Bert Jansch

Two worst tracks by far that I thought I was going to opine opine about…turns out they are bonus tracks. Score. I like the primitive feel of this album. It being recorded on a reel-to-reel tape recorder at someone’s house comes through. I hear hints of Nick Drake and José Gonzalez in this music. Big fan.

pretty good. no standouts besides the first instrumental. cool for an album like this to even have instrumental tracks

Knap gespeeld

Bert en zijn irritante kampvuurmuziek kunnen me gestolen worden.

Iets te folky naar mijn smaak

Beetje Nick Drake-ish. Not bad.

Lijkt een beetje op Tim Buckley, denk ik.

Strong 'Detectorists' vibes from this one. Lovely, gentle and dreamy British folk songs. It makes me want to pick up a detector and head to Denby to while away a day in a field with Lance and Andy. Rating: 3.5/5 Playlist track: Dreams of Love Date listened: 14/06/23

This was nice and would be even better in the right atmosphere

Interesting pure 'guy with a guitar ' music. Nice to enjoy the raw feed instead of heavily buried with orchestra.

Really love his guitar work here. He was a vocalist and guitarist on Pentangle and I loved that album when generated a few weeks ago. He has that same entrancing vocal and flowy, rustic guitar style. Some forgettable tracks but a lot of memorable moments, doesn't even need the vocals for most of it to leave an impression. Favorites: Smokey Highway, Oh How Your Love Is Strong, Alice's Wonderland, Running From Home, Courting Blues, Angie

Not for me, Clyde. But I like the guitar arrangements.

Kind of boring

Very reminiscent of early Singer songwriters like Bob Dylan in Van Morrison. Found some of the songs interesting and still current sounding. The production is excellent for 1965, however, I did not find the overall album to be compelling beyond compatriots of the time.

Best Song: I Have No Time. Quiet and contemplative. Worst Song: Casbah. This, along with the other just random guitar strumming songs, felt like they provided nothing to the overall album. Overall: A short, sleepy album that feels like it wants to desperately live up to visions of Bob Dylan. It doesn't, and if you subtract the large number of unimpressive acoustics songs from this already short album, there's really not much left over.

Not quite my thing by wow these songs are pretty. Definitely a preference for the instrumentals, but those alone are worth the ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Good traditional folk album, albeit a little bit homogeneous but that's to be expected with this genre. Bert's playing is the real draw here, with his impressive fingerpicking and overall dynamic style. Nice but not much more.

Good single guitar/voice folk in its most traditional way. Not bad at all, but gets pretty tiredsome in the end.

Great discovery of folk rock album. I've never heard of it.

Nothing so memorable around there, but a nice folk album with an excellent guitar player for sure. I enjoyed it, but won't come back to it.

5/10

that good ol' folk... god, it's obsolete

ganska lame

Dum de dum de tiddly dum dum. Might sound better with a band.

Didn't age all that well.

Cool country blues acoustic music.

This is great. His voice is really interesting and emotive, and his guitarwork is phenomenal and super forward-thinking for having come out in 65. I can hear influence from him on a lot of modern stuff I listen to.

meh. 3 stars

Pleasant enough

Ok, nothing really caught my ear but there was some talent there

Great string work, however not something I particularly enjoyed. 2/5

Nice but not memorable

His guitar picking is quite good compared to many other folk artists but it’s another folk album that I don’t know. For folk with good guitar picking, I really just want to listen to Gordon Lightfoot’s Summer Side of Life. RIP Mr. Lightfoot.

With such sparse arrangements, recorded in someone’s living room, the songwriting, singing & guitar playing better be good. I’ve listened to a couple of Bert’s albums over the years and there’s usually one or two outstanding songs. On this LP it’s “Needle of Death” IMO. His singing is better than Leonard or Bob and he seems to be an adept guitar player, but I’ll defer to my brother’s better judgement.

I’m not a fan of folk so I didn’t have high expectations at all but this is the best folk album I’ve ever heard. Sparse is the word here, it’s only Bert and his guitar, but he fills the room with glorious music. His guitar playing is also exemplary, so good I had to listen to this twice.

Smokey River, I Have No Time, Needle of Death, Do You Hear Me Now, Running from Home, Courting Blues, Dreams of Love and Angie. Great guitar solos and beautiful voice. Nice and simple.

I love country music and all my friends agree. smokey river, veronica, courting blues, angie

Easy listening

Some well written songs that were unfortunately overshadowed by the similar instrumental backing throughout. Became very monotonous very quickly.

Was very interested in hearing this when I found out that this artist had a major influence on two of my favourite artists, Neil Young and Jimmy Page. Preferred the instrumentals over the songs with vocals. The guitar playing is excellent. Folk isn't my thing but this was fine.

Je ne suis peut-être pas dans le meilleur mood pour cet album (surtout avec un rhume comme j'ai), mais c'est loin d'être l'album de folk le plus incroryable que j'ai entendu. Beaucoup de pièces sont de belles balades folk, mais certaines, pour une raison que j'ignore, viennent carrément m'énerver (probablement le style de composition qui ne me rejoint pas). Je mettrais 5 à 6 sur 10.

A nimble-fingered motherfucker.

An overall pleasant, but not particularly engaging, listening experience. It is interesting to hear how the 60s folk revival was getting along in the UK.

sad and wonderful! just the way i like! 4.5

This is folk. It's kind of exactly what I expected and it stayed in the background. You know how Joni Mitchell kind of grabs you by the lapels every now and then? This one couldn't find my lapels. And they're right there. I did kind of dig the overly harsh picking on Casbah, though.

