For those of you who are late to the party, and are not immediately familiar with Claire Hamill, shame of you, if collaborations with Wishbone Ash and Steve Howe, of Yes, are not enough to have caught your ear, then if you have ever listened to Jon and Vangelis’s Friends of Mr. Cairo, then you will at least heard her voice, even if it was just the backing variety. But Claire is far more than just some vocalist who enhances other people’s songs. She is a talented guitarist and singer in her own right and has been for well over 50 years. Initially compared to Joni Mitchell she entered the limelight at the tender age of 17, when her first album, One House Left Standing was released in 1972. Since then, she went on to tour with the likes of John Martyn, Procol Harum and Jethro Tull. Not bad company, by anybody’s standards. But not being one to rest on her laurels Claire has continued to tour and record and now, with her 16th album, A House Among the Trees she continues to impress.
Starting off with The Beautiful, a 1970’s style song that is reminiscent of Joan Baez singing ABBA, as they try and sound like the Carpenters. A joyous and jolly ode to the innocence of youth, on the surface, but there is a subtle sharper edge, thanks to the echoes of Indian music and clever guitar work, that is not overwhelming but still adds to the song. It’s Really You, despite the female vocal, moved along by the guitar and dreamy tone, this could easily have been a Beatles song circa 1967 or 1968, or at least an Oasis tribute ditty.
If you start getting too fixed in your views of the songs and style along comes My Snakeskin Lover. A song about a man who changes his appearance more than someone who just has a strange taste in material for his jacket. An up-tempo song with a Texican/Mexicana feel. I could easily imagine hearing this in a Quentin Tarantino film, probably before Antonio Bandaras shoots up some dirty back water bar, while Cheech Marin dives for cover. Quite possibly my favourite song of the album or, if not it is a close second to Intoxicating.
The Werewolf and the Maiden is a song for three reasons. Firstly, any song involving werewolves, even if it might be a veiled metaphor for a sexual predator, rather than a creature looking for Lee Ho Fooks and some beef chow mein while in London, is okay by me. Secondly, it is of a decent length, so should please true prog fans, after all we have the best musical attention span. Finally, I love it because it is such an enjoyable song. There might not be a red riding hood but like a troubadour telling a cautionary tale where the maiden might be blind to the inner wolf, the hunter still needs to be careful of the prey; especially when the disguise becomes transparent.
Next up is Wings of Freedom, a bluesy Midwest song that paints a picture of some dream place or a time that is full of yearning. A beautiful song enhanced by the contributions from David Knopfler, of Dire Straits on keyboards.
As mentioned before Intoxicating is one of the standout tracks for me. A stonking bluesy honky-tonk ode to being drunk on love. Aided and abetted by Mark Abrahams, of Wishbone Ash, providing some wonderful guitar work. If your feet don’t want to move about and dance to this, you are either tone deaf or would need a medical certificate to excuse you from displaying your enjoyment of the music. At least tap your feet to show that you still have a pulse.
Up to the Moon has an elegiac feel to it, full of sadness that somehow permeates everything that is seen in nature, while also painting a picture of a home once full of love. But, despite the tone, there is hope in Pandora’s box of broken-hearted woes. A love lost can be found again. This is followed by another fun foot stomper is Obsession. There can be a fine line between being obsessed and being a stalker, but this stays on the safe side of loving someone enough for it to fill the mind; but only just. Helped along by some sharp guitar playing.
Sometimes this album feels like an embarrassment of riches as, ¾ of the way through the track list, Cool comes along and keeps up the tempo. As a safety measure that could easily have been the first track, designed to grab the listener’s attention. But this is like a loud two finger signal to someone who deserves the scorn, ensuring that the music keeps running along at a decent pace. In my mind Your Name in the Wind could easily have had another meaning but, ignoring my infantile mind, this is a great tune. A love song but not in the sickly-sweet way. If someone sang this to me, I’d know it was a love worth having.
The penultimate track, Don’t Go Home Without Me, maintains the swinging pace that made me do the ‘Dad dance’. Thankfully, living alone, there was nobody to laugh at me. But when a song is this much fun, who cares about having moves that impress others? It is all about the vibes dictating the moves.
Like all good things the album must come to an end, but the final song doesn’t mean that the pace slows down just because the finish line is in sight. All We Have Now is a grandiose ode to making the most of precious life and the love that appears along the journey. A fitting conclusion which, like all good albums, left me wanting more.
If you are expecting an album to headbang to or crank up loud to share with the rest of your street, then you might want to look elsewhere. However, although the best of the summer days are now over, if you want something that you can play while sat in a garden enjoying the sunshine while sipping a Pimms, swigging a Carlsberg (or drinking a proper lager) this would be the ideal soundtrack to such a lazy and chilled out afternoon.
TRACK LISTING
01. The Beautiful (3:19)
02. It’s Really You (4:54)
03. My Snakeskin Lover (4:21)
04. The Werewolf and the Maiden (7:58)
05. Wings of Freedom (3:24)
06. Intoxicating (4:12)
07. Up to the Moon (4:31)
08. Obsession (3:47)
09. Cool (4:10)
10. Your Name is in the Wind (4:17)
11. Don’t Go Home Without Me (4:31)
12. All We Have is Now (5:15)
Total Time – 54:39
MUSICIANS
Claire Hamill – Vocals, Acoustic Guitar
Sean Elliott – Electric & Acoustic Guitars
Sonny Flint – Drums, Percussion, Bass, Keyboards, Hammond Organ, Harmonica, Acoustic & Electric Guitars
John Nicholls – Bass
~ With:
David Knopfler – Grand Piano, Hammond Organ (5)
Mark Abrahams – Electric Guitar Solo (6)
Sage Maverick – Choir (12)
ADDITIONAL INFO
Record Label: Independent
Country of Origin: UK
Date of Release: 25th April 2026
LINKS
Claire Hamill – Website | Facebook | Bandcamp | YouTube | Instagram
