A collaboration between English producer and multi-instrumentalist
Andy Lewis
and seminal U.K. folk vocalist
Judy Dyble
, the aptly named
Summer Dancing
delivers a balmy set of lush, electronic dream pop with flourishes of pastoral English folk and Swinging London-era psych-pop.
Lewis
, a popular Brit-pop-era DJ and former bass player for
Paul Weller
, clearly has an affinity for British psychedelia -- the overall vibe here is as groovy as it is bucolic -- and his ornate, yet tasteful arrangements provide a sympathetic framework for
Dyble
's evocative lyrics and warm delivery. If anything, the 14-track set hews closer to
and then-boyfriend
Jackie McAuley
's sole outing under the
Trader Horne
moniker, 1970's cult classic
Morning Way
, than it does her work on the first
Fairport Convention
album or with
Giles, Giles, & Fripp
(
Robert Fripp
and the
Giles
brothers' pre-
King Crimson
outfit).
is at its most compelling when
and
blur the lines between rural magic-folk and urban sunshine pop, as they do splendidly on standouts like "My Electric Chauffeur," "Summers of Love," and the sentimental title cut. Nostalgia looms large, especially on deeper cuts like "Treasure" and "A Net of Memories (London)," the latter of which provides an evocative and detailed meditation on her hometown and the vibrant scene that launched her music career.
's recorded output, which is often overshadowed by the prolificacy of contemporaries like
Sandy Denny
),
Maddy Prior
Steeleye Span
), and
Jacqui McShee
Pentangle
), is quality stuff that has aged well, and
does nothing to tarnish that reputation, as it lovingly invokes both the past and the future without fully submitting to either. ~ James Christopher Monger