The true genius behind this album is Jansch's ability to convey so much of the emotional spectrum with such spartan tools - acoustic guitar and voice, but mostly just guitar. Yet with his fingers he coaxes out joy, melancholy, sadness and mystery. It sounds fresh now; upon release this must've gone off like a depth charge. Highlights include 'I Have No Time', 'Casbah', the ostensibly sweet ode to addiction 'Needle of Death' and superlative closing instrumental 'Angie'.

Not bad. Dug the instrumental stuff; vocals reminded me a bit of Leonard Cohen (though Nick Drake is a great comp) without being as good as Leonard Cohen. But yeah - some great guitar playing!

Alright

3,5 of 4

Blues rock in a hobby shop.

unexpected cowboy

Hey now I felt like I was kicking a cab down a dirt road and such. It was okay decent background sound.

I enjoyed it. Great story telling through guitar. Mixes are a bit rough, but that tended to happen in the 60s.

Raw, chill guitar vibes. Similar to Nick Drake, acoustic-centric and feels largely unedited

Need to listen again .

I had not heard of Bert Jansch prior to this project, but I found this album to be an enjoyable listen. His guitar playing is sublime and it makes each instrumental on the track list intriguing. While I wasn't blown away by t he lyrical content I found his voice to be a good compliment to the arrangements. This is an album I will explore again.

The arrangement of instrumentals elevates the rest as a breeze. The voice is young; How young unclear. Be mistily sad is the lesson.

Vond het nogal traag, niks aparts

Urgh.

1001 albums to bore you to death

It’s alright

Not in the mood for folk rn but damn those guitar works are fire.

it's ok

Meh

folk

Bert Jansch? More like Bert Snoozefest! 4/10

Loved this album. Beautiful guitar parts and some dark lyrics to match. Simple and effective songwriting, an album that is never afraid to let the guitar tell the story.

Great folk album. The guitar instrumentals steal the show.

I like the way he pluck and twang. Good stuff.

- Cool guitar work - Gives the vibes of sitting on the porch at night during a late summer evening - Songs sound very similar to each other - Appreciate the music but not for me

- Quality folk - James Taylor vibes - Strong chance of being played at the next campfire - Fantastic guitar skill

It's one of those albums I would listen to without paying any conscious attention to it just because it's comfortable.

Good acoustic guitar but kind of drab overall

Truly beautiful

The guitar picking is good. It’s totally fine. But not my thing.

Album didn't do anything for me but I definitely see why it's on this list. The last song though, "Angie" i really liked.

Solid folk album, I listened to this twice in a row because I didn't feel like I absorbed it properly the first time through. It's simple and beautiful music, pretty much just a nice voice singing pretty words with some nice guitar playing. Can't complain about this one at all tbh, it's a 4 for now!

Just a guy pickin' and sort of singin'. Best track: Smokey River

A lot of my favorite music wouldn’t exist without this. Pretty neat

Sounds about like a lost, unappreciated (but secretly influential) troubadour ought to sound. Some lovely quiet playing. It’s good to know lost gems like this, even if the listening experience is a little underwhelming, with a strong "eat your vegetables" feel. BJ looks a long shot to change one’s life. 2.9 > 3

Not much about this album really resonated with me. I've never been big into folk music and this just didn't have much to keep me interested. I guess it makes sense that it influenced some iconic songwriters from the 60's and 70's, but I don't feel like this has withstood the test of time in the way of the music it might have inspired.

I didn't love it, but at least that is something different that I would not listen to without the 1001 list, so it increases my rate a little since I'm here for it (sometimes?). Excellent to listen to a good folk album that does not go so fast to the bland country and early rock and keeps it folk until the album's end.

enjoyable, but would rather just listen to nick drake

Similar to the city of Bert’s birth, Glasgow; visited once, wouldn’t go out of my way to visit again.

This was a good album not one I personally intend to revisit though.

Very artistic guitar work which was pleasing to listen to. If you don't get it, you prolly won't. Solid 3 from me.

Un bon album de ringos-folk, ce genre musical mettant généralement en scène un chanteur, le plus souvent extrêmement ringard, venant nous bassiner avec ses histoires peu passionnantes sur fond de guitare acoustique. Merci Bert.

J'ai passé un agréable moment avec cet illustre inconnu de Bert, qui s'est averé être extrêmement sympathique, me proposant même de payer ma consommation, Un vrai chic type.

Fine for what it is, but it's a no for me.

Bert coming in with that era of acoustic poets doing their thing

What if Bob Dylan were Scottish and didn't haven an annoying voice?

Inte särskilt spännande.

It's oj. I like the instrumental music at the end. kek

Labong.

Not only was this album boring but I also had to miss watching the Australian open to listen to it. Sure it has an unpolished feel to it but that doesn’t make it any more fun to listen to when I could just listen to nick drake or bob dylan who are far better folk singer-songwriters

His difficulty with finishing songs cleanly is the big clue to my untutored ear that this was a home recording. This is a lovely album.

gaaaahhhh... mid-60s folk. Noooooo

miss any flavor in this album; every song feels like it's the same and while the lyrics are far from bad, the album just feels monotone

Har alltid velat gilla Jansch, mest för att namnet var roligt att säga. Hörde för längesen om dethär albumet i nåt lo-fisammanhang och att han lånat ihop allt och spelat in det hemma. En riktig jävel på gitarr och några ok låtar. 3,5, men jag är ju snäll.

