Gather Me

Product Information

Some of her classics can be found on this as well, from “Ring the Living Bell” to “Some Say (I Got Devil), to name but 2 of the best of her work. And it was that connection that motivated me to come out after the performance, meet everyone and never do a Melanie has left the building thing. Allmusic stated that the album "is one of her most accomplished and confident albums, a set that allowed Melanie the room to indulge her lyrical obsessions while Schekeryk created superb musical accompaniment from her simple but forceful melodies. Ring the Living Bell is arranged in a roots music fashion with an opening that sounds like it could have been recorded by a raw group in the Appalachian Mountains, before it shifts into more of a pop vein.

As for the tracks, they are fun, light and gentle, but underneath, there are some serious messages she is trying to get across. Brand New Key had even been banned by some radio stations because its lyrics could be read as something less innocent than the song sounded when Melanie recorded it in the little girl voice she sometimes used. This is an early classic from the folk scene in the States, which, of course, is very different from the UK music scene involving folk music.Center of the circle is the big production number of the album, but even there the arrangement, which includes a small orchestra, doesn't overwhelm. It opens with Little Bit of Me a sincere explanation of why she can't be constantly touring and recording.

Some Day (I Got Devil) has the Spanish guitar intonations and sound as well as the same passion found in her song Tuning My Guitar, from the Melanie LP. The latter is considered by many as one of her classics - to me it's a qualified success, because of the ambiguous lyric. The album also features the singles “Some Day I’ll Be a Farmer” and the Top 40 hit “Ring the Living Bell”. Though she would release six more albums through 1976, this would be her peak on the radio and record charts. The album also features the singles "Some Day I'll Be a Farmer" and the Top 40 hit "Ring the Living Bell".

I now see why you my dear ones are here it wasn’t just because you felt sorry for me (someone actually said that) or because I reminded you of something or someone you loved. The only time I felt good about myself when I was in front of you, and we were together, and I could see and sense that all was well. The only negative being the lyrics with Melanie at times, explaining what a great person she is, which can be a little irritating. For this listener, the biggest problem with the album is a more mundane one - there's too much religious content.

There's no discernible concept to this - it's hard to figure out what purpose is served by the quaint covers, 30-second fragments, half-finished works-in-progress and near-wordless guide vocals that cast a disproportionate shadow over the rest of the album. However, this is a great album beyond the popular "I've got a brand new pair of roller-skates" song, and the quality of the vinyl was excellent. I have a very well-worn vinyl copy of this album, and I have a feeling I’ll be spinning the digital version just as much.She enthused at the time that it was her best album yet (which should always be taken with a pinch of salt), and that it was the first album she was entirely happy with, and one that reflected exactly where her head was at, at the time!