Vashti Bunyan - Lookaftering

Vashti Bunyan's story tells of the thwarted promise of early fame, disenchantment, long-term exile and eventual rediscovery. In the mid-'60s, after quitting art school to concentrate on music, she was discovered by The Rolling Stones' guru, Andrew Loog Oldham, signed to Decca and recorded a single written by Jagger/Richards. Reviews touted her as "the new Marianne Faithful" or the "female Bob Dylan," yet further singles remained unreleased, leading to a sense of despair and a rejection of the music industry. She resurfaced in 1969 to record Just Another Diamond Day, but it went relatively unheard. Frustrated again, Bunyan withdrew from music. But Just Another Diamond Day was reissued in 2000 to tremendous acclaim. In 2005, 36 years after that record's original release, Bunyan recorded Lookaftering, now available here on vinyl. The record features many of her collaborators, including Joanna Newsome, and the tone here is delicate, inviting and honest. This is beautiful, singer/songwriter folk music by a woman who probably should have been a legend by now.