Christine Collister
Country of origin:
Isle of Man (British Isles)
Type of music generally:
Contemporary folk, blues
Status:
Most recent release, Under Construction II (demos, 2012); most recent release of studio material, Feminine Logic (2010?)
See also:
Christine Collister's site
Comparisons:
I bought the 1988 album Mischief [from the time when she was part of a duo called Gregson & Collister], on the basis of a review that compared the duo to the Don Dixon/Marti Jones pairing...Collister's got a smokier voice better suited to an occasional dip into the blues than Jones', though. (dmw@mwmw.com)I first noticed her when she and her husband at the time were backing up Richard Thompson. I didn't much like the Gregson & Collister stuff, though. They seemed to be in the same vein as Richard Thompson but without the edge that makes some of his work intriguing. (Neile)
Covers/own material:
Her first solo album, Live, contains mostly covers, but does include two original songs.
General comments:
Lyrically...clever, wry, often self-deprecating takes on love/loss. (dmw@mwmw.com)She's got a nice smoky voice. (Neile)
Recommended first album:
Live
Recordings include:
- Live (1995)
- Into the Light (2002)
- Home (2003)
- Love (2005)
- Under Construction (2009?)
- Feminine Logic (2010?)
- Under Construction II (demos, 2012)
- Many collaborations; see The Bee's Knees Music Archives for a complete discography
Live
Release info:
1995—Green Linnet Records—GL3106
Availability:
In the "Folk" or "World" music sections of many U.S. record stores
Ecto priority:
Recommended for fans of British folk
Group members:
Christine Collister—guitar and vocals
Guest artists:
Rory McFarlane—bass guitar and vocals
Howard Lees—guitar and vocals
Comments:
This is Christine's solo debut. The two original songs are nice, but in my opinion the strongest songs on the album are the covers, especially Willy Russell's "Easy Terms" and Janis Ian's "Ruby." Christine's rich voice keeps things interesting throughout; her cover of "Human Nature" (yes, the '80s Top 40 hit) is surprisingly successful in its new, bluesier incarnation. (ishara@blarg.net)
Further info:
Christine Collister's DVD entitled Christine Collister xx: Celebrating 20 years in music is available from her website.
Thanks to Marisa Wood for work on this entry.
