Carolanne Pegg - Carolanne (Reissue) (1973/1999)

As a fiddler and vocalist, Carolanne Pegg (then billed as Carole Pegg) was an important part of Mr. Fox, a notable if cultish early-'70s British folk-rock group. On her 1973 self-titled album, however, she simply sounds both out of her element and ill-equipped to carry a record as a solo artist. Her voice is thin and wavering, and the material is often far less folk-oriented than Mr. Fox's, veering toward mainstream early- to mid-'70s singer/songwriting with some country-rock touches and a mystical air. While a song title such as "A Witch's Guide to the Underground" might whet the appetite for something truly hellacious, in the event it turns out to be a prissy tune, sung with all the confidence of a woman stepping onto a frozen pond whose ice may or may not hold. More of her folk roots surface in the dark British melodies of "The Sapphire" and "Fair Fortune's Star"; "Man of War," which sounds like a Sandy Denny song with lousy (and very un-Denny-like) vocals; and the fiddle-driven "Mouse and the Crow." Those are more satisfying than the straight and unmemorably ordinary rock tunes here, but are still way short of outstanding.