AMG Review of Rosemary Lane

Richie Unterberger
All Music Guide

Although rated very highly by many Bert Jansch fans, Rosemary Lane isn't quite as striking as his best albums of the '60s. It's more of a delivery of all the attributes listeners had come to expect of him by 1971 -- excellent acoustic guitar work, imaginative interpretations of traditional material and well-constructed originals in the same vein, and committed vocals -- than a step forward, or even sideways. It's perhaps one of his more low-key efforts, both in the sparse arrangements and the subdued tone. It's certainly a worthy effort on its own terms, even if it's largely a restatement of already visited themes.