Jag kan inte tänka bort Nick Drake när jag lyssnar, och då känns detta nervlöst och klent på egensinne. Och lite för rootsigt. Men han spelar ju fint gitarr.

The album's production value is intimate, simple, and unpolished which compliments the artist-and-their-guitar format well. The tender musical delivery belies how serious the lyrics are. While the album fits in somewhere on the folk spectrum between Nick Drake and Dylan's earlier work, it doesn't really rise to the greatness of either of those comparisons in my armchair music critic mind.

Very good

Nothing great. Annoying. I made it through. I am rounding up because it is better than 1 but not really a 2.

This is a good discovery! I loved the Pentangle album we listened to and now I see that Jansch was part of Pentangle. Really enjoyed this album. I can clearly see how he might have inspired people like Johnny Flynn and been an integral part of the 60s British folk revival. Scottish folk too, what's not to love. It has that real Scottish fairytale mystical sound to it. I think Running From Home is maybe the only track I already knew before this and it's such a beautiful song. The lyrics are gorgeous and the guitar is mesmerising. Another highlight is Alice's Wonderland. This has made me definitely want to listen to more Bert Jansch and Pentangle!

Ah I'm sorry Bert but this did nothing for me. Sure it was lovely folk really I just didn't care at all.

Didn't mind this at all, nice folky vibe.

Not my cup of tea.

It was alright. It got better later on, but I was really irritated at the beginning.

4 Love it

Boring and very pretentious. It smells of sandals and poor hygiene. Why is this on this list and why to people like it. There are so many good singer songwriters with folk songs on this list, why is room created for something that lacks creativity, urgence and a heart?

Huh. Kind of Nick Drake, kind of Bob Dylan, kind of Fred Neil - I guess comes with my untrained ear for the folk genre - maybe not as great as some of the work of these three, but comes quite close. Nice find.

I can't believe I'd never heard of Bert Jansch. This is exactly the sort of thing I love and seek out, and apparently he influenced many of my favorite musicians. This is classic cafe singer-songwriter music, a voice over guitar, but wow, what guitar playing! I can hear the influence on artists like Donovan, Nick Drake, Simon & Garfunkle, and even Elliot Smith. A really lovely album I will definitely be coming back to. A surprising 5/5 for me despite never hearing it before now.

De man met de gitaar. Lekker rustig in de ochtend op het werk. Maar niet een album dat ik zelf nog eens snel zou opzetten. Zeker niet de pingel-liedjes met weinig zang. **

Gick in i ena örat och ut ur andra.

2.75

Men with acoustic guitars has to be one of my favourite genders

Needle of death inspired Ambulance Blues, so that's good. Acoustic wizardry.

3.5/5. good listen.

boffff

3.5

An interesting foray into a folk singer I had never heard of. I did not know his reach and influence and back catalogue was so immense. I could hear how it influenced people like Donovan and the Thompsons and Neil Young. Sad to say though I’d still rather listen to them. Jansch is a very accomplished musician and storyteller. The quality of this record is undeniable to say he recorded it in his bedroom on one mic. In 1965, that was a feat in itself. Until now, Bert and this record have completely passed me by. I’m glad to have added to my musical education - I knew of no song about taking heroin before The Velvet Underground so Needle of Death was a plaintive revelation. On the whole this was very easy to listen to and an album I was glad to be introduced to.

Why have I never heard of Bert Jansch? This is a very good folk music album with some interesting guitar work. I wasn't in right head space to listen closely to this album. It seems a little rough but decent first album for an artist that recorded a string of solo albums over the years. This is not a favorite but definitely peaked my interest for his other albums and his work with his band Pentangle. I didn't recognize any of the songs but the instrumental song "Angie" has a familiar riff but I'm not sure where I've heard it. I plan to revisit this artist and album again.

This was a pleasant surprise. Listening to the jangly guitar transformed a foggy afternoon from gloomy to hopeful. Even the song about famine (I Have No Time) was jaunty. The mood turned dark by Needle of Death. Why was this song not in Trainspotting? The tune belies the words in Do You Hear Me Now? The skies darkened as his songs did the same. My enjoyment persisted. Jangly chords and mournful lyrics. A perfect meeting of the right record at the right time for me. Mission accomplished, book. This WAS an album I needed to hear.

When the first track started, I turned to Sylvia (we were in the car listening together) and said, "Nice, this guy can play." Third song... "Starting to feel like a case of the sameses. Not hearing a lot of diversity in the songwriting." Midway through the album... "Think he'll kick it up a notch before the end?" Somewhere past the mid-point, dude got excited and kicked it up a notch. "I think I liked it better when he was stuck in neutral." Near the end... "If I were to walk into Molly McGuire's (nondescript local faux Irish bar/restaurant), I'd be glad to hear this guy playing. But to craft an album with your fingerpicking guitar and voice, you've got to write some really exceptional material to make it interesting." This was not my experience with Bert Jansch.

I'm glad I got to hear this, because I know how influential Jansch was to so many musicians in the '60s and '70s. Then again, I prefer his work with Pentangle because there's more variety (plus, there's a whole band and another (better) singer). There aren't too many dude-with-guitar albums where I can get through the entire thing. Pink Moon is the only one that comes to mind, and that's because Nick Drake is a better singer and songwriter than Jansch. Bert's a great guitarist, though. I can see why so many people value his work.

