Only love can conquer death
REVIEW: Ian Prowse | One Hand On The Starry Plough
Liverpool songwriter Ian Prowse has produced his most spiritual record to date.
There’s a lot of death in ‘One Hand On The Starry Plough’.
It feels like a good ole Irish funeral wake with boozy farewell stories and tear-stained toasts to lost friends.
But the main theme in this remarkable record is one of hope.
Gospel choir Sense of Sound add joy and semi-religious quality to the first two songs.
Opener ‘Battle’ is an uplifting song about the challenges of life. It could be a more upbeat version of REM’s ‘Everybody Hurts’. Debuted during one of Prowse’s Facebook lockdown shows, this song will become a fan favourite.
There’s a lot of journeying in this album. Prowsey takes us along the waterways of the world: Sausalito, Valparaiso, Naples, Galway Bay and Cork.
I’m struck that ‘Holy Holy River’ could be Prowse’s finest work to date. It sees a funeral party on a boat in the River Mersey delivering ashes to the sea. But life flows on as the ashes embark on their own journey around the globe before being drawn back to the Mersey.
Ian Prowse Glasgow December 2021
In ‘Diego’ tears are flowing in the bars of Villa Fiorito Argentina at the loss of their most famous son – footballer Diego Maradona.
The sound feels like a real departure for Prowse. When I first heard this song I thought it was more like a George Michael track. There’s an atmospheric piano, a hint of Spanish guitar, strings and a soul-searching vocal tribute to the greatest footballer that ever lived: “Diego, even the dead understand. The heights that you scaled for them man”
There are so many peaks on ‘One Hand On The Starry Plough’. The centrepiece for me is ‘My Old Black Tie’ with Prowse donning attire for yet another funeral farewell.
The song starts a bit like Shed Seven’s ‘Going for Gold’ with a beautiful electric guitar hook. It ends with flutes and strings. The singing on this is breathtaking. Lyrically it’s one of Prowsey’s most poignant poems:
‘Do you remember that starry sky, do you remember all our lives?’
Rip-roaring ‘Dan’ is going to be such a hit on the road with live audiences. A song which needs to be turned up to the max amid swilling and spilling Guinness. The strings and whistles on this are absolutely brilliant and the final drum beats magnificent.
‘Go Livio’ is a beautiful ode to a young child who for no fault of his own is embroiled in family strife but is also oblivious to it. Again, this song will translate perfectly to live gigs.
‘One Hand On The Starry Plough’ could be Prowse’s ‘Automatic For The People’.
It is quite simply his finest work to date.