What do you get if you cross a small rural church, three kettles and a persistent fly?
A Christmas tale – of sorts.
Gather round and let me tell you a story From the Hearth.
Once upon a time, there were three Kettles: Heather Kettle, Ilona Kettle and Jenny Kettle. These ladies were the best of friends and sang together in a close harmony a cappella group. For many a year they would entertain audiences at Christmas time with carols and festive tunes and often would be asked, “Do you have a Christmas album?”
“Alas, we do not.” They would say.
But the time came (it was February) when the Kettles decreed: “This will be the year! We shall make a Christmas album.”
They searched the land far and wide (well, quite close to home, actually) and found a sound engineer with qualities true and patient (very patient) and recording began in the bleak and dreary month of February.
But, disaster befell: coughs, colds, snivels and illness took hold and the Kettles wheezed and sneezed too much to sing and so, almost as soon as it began, recording was halted. But trying times prevailed for between the Kettles and their gallant sound engineer, there was not one date upon the calendar they could get together – until October!
As the year passed by, the Kettles found their hearts and minds were changing. In a world full of filters and fake news, auto-tune and pretence, they wanted to capture something that felt real and true. And so it was that when the October date drew close, the plan had changed. (As mentioned before, the sound engineer was patient – very.)
Now it was that to a small and very rural church the Kettles did go and with one day only to complete the task ahead, they recorded their album – live. Many was the time they had to stop for a car, helicopter or cow to pass noisily by. Enjoyable chats were had with people popping in to sit and listen as they sang. A local farmer stopped by with his dog, a lovely man (but Jenny Kettle had to bite the inside of her cheeks to stop from laughing when she noticed Heather Kettle inadvertently say, ‘do you come by here often,’ to said farmer; the language association of which tickled her far more than it really should have!).
As the day drew on and the light was fading, with the cold creeping in and the Kettles and their sound engineer starting to tire, one last challenge was set upon them. A fly. A large and very noisy fly began to dive bomb the microphones. Twenty minutes ensued of Kettles and engineer alike clambering about and chasing down said fly to rid themselves of the noise-some pest. This was a funny sight to behold – for a while, but soon lost its amusement for the group.
When at last the sun began to set beyond the fields and trees surrounding the small church, the day was done and the Kettles knew that what they had recorded may not be classed as ‘perfect’ by a world that tweaks and presents a false representation of itself, but it would be true and real and was made with love in a beautiful place with lovely people all around (and of course a very patient sound engineer).
And so good people, From the Hearth was made and if you would like a little bit of true Christmas thought and feeling, you can buy a copy of the album direct from The Kettle Girls or by e-mailing thekettlegirls@gmail.com and paying by Paypal.
You can see the trailer here
From the Hearth is £10 + £1 postage.
With huge thanks to Semi-Echo who recorded and mastered this album.
Happy Christmas!