I Retur

Many American folk enthusiasts only know of '70s Swedish singer/songwriter Turid via the soundtrack to the heartening 2000 independent movie Together. (That great film was set in the '70s; its soundtrack also includes Swedish prog wizard Bo Hansson.) This 2003 compilation neatly gathers the best of Turid’s recordings from her first three albums: 1971’s Vittras Visor, 1973’s Bilder, and 1975’s Tredje Dagen. Though she’s been both hailed and panned as “the Swedish Joan Baez,” the opening song (simply titled “Song”) reveals a singer with a gentle vocal style that has more in common with that of Linda Perhacs or Vashti Bunyan. She sings in her native tongue for the following “Den Gamla Vanliga Historien,” reaching a higher range that’s a bit reminiscent of Joni Mitchell. When Turid does inflect with the quavering tremolo that many associate with Baez, her songs are more comparable to early recordings by Buffy Sainte-Marie. Check out “Bilder” or the outstanding eight-minute "Låt Mig Se Dig," a folk-rock tune that’s gussied up with psychedelic guitars, rootsy harmonica, and analog Mellotron keyboards.