Kate Rusby & Kathryn Roberts - Kate Rusby & Kathryn Roberts (1995)

Kate Rusby set the Britfolk world on its ear with Hourglass, her solo debut, in 1998. Her duo effort with singer and multi-instrumentalist Kathryn Roberts, which was originally released in Britain in 1995, was released in the U.S. following the success of Hourglass. Roberts is at least as good a singer as Rusby -- her voice is darker, more mature -- and they sound great together. They perform lovely renditions of "Ned on the Hill" and the jaunty "Courting Is a Pleasure" (not to mention a very nice arrangement of Suzanne Vega's "The Queen and the Soldier"), and are accompanied elegantly by cellist Alison Kinnaird and fiddler John McCusker. If there are deficiencies to point out, they can probably be chalked up to the duo's youth at the time of the recording; there are a few too many scooped notes and perhaps a bit too much gushy, broken-chord piano. The production isn't quite up to snuff, either. But the album is very lovely overall, and can be recommended enthusiastically.