Arrogance Ignorance And Greed
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''Arrogance Ignorance and Greed'' is the fourteenth studio album by English
folk Folk or Folks may refer to: Sociology *Nation *People * Folklore ** Folk art ** Folk dance ** Folk hero ** Folk music *** Folk metal *** Folk punk *** Folk rock ** Folk religion * Folk taxonomy Arts, entertainment, and media * Folk Plus or Fol ...
duo
Show of Hands Show of Hands is an English acoustic roots/folk duo formed in 1986 by singer-songwriter Steve Knightley (guitars, mandolin, mandocello, cuatro) and composer and multi-instrumentalist Phil Beer (vocals, guitars, violin, viola, mandolin, mandoc ...
. Released in 2009 on the band's label
Hands on Music A hand is a prehensile, multi-fingered appendage located at the end of the forearm or forelimb of primates such as humans, chimpanzees, monkeys, and lemurs. A few other vertebrates such as the koala (which has two opposable thumbs on each "han ...
, the album was produced by Stu Hanna of the English folk duo Megson, with additional production by Mark Tucker. The album followed an emotionally painful period for
Steve Knightley Steve Knightley (born 1954) is an English singer, songwriter and acoustic musician. Since 1992 he has been one half of folk/roots duo Show of Hands along with Phil Beer. Knightley was named "Songwriter of the Nineties" by BBC Radio 6 Music in ...
where members of his family battled serious illnesses. This led to the album becoming particularly personal and darker than previous Show of Hands albums, aided by Hanna's direct and sharp production. The album also discusses several social and political concerns, and contains several collaborations with other musicians and vocalists. The album was released to a positive critical reception, many praising the darker tone to the album, Knightley's lyrics and Hanna's production. Some fans, however, were alienated by the album. The album entered the
UK Album Chart The Official Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales and (from March 2015) audio streaming in the United Kingdom. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the Official Charts ...
at number 170, becoming their first album to chart. The album featured in numerous year-end best albums lists, including ''Fatea Magazine'' who named it "Album of the Year 09," and at the
BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards The BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards celebrate outstanding achievement during the previous year within the field of folk music, with the aim of raising the profile of folk and acoustic music. The awards have been given annually since 2000 by British ra ...
2010, the band won the award for "Best Duo" whilst the album's title song won "Best Original Song".


Background

In 2006, the duo's album ''
Witness In law, a witness is someone who has knowledge about a matter, whether they have sensed it or are testifying on another witnesses' behalf. In law a witness is someone who, either voluntarily or under compulsion, provides testimonial evidence, e ...
'' had proven unusually successful. The album was produced by
Simon Emmerson Simon Emmerson (born 12 February 1956) is an English record producer, guitarist, DJ, musical director at Lush, and founder of the group Afro Celt Sound System. He is also the main organiser of The Imagined Village, a collaborative work from m ...
and Massey of
Afro Celt Sound System Afro Celt Sound System is a British musical group who fuse electronic music with traditional Gaelic and West African music. Afro Celt Sound System was formed in 1995 by producer-guitarist Simon Emmerson, and feature a wide range of guest artists. ...
and featured a crossover
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and
electronica Electronica is both a broad group of electronic-based music styles intended for listening rather than strictly for dancing and a music scene that started in the early 1990s in the United Kingdom. In the United States, the term is mostly used to r ...
-influenced sound with the band's typical
English folk The folk music of England is a tradition-based music which has existed since the later medieval period. It is often contrasted with courtly, classical and later commercial music. Folk music traditionally was preserved and passed on orally wit ...
style. The album marked the first time since '' Beat about the Bush'' (1994) that the duo had undertaken experiments with a rhythm section. Although some fans were uncertain of the album's direction, many fans and critics welcomed it and it became the band's best-selling album. The duo toured in 2006–2007, which included a unique "Tour of Topsham" pubs and a 20th anniversary concert at the
Royal Albert Hall The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington, London. One of the UK's most treasured and distinctive buildings, it is held in trust for the nation and managed by a registered charity which receives no govern ...
.
Steve Knightley Steve Knightley (born 1954) is an English singer, songwriter and acoustic musician. Since 1992 he has been one half of folk/roots duo Show of Hands along with Phil Beer. Knightley was named "Songwriter of the Nineties" by BBC Radio 6 Music in ...
also released his solo album ''
Cruel River ''Cruel River'' is the second solo studio album by English folk singer-songwriter Steve Knightley. Knightley had spent 2006 with Show of Hands, his duo with Phil Beer, recording, releasing and promoting their twelfth album together, ''Witness'', w ...
'' (2007). The duo had decided that their next album would continue the outsider producer motif of ''Witness'', only with a different style. Prior to recording, Knightley endured a couple of painfully emotional years as his mother, brother and young son all battled serious illness. This had great effect on the music he began to write. He recorded a re-recording of his album ''
Track of Words ''Track of Words'' is a 1999 solo album by singer-songwriter Steve Knightley. A lost album of sorts, which was re-recorded by Knightley and co-producer/engineer Mark Tucker. The re-recorded album was released as ''Track of Words – Retraced'' ...
'' (1999) entitled ''Track of Words: Retraced'' for release in mid-2009 and undertook a promotional tour. At the same time, Beer was hooked on seafaring after fulfilling a lifelong dream by crewing on Pegasus in the Tall Ships Race in 2009. The 74 ft Bristol-built wooden cutter – owned by the educational Island Trust – crossed the finishing line in second place in its class after a voyage of 4,500 nautical miles visiting 12 countries. Beer's reclusion from music lead to a more prominent musical part from Knightley, and the duo began work on the album in early 2009. Knightley said that "on this record, it seemed there was a connection between current affairs and personal affairs but I didn't know how to turn it into songs, and so I sort of suddenly found a way."Show of Hands interview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g99IHeJwWnE Although the duo had already played four of the songs live, most of them were written in a "rush" in Spring 2009. During the tour's two-week tour of Germany in Spring 2009, Knightley said that although he did not have a lot of songs "in the locker, they all came sort of pouring out with a bit of distance between me and home." Sykes recalled that during the Germany tour, Knightley told her to listen to his new composition "IED", and she cried and was "pretty speechless".


