The Story is a father/son duo consisting of Martin Welham of the classic folk/psych band Forest and his son, Tom. The pair have been touring recently across the English countryside (Somerset seems to be home base these days) and, following an initial unveiling on a split-LP with US folkies Whysp ?Tale Spin? marks both their debut full length as well as the first original (i.e., non-reissue) release on Sunbeam. Opening with their theme song, ?The Story? is a rolling acoustic gem, full of gorgeous harmonies that leaves me with a laidback Moody Blues taste in my ears. The Welhams mix things up by adding banjo, piano and some strings and winds to ?Hope and Pray,? another harmonic beauty in the style of CSNY, Help Yourself, or early Brinsley Schwarz.

Welham senior?s ?Walking the Wall? is a nostalgic recollection of youthful experiences that could equally be directed at both his son and his former bandmates, while junior?s youthful exhuberance injects a lightweight, good time poppy groove to his ?Anyway? and the backwards guitars and soaring harmonies imbue his ?Strange World? with just the right air of mystery.

So, these tale spinning Welhams offer up a whistful collection of melodic folk pop that will appeal both to senior?s old cronies with Forest, COB, Fresh Maggots, and Help Yourself LPs in their collection along with junior? new breed of folkies like Espers, 6 Organs of Admittance and In Gowan Ring. 8/10 -- Jeff Penczak (27 June, 2006)