The album by Belshazzar's Feast was a real surprise. More specifically, the extra concert recording was a real surprise. I wasn't expecting that at all and it's a delight. That sort of musical pyrotechnics doesn't often work on a studio recording, to my ears anyway, but the recording of a (good) live performance can add a dynamic that makes the whole thing far more entertaining. The CD certainly sounds like the two Paul's are providing great entertainment for the live audience, and not just because they happen to be very good players. The studio CD is excellent as well, I hasten to add. Perhaps it was a difficult financial decision to release this as a double CD - it's not for me to speculate - but I think 'The Food Of Love' is great, so congratulations to the duo and to you and the Wild Geese.Thanks again and best wishes.
~ Bruce Cameron / Radio 2MCE-FM, Australia
A review of The Food of Love CD, by David Kidman, at NetRhythms.
Belshazzar's Feast provided stunning musicianship and the funniest and most imaginative and creative line of patter imaginable – just what we expected really! I can't imagine a festival not booking them!!
~ Eddie Upton / Artistic Director, Sidmouth FolkWeek
Not a stop remains un-pulled out for this new offering from Paul Sartin and Paul Hutchinson. alias Belshazzar's Feast. The lavish quadruple foldout pack with photographs by David Angel contains a new studio album and a live set. Sartin, who splits his time with Faustus and Bellowhead, sings and plays fiddle and oboe while Hutchinson plays melodeon. The material is an eclectic, not to say eccentric, selection mixing traditional songs and tunes with some Mark Knopfler and Simon Jeffes. A close reading of the sleeve notes may suggest that they are not taking this entirely seriously and 'Rondo A La Turkey' will convince you. Actually they do take it seriously but they have a good time while they're doing it.
The best way to appreciate Belshazzar's Feast is to hear them live. As you will have observed during 'Music For A Found Harmonium', they delight in mixing up tunes, morphing one into another and making'mistakes'. The first set on the live disc, 'Boda Waltz / Miss Love's Waltz', includes all three tricks and by the end you'll be grinning hugely - and that's without the Swanee whistle solo. Fun for all the family and some wonderful playing, too.
~ Dai Jeffries / The Living Tradition
Review of The Food of Love (Wild Goose Records / WGS353CD.
First, four words about the packaging; lavish, complex and clever. Much like the two CDs it homes. One is a live recording, which dazzlingly captures their humour; virtuosity and versatility, while the studio CD demonstrates... well, their humour, virtuosity and versatility.
From a strong grounding in classical music, Paul Sartin has already made inestimable contributions to Bellowhead and Faustus and must already be approaching godlike status. The Iegend grows here as he plays oboe, whistle and violin (and it definitely is a violin, not a fiddle) on a probing, surreal and disarmingly unconventional exploration of everything from classical and early music to Remember You're A Womble with accordionist Paul Hutchinson (the hairy bearded one).
It may be an acquired taste, but Sartin's morbid voice - so effective on the last Faustus album - takes you by surprise every time. There you are, lost in the complex musical cross-breeding and audio jokes (there's a particularly fine blending of Music For A Found Harmonium with Rock Around The Clock) when that voice suddenly makes its entrance to deliver The Begging Song or Twenty, Eighteen with a stirring gravitas rarely heard in this or any other neck of the woods. This even applies to the drinking song Dol Thy Ale, which suddenly splurges into a Romanian dance tune collected by Bartok; while we also get Mozart taken to the Appalachians and a solemn treatment of Mark Knopfler's movie theme Cal complete with sleeve joke ("We really wanted to swell Mark's coffers since we have been told he's in dire straits.")
Song, dance, top tunes and corny gags... this is indeed a feast fit for kings and peasants alike.
~ Colin Irwin, from fRoots magazine