Bert gets a B for effort C for creativity D for delightful meh

This is not for me. It's like listening to a drunk hobo in an alley while you have a hangover.

Never heard this before, but it was pretty good.

Pretty boring folk, nothing good or bad about it

Simple, stripped down, listenable.

folky fun, finger picky, not as good as leo kottke, light weather stuff. the deuxe has a medley on it that i liked (but no one else listening did). its recorded like shit, but rules. it’s a fine album. you might like it. run of the mill whatever jams to plink plunk cry to.

Rating: 6/10

I'm never sure what yo make of undemanding albums like this. One's relationship with them is less about the music itself, and more about the circumstances in which it meets one. I'm in my office on an unexpectedly sweltering November morning, construction work assailing me from the street. I can appreciate Jansch (whom I had heard of, a lot, but never heard) clinically, but there's little chance of a musical epiphany or whatever. I'll try to remember to listen to this at home some evening and reevaluate more closely. For the moment, perfectly fine for what it is.

This album has been my first exposure to Bert Jansch’s unique brand of folk. I didn’t know what to expect, but it certainly wasn’t a guitar virtuoso on this level. These songs feel like the steeliest dust-bowl blues tracks to ever have materialised from a folkie in Glasgow. I’d hesitate to praise “Bert Jansch” as an album to listen to for the strength of the vocals, songwriting or narratives. Jansch does a serviceable job of all three, but nothing to elevate him above his peers. Instead, this is a guitar album through-and-through, with no other instruments (or musicians) featuring across its 38 minutes. Everything is doggedly unadorned and stripped back, usually to the benefit of the material and stark cold aesthetic. Of “Bert Jansch”’s fifteen tracks, six are instrumentals. When these get a little more rushed or odd notes are flubbed (like in “Casbah”) it doesn’t even matter: it feels raw, real, honest. In “Smokey River” and “Alice’s Wonderland”, you can even hear the faint sound of Jansch breathing underneath the sonic textures he manages to craft out of a single acoustic guitar. It’s sheer expressive playing in its purest form, and helps give the instrumentals every bit as much value as the vocal tracks. In terms of the other songs, they’re mostly unremarkable if not for the guitar playing. They’re generally straightforward blues tracks and concepts or dark laments on war, famine, love, death… the usual suspects. “Needle of Death” is the most poignant track on offer here and deserves to be singled out: it’s a rare track where the guitar settles in a repeated fingerstyle pattern and the melody sits comfortably above it, occupying the sweet spots of Jansch’s range. Finally, it’s eye-opening reading about those who Jansch influenced with his guitar playing, which read like a who’s-who of 20th century titans. Jimmy Page adored this album. Neil Young placed Jansch above Hendrix in his own guitar pantheon. Paul Simon adapted “Angie” early in his career. Nick Drake seems to have based his whole career on picking up where this album leaves off, with “Angie”’s final wistful strains. Bert Jansch may not be talked about enough in 2022, but respect to this list for giving him a rightful place among giants.

Kind of mediocre, there are a lot of solo acoustic folk singer albums from this time period and I don’t know what is supposed to elevate this one.

Nice guitar! And sad, raspy voice. It reminds me of a person I met in Vietnam, who used to play the guitar in bars around the West Lake. He was blind, but he was the damn best guitar I'd ever heard.

2.5 not my style, but not bad.

Vikaa biisiä laskematta aika tusinakamaa. Pari kertaa pyöräytin läpi ja molemmilla kerroilla vasta viimeinen biisi sai vangittua mielenkiinnon.

Jotain hyvää, mut enimmäkseen meh

This is almost the complete opposite of what I’m looking for in a CD, but it’s not outright bad. I like virtuosic, ambitious, exciting, and rich sound. Jansch has kind of a weak, thin voice, with limited range, and while he’s a fine guitar player, he doesn’t do anything that noteworthy there either. Those are the only two instruments. The songs are pretty standard blues-folk, and I’d say he was influential on that style except that it’s crazy old, way older than any other part of rock music. It’s not the least bit exciting- most of the songs are played at a reasonably fast clip, but with no big moments, no real surprises- it’s at a slapped-out 4/10 the entire time, he never really turns it on. And the CD has no instrumental variety, no depth of sound. There’s a reason bass and drums are on damn near every rock CD- they work, every time, and removing them comes at a massive cost.

There's so much dynamics and expression in the playing. It's so nuanced, in terms of inflections and rhythms, and you can feel the love of the instrument in the tunes. His singing isn't great, but it's fine, and again, his enjoyment and conviction comes through. He also takes a number of the songs in harmonic and tonal directions which are completely beyond the call of duty for the genre that's in it. I had a feeling listening to it that he might have been a musical godfather I hadn't been aware of before, and a quick Google search showed up Neil Young, Nick Drake, Jimmy Page and others as having been influenced by him - I'm not surprised

This one didn’t leave much of a mark on me, but the guitar work was enjoyable in the moment.

reminds me of elliot smith in a weird way

Enjoyed this one! It's a cross between folk and classical guitar. Easy listening - reminds me of a guy we once saw playing a guitar in the park in San Francisco. Great for working to!

