The veteran English folkie has taken an unexpected twirl in the spotlight recently as the inspiration for Hollywood’s Danny Collins, the story of a musician who receives a letter from John Lennon 34 years after it was posted. Al Pacino takes Tilston’s role. Here, the songwriter casts a lingering look over his career since that 1971 postcard, paying tribute to the influential Soho folk scene on Grass Days, mourning a friend on The Way It Was, and nodding to Nick Drake on The Riverman Has Gone, where Tilston’s keen political blade shows its edge. Mostly the mood is personal and reflective, with Tilston’s guitar supported by deft touches of bass, autoharp and piano. Classy work.
