As we brace for the beautiful musical impact that I’m sure the new one from Fran Ashcroft will prove to be, it is the perfect time to remind us of his singular sonic vision by giving 2023’s A Tour of British Duck Ponds a fresh spin. Now available on on vinyl for the first time, thanks to the wonders of the modern world’s print-to-order, eco-friendly, no delays service, it gives us a glimpse, perhaps, into what Brit-pop might have sounded like had it not been the journalistic invention of the ’90’s but rather a real musical subculture of the 1930’s.
To say that the sound here is quintessentially English, in the same way that icons such as The Kinks or the Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band where (how could it not be with a title like that?) is a great starting point. But that is just a starting point.
If the opener, “The Head of John The Baptist,” has an excellent music hall lilt to it, “The Legendary Fish of The Mediterranean” seems to come from a similar place to The Beatles Magical Mystery Tour, Fran’s own Liverpool tones in the spoken word section certainly helps to hit home the point I’m making.
“Showdown at Horseshoe Pass” wanders into some more west-coast psychedelic territory, and “Longhaired Git” is a wonderfully chilled defense of individuality referencing 60’s British anti-counter-culture slang but, in many ways, as relevant in these increasingly intolerant times as it has always been. But whatever sound or point he is advocating, there is always a gentleness to the music and a conversational, intimate vibe to his fantastic lyrics.
I love the understated nature of the album. I love the quiet and softly spoken swearing, again delivered in a way only we Brits do. I love that the influence and inspiration for this album lie anywhere and everywhere in the half-century between 1920 and 1970. I love the kitchen sink drama nature of the small-town narratives. I love the wry observation, the poetic yet worldly wordplay, the voice and the vernacular. In fact, it is hard to find anything about A Tour of British Duck Ponds, from its title to those last fading piano lines, that I don’t love.
