Album Review: Sleepless by Kate Rusby

     Kate Rusby has a magical talent: she breaths new air into traditional tunes, but endows her own compositions with a timelessness so perfect as to blur the line between old and new.
     Sleepless, the second album from South Yorkshire native Rusby, is a melancholy-sweet collection of folk from the British isles.  Songs range from the sassy, original jig 'The Cobbler's Daughter" to the slightly creepy traditional aire, "The Unquiet Grave."  Rusby's voice is one-of-a-kind, soft, quiet and almost husky.  Her piano and guitar accompaniments complement her arrangements without being simplistic.
     Is there anything bad I can say about this album?  Is it overproduced or overly simplistic?  No.  Too long?  Too short?  No.  Obnoxious guest artists?  Again, no.  This flawless album is a gem in the world of folk.

Pros:
*Beautiful voice
*Beautiful music
*Nice variety of songs

Cons:
*A murder by an over protective mother
*A ghost
*A cow stalker
*A duke with a twisted sense of humor
*A drunk tinker (the butt of the aforementioned duke's prank)
*A maid who learns, too late, that her lover is already married
[Basically, it's English folk: just what you'd expect.]