Recording and music

The album was produced by Stu Hanna of the band Megson, who brought the album what one review described as "distinctive (cutting) edge of extra-crisp definition", and was recorded at Riverside Studios,
Exeter Exeter () is a city in Devon, South West England. It is situated on the River Exe, approximately northeast of Plymouth and southwest of Bristol. In Roman Britain, Exeter was established as the base of Legio II Augusta under the personal comm ...
, in 2009. Colin Irwin of the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
said that "the mix of Knightley’s intense material and Hanna’s brutally direct production gives Show of Hands an almost
punk Punk or punks may refer to: Genres, subculture, and related aspects * Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres * Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...
potency" and said the album has an "overriding rawness", whilst Jeanette Leech, also of the BBC, acknowledged the duo "stripped back the Show of Hands sound, evoking a politicised post-folk, pre-punk grittiness." Irwin also observed that Knightley sings "so close to the microphone it feels like he’s climbed right inside your ear," reflecting the album's "inherent darkness". ''
Spiral Earth Spiral Earth is an online news channel and website, based in Cambridgeshire, England. It covers folk music, roots music and the alternative music scene in the United Kingdom. It is edited by Iain Hazlewood, who founded Spiral Earth in 2004. Sp ...
'' commented that Hanna "boldly puts Steve's vocal right up in the mix." Mark Tucker also provided additional production on the album.Liner notes. David Kidman of ''NetRhythms'' noted that "the overall soundscape" of the album "can actually sound rather stark", even compared to the duo's "more bare-bones-style" from earlier offerings, but noted that "this element carries with it a distinctive (cutting) edge of extra-crisp definition, and it accentuates that additional degree of uneasy bleakness enoted in so many of the songs," giving much credit to Stu Hanna for the sound. He also noted that "although it is characterised by the direct, literal potency of the actual lyrics, it's arguably brought out even more in the new gravel-edged textural quality that Steve's singing voice has now developed: a cracked vulnerability, an extra dimension of grainy weariness (at once resigned and resolutely defiant - the fist is definitely clenched), where he seems drained from the personal events he's undergone over the past year." He noted that at times this makes for "a less than comfortable listen and take a bit of getting used to", but that it was "very powerful indeed". ''Spiral Earth'' observed that "the songs deal with everything from the global financial meltdown to Darwin's theories, Knightley's ability to conjure a whole gallery of images from a few words is the ongoing delight." The
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
noted the album carried an "inherent darkness" that was the direct result of Knightley's trauma. The duo's regular collaborator
Miranda Sykes Miranda Sykes (born 1978 in Spalding, Lincolnshire) is an English folk singer, double-bassist and guitarist who performs with Steve Knightley and Phil Beer in the acoustic roots/folk group Show of Hands. As of 2019 she is undertaking solo pe ...
appears on the album, performing both the
double bass The double bass (), also known simply as the bass () (or #Terminology, by other names), is the largest and lowest-pitched Bow (music), bowed (or plucked) string instrument in the modern orchestra, symphony orchestra (excluding unorthodox addit ...
and singing backing vocals.
Jackie Oates Jackie Oates is an English folk singer and fiddle player. Life Oates was born in Congleton in Cheshire in 1983 but grew up in Staffordshire. At the age of 18, she moved to Devon to study English literature at Exeter University and was based in ...
performs a vocal duet with Knightley on "The Vale" and "The Keys", while Debbie Hanna has a vocal cameo on "IED: Science and Nature" and "Drift". Andy Tween performs "refreshingly lean-etched" drumming and cajon on four tracks, Matt Clifford performs piano on a further two, and the three members of Mawkin: Causley appear on "The Napoli".


