The Way We Live - A Candle For Judith
Ozit CD216

The Way We Live eventually morphed into Tractor, but if you're like me, I'd never heard of Tractor either, well, up until a few months back when I had the Tractor album sent. I feel rather proud of the fact that this band (mainly, a duo) came from just over t'hill in Rochdale. John Peel championed them by sticking them on his now legendary Dandelion label, of which, the first eight tracks of this re-release make up the original release. There's also a further eleven (yes, eleven) bonus tracks made up from the odd new(ish) track, but mainly recorded originally from around the early 70s. Jim Milne and Steve Clayton were the two mainstays of the band and have recently been gigging again. Their appeal has remained, boosted by their live appearances at festivals and such. 'A Candle For Judith' is a magical 70s album that has all the right ingredients to captivate and enthral the listener. Tracks such as 'Willow', 'The Way Ahead' and 'Squares' (and many others) display a good balance and pretty decent guitar work from Milne. Like the proverbial fly trapped in amber, this album takes you back to those heady and hazy early seventies, and d'yknow, it's a bloody great place to spend an hour or two. (DW)

Modern Dance Magazine, 2004