So so. Good background music. Acoustic and folksy, Kinda like James Taylor with a bit of a drawl. Not my favorite but I didn’t hate it. 3 stars seems perfect.

This was just a perfect pleasant discovery. I love my some singer-songwriter with fantastic finger-picking. It hits right in that sweet spot of relaxing music. A great discovery and what this list is great since I'd never have heard of this guy otherwise.

Really quiet. Good finger picking, singing could be better.

Strolling down the highway- perfectly fine song Smokey mountain - instrumental, pleasant to listen to Oh how your love is strong - nothing stand out so far I have no time- feel like he's coming for somebody👍 Couple more instrumentals Needle of death- pretty blunt which l think is effective here👍 Do you hear me now - snoozy protest song Ramblings gonna be the death of me - God knows this song rambles enough Alice's wonderland - Nice instrumental Runnin from home - like lyrics, quite sad👍 Courting blues - kinda creepy Casbah - another instrumental, quite twangy Dreams of love- another simplistic song, again unremarkable Angie- end with another instrumental This really didn't grab my attention at all. Pleasant to listen to but not much else 2/5

Ég heyri vel áhrifin sem hann hafði á Zeppelin III plötuna sérstaklega, og jú þetta er alveg skemmtilegt svo langt sem þetta nær og sumt er flott. En þegar allt kemur til alls er þetta bara ein rödd og kassagítar, og ég vil eitthvað meira.

Quite enjoyable, although a little mellow. I tend to favour higher bpm's but this was a good listen that I would most likely not have had otherwise. A 3.5 for me, but I enjoyed it more than dislike so its a 4!

Pretty good in places, pretty average in others

Yeah I dig it mellow chill

Incredible talent - was really taken by this. Both influenced by a lot and clearly a huge influence on a lot of other people. Loved it.

That was awesome. Not just good music, but inspiring. It made me want to pick up a guitar and try my hand at this kind of honest simple expression- which I have never done. That's a feat, if you ask me. Wonderfully evocative; I was listening while building spreadsheets in a corporate cubicle but it felt like I was strolling down that London highway right alongside him. What a breath of fresh air. And the range of quality is really quote tight here, not much difference at all between my favorite and least favorite songs here, and I struggle to pick any as a low spot. Maybe Courting Blues is a little half baked for its length? But oh well I was still tapping my foot and nodding along happily. Highlights: I Have No Time, Needle of Death, Do You Hear Me Now, Angie Lowlights: Courting Blues

Very fun listen. The guitar „solos“ in between the songs are a nice „pause“ that are also just fun to listen to. Couldn‘t really determine a highlight since the entire album flows really well while also working if you jump in at any point. Not my favourite kind of music either but I enjoyed this more the longer I listened to it.

Good job Bert

Nick Drake was apparently a big fan of Bert which is clear to see listening to this album. Technically a brilliant guitar player whom Neil Young dubbed the Jimi Hendrix of acoustic guitar. I really enjoyed this. Needle of Death might be one of my favourite songs ever. Sad, morose and beautiful. Highlights: Needle Of Death, I Have No Time, Do You Hear Me Now, Rambling’s Gonna Be The Death Of Me, Alice’s Wonderland, Running From Home, Angie

First thought: Darn! Not another Folk music album I'll have to give a one star rating. However, turns out to be a pleasant surprise, great guitar works, nice singing, really great album. Best "folk" album so far.

Heard it before?: No Enjoy it?: Not really, felt like there was too much filler and very little soul in a such a short album Favourite song: Track 9 - Rambling’s Gonna Be the Death of Me

Too folksy for my liking, that slow drawn out drawl for singing is not my cup of tea. There were some good guitar riffs and solos but really nothing to wow me at all. Best: Veronica Worst: Casbah

Buena voz y buenos acordes para un disco fácilmente escuchable. Tranquilo y reposado

I can see hear where Jimmy Page got alot of acoustic playing from. this was a nice listen.

Jansch's work is new to me, which surprises me as I just learned he was a big influence on Jimmy Page. His influence on this album is easily seen on Page and other familiar names in rock and roll. Pleasant listen. 4/5.

A pleasant folk surprise…feeling fresh and nostalgic simultaneously.

This is like Leonard Cohen by way better. It's very acoustic and simple.

Don't love it, but I appreciate the new discovery.

Very folksy, lots of instrumentals

Would like to revisit, cool vibe

I don't know that I would ever listen to this album again but it was neat to hear a 1960s take on blues.

Needle of Death was good

Really amazing guitar work. So impressive!

3.5/5

Folk crap

60s folk, acoustic vibe.

I liked the last few songs a lot but then it turns out the album had finished and I was listening to Waggoner’s lad from a different album.

Some of the guitar playing was really nice but the songs didn't really stick out to me

Good shit

les chansons instrumentales mais juste un pur bonheur c’était inattendu merci Bert

Thought I was going to like this more than I did, outside of the 2 songs I already heard I couldn't get into it that much.

I enjoyed the guitar in general and the instrumental tracks and a couple of the songs but less so.

reminded me of Nick Drake. Fit my mood when i was listening to it.

Could not get into this one. Some of the guitar work was really good, but overall was very forgettable.

This is one of those albums that you didn't realise had such an influence. I can hear Simon and Garfunkel and Nick Drake getting better just from hearing it. It's sad, and beautiful, and a bit angry. I'd heard the name, but never discovered him. A glad win from this endeavour.

