Growing Peaches In Oxfordshire
by Nik Barrell
-
Streaming + DownloadIncludes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.Purchasable with gift card
£10 GBP or more
1. |
||||
2. |
It's Your Choice
02:51
|
|||
3. |
Her And I
03:10
|
|||
4. |
||||
5. |
Thank You
02:42
|
|||
6. |
Love Is
03:33
|
|||
7. |
New Orleans
03:29
|
|||
8. |
Things We Do Not Know
03:58
|
|||
9. |
Blues Come Home To You
03:28
|
|||
10. |
People Are Good
03:32
|
about
Growing Peaches In Oxfordshire is singer-songwriter Nik Barrell’s homage to the positive powers of music. It’s an album of 10 songs, themselves sweet and tender as a bowl of peaches, that testifies to the therapy of writing music, its ability to dissolve barriers between people, and the shared buzz of playing together.
Nik Barrell grew up in West London with blues, rock ’n’ roll, and R&B, an education manifest in these tracks with clear strains of Buddy Holly, the Beach Boys, and the chirpy New Orleans blues tradition. The band uses a simple, stripped-back instrument combination, without drums or amplification, along with smooth melodies and sprightly rhythms. Barrell’s sincere, troubadour-like crooning and guitar are accompanied by James Fiddes Smith’s chiming mandolin and backing vocals. Mark Strains provides the spine on double bass, Alan Grice plays wondrous piano and Tim Cotterell adds a touch of melancholy on violin. It's all finished off with the beautiful tones of Sharon Lewis, Anjuli Hararah and Vanessa Thomas on backing vocals.
The songs are also authentic in the way they are recorded: live in one session, without studio retakes. This approach emphasizes the energy of the moment, a key part of Nik Barrell’s optimistic philosophy. He wrote these songs travelling in America and Asia, where he found musical traditions still rooted in social occasions, and untainted by cynicism. This led him to see music as an important ray of light in a sometimes dark world. “Happy songs are not naïve,” he says.
And these songs are happy, they are about hope, and pleasure. They ask you to believe that positive actions will have positive consequences. They bring together a weightless nostalgia and a lively feeling of presence, as if to say, happiness does not have to be a thing of the past.
Wessie du Toit.
Nik Barrell grew up in West London with blues, rock ’n’ roll, and R&B, an education manifest in these tracks with clear strains of Buddy Holly, the Beach Boys, and the chirpy New Orleans blues tradition. The band uses a simple, stripped-back instrument combination, without drums or amplification, along with smooth melodies and sprightly rhythms. Barrell’s sincere, troubadour-like crooning and guitar are accompanied by James Fiddes Smith’s chiming mandolin and backing vocals. Mark Strains provides the spine on double bass, Alan Grice plays wondrous piano and Tim Cotterell adds a touch of melancholy on violin. It's all finished off with the beautiful tones of Sharon Lewis, Anjuli Hararah and Vanessa Thomas on backing vocals.
The songs are also authentic in the way they are recorded: live in one session, without studio retakes. This approach emphasizes the energy of the moment, a key part of Nik Barrell’s optimistic philosophy. He wrote these songs travelling in America and Asia, where he found musical traditions still rooted in social occasions, and untainted by cynicism. This led him to see music as an important ray of light in a sometimes dark world. “Happy songs are not naïve,” he says.
And these songs are happy, they are about hope, and pleasure. They ask you to believe that positive actions will have positive consequences. They bring together a weightless nostalgia and a lively feeling of presence, as if to say, happiness does not have to be a thing of the past.
Wessie du Toit.
credits
released October 1, 2016
Guitar and Vocals - Nik Barrell
Mandolin - James Fiddes Smith
Bass - Mark Strains
Violin - Tim Cotterell
Piano - Alan Grice (Sharon Lewis on Things We Do Not Know)
Backing Vocals - Sharon Lewis, Anjuli Hararah, Vanessa Thomas, James Fiddes Smith
Artwork by Rob Miles
All tracks recorded live at Church Road Recording Company by Julian Tardo on October 15th 2015.
Guitar and Vocals - Nik Barrell
Mandolin - James Fiddes Smith
Bass - Mark Strains
Violin - Tim Cotterell
Piano - Alan Grice (Sharon Lewis on Things We Do Not Know)
Backing Vocals - Sharon Lewis, Anjuli Hararah, Vanessa Thomas, James Fiddes Smith
Artwork by Rob Miles
All tracks recorded live at Church Road Recording Company by Julian Tardo on October 15th 2015.
license
all rights reserved
tags
about
Nikolas Barrell London, UK
discography
-
Aug 2018 -
Oct 2016 -
Oct 2015 -
Jan 2014 -
Nov 2012 -
Jan 2012 -
Jan 2011 -
Jan 2010
contact / help
If you like Growing Peaches In Oxfordshire, you may also like:
-
The latest from Julian Temple Band is full of shadowy, trembling art rock, wtih melodies that summon a sense of mystery.
go to album -
A Stranger That You Met Before
by A Day Without LoveA love letter to the DIY music scene.
go to album -
Small Comforts
by The Chairman DancesWinsome and winning indie pop songs on the latest from The Chairman Dances, where erudite lyrics are cradled by gorgeous arrangements.
go to album -
Tender and gorgeous songs from this Brooklyn duo, “and then all over” is a striking, evocative work full of hushed beauty.
go to album -
Keeley Forsyth, on The Leaf Label, writes spectral, pulsing songs that swaddle her mournful alto in mist-like synths.
go to album -
With “In Silver Halides,” Lowpines have created a collection of rich, textured, deeply-felt rock songs abounding in small sonic details.
go to album -
Emotions and Math
by Margaret Glaspyfeatured on Bandcamp Radio Jun 6, 2017
go to album
