One Saturday afternoon during the time of recording this album I was walking back to our shop from Northcote’s uber-groovy eatery Palaminos with our lunch when outside the Wesley Anne music venue I passed a young woman leaning on a cello case singing softly to herself in a distinctive and beguiling voice. After walking past a dozen steps I turned back and asked her a rather impertinent question… “are you a singing cello player, and would you like to do a session on my record?”
This is how I met Mei Lai Swan. It is her cello in the album’s string sections and her voice on some very effective backing vocals. Now her solo cello is heard on this nouveau-flamenco inspired “Shadows”, supplying a deliciously dark counterpoint for my rambling guitar melody. And another female to feature on this track is the versatile Diana Clark whose stunning bravura ad-lib flamenco-style vocal on the chorus is one of the album’s high points. I was moved to tears when she recorded this and its highly emotive power still knocks me out, even after so many listens.
It only remains to mention Tony Floyd’s powerful drumming and Craig Pilkington’s excellent mix, and “Shadows” can fade to black.