Fantastic, masterful guitar playing, recording in a way that's crisp and clean. A breath of fresh air.

If Bob Dylan could play guitar and sing like this, he might have never gone electric.

Kind of cute British Folk. I liked it more at the start but it became a little same-y by the end. Not bad though.

2/5 naaah

Listened to on 6/24/2022 3.5/5 Favorite song: Veronica The guitar playing in this album is so beautiful and continually impressed me - very easy to listen to in the background and enjoyable

Almost a 4.

Fav Song: Angie

Fantastic!

Yeah Ok, so i have to say most of it washed over me somewhat as nice enough folk noodlings at first, until Do You Hear me jumped out, and enjoyed "Ramblings..." The guitar playing is obviously excellent throughout. Casbah is superb. Went back to relisten to Needle of Death. Am getting it now, need to settle into it, it's not a one listen wonder. Can see how influential this would be, as a big Robyn Hitchcock fan I knew the name, but had never heard before.

Fuck yeah! This dude can plaaaaaay.

Cool, mellow 60s folk

Nah all guitar strummy and a bit country, really didn't like

Objectively this is a great album, you can hear it in the guitar playing, the lyricism and there’s loads of atmosphere. Subjectively though, my attention wavered after the first few songs, and the record as a whole mostly came across as earnest and preachy which is a turn off for me.

I like how this kicks off with Strolling Down the Highway, the whole album has quite a nice feel but didn't really grab me.

He has a very calm soothing voice and a very good story teller. I enjoyed this album very much.

Some foundational folk stylings here. A really solid group of songs for the most part, with some real standouts. However, the whole thing is so homogenous that it gets a little tired by the end, even as the songs get better, and it just didn't suck me in like some others of the same vibe like Nick Drake.

The guitar on this album is phenomenal, and songs in short snippets really sells it for me. I think an instrumental version of this elevate it even further, but it is still a fantastic folk work.

Действительно потрясающая гитара и приятная мелодика.

Never heard this dude but he can play the hell out of a guitar. But I had heard his name a few years ago when Blur's Graham Coxon released a solo record of mostly acoustic music and cited Jansch as a significant influence. Maybe I listened to a song or two then but never followed-up. That's too bad this is great! Infinitely more listenable that American "folk" of the time, IMO. Also, "Chapelle Show...Chapelle Show..." Haha.

Never heard of this guy, but I'll listen again. It was simple and sad. I really enjoyed his guitar playing - something about it was just really beautiful. Plus, I like the story of this album - recorded it in his friends living room, sold it to the label for $100, and then sold 150,000 copies. That's bad ass (and bad business).

Get getsch

Bert Jansch was a fantastic guitarist and is a personal inspiration. This album has that certain ”contained experience” which captures me tremendously

Wha-

Great guitar and very chill.

Sensacional. Vários vocais legais!

It's a good record. Might have to give it another listen one day. 3.5/5

Alluring folk music that could have undoubtedly scratched a persistent itch in the time that it came out, mediating between short guitar noodling and thoughtful, lyrical performances. Favorites: Strolling Down the Highway, Needle of Death, Do You Hear Me Now, Running From Home, Courting Blues, Casbah, Angie.

very forgettable

Solid folk music.

A very simple formula for a pleasant listening experience.

Spare and simple. Warm and mellow. Pretty. Very nice!

Very simple but beautiful folk album. Lovely. Impressive how much a guitar and a voice can do! Enjoyed sitting back and relaxing to this.

So from the cover I'm expecting a singer-song writer, maybe folksy. And ... yup. Also sounds like a one person show. Which means the songs are going to have to be pretty compelling. For some reason the second song, Smokey River is reminding me of Led Zeppelin. Maybe the intro to Stairway to Heaven? Anyway, I like it. The most compelling story is Needle of Death, you can tell he knows the "troubled young life" in question. But even that story didn't really grab me. Overall it was fine I guess.

Genre: Folk Baroque 3/5 I do admit, I've never heard of the guy, and that when I got this album in my queue, I giggled very hard. Bert Jansch, while certianly not the most unfortunate name around, is certianly giggle-worthy. Tangent aside, Bert Jansch seems to have been the dude who preceded the folk heavy-hitters. As soon as the album began, I heard George Harrison, Brian Wilson, Donovan, the good parts of Bob Dylan, and even some of what Taylor Swift has been up to over the past few years. This was a really cool listen from that viewpoint, that this is one of those albums that contemporary songwriters were clearly influenced by. Other than that, this is fairly bland folk-pop, which is not altogether my favorite type of listening experience. What he was saying was way prettier and way less cringy than Bob Dylan, and his guitar playing was sweet and fit the mood, but it certainly lacks energy. Influential to many, but a bit too stale for my tastes. I'm sure, though, this will please plenty of listeners looking for more quiet projects. Not bad.

Liked it

Super guitar picking. I prefer the blues pieces to folk. Jansch's version of "Angie" has long been a favourite, so although the album really doesn't pull me in, I am inclined to give it another listen a medium mark for Angie and for the amazing guitar picking.

Ok folk album

Ok album. Some songs felt like quintessential folk songs from the 60s. The album was enjoyable however it felt like there’s been stronger albums of the same style. In 65 this may have been viewed better but to me it’s just ok. 5.7/10

That's some guitar twiddling.

