Water Records continues to display pysch-folk?s enormous influence on the modern music scene by reissuing this almost forgotten treasure from 1969. Most well know for her song ?Windy,? which became a hit in 1967 when performed by The Association, Ruthann Friedman struck real gold with her single solo album ?Constant Companion.? Companion veers between the gentle folk melodies and fairy tales of Vashti Bunyan and the dark ruminations of Bill Fay, creating a singular album peopled with pipers and magic men.

Friedman?s songs, some written when she was very young, reflect a child?s world seen through adult eyes; its magic dampened by a slowly growing realization of time and endless change. Ever the shadow, Friedman slips in and out of the light throughout the course of tracks like ?Piper?s Call,? ?Fairy Prince Rainbow Man,? and the anthemic ?People,? where Friedman digs deep below the surface of a dreaming culture. These songs serve as a counterpoint to the idealism of 60s culture as Friedman searches for truth in a ?wicked wicked world.?

Friedman?s smoothly intricate guitar playing supports her hugely expressive voice, equal parts Grace Slick and contemporary folk singer Joanna Newsome. She has the type of voice that reminds listeners that ?singer? has just as much value in the equation as ?songwriter.? Song such as ?Danny? and ?Look Up to the Sun? display the tension and release of a wavering blues chanteuse. Here she slides in and out of notes, punctuating verses with trills and repetitions before settling into strides of melancholy melodicism.

As an added bonus this reissue includes the Van Dyke Parks produced single ?Carry On (Glittering Dancer)? a jumble of strings and horns that showcases Friedman?s voice in a whole new setting. As usual Parks injects a sense of innocence and joy into his arrangement creating a musical march to support Friedman?s childlike wonder.

The three lone songs Friedman performed at the Big Sur Folk Festival in 1969, passed like spirit in between sets from Joni Mitchell and Joan Baez, artists who received their due recognition. Now its Ruthann?s turn. 9/10 -- Jamie Townsend (27 June, 2006)