Hello

Marc Brierley's second album boasted considerably more color in the arrangements than his 1968 debut Welcome to the Citadel had. Perhaps the production input of Ashley Kozak, who had been Donovan's manager, helped move Brierley in the more melodic, accessible direction that characterized Donovan's brand of folk-rock. (For that matter, sidemen Harold McNair, on flute, and Tony Carr, on percussion, had played on some of Donovan's fine 1960s recordings.) Brierley's not a "Sunshine Superman," though, and while it marks an improvement from its predecessor, Hello is still pretty tame, unmemorably effusive period late-'60s British folk-pop/rock. The mood ranges from light bonhomie with a vaudevillian speckle ("Sunny Weather"), earnest flowery orchestrated folk-pop ("Lady of the Light" and "When Martha Comes"), and jazzy bossa nova ("Lookin' Around the Room") to more melancholy and acoustic material, the title track recalling both Donovan and Al Stewart. The net effect, however, is to remind you just how much better Donovan's records were, though this is superficially similar in some respects. ~ Richie Unterberger