What a way to kiss a big fat goodbye and good riddance to 2020 and welcome 2021. A song of hope from Merry Hell to kick start us on some sort of road to recovery.

Yes, the title sounds a bit Vera Lynn but true to the Merry Hell cause, When We Meet Again is another of their uplifting, anthemic and life affirming creations. Utilising the talents of 300 souls who’ve contributed their self-recorded voices via email (not all voices used at once we hasten to add…imagine the auto-tuning required…) Merry Hell come through, with a song shining like the Lady Galadriel’s light of  Eärendil. Remember the line? “May it be a light for you in dark places, when all other lights go out.”

Thoughts turn to joining together in the crowd – remember them? – under clearer skies, with the the clarion call of “we will meet again” that proves a little twist on the song title. Throw in a stirring guitar hero solo and we have in our hands a ray of light at the end of the tunnel. Vaccines notwithstanding, When We Meet Again provides a sort term shot.

Add a couple of tracks from the Emergency Lullabies album that also feature the SIChoir, We Are Different, We Are One and the NHS tribute Beyond The Call remind us of 2020’s fight and the notion that “we surely are not done” and for a moment, the world seems a healthier place. As the band say, “Let us not dwell on what we have missed but look forward to being able to do the things we love, enjoying sharing our music and our joy with each other and all our friends. The party will be grand.” Hear, hear and to quote another unlikely source, Def Leppard’s Joe Elliott, when he says “Until the next time – and there WILL be a next time!“

Have a listen here:

…and there already is a next time, with the smart little addition that arrived in the package from one of the hardest working manager s in showbiz, Damian Liptrot, in the form of Lost Songs from the history of the band in their Tansads days.

A record of a gathering of the four Kettles, Andrew, Bob, John and Virginia who assembled for a reflection of their history. Recorded as performed, eleven tracks are stripped right back to acoustic guitar and whatever’s handy to hit as percussion. From soft acoustic wanderings to surgical supports, to the light-hearted and protest with Up The Revolution. Shades of Dylan and The Levellers as the quartet busk up in acoustic guise a la their early days. Nothing wrong with a taste of nostalgia.

We would have given the link to order a copy of the limited run of Lost Songs but they sold out on the day (except for 7…which went the next morning). Hope you were lucky.

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