Mermaids and Mariners

Album Review

Anyone who hasn't been hiding alongside a coral reef should know that ever since the advent of SpongeBob SquarePants, anything having to do with pirates, ships, and seafaring is so, so "in." Drifting into the shallows of such maritime interest comes Celtic harpist Anne Roos (rhymes with "choose") with Mermaids & Mariners, a bounty of 17 harp and fiddle tunes to delight the seaman in everyone. Roos is joined by violist Michael Frost, guitarist Alan Fuller, and fiddler Dorothy A. Hawkinson, not to mention Riggy Rackin on the English concertina. The tunes are a mixture of original pieces and of traditional numbers that combine to evoke the very odor of fresh, salty sea air. The Cambria recording is truly outstanding; one will feel almost as though inside these tiny instruments. The packaging on Mermaids & Mariners is truly something to feast your eyes on, consisting of a hardbound, 24-page, four-color booklet with detailed song-by-song notes, woodcuts so marine they reek of teak, and fine color photographs of the artists. However, it is certain that more careless mateys will tend to lose the little soft insert sheet included to protect the shiny surface of the CD. Arrrgh!