Emily’s eagerly awaited new album ‘A Different Life’ is her follow up to the well-received ‘A Day Like Today’. It is an album full of variety. There are several of Emily’s own songs such as ‘Always A Smile’, written for her Polish grandmother, and ‘Edward of Morton’, a tragic tale from Emily’s native Dumfriesshire. Emily has also re-worked several traditional songs and given a new feel to many by giving the words melodies of her own. Amongst the songs are three instrumental sets, a slow air written by Emily and two up beat sets largely consisting of tunes penned by Emily’s regular fiddle player, Jamie McClennan.
Though very much a song based album Emily’s accordion and piano feature throughout on both tune sets and songs. With so many musicians performing many of the tracks inevitably have a ‘big’ sound but the album is well balanced with sparser tracks such as ‘The Lowlands of Holland’ and Emily’s unaccompanied singing on ‘Far O’er the Forth’.
In total there are ten musicians featured on the album. Complimenting Emily’s vocals are Brian Finnegan on flute and whistles and Jamie McClennan on fiddle. Steve Byrne (Guitar/Bouzouki/Cittern), Duncan Lyall (Double Bass), Martin O Neill (Bodhran) and Paul Jennings (Percussion) provide a rhythmic backbone to many of the tracks. Sarah Murray (Cello), Jonna Inge (Viola) and Hamish Napier on backing vocals give a beautiful touch to ’Strong Winds For Autumn’ in particular. There is even space for an appearance of French Horn played by Andy Saunders.
Media Reviews
...it’s totally great to see Emily making an album like this which is packed full of beautiful music with wonderful arrangements and some of the best traditional singing I have ever heard.
I first heard Emily sing and play when I was one of the judges at the Scottish young traditional musician of the year final in 2002. The standard of musicianship from everybody that night was amazing but there was no doubt at all in any of the judges minds that Emily was the clear winner. She completely blew us all away with her performance and her ability to charm an audience, it was incredibly exciting to see someone so young with such a talent. In the short period of time since then it’s been even more exciting to watch her go on to be one of the country’s best interpreters of traditional song.
Emily is a technically brilliant singer and musician, but the thing that moves me and inspires me is the passion with which she sings and plays and the obvious love she has for traditional music and song. This is an astounding time for traditional music and for young people playing and singing it, so it’s totally great to see Emily making an album like this which is packed full of beautiful music with wonderful arrangements and some of the best traditional singing I have ever heard. Her choice of songs also is totally fantastic and tells you a lot about how much she cares for this music, they are full of great melodies and wonderful old stories...she never lets the arrangements get in the way of the stories and the song, and the way she sings them makes you listen to every single word.
Some people are blessed with a rare gift, Emily has been given a voice that will make people very very happy, but she also has the amazing ability to sing one line in a song that will give you loads of goose bumps and make you cry lots!!
Emily Smith has made a truly beautiful and inspiring album and is an amazing talent... and what’s even more annoying is that she’s also a really nice person!
Her trademark interpretations of traditional songs drawn from her native Borders are fresh and expressive in their contemporary arrangements, and her own songs are growing stronger.
Emily Smith has continued to refine and develop her music since winning the Young Scots Traditional Musician of the Year in 2002, and has served up that "difficult second album" in some style. While she is a fine accordionist and pianist, it has become increasingly clear that she is primarily a singer. Her trademark interpretations of traditional songs drawn from her native Borders are fresh and expressive in their contemporary arrangements, and her own songs are growing stronger.
5 star review in The Scotsman 11th February 2005
Always A Smile, and the rousing Edward Of Morton, displaying a non-kitsch mastery of traditional idioms comparable to that of Karine Polwart.
Three years on from winning the Radio Scotland Young Traditional Musician Of The Year award, fellow singer Emily Smith is also fast maturing into a stellar talent. A Different Life, her second album, also proves that the songwriting promise suggested by the title track of her first, A Day Like Today, was no flash in the pan.
Three fine Smith originals feature here, among them a moving, gracefully-wrought tribute to her Polish-born grandmother, Always A Smile, and the rousing Edward Of Morton, displaying a non-kitsch mastery of traditional idioms comparable to that of Karine Polwart.
To complement her own playing on accordion and piano, Smith also makes the most of an excellent instrumental line-up, including Steve Byrne on guitar, cittern and bouzouki, Brian Finnegan on flute and whistles, Jamie McClennan on fiddle and Paul Jennings on percussion.
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