01	Autumn			(i) Heroine's Theme (ii) Deep Summer 's Sleep (iii) The Winter Long			08:25
	02	Sad Young Man						04:07
	03	Just Love						03:40
	04	Shine On Silver Sun						02:48
	05	Hero and Heroine						03:20
	06	Midnight Sun						03:12
	07	Out in the Cold						03:18
	08	Round and Round						04:43
	09	Lay a Little Light on Me						03:27
	10	Hero's Theme						02:27

Dave Cousins (Vocals, Guitar)
Dave Lambert (Guitar)
John Hawken (Keyboards)
Chas Cronk (Bass)
Rod Coombes (Drums)

AMG EXPERT REVIEW: The group's ballsiest album to date, a surging, hard-rocking follow-up to Bursting at the Seams, which debuted a new lineup, Richard Hudson, John Ford, and Blue Weaver having left to form their own group. In their places, ex-Nashville Teens keyboardman John Hawken and the more muscular rhythm section of Rod Coombes and Chas Cronk make their debut, on what is the Strawbs' first fully electric album. Dave Cousins' songwriting (augmented by Dave Lambert, who also contributes some slashing electric lead guitar) is still as romantic as ever in various spots ("Shine On Silver Sun," "Deep Summer's Sleep"), but also boasts dark visions ("Round and Round") which, coupled with new band's muscular playing, made the Strawbs one of the hardest-rocking progressive bands in the world. They should have been able to blow acts like the Moody Blues off the stage, so what went wrong with this album and the tour? One suspects it was a little too serious and complex for kids who were just looking for a soundtrack to their drug experiences, and rocked too hard for the "sensitive" English-major types who got off on Cousins' lyrics - in a sense, the Strawbs were squeezed out of the middle in a very, small-scale, subtle 1970s version of the old folk-versus-rock battles of the '60s. Hero and Heroine deserved better, being one of the best guitar-driven progressive-rock albums of its period. - Bruce Eder

1. Autumn: Heroine's Theme/Deep Summer's... (Cousins/Hawken) - 8:25
2. Sad Young Man (Coombes) - 4:08
3. Just Love (Lambert) - 3:40
4. Shine on Silver Sun (Cousins) - 2:47
5. Hero and Heroine (Cousins) - 3:21
6. Midnight Sun (Cousins/Cronk) - 3:12
7. Out in the Cold (Cousins) - 3:18
8. Round and Round (Cousins) - 4:43
9. Lay a Little Light on Me (Cousins) - 3:27
10. Hero's Theme (Lambert) - 2:27

Dave Cousins - Guitar (Acoustic), Guitar, Guitar (Electric), Vocals, Producer
The Strawbs
Tom (Colonel) Allom - Producer
Rod Coombes - Percussion, Drums, Vocals
Charles Cronk - Synthesizer, Bass, Vocals
John Hawken - Organ, Synthesizer, Piano, Keyboards, Piano (Electric), Mellotron
Dave Lambert - Guitar (Acoustic), Guitar, Guitar (Electric), Vocals

1999 CD A&M 540935
CD A&M 2782
1973 LP A&M 3607
1998 CD A&M Canada 3607

CD A&M VPCD 3607



Strawbs - "Hero and Heroine" (1974) Strawbs experienced some dramatic personnel-changes in 1974, when Dave Cousins and Dave Lambert suddenly found themselves as the only members left of the band. But they quickly gathered together a new line-up and continued as if nothing had happened on "Hero and Heroine". It proved to be a very strong and even album with no bad songs and including two of Strawbs' best tracks ever: the opening-suite "Autumn" and the title-track. "Autumn" has all the elements of classic, progressive Strawbs: mighty Mellotron-passages, an overall mellow mood and wonderful, harmonized folk-vocals. The title-track is a genius little tune that varies between a quirky vocal-section and a Mellotron-riff that must have made Tony Banks and Rick Wakeman envious. "Midnight Sun" and "Out in the Cold" are atmospheric and pleasant, laid-back songs. "Round and Round" is the heaviest song on the album, and makes quite a contrast to the two earlier mentioned songs. "Shine on Silver Sun" was the single from the album, and is very representative for Strawbs at their most symphonic. "Sad Young Man" introduced el-piano to the band's sound, and it works very well. But despite its musical qualities, "Hero and Heroine" marked the beginning of Strawbs' commercial decline here in Europe.




Strawbs - Hero and Heroine (1974)

Supposedly one of the essential albums from this folk influenced progressive group. This album is worthwhile but probably not what I would consider essential. There is a lot of cool mellotron and keyboards. The vocal melodies are well though out and pleasantly emotional, but don't really strike me as a strength here. The music shifts from folk acoustic passages to grandiose, mellotron laced monuments of sound. Musically, it's a very satisfying slice of folksy, light progressive with plenty of interesting stuff going on.

Pardon the obscure reference, but much of this album, especially songs like "Just Love" remind of the now defunct (I think) 90's band Masters of Reality, especially vocally. I've also heard this band compared to other folk bands such as Fairport Convention and Steeleye Span. Hero & Heroine however, is firmly entrenched in the progressive genre.

