Since emerging from the folk scene in Yorkshire, England in 1967, guitarist, and singer Michael Chapman has gained a dual reputation as one of England's finest original singer/songwriters and most restless guitar players, equally comfortable in folk, rock, free improvisation, global music styles, blues, and jazz. With over 40 albums to his credit, this former art and photography teacher has, in the 21st century, been embraced by a host of boundary-crossing younger musicians who credit his influence on their work including Thurston Moore, Steve Gunn, Ryley Walker, Meg Baird, and many more. No two albums in his catalog are alike, and, over different decades, certain recordings from his shelf have alternated as influential, beginning with his 1969 fingerpicking Brit folk classic Rainmaker and his 1970 singer/songwriter masterpiece Fully Qualified Survivor (featuring Mick Ronson on lead guitar). Later recordings, including 1976's rock & roll outing Savage Amusement, his proto-new age 1987 offering Heartbeat, and his instrumental forays in the 21st century including the "guitar travelscapes" of Americana and Words Fail Me, as well as Pachyderm and The Resurrection and Revenge of the Clayton Peacock, showcase the full range of his playing, composing, and improvising styles.

Don Nix produced Savage Amusement, which reworked a couple of earlier songs; the album's title would be used in the mid-'80s for a band featuring Chapman and Kemp.



Track List:

01. Shuffleboat River Farewell [4:32]
02. Secret of the Locks [3:55]
03. Crocky Hill Disaster [4:39]
04. Lovin' Dove [3:30]
05. Hobo's Lament (Meditation) [3:13]
06. Stranger [7:36]
07. How Can a Poor Man [2:38]
08. It Didn't Work Out [5:23]
09. Devastation Hotel [5:13]
10. Lovin' Dove [demo] onus track [2:42]
11. Just to Keep You [demo] onus track [3:05]
12. Devastation Hotel/Crocky Hill Disaster Idea [demo] onus track [2:52]
13. Waiting for a Train (All Around the Water Tank) [demo] onus track [3:22]

Personnel:
Michael Chapman - vocals and guitar
Rick Kemp - bass and Air Sea Rescue
Keef Hartley - drums and Undersee Research
Tim Renwick - guitar
Andy Latimer - guitar
Peter Wood - keyboards
Leo Le Blanc - pedal steel guitar
Liza Strike, Claudette Houchen, Mutt, Stevie, and Fuzzy - backing vocals