Richard & Mimi Fariña veer dangerously close to the male/female duo in Christopher Guest's mockumentary 'A Dangerous Wind' and I wonder if Guest had them in mind when planning the project. Having said that, 'Reflections In A crystal Wind' sees the Fariñas with numerous backing musicians who pull them out of the 'twee' zone into much more of an early Fairport Convention category (though, of course, Fairport were simply drawing on their American influences, so you could say it's the other way around.) Whatever the case, Richard and Mimi influenced many a 60s folk musician and this blog would be lacking if it didn't include at least one album by them.
posted by Lizardson at 7:54 PM
14 Comments:
thanks, I've always wanted to hear this.
I think you mean 'A Mighty Wind' as the mockumentary!
Richard Fariña was friends with Thomas Pynchon. That's all I need to know!
Also: A Mighty Wind is a GREAT movie.
Thanks anonymous. Of course you're right about the movie, it was 'A Mighty Wind.' An embarrassing mistake since I've seen it countless times and have the DVD sitting on a shelf in front of me! Maybe (for the sake of accuracy and to save me looking like a complete dunce) Lizardson would kindly change the entry?!
I agree with geox, it's a brilliant film. But like all Guest's stuff, it's brilliant because there is more than a grain of truth in it. The problem I have with many of the mid-60s folk acts (who I loved at the time)is that they now sound like they're singing in a kindergarten.
However...
I apologise to any Richard and Mimi fans for saying they were occasionally a bit 'twee'. It's just my opinion. I actually like this album a lot (I only post stuff I like) but on some of their other recordings Mimi's voice grates on me ('Pack Up Your Sorrows' for example). Feel free to disagree!
Interesting you should make the Fairport Convention comparison, because Richard's "Reno, Nevada" was part of Fairport's early repertoire.
Yes, I loved Fairport's version of that.
sorry, but have missed: "House un-American Blues Activity Dream", song number 10...
Sorry I missed out track 10. Everything went wrong with this post! hehehe. I'll try to upload it for you but I have a family crisis right now - brother in hospital - so forgive me if it's not for a few days.
ok, j'attand :-) and I hope that your brother recovers soon...best wishes.
I hope so too. Thank you for that, I really appreciate it.
Thanks for this great post, and for your great blog. Please post the other two Richard & Mimi Fariña albums too as they also have a bunch of great songs on them. Thanks again and keep up the good work!
Someone told me I should check this album out since I like richard and mimi a lot. I look forward to hearing it, thank you!
-Loved the Farinas [& Richard's novel] for decades! The records are rich 'keepers' with layers of meaning and beauty. Only in the last year have any videos of them performing been viewable--go to Youtube for their Seeger show appearances [& refer to D. Hajdu's book POSITIVELY 4TH STREET! for their Dylan-Baez-Pynchon connex.]
Thanks a great lot! Wonderful album, and absolutely in my favourite vein, too. The link to the 'lost' track 10 would be nice thing to have, though. Cheers!
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