Composition

The album begins with "Lowlands", a traditional song re-arranged by the duo. The song is an
a cappella ''A cappella'' (, also , ; ) music is a performance by a singer or a singing group without instrumental accompaniment, or a piece intended to be performed in this way. The term ''a cappella'' was originally intended to differentiate between Ren ...
sung by Knightley alone. One commentary noted that the duo had the "temerity" to start the album with the piece, with Knightley's voice being "starkly unaccompanied," whilst another noted that his vocal provides a "deceptively underpowered-seeming opening gambit, and yet before too long you feel it subliminally creeping up on you with the onset of some eerie drone instrumentation, as Steve's voice acquires a breathtaking and disturbing quality." The
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
noted that "Knightley’s boldly coarse delivery of "Lowlands" instantly sets up the mood of rugged wayness that characterises the record." The song is followed by the
tongue-in-cheek The idiom tongue-in-cheek refers to a humorous or sarcastic statement expressed in a serious manner. History The phrase originally expressed contempt, but by 1842 had acquired its modern meaning. Early users of the phrase include Sir Walter Scott ...
"Evolution", which primally purveys Knightley's own personal stance on Darwinian theory. The third track, "The Man I Was", is one of the album's most autobiographical and "penetratingly soul-searching" songs. The "biting social comment" of "The Napoli" is a collaboration with Jim Causley and the Delarre Brothers, and features Knightley's "wry observance and his perceptive wit." The song is followed by the duo's cover version of
Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career sp ...
's " Senor (Tales of Yankee Power)". The
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...
noted that with the sixth track, "IED: Science or Nature", "disease is sinisterly portrayed as an unexploded bomb waiting to be detonated by forces unknown amid ghostly echoes of the traditional song "The Trees They Do Grow High"". "The Vale" has been said to evoke Knightley's mother's wartime evacuation to a Dorset village, whilst the title track, "Arrogance Ignorance and Greed", is a "heartfelt tirade" against bankers and bonuses, MPs and expenses. Beer's electric fiddle sound on the song was inspired by
Jackson Browne Clyde Jackson Browne (born October 9, 1948) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and political activist who has sold over 18 million albums in the United States. Emerging as a precocious teenage songwriter in mid-1960s Los Angeles, he h ...
. "Secret World", sung by Beer, is a cover of the
Peter Gabriel Peter Brian Gabriel (born 13 February 1950) is an English musician, singer, songwriter, record producer, and activist. He rose to fame as the original lead singer of the progressive rock band Genesis. After leaving Genesis in 1975, he launched ...
song from his album '' Us'' (1992). The duo re-recorded the song for their following album '' Covers 2'' (2010). One reviewer observed "something of a lack of Beer's trademark flourishes, the fiddle, slide guitar and his voice on "AIG", hardly surprising considering his activities this year. The unexpected result is a shake up in the trademark SOH sound that will inject fresh variety into their live performances." "The Worried Well" is a
gospel Gospel originally meant the Christian message ("the gospel"), but in the 2nd century it came to be used also for the books in which the message was set out. In this sense a gospel can be defined as a loose-knit, episodic narrative of the words an ...
-tinged "full-throttle assault" on
alternative medicine Alternative medicine is any practice that aims to achieve the healing effects of medicine despite lacking biological plausibility, testability, repeatability, or evidence from clinical trials. Complementary medicine (CM), complementary and alt ...
, whilst the traditional "Keys to Canterbury" is a vocal duet between Knightley and
Jackie Oates Jackie Oates is an English folk singer and fiddle player. Life Oates was born in Congleton in Cheshire in 1983 but grew up in Staffordshire. At the age of 18, she moved to Devon to study English literature at Exeter University and was based in ...
that has been described as "driving,
funky Funk is a music genre that originated in African American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African Americans in the mid ...
-
folk Folk or Folks may refer to: Sociology *Nation *People * Folklore ** Folk art ** Folk dance ** Folk hero ** Folk music *** Folk metal *** Folk punk *** Folk rock ** Folk religion * Folk taxonomy Arts, entertainment, and media * Folk Plus or Fol ...
". The last listed song on the album is "Drift", described as a "weird emotional melting-pot that produces the apprehensive daydreaming reverie." The album finishes with an unlisted
hidden track In the field of recorded music, a hidden track (sometimes called a ghost track, secret track or unlisted track) is a song or a piece of audio that has been placed on a CD, audio cassette, LP record, or other recorded medium, in such a way as t ...
on a separate track number, which is officially untitled but often referred to as "Rain Rain Go Away".


