Album Review: Billy Bragg & Wilco - Mermaid Avenue: The Complete Sessions

In July, 2012 legendary Dust Bowl folk singer-songwriter Woody Guthrie would have turned 100 (he passed away back in 1967), and one of the celebrations to mark his centennial year is the reissue of the complete Mermaid Avenue sessions, which saw Guthrie's daughter Nora bestow access to his archives of unfinished material – an immense stash of lyrics and song sketches – to Billy Bragg, presumably chosen for his firebrand political stance which mirrored that of the activist Guthrie, who in turn dragged esteemed Americana proponents Wilco into the project.

The first Mermaid Avenue album dropped in 1998 – a fabulous batch of songs trading on the strength of the three parties involved – and it unearthed a slew of brilliant material such as the iconic California Stars, the sturdy Way Over Yonder In The Minor Key and the delightful Ingrid Bergman. Then in 2000 Mermaid Avenue Vol. II dropped and the fertile nature of these sessions became apparent, as rather than scraping the bottom of the barrel it bequeathed us great tracks such as All You Fascists, My Flying Saucer and Against Th' Law. Once more Bragg magnified the sentiment while Wilco shrouded Guthrie's words in beautiful music, but the results were collectively strong.

Now with The Complete Sessions we have a third disc of Mermaid Avenue material – again remarkable for its consistency and quality, although it's a bit more Bragg-heavy this time around – as well as the documentary Man In The Sand, which follows this fantastic partnership warts and all, even when Bragg and Wilco were at odds as to how to best portray their hero. A brilliant package for fans of either contemporary artist, and a great introduction to the inimitable and complex Guthrie.