Keep Me on Your Mind/See You Free

Keep Me on Your Mind/See You Free is the third studio album by folk supergroup Bonny Light Horseman, released on June 7, 2024, through Jagjaguwar. It received positive reviews from critics.

Keep Me on Your Mind/See You Free
A painting of the face of a woman with a black bob haircut.
Studio album by
ReleasedJune 7, 2024 (2024-06-07)
StudioLevis Corner House, Ballydehob, Ireland
GenreFolk[1]
Length63:16
LabelJagjaguwar
Bonny Light Horseman chronology
Rolling Golden Holy
(2022)
Keep Me on Your Mind/See You Free
(2024)

Writing and recording

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The album was written over the span of five months.[2] Most of the album was recorded at the Levis Corner House pub in Ballydehob, Ireland,[3] with additional recording taking place in Los Angeles.[2]

Critical reception

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Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic87/100[2]
Review scores
SourceRating
Exclaim!8/10[3]
Mojo     [4]
Paste7.9/10[5]
Uncut9/10[6]

Keep Me on Your Mind/See You Free received a score of 87 out of 100 on review aggregator Metacritic based on five critics' reviews, which the website categorized as "universal acclaim".[2] Mojo commented that "Bonny Light Horseman probably could've said just as much over half the tracks, but the fact they had the courage to keep digging ever deeper into their emotional turbulence has bourne spectacular results",[4] while Uncut felt that "only a couple of tracks into Bonny Light Horseman's third album, it's clear this is something special. Beauty erupts from the vocal harmonies of Eric Johnson and Anais Mitchell, who lift the Technicolor folk-rock of 'Lover Take It Easy' into something close to heaven. And then it keeps getting better".[6]

Eric R. Danton of Paste wrote that there is "scarcely a dud among the 18 songs" and "though the album feels long at 63 minutes, Johnson, Kaufman and Mitchell fill that time with reflections on longing, growing older and a pastoral kind of life—all rendered in the soft light and lengthening shadows of a late summer afternoon fading toward evening".[5] Reviewing the album for Exclaim!, Anthony Boire concluded that "the few moments of experimentation are outweighed by an assured grasp of traditional instrumentation, and it works out for the better. This is a well-travelled band firing on all cylinders."[3]

Track listing

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All tracks are written by Anaïs Mitchell, Eric D. Johnson, and Josh David Kaufman, except where noted.

Keep Me on Your Mind/See You Free track listing
No.TitleLength
1."Keep Me on Your Mind"3:17
2."Lover Take It Easy"3:31
3."I Know You Know"3:19
4."Grinch / Funeral" (Joseph O'Leary)0:08
5."Old Dutch"5:50
6."When I Was Younger"3:17
7."Waiting and Waiting"3:24
8."Hare and Hound"2:23
9."Rock the Cradle"3:42
10."Singing to the Mandolin"3:58
11."The Clover"3:37
12."Into the O"2:48
13."Don't Know Why You Move Me"2:50
14."Speak to Me Muse"3:00
15."Think of the Royalties, Lads" (O'Leary)0:35
16."Tumblin Down"3:29
17."I Wanna Be Where You Are"3:27
18."Over the Pass"3:08
19."Your Arms (All the Time)"2:44
20."See You Free" (Mitchell, Johnson, Kaufman, Charles Ralston, James Bates)4:49
Total length:63:16

Personnel

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Bonny Light Horseman

  • Anaïs Mitchell – vocals (tracks 1–3, 5–14, 16–20), guitar (3, 5, 8–11, 16, 18, 19)
  • Eric D. Johnson – vocals (tracks 1–3, 5–14, 16–20), guitar (3, 7, 8, 10, 11, 14, 16, 18), synthesizer (3, 7, 11), Wurlitzer (5, 17), piano (5, 20), banjo (8, 9)
  • Josh Kaufmanproduction (all tracks), guitar (tracks 1, 3, 5–12, 16–18), piano (2, 6, 7, 14, 17–19), Wurlitzer (3, 7, 9, 10, 13), mandolin (3, 8, 18), vocals (5, 8–10, 12, 14, 16, 18, 20), synthesizer (5, 17, 20), harmonica (5, 17), harmonium (7, 12), organ (10, 11, 17, 18, 20), bass (10, 17, 20); keyboards, loops (10); tambourine (12), Hammond organ (16), vibraphone (19)

Additional musicians

  • JT Bates – drums (tracks 1–3, 5–14, 16–20), percussion (2, 3, 5, 7–11, 13, 14, 16, 18–20), vocals (5, 14), congas (7)
  • Mike Lewis – bass (tracks 1, 3, 12, 13, 16–18), saxophone (2, 10, 14), vocals (14)
  • Annie Nero – bass (tracks 2, 19), vocals (2)
  • Nathan Vanderpool – vocals (tracks 2, 5, 14), guitar (18)
  • Cameron Ralston – bass (tracks 5–9, 11, 14), vocals (5, 14), guitar (19)
  • Levis Town Chorus – vocals (tracks 5, 6, 8, 9, 14)
  • Molly O'Mahony – tambourine (track 5)
  • Gillian Pelkonen – vocals (track 5)

Technical

Charts

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Chart performance for Keep Me on Your Mind/See You Free
Chart (2024) Peak
position
Scottish Albums (OCC)[7] 36
Swedish Physical Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[8] 14
UK Album Downloads (OCC)[9] 45
UK Independent Albums (OCC)[10] 9

References

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  1. ^ Donohue, Shawn (June 6, 2024). "Bonny Light Horseman's Illustrious Harmony Vocal Connection Leads Sincere Keep Me on Your Mind/See You Free (Album Review)". Glide Magazine. Retrieved June 11, 2024. This combo helps the band combine their historical folk music love with modern sonic touches.
  2. ^ a b c d "Keep Me on Your Mind/See You Free by Bonny Light Horseman Reviews and Tracks". Metacritic. Retrieved June 8, 2024.
  3. ^ a b c Boire, Anthony (June 7, 2024). "Bonny Light Horseman's Keep Me on Your Mind/See You Free Is a Creaking Comfort". Exclaim!. Retrieved June 7, 2024.
  4. ^ a b "Bonny Light Horseman – Keep Me on Your Mind/See You Free". Mojo. July 2024. p. 87.
  5. ^ a b Danton, Eric R. (June 6, 2024). "Bonny Light Horseman Are Ageless on Keep Me on Your Mind/See You Free". Paste. Retrieved June 7, 2024.
  6. ^ a b "Bonny Light Horseman – Keep Me on Your Mind/See You Free". Uncut. June 2024. p. 29.
  7. ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved June 15, 2024.
  8. ^ "Veckolista Album Fysiskt, vecka 24". Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved June 15, 2024.
  9. ^ "Official Album Downloads Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved June 15, 2024.
  10. ^ "Official Independent Albums Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved June 15, 2024.