Release and promotion

The album was announced in the duo's fan club newsletter of July 2009, and the album quickly became "hotly anticipated". The duo uploaded samples of the album onto their website 29 September 2009. In addition to touring, the duo spent the end of September and much of October promoting the album on
radio Radio is the technology of signaling and communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves of frequency between 30 hertz (Hz) and 300 gigahertz (GHz). They are generated by an electronic device called a transmit ...
. The duo were interviewed by John Rockley for his
BBC Radio Gloucestershire BBC Radio Gloucestershire is the BBC's local radio station serving the county of Gloucestershire. It broadcasts on FM, DAB, AM, digital TV and via BBC Sounds from studios at Portland Court in Gloucester. According to RAJAR, the station has ...
show on 30 September. Bob Harris played "Evolution" on his
BBC Radio 2 BBC Radio 2 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It is the most popular station in the United Kingdom with over 15 million weekly listeners. Since launching in 1967, the station broadcasts a wide range of content. ...
show the following day. On 4 October, the duo began their County Town Tour. Mike Harding played a song from the album on his BBC Radio 2 show ''The Mike Harding Show'' on 7 October. On 8 October, Knightley was interviewed about the album on Spirit FM's show ''The Ian Crouch Show''. Mike Harding interviewed the duo for 15 October for usage on a later show. On 17 October, Beer was interviewed about the album for
BBC Radio Wiltshire BBC Radio Wiltshire is the BBC's local radio station serving the English county of Wiltshire. It broadcasts on FM, DAB, digital TV and via BBC Sounds from studios at Prospect Place in Swindon. According to RAJAR, the station had a weekly aud ...
and on 18 October by Ian Pearce for
BBC Three Counties Radio BBC Three Counties Radio is the Local BBC Radio, BBC's local radio station serving the counties of Bedfordshire, Hertfordshire and Buckinghamshire. It broadcasts on frequency modulation, FM, Digital Audio Broadcasting, DAB, digital TV and via ...
. On 21 October,
John Barnes John Charles Bryan Barnes MBE (born 7 November 1963) is a former professional football player and manager. He currently works as an author, commentator and pundit for ESPN and SuperSport. Initially a quick, skilful left winger, he moved to cent ...
interviewed Knightley about the album for
BBC Radio Lancashire BBC Radio Lancashire is the BBC's local radio station serving the county of Lancashire. It broadcasts on FM, AM, DAB, digital TV and via BBC Sounds from studios on Darwen Street in Blackburn. According to RAJAR, the station has a weekly aud ...
and on 22 October, he appeared on ''The
Paul Franks Paul John Franks (born 3 February 1979) is a former English professional cricketer. He played a single One Day International (ODI) as a right-arm pace bowler for England, and had a long career in county cricket for Nottinghamshire. Playing c ...
Show'' to talk about the album on BBC WM. On both days,
Fiona Talkington Fiona Talkington is a broadcaster, writer, presenter, and curator best known in the UK for her work on BBC Radio 3 where she has been a presenter since 1989. She is best known today as a founding presenter (1999) of the Sony Gold Award-winning pro ...
played songs from the album on
BBC Radio 3 BBC Radio 3 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It replaced the BBC Third Programme in 1967 and broadcasts classical music and opera, with jazz, world music, Radio drama, drama, High culture, culture and the arts ...
's ''
Late Junction ''Late Junction'' is a music programme broadcast weekly on Friday nights by BBC Radio 3. Billed as "Experimental music for adventurous listeners.", the programme has a wide musical scope. It is not uncommon to hear medieval ballads juxtaposed wit ...
'' show. On 23 October,
Johnnie Walker Johnnie Walker is a brand of Scotch whisky now owned by Diageo that originated in the Scottish burgh of Kilmarnock in East Ayrshire. The brand was first established by grocer John Walker. It is the most widely distributed brand of blended ...
played the title track on BBC Radio 2 and declared Show of Hands to be "such a good band". This airing of the song saw the album climb numerous
