"Doordat City of Regufe de luchtigheid van Harringtons eerste cd mist, is deze 'moeilijke tweede' eigenlijk alleen interessant voor de doorgewinterde liefhebber van stokoude countrymuziek en geschiedenisleraren, die vast en zeker smullen van Harringtons verhalen over cowboys en indianen."
First Class American Folk Music
"Un disco imperdibile per chi ama la musica acustica, i brani tradizionali anglossassoni, il folk di classe. Rachel Harrington proviene dall'Oregon dove ha vissuto con la famiglia all'interno di una comunità evangelica e dove i primi passi musicali avevano il suono del gospel. Bellissima la versione di Old Time Religion. Consigliamo di monitorare internet per sapere se, come e quando il disco arriverà anche da noi."
"She does it with taste and personality, passion and genuine talent, and this 'City Of Refuge' deserves careful listening to those who appreciate the American tradition."
"...a most consummate album. Rachel Harrington is brilliant both as a singer and a songwriter, it is very easy to disappear into her voice... a top-ten-list placement [for 2008]."
"Ähnlich wie auf ihrem Debut arbeitet Harrington erneut mit tadellosen und einfühlsamen Musikern, die sich auf ein akustisches, traditionelles Instrumentarium beschränken und sich niemals mit überflüssigen Tönen aufhalten, sondern auf reduzierte, tief empfundene Transparenz setzen. Ich hoffe "City Of Refuge" erscheint auch als Vinylausgabe."
"'The Bootlegger's Daughter' was één van de beste Americana-albums van vorig jaar. 'City Of Refuge' straalt niet alleen het rustieke uit van de schilderij van de cover maar is zowel letterlijk als figuurlijk ook een echte droomplaat!"
"... what popular music at the beginning of the last century must've sounded like - when it wasn't folk music anymore but before mass production and electrification became viable, back when jazz music was still a toddler. Once you've gotten used to this, sound there's a lot of worthy stuff to be found in Harrington's music: tremendously sad blues-themes, a beautiful singing voice, ..."
McLean's Country Playlist
Friday 15 August 2008
http://www.bbc.co.uk/northernireland/radioulster/mcleans_country
Gene Autry - Do Right Daddy
Pete Molinari - One Stolen Moment
Merle Haggard - If I Could Only Fly
Blaze Foley - Clay Pigeons
Live At The Austin Outhouse
Emmylou Harris - Gold
Rachel Harrington - Karen Kane
Rachel Harrington - Ode To Billy Joe
Rachel Harrington - Carver
Conor Oberst - Sausalito
Conor Oberst - I Dont Want To Die In the Hospital
* * * * *
"City of Refuge, Rachel Harrington's second major CD release in less than two years, is another outstanding production and a perfect sequel to Bootlegger's Daughter. The choice of songs, the compositions, the engineering and even the packaging of the CD is good as it gets. But the real magic begins when Rachel sings! This CD will definitely be on my small list of top selections for 2008!"
Dennis Brunnenmeyer, KVMR-FM Radio, Nevada City, CA
http://www.echo-news.co.uk/display.var.2363174.0.0.php
http://www.whatsonsouthwest.co.uk/article.php?id=11254
http://www.metro.co.uk/metrolife/article.html?in_article_id=198786&in_page_id=205&in_a_source
http://www.worcesterstandard.co.uk/ents47708.html
"Ik wil het nog één keer herhalen: nu het repertoire van Rachel Harrington nog te overzien is, kunt u maar beter op de kar springen, want deze dame wordt, of is, verschrikkelijk groot!"
FOUR STARS! "A primer in Americana"
"makes easy bedfellows of both old and new country" 3 out of 5 stars
"Recommended! An impressive collection ... 4.5 stars!"
Four stars: "Harrington is at the top of her form"
FOUR STARS! "like tuning into some obscure backwoods American radio station from sepia-tinted days of yore"
"An absolutely brilliant debut ... I've been getting tremendous listener response ... [The Bootlegger's Daughter] is already a contender for Album of the Year in my opinion!"
"just the right combination of temerity and twang .. leaving enough space for listeners to want more from this Bootlegger's still."
* #9, John Sincock - DJ, KBCS
* #1, Francois Braeken - music critic, RootsVille
* #5, Nico Druijf, Euro-Americana DJ
* Top 30 Best Seller for 2007, Miles of Music
* #31 Best of 2007, No Depression readers poll
* Best releases of 2007, Tom Funk, DJ, KGLP
* #73 - US folk radio in 2007, based on 162420 airplays from 197 different DJs
* #2 Best Debut of 2007: Third Coast Music
* Top 10 of '07, FolkRoots (CBC)
"an ideal vehicle showcasing [Rachel's] multiple talents ... a significant landmark"
"Harrington most favorably represents a new generation of singer-songwriters ... carefully crafted songs ... a tasty mix ... an assured voice ... songwriting that truly shines!"
"a musical story into the roots of Americana ... 100% top class music!"
"A beautiful moving voice that makes you forget everything. 'The Bootlegger's Daughter' is currently topping the EuroAmericana Chart, a monthly hit parade composed by DJs, journalists and other folks working in the Americana genre ... She fits very well into the ranks of neo-traditionalists like Gillian Welch and Diana Jones. And if Rachel plays the Blue Highways festival next year, she should be able to take their place." [Translation by Markus Rill]
"IT'S A CRACKER! The challenge is finding only one outstanding area to highlight ... bittersweet and mournful voice, her melancholy story telling ... exemplary musicianship ... are all competing for top billing ... a terrific, intimate folk/bluegrass record."
"Already a contender for 2007 album of the year ... evocative vocals and gifted songwriting ... lyrics are literate and heartbreaking in equal measure ... gaining national airplay alongside a lot of support from European stations, including the BBC where she comes with the highest of recommendations from the legendary Bob Harris."