Jade Warrior - Now

Warrior back on winning form

Refugees from the 60s beat boom, multi-instrumentalists Jon Field and Tony Duhig adopted the Jade Warrior name in 1969. Experimenting with folk and rock liberally laced with African, Oriental and Latin flavours, they really only hit their stride between 1974 and 1978 with a quartet of distinctive albums for Island which remain the foundation of their cult reputation.

After sporadic releases in the wilderness and Duhig’s death in 1990, Jade Warrior return with a top-flight album boasting cinematic dynamics, thoughtful instrumentation, and the strategically astute placement of guest artists including Theo Travis (sax) and Tim Stone (guitar). Aside from the occasional stylistic misfire (the cod-Latin Everything Must Pass), this collection of songs fronted by the pre-74 vocalist Glyn Havard has warmth, clarity and the power of surprise on its side. While Fool & His Bride begins as a jazzy-inflected blues, it seamlessly morphs into John Barry-esque soundtrack mode; metal-edged ear-bleeding sonics are raucously deployed in the manic 3am Meltdown, giving the album an unexpected edge to shake off any New Age dust that may have gathered. Bassist Dave Sturt adds a classy lustre, while Jon Field’s flute never sounded better. A worthy successor to their glory days.

Windweaver Music | WWMCD 001

Reviewed by Sid Smith
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