Amazon.co.uk Amazon.com, Inc. ( ) is an American multinational technology company focusing on e-commerce, cloud computing, online advertising, digital streaming, and artificial intelligence. It has been referred to as "one of the most influential economi ...
charts. The duo reported on 23 October that it currently charted at number 49 on the "Music Bestsellers (All)" chart", number 3 on the "Music Bestsellers (World & Folk genre)" chart, a rise of 150%, number 12 on the "Hot Future Releases (All)" chart, number 1 on the "Hot Future Releases (World & Folk)" chart and number 9 on the "Movers & Shakers In Music" chart, a rise of 157%. Besides radio promotion, the album was promoted in other ways. On 7 October,
Play.com Rakuten.co.uk is a website owned by Rakuten, that operates as an online marketplace. The website does not sell any products directly, but instead allows third party sellers to sell their products. The website replaced Play.com, which was origin ...
ran a competition giving 25 fans the chance to win a pair of tickets to see Show Of Hands premiere the album at an exclusive concert in the Gibson Guitar Rooms in
Central London Central London is the innermost part of London, in England, spanning several boroughs. Over time, a number of definitions have been used to define the scope of Central London for statistics, urban planning and local government. Its characteris ...
on 28 October. The competition closed on 18 October. The album itself was released on 26 October 2009 via the duo's own
independent record label An independent record label (or indie label) is a record label that operates without the funding or distribution of major record labels; they are a type of small- to medium-sized enterprise, or SME. The labels and artists are often represented ...
Hands on Music A hand is a prehensile, multi-fingered appendage located at the end of the forearm or forelimb of primates such as humans, chimpanzees, monkeys, and lemurs. A few other vertebrates such as the koala (which has two opposable thumbs on each "han ...
with the catalogue number HMCD29. A
radio promo A promotional recording, or promo, or plug copy, is an audio or video recording distributed free, usually in order to promote a recording that is or soon will be commercially available. Promos are normally sent directly to broadcasters, such as ...
CD containing the songs "Evolution", "Arrogance Ignorance and Greed" and "The Man I Was" was distributed to radio stations in 2009. The title song of the album, "Arrogance Ignorance and Greed", was released as its own single two times in 2010, firstly without any other tracks and secondly as a
double A-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record company ...
with "The Keys to Canterbury". It was also featured in ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'' "F&M Playlist" on 6 November, and a
music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a m ...
was produced for the song which was uploaded to the duo's
YouTube YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...
channel on 13 November. Knightley also published his fourth
songbook A song book is a book containing lyrics for songs. Song books may be simple composition books or spiral-bound notebooks. Music publishers also produced printed editions for group singing. Such volumes were used in the United States by piano manu ...
, ''Songbook 4'', in 2010, featuring the eleven songs he composed for the album.
Jon Richardson Jon Joel Richardson (born 26 September 1982) is an English comedian. He is known for his appearances on ''8 Out of 10 Cats'' and ''8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown'' and his work as co-host with Russell Howard on BBC 6 Music. He is the presente ...
played "Senor" on
BBC Radio 6 Music BBC Radio 6 Music is a British digital radio station owned and operated by the BBC, specialising primarily in alternative music. BBC 6 Music was the first national music radio station to be launched by the BBC in 32 years. It is available onl ...
on 22 November, whilst "The Keys to Canterbury" featured as the tenth song in the December 2009 playlist for "Ian Anderson's ''
fRoots ''fRoots'' (pronounced "eff-Roots", originally ''Folk Roots'') was a specialist music magazine published in the UK between 1979 and 2019. It specialised in folk and world music, and featured regular compilation downloadable albums, with occas ...
'' Radio Show".


