by Alex Henderson
Bert Jansch was 52 when this CD came out in 1995, and at that point, he was revered as an elder statesman of the British folk community (although the veteran singer/songwriter is actually Scottish, not English). Jansch's brooding, introspective, bluesy style of folk-rock had not grown stale over the years--When The Circus Comes To Town, in fact, is the work of an artist who was having no problem maintaining either his vitality or his charisma. The influential Jansch has long been admired for his storytelling abilities, and his performances on such selections as "The Lady Doctor from Ashington," "Living in the Shadows," "Walk Quietly By" and "No One Around" demonstrate that in 1995, he remained as compelling a storyteller as ever. When The Circus Comes To Town is a welcome addition to Jansch's sizable catalogue.