There are a batch of Bert Jansch albums being rereleased this summer, and this is one of the most intriguing. Recorded in 1995 as an “authorised bootleg”, it’s a reminder of his year-long Wednesday-night solo residency at this tiny London venue (which has now relocated from its original Denmark Street home). This was a difficult period for Jansch. He had achieved near-superstar status in the 60s and 70s, then lost his audience and his health, and had yet to win over the new young following who would later rightly hail him as a guitar hero. But he was on his way back, and in impressive form, despite the modest, mumbled introductions and a few fluffed notes. The set includes songs from his (then) new album When the Circus Comes to Town, along with Irish, American and English folk songs (including a magnificent Blackwaterside), blues, and his 60s classic, Strolling Down the Highway.