Reception

The album was released to a positive critical reception. Colin Irwin of the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
said the album was "a committed, convincing reinvention of a Brit folk institution" and an "extraordinarily earthy effort" that shows the duo "punching hard". David Kidman of ''NetRhythms'' was impressed with the music on the album, although less so with its sequencing, but ultimately considering the album "indispensable". He said that "notwithstanding the overall excellence of the product and its abundance of must-have qualities, the final impression on complete playthroughs still obstinately remains one of an album whose sum is less constantly great than its individual constituent parts. For, although credibly sequenced, it doesn't quite hang together logically; perhaps befitting its coy bonus track (the gentle, quiet backporch-style singalong "Rain Song"), it's a cloudy, mist-ridden enigma from which (I'm convinced) at some unspecified time in the future the fog is destined to suddenly part. It's nevertheless rapidly becoming one of the most indispensable Show Of Hands releases for me." ''
Spiral Earth Spiral Earth is an online news channel and website, based in Cambridgeshire, England. It covers folk music, roots music and the alternative music scene in the United Kingdom. It is edited by Iain Hazlewood, who founded Spiral Earth in 2004. Sp ...
'' were very positive in their review, saying that despite the album being the band's twentieth, the duo "still no sign of predictability or laurels being sat upon." ''Fatea Magazine'' said that the album was "political, passionate, life affirming – this is folk of true Olympian proportions. If there’s a better written, produced and performed album released this year I’m going to have to commission someone to invent new superlative." On 7 November, ''
The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...
'' named it "Album of the Week". Whilst playing "Senor" from the album on his
BBC Radio 6 Music BBC Radio 6 Music is a British digital radio station owned and operated by the BBC, specialising primarily in alternative music. BBC 6 Music was the first national music radio station to be launched by the BBC in 32 years. It is available onl ...
show,
Jon Richardson Jon Joel Richardson (born 26 September 1982) is an English comedian. He is known for his appearances on ''8 Out of 10 Cats'' and ''8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown'' and his work as co-host with Russell Howard on BBC 6 Music. He is the presente ...
said "the album is just amazing". Due to considerable promotion, the album charted at number 170 on the
UK Album Chart The Official Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales and (from March 2015) audio streaming in the United Kingdom. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the Official Charts ...
, their first album to chart. Although the album was met with critical praise,
Phil Beer Phil Beer (born 12 May 1953 in Exminster, Devon, England) is an English multi-instrumentalist, composer, producer, and one half of English acoustic roots duo Show of Hands. Biography Beer first began to play fiddle, guitar, and mandolin whilst ...
of the duo said the album did not "go down well" with the duo's core audience. The album's new direction and Hanna's production was not to the liking of all the duo's fans, but many of them welcomed the album. The album was included in Mike Ganley's ''Crooked Road'' "Top 10 Albums 2009" list, and was a runner-up in the ''
fRoots ''fRoots'' (pronounced "eff-Roots", originally ''Folk Roots'') was a specialist music magazine published in the UK between 1979 and 2019. It specialised in folk and world music, and featured regular compilation downloadable albums, with occas ...
'' critics' poll of the top 20 "New Albums of 2009". ''Fatea Magazine'' named it "Album of the Year 09". At the Spiral Earth Awards 2010, the duo were nominated for "Best Album", where they finished third, "Best Trad Song" for "The Keys of Canterbury", where they finished second, and "Best Group", where they also finished second. At the
BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards The BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards celebrate outstanding achievement during the previous year within the field of folk music, with the aim of raising the profile of folk and acoustic music. The awards have been given annually since 2000 by British ra ...
2010, the duo won the award for "Best Duo" and the title song of the album won the award for "Best Original Song". Knightley received the award for the song by poet Ian McMillan. ''World Music'' noted that the song "not surprisingly resonated with a lot of the population". On 3 August 2010, they released an exclusive live version of the song recorded backstage at
Cambridge Folk Festival The Cambridge Folk Festival is an annual music festival, established in 1965, held on the site of Cherry Hinton Hall in Cherry Hinton, one of the villages subsumed by the city of Cambridge, England. The festival is known for its eclectic mix of ...
as they met up with
Mike Harding Mike Harding (born 23 October 1944) is an English singer, songwriter, comedian, author, poet, broadcaster and multi-instrumentalist. Harding has also been a photographer, traveller, filmmaker and playwright. Early life and education Harding's ...
of
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. This version was only uploaded on to the
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...
's folk blog. In February 2011, the band performed the song on ''
The Andrew Marr Show ''The Andrew Marr Show'' is a Sunday morning talk show presented by Andrew Marr. It was broadcast on BBC One from 2005 to 2021. The programme replaced the long-running '' Breakfast with Frost'' as the network's flagship Sunday talk show when D ...
'', where they "serenaded"
William Hague William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Engl ...
with it. In November 2010, the band released their next album, a set of
cover versions In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song release ...
entitled '' Covers 2'' which featured re-recordings of two of the songs from ''Arrogance Ignorance and Greed''; the title track was recorded in a self-proclaimed "'lite' version" entitled "AIG 2", whilst their cover of Gabriel's "Secret World" was also re-recorded. Independent record label Nascente included "The Keys to Canterbuy" on their various artists compilation album ''Beginner's Guide to English Folk'' (2012).


