Another Year＜数量限定盤＞

ゾンビーズのフロントマン、コリン・ブランストーンによる傑作ソロ・デビュー・アルバム『One Year』の発売50周年（2013年）を記念して、コンクリーツでの活動やピーター・ビヨーン・アンド・ジョンのヒット曲「Young Folks」での歌唱でも有名なヴィクトリア・バーグスマン率いるテイクン・バイ・ツリーズがカバーEPをリリース！そのピーター・ビヨーン・アンド・ジョンがエグゼクティヴ・プロデューサーを務め、ギターとドラムで参加した本作は、『One Year』から1972年のヒット曲「Say You Don't Mind」を含む3曲と、セカンド・アルバム『Ennismore』からの2曲を合わせた計5曲を収録。ブランストーン本人をして「自分の曲が50年の時を経て、このような形で蘇ることに興奮しています。ヴィクトリアの一聴してわかる歌声はメランコリックで現代的で本当に素晴らしい」と墨をついた傑作カバー作品がここに誕生した。

During the sessions for Taken by Trees fifth album, the bands mainstay Victoria Bergsman decided to take a break in order to pay tribute to one of her favorite singers and songwriters Colin Blunstone. Calling in old friends Bjorn Yttling and John Eriksson and working with co-producer Freja the Dragon, Bergsman crafts a fitting tribute to Blunstone on Another Year. Focusing on his solo work rather than the Zombies, specifically his 1971 album One Year and its 1972 follow-up Ennismore, Bergsman and co. make subtle changes to the original arrangements and take a sideways route to capturing the kind of rapturous melancholy of Blunstones originals. On "Say You Dont Mind" and "Times Running Out" she replaces the strings with vibes, bongos, electric keys, and the kind of harmonica one might hear on a Beach Boys record, while giving the vocals her usual deeply sad, impossibly delicate best. Its a magical, almost entrancing sound thats bolstered by tender clouds of backing vocals and soft clarinets. On both "Caroline Goodbye" and "I Dont Believe in Miracles," most of the grandeur of the originals is stripped away to leave gently struck piano chords, tender clouds of backing vocals, and Bergsmans subtle singing to put the emotions across. It works very, very well. They take it to extremes on "She Loves the Way They Love Her," which when done by Blunstone has a peppy skip and scamper that the band completely erase here. Instead, they turn the song into a cross between a Velvet Underground ballad and soft, sad jazz. Its a daring move that doesnt work quite as well as other gambits undertaken elsewhere, if only because the original is so divine. High marks for giving it a go, though. That it gets an A- instead of an A only brings the overall grade down a tiny bit. With Taken by Trees, Bergsman has made a solid career out of sonic exploration and intense feeling, and what she does with Colin Blunstones music is of a piece with what she did with Middle Eastern sounds, tropical vibes, and contemporary pop -- made them her own. ~ Tim Sendra