A bit plucky and twangy for how I was feeling, but a pleasant interlude nonetheless

Good folk rock and great guitar playing - reminds me of a whole album of Beatles’ “Blackbird”

Just some good old folk

This kind of album really is not my thing normally, but I'll gladly make an exception for this one from here on out. This might be one of the best folk albums ever written. What a stunning and heartfelt album.

Liked Bert’s album… great guitar playing

not a fan, shouldn't be on this list. There are many others that surpass what he is trying to achieve here including Dylan, Drake, Simon & Garfunkle, etc etc.

I've heard this name before but can't remember any songs. This is a fantastic singer-songwriter album, like a folksy-er version of Nick Drake or John Martyn. Not quite Bob Dylan folksy but close. Really love how intricate the guitar work is on here. I'm a huge fan of albums like these, this was excellent. Favorite tracks: I Have No Time, Veronica, Needle of Death, Alice's Wonderland, Courting Blues. Album art: Pretty simple, black and white portrait, the likes of which we've seen a hundred times now. It's a good reminder here though that this is an old album, mid-'60s. I guess the budget was probably low for a debut too. 4.5/5

Nothing wrong with it

Some real nice stuff here. I often like folk music, and I also happen to like fingerstyle guitar, so this album has some solid tracks on it because Bert Jansch can really play well. So expressive and flowing. This genre was massive in the 60s, so it's a little hard at times not to hear it as part of that large catalog produced in the 60s folk revival, and this album has a lot of elements common to that movement, but to my ear, he's good enough to stand out a bit from that crowded field.

I had never heard of Bert Jansch before but this was a lovely album to listen to on a quiet morning. Lovely voice and guitar work. 4/5 stars

Folk 60s amb un interessant treball de guitarres que hauria d'influir a generacions venideres d'artistes i unes lletres que parlaven a una generació

Relaxing and soothing; could have been recorded any time between 1965 and now.

Frozen pizza. Store brand cereal. Day old donuts. When I was a kid (with the six years I had under my belt in 1965), we would taunt one another on the playground by one upping our fathers- Oh yeah, well my dad drives a tractor. So what, my dad’s a firefighter. And on it went until it was some poor kid’s turn whose father’s job was nothing to brag about, at which point the ace in the hole was played: Well, my dad could beat up your dad! And for some reason, and from that point on, that ‘dad’ became the standard. No offense intended at all towards Bert Jansch, a fine folk singer/songwriter in and for his time, but Bob Dylan just rendered you obsolete (as well as a lot of others). Anything you hear on this LP you may hear much deeper and fuller on any of Dylan’s first several recordings. My Dylan can beat up your Jansch. With one hand tied behind his back. (And, if you’re so inclined, contemplate the variety of meanings that illustration offers in a Dylan-esque way.) How is this a review of Bert, then, with all this Dylan talk? See, that’s the point. In a world where Dylan never existed, I’d give Bert a couple of stars, maybe three. Jansch’s acoustic guitar picking merits at least a star on its own. But for this listener, Dylan casts such a large shadow over his peers, all I can do is just gently, respectfully give it a single star and excuse myself from the table.

Charming collection of folk songs, if a little repetitive in style.

Good singer, happy to know about him

Folking hell. Superb guitar playing singing classic folk songs. Distinctly British. Best Tracks: Needle of Death; Running From Home; Angie

..

It's fine but kind of unmemorable.

So quiet...

Running from home, Dreams of love j'ai bien aimé

Bon album, mais je sais que y'a des meilleurs albums de folk et des meilleurs albums de Bert Jansch que celui-là. Prefs: Smokey River, Finches, Needle of Death, Do You Hear Me Now?, Casbah, Angie Moins pref: Oh How Your Love Is Strong

Great guitar player. In his field completely untouchable. The album was a bit one dimensional.. bit that ain’t Bert’s fault!

It's like listening to someone tuning a guitar for 45 minutes. I understand that Jansch was an inspiration for Mike Oldfield and others, but that doesn't come across on this album. Tedious twiddling.

Seriously, why is this on this list? I guess it would be good if someone were actually playing this around a campfire, but as an album this sounds pretty half-arsed. Maybe with a backing band and some proper production this might be good. Also, it may have been good and influential in the 60s, but it doesn't feel like it has any sort of staying power to keep it worth listening for modern audiences. I guess the most interesting tracks for me were the instrumental ones. Jansch actually plays quite well when he focuses more on the guitar and gives it some spotlight. I guess that makes it a 2.5 instead of a 2, but I'm still rounding down.

The guitar work on this album is pretty amazing. The singing/lyrics leaves much to be desired though. They sort of even each other out. This musical style isn't really my cup of tea but gotta give it up for that guitar playing. 3.5 stars

This one is also terrific. I'm surprised Bert has never come up during the Nick Drake renaissance since they are cut from similar cloth. Lots of small instrumental interludes in between longer songs.

lidt fesen bob dylansk

Skotsk folk, singer/songwriter, fuld akustisk guitar

Guitar was really good. Preferred the instrumental tracks over the songs with his voice. Finches and Alice’s Wonderland were my favorite. 3.5/5

the music is really nice. (•‿•)

Some nice songs but a bit disconnected, confusing at times.

Echte Entdeckung!

Großartige Entdeckung ich ahnungsloser

Country, singer songwriter Dylan achtig maar beter verstaanbaar

Eh, a couple of decent tracks. But overall, a bit slow for me.

Awful. Like a first year dorm kid playing for smokes.