Track listing

All tracks written by
Steve Knightley Steve Knightley (born 1954) is an English singer, songwriter and acoustic musician. Since 1992 he has been one half of folk/roots duo Show of Hands along with Phil Beer. Knightley was named "Songwriter of the Nineties" by BBC Radio 6 Music in ...
, except where noted. #"Lowlands" (Traditional; arranged by Knightley and
Phil Beer Phil Beer (born 12 May 1953 in Exminster, Devon, England) is an English multi-instrumentalist, composer, producer, and one half of English acoustic roots duo Show of Hands. Biography Beer first began to play fiddle, guitar, and mandolin whilst ...
) – 2:21 #"Evolution" – 3:26 #"The Man I Was" – 3:33 #"The Napoli" – 3:11 #" Senor (Tales of Yankee Power)" (
Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career sp ...
) – 4:13 #"IED: Science or Nature" – 5:00 #"The Vale" – 4:47 #"Arrogance Ignorance and Greed" – 3:40 #"Secret World" (
Peter Gabriel Peter Brian Gabriel (born 13 February 1950) is an English musician, singer, songwriter, record producer, and activist. He rose to fame as the original lead singer of the progressive rock band Genesis. After leaving Genesis in 1975, he launched ...
) – 5:06 #"The Worried Well" – 2:13 #"The Keys of Canterbury" (Traditional; arranged by Knightley) – 3:44 #"Drift" – 4:57 #"Rain Rain Go Away" - 2:25 *The thirteenth song is a hidden, untitled track unlisted in the artwork.


Chart positions


Album


Personnel

;Show of Hands *
Steve Knightley Steve Knightley (born 1954) is an English singer, songwriter and acoustic musician. Since 1992 he has been one half of folk/roots duo Show of Hands along with Phil Beer. Knightley was named "Songwriter of the Nineties" by BBC Radio 6 Music in ...
, vocals -12 guitar , 4, 6, 8 tenor guitar -3, 5, 7-10 mandocello , 3, 11-12 cuatro , 9 harmonica *
Phil Beer Phil Beer (born 12 May 1953 in Exminster, Devon, England) is an English multi-instrumentalist, composer, producer, and one half of English acoustic roots duo Show of Hands. Biography Beer first began to play fiddle, guitar, and mandolin whilst ...
, vocals , 3–4, 8-11 fiddle , 5, 7–8, 11 strings , 6, 11-12 mandolin , 11 mandocello slide guitar guitar -10 cuatro 2 ;Guest contributors *Miranda Sykes, vocals -4, 6, 8-12 double bass -6, 8-12 *Andy Tween, cajon , 11 percussion , 11 drums , 8 *Stu Hanna, guitar , 8 *
Jim Causley Jim Causley is an English Folk music, folk singer, songwriter, and musician from Devon who specializes in the Folk Music of England, traditional songs and music of the West Country. Journalist Colin Irwin (journalist), Colin Irwin has called him ...
, vocals *David Delarre, vocals guitar *James Delarre, vocals fiddle *Debbie Hanna, vocals , 12 *Matt Clifford, piano , 12 Hammond B3 keyboards *
Jackie Oates Jackie Oates is an English folk singer and fiddle player. Life Oates was born in Congleton in Cheshire in 1983 but grew up in Staffordshire. At the age of 18, she moved to Devon to study English literature at Exeter University and was based in ...
, vocals ,11


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Arrogance Ignorance And Greed 2009 albums Show of Hands albums