And in the early part of 2003 MDR set about the painstaking work of recording the skeletons of a baker's dozen worth of songs, some partly worked out in the comfort of a back room, some reworked from an earlier time, and most of them written on the spot. The early moments of the album were like sitting in on the rehearsal of a street skiffle album, the barest of guitar parts, the simplest of hand percussion shaping the songs. Spring came and the sound was fleshed out....naive and innocent. No, that's not the names of the two pre-Raphaelite beauties who came to play flute and piano. And in the early and late summer things finally began to take finished shape and other musicians came in to colour in the sound. That big bluff, tough Marina Del Ray with a mandolin and a dulcimer and a flute? And piano and organ? And tabla and congas? Blimey, they must be on drugs. Too true. Strung out on caffeine. Cheers, Jim.

No drums on the album? Thought about it and then dismissed the idea on a number of grounds. No good reason to go back and use the sounds we had used in the past, and at the same time it seemed a very good idea to avoid bringing in other musicians to participate in something that