Beth Orton "Central Reservation" (1999) - got it
Another interesting character. Beth spent time living with Buddhist nuns
in Thailand, did catering work and performed in the theatre. She
dated producer William Orbit and they collaborated on music together,
including a full release "Superpinkymandy" and working on music that
would wind up on their respective solo albums.
Orton's first solo album featured triphoppy beats mixed with a folk
sound. She followed this up with an EP collaborating with singer Terry
Callier with a more 'organic' sound and she followed that direction
through into "Central Reservation".
This is another situation where I knew Orton's name and had listened to
some things she'd done with artists such as Finley Quaye, Orbit, and the
Chemical Brothers but wasn't really familiar with her own music.
Luckily my wife had a copy of this album (so by extension, I have it)
and I enjoyed being educated.
Turns out I was familiar with the opening track "Stolen Car"
though Jenni suggested this might be because she's played it for me
before. The album largely sticks to a folky/alt-country sound. To my
ears, the tracks when she does bring in some beats (in places, courtesy
of Everything But the Girl's Ben Watt) such as "Stars All Seem to Weep"
it feels kind of jarring alongside the more earthy tracks on the rest of
the album.
