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Dick Miles: Cheating the Tide

Cheating the Tide (Greenwich Village GVR 227)

Cheating the Tide
Dick Miles

Greenwich Village Records GVR 227 (LP, UK, 1984)

Recorded at the People's Stage Studios, Totnes, Devon in February 1984;
Engineered by Martin Scragg;
Produced by Sam Richards and Martin Scragg;
Photography by Michael Green;
Sleeve design by Chris Groom;
Special thanks to Nigel Pickles for the use of the baritone concertina

Musicians

Dick Miles, vocals [1, 5-9, 11, 13], chorus vocals [6], concertina [1-13], baritone concertina [12];
Martin Carthy, guitar [1, 9, 13];
Sue Miles, clarinet [7-8, 12], bass clarinet [2-3, 6, 8], chorus vocals [6];
Sam Richards, piano [2-3, 7], harmonica [8], whistle [11], chorus vocals [6];
Tish Stubbs, vocals [7], guitar [7], chorus vocals [6];
Stephen Cassidy, recorder [13], bass recorder [13], bass crumhorn [13];
Jenny Critchley, tenor crumhorn [13]

Tracks

Side 1Side 2
  1. Lady Diamond (3.22)
  2. Washington Post (2.44)
  3. Rebel Soldier (2.55)
  4. Bill Charlton's Fancy (2.00)
  5. Tommy's Lot (4.26)
  6. Pakefield Parson (2.45)
  7. Poor Boy (4.22)
  1. There's No One With Endurance Like the Man Who Sells Insurance! (3.08)
  2. Wages of Death (4.27)
  3. Dillpickle Rag (1.43)
  4. The Curse of Hoxne Bridge (2.55)
  5. The Cott (2.21)
  6. The Battle of Bosworth Field (4.27)

Review

Cheating the Tide is a beautifully balanced selection of material including almost everything from American Music Hall [or should that be Vaudeville] through to a magic version of Lady Diamond. Throughout the record the standard never falters, thanks in no small part to one of those supergroups that only ever seem to materialise in recording studios, in this case including Martin Carthy, Sam Richards, Sue Miles, Tish Stubbs.

All the vocal tracks are delivered with that unassuming sincerity that Dick almost unconsciously projects on a gig. Contrast for instance his lugubrious delivery on the poignant Timmy's Lot, a strangely dispassionate comment on the First World War, with the deliciously understated jauntiness of The Man Who Sells Insurance. Wonderfully subtle stuff.

But it is on the instrumental numbers that Dick's talent comes to the fore. His playing style is rooted in that of the old time concertina greats such as the late Tommy Williams, but has evolved over the past few years into an instantly recognisable Dick Miles signature.

Dill Pickle Rag will turn any inspiring concertinist a delicate shade of chartreuse, The Cott is a richly mellifluous slow piece, Bill Charlton's Fancy a dazzling compilation of triplets and quadruplets; all classic examples of virtuoso level musicianship to be enjoyed simply for its own sake.

Alan Harlow and Maggy StGeorge
Southern Rag, Dec 1984