Donovan Leitch –
FAIRYTALE
There was an
interview with Donavan a short while ago in which he openly described himself
as a great songwriter. I don’t have a problem with that. Even in mid-60s he was
so much more than a Dylan imitator or someone who contributed a line to “Yellow
Submarine”.
In 1965, his best (A Gift From A Flower To A Garden) was yet
to come, but right from the start he knew his way around a great melody. Songs like “Jersey
Thursday” are pleasantly mysterious and I’d take “Little Tin Soldier” over “Sunshine
Superman” any day of the week. Even the disarmingly silly “Circus Of Sour” is a
charmer.
When it comes to 60s folk music, Donovan has always been my wet dream. Good songs all around, but it’s the soothing, floating jazziness of “Sunny Goodge Street” that makes Fairytale such a special album in the year of Highway 61 Revisited and Rubber Soul.
