This short but beautiful disc showcases the songs of Kim Larsen in arrangements for Classical guitar. Heard in these performances by Jesper Sivebæk, and captured in one of the best guitar recordings to have ever come my way, the entire disc is captivating from beginning to end.
Guitarist Jesper Sivebæk takes us through a melodic, heartfelt field of emotions. The first song, Lady oh Lady, is apparently the best love song written in Danish: according to the notes, anyway
It begins a journey that includes the impossibly catchy Joanna, a song of longing that sounds terribly familiar (even though, at least to myself, it was not). Ambitiously, the song Lots of Success is basically a fantasia for guitar; while There is a Song, in an arrangement by Daniel Murray, becomes incredibly poignant.
The song Susan Himmelblå, suggests Sivebæk in his helpful commentaries included with the release, has an affinity with The Beatles' Across the Universe. With its happy-go-lucky repetitions and its simple chordal structure, it does indeed sounds as if it could be a chip off the Fab Four’s workbench.
A song that features in a 2017 movie, The Narrow Road is perhaps destined, suggests Sivebæk, to become a classic. This recording might become one too, with the guitarist finding just the right level of purity.
The poignant In a Moment is probably Larsen's best-known song. It offers hope in darkest moments (and so is apparently a popular song at funerals). It is left to Planes in the Night to lighten the atmosphere; to the original, Sivebæk imaginatively adds a milonga rhythm; and, to complement it, Brazilian samba underpins the song Heaven.
The final song, Like a Touch of a Raindrop, has a touching simplicity but also a real sense of profundity about it. A most beautiful album, one to cherish. Colin Clarke, June 12 2021