Though it's not short of a toot of the flute and the twiddle on the fiddle-o, nor yet deprived utterly of a drop of the mountain dew, a prattle o' the praties and spiel of the spalpeens, yet the songs and the record as a whole have an appeal that goes well beyond that of the souvenir shop and the travel poster. No doubt the art of singer and pianist should in themselves be potent enough to assure of that much in advance, and indeed not in the profoundest Schubert, the most exquisite Faure, has either of them performed with more delicacy and refinement, more tenderness, humour, and, on the rare occasions that evoke it, passion, than they do here. Ann Murray, always at her best when not pressing her voice too hard for volume and height, sings within happily appropriate limits and makes us realize more clearly than ever just how wide the boundaries of her art are set. Graham Johnson turns everything beautiful-side-out: some of these accompaniments could sound so stodgy or hamfisted in other, less imaginatively guided, hands. Here everything has grace and wins favour, Phil the Fluter's Ball, Mother Machree and all.
One other feature is the variety and skill of four arrangers. The Thomas Moore songs were arranged by Sir John Stevenson, whose dates are 1761 to 1833, an Irishman happy to be alive (I should think) in the age of Haydn. His inventions for the piano-interludes are more than graceful: they are gently contemplative and modestly original. Then Stanford, strong in ideas, dramatic in The falling star, fun in The Beautiful City of Sligo. Herbert Hughes, often more fun still, is moved by affection to linger between verses in The Bard of Armagh. Britten, always seeking beneath the skin for the little nerve ajangle with anxiety or secret joy, finds wonder in them all. Personal favourites also include Phyllis Tate's arrangement of The lark in the clear air, and the Frenches' (Helen and Philip) charming Ach, I dunno; and for encore there is She moved thro' the fair, unaccompanied and beautifully controlled. A sure winner.'