BGO Rec. 
Catherine Howe : Harry / Silent Mother Nature (UK,1974 & 1976,re.2006)***°
To understand Catherine Howe's music, for me, is a bit more difficult matter, trying to grab the whole range of what it expresses, because, compared to most artists from those days, especially the rock and psychedelic artists stand more for being expressions of the "youth" of its times, with their own direct renewal, which is more easy to understand considering how we look back to these days, as to the direct reference of the late '60s to mid '70s potential. Catherine Howe however, is more like a mature resume of what is achieved in culturally linked ideas that could be felt more deeply in those days, in England (from literature, theatre, television, and music from various genres that were considered as being serious these days). All this is now expressed in songs that reveal that kind of matured vision from a distance. While I mentioned a fondness of Bacharach in her first album, in the booklet of this reissue are mentioned other references that developed her visions, certain specific songs from the Four Seasons, Gene Pitney, Del Shanon, Moody Blues, Crystals : mostly names that I still neglected to get acquainted with, to get a detailed enough idea now.
* “Harry” :
The accompaniment on "Harry" is really different compared to her début 4 year previously.
While on the debut album, the music was one strong harmony, here the focus is on the songs, and the music is a compromise of studio arrangements. With such a fundament, where the studio ballgame decides what is best for the songs, this always depends a bit on the people involved on whether it is successful or not, and will always have the risk to lose a bit of the natural process in creativity.
With her voice a bit more on the fore, I also realise that her specific voice, for big public appearances, in commercial terms, might not be the strongest voice you can imagine, (because certain songs tend to sink her moods into a background mist, with a beautiful and fresh melancholy), but it is her inevitable charm in her kind of soulful voice, its appearance with a background maturity, and luckily once more the well done string arrangements (even different in approach and sound to the first album) that bring these songs to a different, rich and harmonious reality.
Some songs have adapted elements from mainstream pop and rock, while others have the already mentioned uplifted and rich romantic melancholy.
"Harry" is such an extremely romantic song, about an ideal love (imaginary, of course ;), a song which was easily recognised by listeners in their heart, and which also made it to wider recognition, but similar feelings are also sensible in many other songs.
"Harry" is a really fine album to listen to, even whilst it has a few more time-related and more mainstream arrangements in some of the songs, they luckily never spoiled this collection.
* “Silent Mother Nature” :
This third album has the most convincing collection of studio arrangements. Also in the few more rocky tracks, they succeed to make her voice come out best, and are done convincingly well.
This album, in a rather "soulful" poprock singer-songwriter, style still has something inevitably English, (even when trying to reach the international style levels), and at times, especially on the calmer tracks, I am reminded of the Sandy Denny evolution from folk into the pop territory.
The songs from Catherine always have a soulful character, but on this album, it is slightly pushed and speeded up in energy towards these soulful expressions, which tend to make her stay singing in more higher registers a bit longer. I personally think that it is the calmer songs, that reveal a slight melancholic character but also warmth, that her soul essence had already the full range of strength of her temperament with everything it needed.
Another, enjoyable album, with its own qualities.
