"The Band – they happened at a time when I was in my most purpose driven period, which was after I came out of hospital having being cured of tuberculosis. I was looking up everything that was going on and one of the albums I got was this one. It was just amazing how this authentic expression of folk rock or electrified folk complemented unique songwriting. It’s like if you listen to the Dubliners – that’s almost the equivalent of this American style. So yeah, that was big."

"The juxtaposition of the African folk art with the superkitsch mods with scooters and sitars creates some beautiful friction. It actually captures what the record sounds like. Out-of-tune sitars blanging senselessly over mid-60s mellow jazz."

"Frank Zappa's glorious Straight label gave us Captain Beefheart, Alice Cooper, the GTO's and this absurdly eclectic 1969 album by sardonic folk-blues-comedy-rock-cabaret belter Judy Henske and hubby Jerry Yester of the New Christy Minstrels and the Modern Folk Quartet. No two tracks sound like the same band (or even singer), thanks to Henske's radical versatility and Yester playing ten different instruments; but unlike the Turtles' equally perversely wide-ranging The Turtles Present The Battle Of The Bands, no track sounds much like anyone else either. "

"He used to be with a band called The Zincs and that was interesting in terms of being clever and beautiful and having all the right elements, but this album is beyond interesting and beyond clever and beyond beautiful. There is something that is clicking and being aligned, and all the years of work are finally getting you to this plateau that you've been looking for. I feel that he's got there. Sometimes there's nothing you can do but work hard at something for a long time before you get to where you want it to be, and I have that sense that there he is. This is an album that really talks to the listener in a very direct, open way. And it has all the elements. It is interesting; it is surprising; it is beautiful. It's very well-played, of course it is: James is a terrific guitar player. He introduced me some years ago to Davy Graham, and that was my introduction to folk music. That was where folk music started for me. Tim [Gane] hated folk music, or he always claimed he hated folk music, so there was no folk music at home. But James introduced me to Davy Graham and Shirley Collins, and you can't argue with music like that. It's pure; it's direct; it's transcendental. There are no curves or bends; it's just something that's received in its purest form. At least, that's how I feel it. And the songs are incredibly beautiful. I don't know how to explain what makes a good interesting song for me. It also has to do with the fact that it's not a cliché; it's forever whole, it has its own integrity, its own singularity. I feel like James might say he has nothing to do with this folk music stuff, but of course he does, you know, and certainly Davy Graham is in there. But he's lived in Chicago for many years now and he's worked with other people, including myself, who don't particularly come from a folk background, and it's true that, to honour this record, there are other interjections from other influences. It has to be seen as a whole thing that can't be reduced to just folk music. It is a strong root, but there are also some amazing string arrangements and a lot of surprises. There are connections to the past, but coming out of a spaceship, you know? It's really earthy, but connected to the universe."