In 1993 the Strawbs celebrated the twenty-fifth anniversary of their first single, and to say it was a busy year would be something of an understatement. Not only did they host the Suffolk ‘n’ Good festival, they also undertook two extensive tours. However, in the midst of bustle band members Dave Cousins and Brian Willoughby convened to record an album, and as so often happens when the pressure is applied, they came up trumps with The Bridge. Originally released on cassette and sold on tour (and issued on CD the following year), The Bridge finally gets a loving reissue, remastered and bolstered by five live tracks, to garner the attention it so thoroughly deserves.

Often considered to be “the Strawbs’ long lost album” (understandable as amongst the performers on The Bridge are drummer Tony Fernandez, bassist Chas Cronk, and Blue Weaver on Keys), that’s a slightly unfair assertion because The Bridge finds both Dave and Brian adding a fresh touch proceedings. However, we are all a product of our past and can’t help bringing our history to the art we create and fans of classic Strawbs will find a spiritual home here, yet it’s no rehashing of bygone glories either, and the title of this album is most pertinent, being a crossing point between the past and future, and the energy with which ‘You Never Needed Water’ tumbles from the speakers places Cousins & Willoughby right in the present. Although I’m listening to this album in the depths of a bleak autumn, ‘You Never Needed Water’ blinds with bright sunlight, magically transporting me to a summer’s day where dragonflies flit on a riverbank, playfully flirting in much the same way as Dave and Brian’s guitars. Therein lies the power of music and ‘You Never Needed Water’ (as with the whole album) will plant strong images in your mind’s eye, with each of these tracks being a vignette, a Polaroid photograph capturing a certain moment in time, brought to life and made three-dimensional by the band’s chutzpah.

The chemistry between Dave and Brian is very much in evidence, most notably in their guitar playing which often interacts like star-crossed lovers, performing a skater’s waltz on ‘Oh So Sleepy’ and an intimate embrace on final track ‘Song For Alex’. Their two co-compositions (‘Cry No More’/’Do You Remember?’) also display an easy equilibrium, especially the effervescent ‘Do You Remember?’ which sends shards of glistening sonics shattering in every direction. The Majority of tracks are composed by Dave and it sounds as if he’s hit a purple patch, the songwriting is of an extremely high standard and ‘Heat Of The Street’ is just crying for someone like Bryan Adams to cover it and take it into the Hit Parade. Yet, The Bridge is about so much more than Cousins and Willoughby, and the whole cast conspire to create a multifaceted affair that’s coloured with warm, vivid hues. Mary Hopkin sings with Dave on four tracks, whilst one-time Strawbs frontman returns to sing backing vocals, all of which makes The Bridge a complete album.

Five live songs are added as bonus tracks (including a touching monologue to Sandy Denny) but the focus remains with The Bridge. It’s an album that was far too good to hide away on dusty cassette or languish on some obscure indie label, and there’s never been a better time to rediscover its charms than with this long overdue reissue.

• The Bridge is released via RSK Entertainment/Witchwood Records on 28th November 2025.

Track List:

1. You Never Needed Water
2. Further Down The Road
3. Strange Day Over The Hill
4. Heat Of The Street
5. Morning Glory
6. Cry No More
7. Do You Remember?
8. The Plain
9. Oh So Sleepy
10. Song For Alex

Bonus Tracks:

11. Desert Song
12. Ways And Means
13. David Talks About Sandy Denny
14. Ringing Down The Years
15. Beat The Retreat