Opening track "Autumn" is strong, but the album kind of lags into more sing-songy folk territory until the excellent title track, "Midnight Sun", "Out in the Cold", and "Round and Round", what I feel to be the four best songs. This section of the album is amazing melancholy progressive folk, great melodies and strong, somber vocal parts. The album closes with more of the sing along type stuff that characterized the first half, though a little better. I'm not really a big fan of the layered backing vocals. Overall a decent enough album. Some spellbinding moments, but I didn't dig the whole thing from beginning to end. Good enough to make me want to pursue more Strawbs material though. - Greg Northrup [2000]




Strawbs - Hero And Heroine

Release Date: 1973

Track Listing
1) Autumn 8:25
a) Heroine's Theme (Hawken)
b) Deep Summer's Sleep (Cousins)
b) The Winter Long (Cousins)
2) Sad Young Man (Coombes) 4:08
3) Just Love (Lambert) 3:40
4) Shine On Silver Sun (Cousins) 2:47
5) Hero And Heroine (Cousins) 3:21
6) Midnight Sun (Cronk, Cousins) 3:12
7) Out In The Cold (Cousins) 3:18
8) Round And Round (Cousins) 4:43
9) Lay A Little Light On Me (Cousins) 3:27
10) Hero's Theme (Lambert) 2:27

Member: ffroyd

"While storm clouds gathered high above
The heroine he grew to love
Turned slowly to a snow white dove
And spread her wings to fly
Crushed and broken in the end
Hero watched his soul ascend
Knowing that he was condemned
To sail all alone to die"

One of the frequently overlooked classic bands, Strawbs have a very rich history and sizeable body of work. This album is regarded by many as the bands finest moment and for very good reason. The pieces are very emotional, quite melodic and beautifully dramatic.

Main songwriter and singer, David Cousins, is at the top of his form here. For those that haven't heard him, he's a bit similar to a cross between Peter Gabriel and Peter Hammill at times. You can hear him pouring his heart out with every word that he sings. "The Winter Long," "Shine On Silver Sun," "Out In The Cold," "Round and Round" and the fierce title track all contain inspiring vocal performances. Second guitarist and vocalist Dave Lambert hadn't really hit his stride with the band yet but he did write in a very interesting end to the album.

New (at the time) to the band was keyboardist John Hawken, who had previously played in the original Renaissance. I must say, this album wouldn't have been the same without him. He provides some excellent keyboard work, especially with his melancholic mellotron, which is exceptional throughout "Autumn." He can also wield a mean synth as is shown on "Round and Round." a truly wonderful song about the delicate cycle of human existence.

The band moved on to different things in later years but, in my opinion, never again reached the pinnacle that they achieved with Hero And Heroine, a true classic.

"Bless the good
Curse the bad
Some are wise
Others mad
Phoney profiteers suitably seeming sad
Preparing for the kingdom
Annointing us with wisdom
Convinced that we'll be glad"




Strawbs - Hero And Heroine

Released: 1973
Label: A&M
Cat. No.: 540 935-2
Total Time: 44:49


Reviewed by: Eric Porter, September 2003
The Strawbs are probably best known to progressive rock fans due to the participation of a certain keyboardist by the name of Rick Wakeman. The band reached a wide audience in the UK during the 70-s and also charted here in the US. The band combined elements of English folk music and progressive rock on Hero And Heroine to create some excellent symphonic rock tracks, while never failing to forget their folk roots. The opening ?Autumn¦ is one of the discs outstanding tracks, with pastoral passages of mellotron and guitar, reminding one of early King Crimson. ?Just Love¦ has a really beautiful mid-section that unfortunately is too short to make this anything more than a straight ahead boring rock track. ?Shine on Silver Sun¦ is a short uplifting track with a nice vocal chorus.

The gem here is the title track ?Hero & Heroine." This track takes folk, mixes a little Charlie Daniels (you will hear what I mean) and a great riff dominated by keyboard to break up the sections. The organ and mellotron bridge is also quite dramatic. The track leads into the acoustic guitar track ?Midnight Sun¦. Another subtle yet beautiful song from Cousins. ?Out In The Cold¦ continues to showcase the folk side of the band including harmonica and more acoustic guitar. Cousins was also said to be an influence on Fish-s (Marillion) vocal style. The mixture of styles works well, creating a balanced and enjoyable disc of varied music.

More about Hero And Heroine:

Track Listing: Autumn (8:29) / Sad Young Man (4:09) / Just Love (3:41) / Shine On Silver Sun (2:46) / Hero & Heroine (3:29) / Midnight Sun (3:06) / Out In The Cold (3:19) / Round and Round (4:44) / Lay A Little Light On Me (3:27) / Hero-s Theme (2:28) / Bonus Tracks: Still Small Voice (2:28) / Lay A Little Light On Me (early version) (2:23)

Musicians:
Dave Cousins v Vocals, guitars
Dave Lambert v Vocals, guitars
John Hawken v Piano, organ,mellotron, synthesizer
Chas Cronk v bass, synthesizer, vocals
Rod Coombes v Drums, percussion, vocals

Contact:

Website: www.strawbpage.ndirect.co.uk

Discography

Sandy Denny & the Strawbs (1968)
Strawbs (1969)
Dragonfly (1970)
Just a Collection of Antiques and Curios (1970)
From the Witchwood (1971)
Grave New World (1972)
Bursting at the Seams (1973/2003*)
Hero and Heroine (1974/1998*/2003*)
Strawbs By Choice (1974)
Ghosts (1975)
Nomadness (1976)
Deep Cuts (1976)
Burning for You (1977)
Deadlines (1978)
Don't Say Goodbye (1988)
Preserves Uncanned (1991)
A Choice Selection Of Strawbs (1993)
Heartbreak Hill (1996)
Halcyon Days (1997)
Tears And Pavan: An Introduction (2002)
20th Century Masters - The Millenium Edition (2003)
Blue Angel (2003)
* reissue w/bonus tracks