I had never heard of Bert Jansch. He has a wonderful voice on this album. I liked how there were some instrumentals - when one loves playing guitar, I assume sometimes one just wants to play, and do their best to express something with the instrument. Glad to have been introduced to this artist.

Göttlich bodenständig vom ersten Ton - warum kannte ich diesen Namen bislang so gar nicht? Warm, virtuos, tief wurzelnd, wunderschön und lyrisch verfangend. Hierfür lernt man ein Instrument. So good so true. 4.7

Schon arg überstrapaziert, dass uns Ahnungslosen da als Referenz immer als erstes Nick Drake einfällt, ne? Vor allem, weil diese hier schon lange vier Jahre vor Five Leaves Left rausgekommen ist. Man könnte - auch hier wieder gesegnet mit Ahnungslosigkeit - den Sound des frühen Drake über weite Strecken sogar für deutlich angelehnt an Mr. Jantsch halten, viel mehr als zB immer nur an Donovan. Aber sei‘s drum. Das hier steht für sich, und es steht sehr schön. Bisschen haunting, deutlich in sich ruhend, wunderbar sparsam und trotzdem dicht gewebt. Beim ersten Durchgang besonders im Gedächtnis geblieben - weil stärker heraus ragend aus dem doch oft auch homogenen Sound: Casbah und Do You Hear Me Now. Werd ich gern noch öfter hören und vergebe erstmal 3,4 - beim nächsten Mal vielleicht mehr. Wobei: Drake wird - weil für mich halt der erste - schon auf Anhieb mehr bekommen. So ist das eben.

Didn't love it. Felt like it was the 'llewyn davis' soundtrack but worse. Great Value Bob Dylan.

Solid folk, it didn't make a huge impression beyond that.

Ingetogen album. Wel leuk

4,5

Fluff, not really enjoyable

‘The record includes Jansch's best-known tune - "Needle of Death", which was inspired by the death of his friend, folk singer Buck Polly.’ Another cheery choon.

Great album

This album didn't really do much for me. He has a nice voice, and the tone on the guitar was captured well, but I'm not really into this style of folk music 3/5

some of that was brilliant. some of it not so.

Bargain Bin Bob Dylan? Certainly looks like it in the photo....and yep, sounds like it too...Good. Bert Jansch is the kind of guy that, had Iris Law been alive in the 60s, she would have dated. 🌼 And by alive in the 60s, I mean in her infancy. And by dated, I mean nonced to within an inch of her life by.

Folking hell. For folks sake. Un-folking-believable. Have you seen that video where Haaland balances three balls on each other and hits a target? Yeah, I've got nothing else to say.

I love love love this. Hauntingly beautiful. Gorgeous Tim Buckley-esque sound.

Nice, calming little album

It's fine. I have a soft spot in my heart for 60s folk, but this was just kind of okay. Not super impressive. I think it could have benefited from a couple of more upbeat tracks or maybe another instrument or two every once and a while, but it tends to blend together mostly.

Well this is great.

Boring for me

Love Burt Like the later things more … Avocet for instance

Cultura general

This was a solid album, lovely to listen to.The guitar work is absolutely gorgeous, like a sunny autumn day in musical form. Jansch has a really interesting voice, like he just teleported in from a distant time. The songwriting is eloquent and surprisingly pointed at times, like on the scathing "I Have No Time" and the mournful "Needle of Death." Fave Songs: Angie, Alice's Wonderland, Smokey River, Needle of Death

Inoffensive folk guitar

2.5 stars

Good but not for me

I've heard this album a few times in the past. Possibly over 10 years ago. Opinion is the same. It's very niche folk, instrumentals are better than the vocal tracks and the last track Angie is an outstanding bit of acoustic guitar work but not enough to carry the whole album.

Very minimal Don't like the voice, lyrics, or music

nice songs accompanied by acoustic guitar, some songs in de middle are kinda of lacking in diversity and a different dynamic, angie is nice altough i wonder what kind of lyrics theme it would fit

Skilled musician, boring music.

I'd like to believe that the Coen Brother's "Inside Llewyn Davis" is based on this chap. This is literally just a dude and his acoustic guitar, but said dude can play! I hear a lot of The Beatles' "For You Blue" on the first song. I hope Bert at least had a cat hanging around the studio like Llewyn Davis would.

A beautiful album I'll never revisit.

Come back Bob Dylan - all is forgiven. Tripe.

Folk. Un hombre y su guitarra. Ni fu ni fa.

solid folk rock.

As Homer Simpson said, boring!

Very unique and cool voice.

The debut album from Scottish folk musician Bert Jansch. The music was peaceful and a joy to listen to because it didn't sound so mainstream, but it's not my type of music. Fun fact: This album was recorded on a reel-to-reel tape recorder at engineer Bill Leader's house and then sold to Transatlantic Records for £100. The album then went on to sell 150,000 copies.

Dumb 1/5

Never heard of Bert Jansch before. Very fitting sound for the 60's. Not bad by any means, but not an album I would seek out.

Ok

Acoustic voice and guitar folk. It's fairly well done with some amazing guitar playing. Sadly I just find his voice quite dull and there's nothing to really grab me.

i think the first song is fantastic but i quickly lost interest for the vast majority for the rest of the album. the songs were not bad but did not do enough to garner my full attention. the runtime is quite short though which makes it relatively acceptable. 2.5 to a 3/5