Mothers of Intention – Watersong

DJ’s Guide to Watersong
1) Sway When You Walk 4:16 A Flo and Eddy gem from our past. Rosie starts unaccompanied, to be joined in a nice groove by the rest of the band. A truly sublime instrumental from Tony on fiddle, while Liz Frencham lays down a funky bass riff. “Isn’t it fine we’re all living in 4 quarter time”
2) Her Mantle so Green 6:02 A traditional Irish song of lovers’ fidelity. Moody instrumental interlude from guitar, recorder, and fiddle and Cliona’s ethereal glissando’s on the Para -Celtic harp transports the listener. Penny’s clear high harmony reaches to the heart.
3) Miss Kates Homework/Blazey’s Jig/Penny’s from Heaven 5:51 Tony is channelling his inner Irish here! A fantastic set of tunes with delightful countermelody from Lainey. Rosie keeps pace with her rhythmic drive while Penny, on bodhran, always looks ‘eyes to heaven’ when Tony says the name of the last piece.
4) Wooden Ships 5:51 A classic Crosby, Stills and Nash song given a new interpretation. This is an epic song and the addition of Liz’s bass locks the sound into a very cruisey groove. Bordering on R+B in feel, Rosie delivers a powerful vocal line with a tight three-part harmony from Penny and Tony.
5) Wisteria 5:30 The heady scent of this purple flower revives sentimental memories of times past. Guitar finger picking, Rosie’s clear vocal line and the lovely interplay between Guitar and fiddle makes this a cross over gem- folk, country, contemporary. Again the tight vocal harmonies hold the stunning chorus
6) Sixteen Come Next Sunday 4:23 An infectious and foot tapping rhythm from this fast and flying song brings with it the sense of youthful spontaneity and lust. No wonder Mother is looking out for her 15yr old! The tune set we throw in is derived from a traditional tune
7) Tamlin/Garden of Jane Delawney 6:06 Tamlin – a traditional tune is given a pastoral feel as Rosie lays the foundation with plucked guitar, Lainey plays the main themes on whistle and Tony improvises around the tune. A cloud of Tibetan singing bowls and voice segues into Harp and guitar interplay throughout the Garden Of Jane- a beautiful yet eerie rendition of this classic Trees song. Tamlin is revisited whilst in the Garden. Well worth the listen!
8) Travelling Song 2:19 Top 5 finalist in MusicOz awards 2007. “A lovely Celtic tune, written by Rosie, pushed along by a rhythm guitar riff – full of the promise of the open road,”- Brent Clough- Daily Planet. This is a joyous carefree journey with butterflies in the stomach as we hit the dip in the road! Again, Liz joins us for the ride.
9) Shards of Glass 4:25 A heart wrenching but ultimately positive ballad written by Lainey with help from Rosie. This song has touched many people’s hearts, with stories of spontaneous tears erupting on first listening. “The most amazing piece of music/lyrics I’ve heard in a long, long time.” Bill Quinn-Trad and Now Magazine. Powerful to be sure!
10) The Brink 4:06 What a calming way to come out of Shards of Glass. A stunning Celtic air. The tune builds from its initial declaration on guitar. Soon the recorder and fiddle are weaving colours with their interplay.
11) Jersey Thursday/Sunrise Rubies 4:52 ‘Sunrise Rubies’ was the bands name for a nanosecond, but the then bodhran player threatened to leave so the name was given to this intriguing piece. Acappella mouth music in lush vocal harmony interspersed with a foot-tapping tune. Lainey’s dream gifted the affirmative middle section. Jersey Thursday and a new 2nd verse were added in a flash of inspiration early one morning. We hope Donovan would approve. It is the folk way after all!
12) Nothing 5:46 An emotive rendering of the Nitin Sawney song, sung by Rosie. Played in DADGAD tuning, the beautiful guitar chord progressions and powerful instrumentals from Tony make this a quiet standout. Liz adds her grounding bass to the mix while Penny’s high harmonies soar. Definitely deserves more than one listen
13) In Your Dreams/Piper on the Hob 4:54 A two tune set, the first written by Tony one freezing night to express his pleading to the girls to share their tent at St Alban’s folk festival! Guess what they said? And the 2nd is a rousing trad tune that always gets people up dancing. Well he had to stay warm somehow!
14) The Tiniest Part 2:05 A stunning acappella song. Peaceful and pure of sound, this song was played on Radio National’s Life Matters earlier this year and the Mothers were inundated with responses including this one- “ May all your work be of great benefit to all beings without hindrance” A beautiful way to finish. Don’t miss this one.
Mothers of Intention – Watersong
CD Review by Bill Quinn

Mothers of Intention are a lively four-piece Celtic folk band from northern Sydney, featuring three mothers and one scruffy violinist whose five o’clock shadow suggests his maternal side is mostly expressed vicariously.
Frequent Trad&Now readers may have seen the ‘before and after’ shots as the pretend mother’s surrogate baby bump gave way to the birth of the MOI’s new album: Watersong.
MOI have established themselves as a presence in folk clubs, pubs, community events, and festivals for some years.
They launched Watersong, their second album following on from the debut First Time, at this year’s National Folk Festival to very appreciative audiences.
For those who’ve seen MOI play live, Watersong provides a welcome opportunity to grab take-home versions of some of their popular live numbers, such as a delicately beautiful version of “Wisteria”, and the opening track “Sway When You Walk”, another cover that seems to sum up so much about MOI’s energy, charm and attraction. (“Sway when you walk/You even sing when you talk/You’re a rare rhapsody/And a sincere symphony.”)
MOI bring an easy flow to this record with a blend of borrowed and new, traditional and original, light and heavy, all blended to appeal in its order and presentation.
From the contemporary sound of the originals to jaunty, traditional outings such as “Sixteen Come Next Sunday” and “Piper On The Hob”, Watersong is diverse yet beautifully balanced.
“Shards of Glass” is the hands-down standout track, for mine.
Lainey Balsdon’s lyrics cut just as deeply as those shards in a song of utter despair that fades gradually into hope; Rosie McDonald’s voice, which skips so breezily through lighter songs, steps up a notch here in strength and emotion; Pyrzakowski draws his bow across your heart strings; and a delicate three-part harmony chimes in to finish you off.
If you’ve suffered loss of any kind, listen to this stunning track with the tissues on standby.
Noteworthy mentions also to: “Travelling Song”, an aptly-named original instrumental that’s the musical equivalent of an exhilarating flight over verdant fields of waving grass; “Tamlin/Garden of Jane Delawney” that features the haunting Tibetan singing bowls and bells of guest Chris Shakallis; and Pyrzakowski’s fabulous set tunes including “Penny’s from Heaven”, which bodhran-player Penny Rankin Smith can probably assure you actually is grammatically-correct.
Add the guest talents of Liz Frencham on double bass and Cliona Molins on para-Celtic harp, and that rounds out Watersong as an instant hit for MOI fans, and an eclectic, accessible introduction for new listeners.
Mothers and CD are still doing well, and the baby has been getting out and about quite frequently for one so young.