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| Pied Piper | ||||
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 19 March 2002 | |||
| Recorded | 2001–02 | |||
| Genre | Folk | |||
| Length | 49:09 | |||
| Label | Rhino Donovan Discs | |||
| Producer | Leib Ostrow | |||
| Donovan chronology | ||||
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Pied Piper is the twentieth studio album (25th overall), by Scottish singer-songwriter Donovan. It marks the third album of his children's music, after the For Little Ones portion of A Gift from a Flower to a Garden and H.M.S. Donovan . Pied Piper was released in both the UK and US (Rhino 78290) on 19 March 2002.
After it became apparent that Sutras was going to be the only Donovan album released on Rick Rubin's American Recordings label, Donovan withdrew from releasing new music. His focus shifted to restructuring his business by organizing a website and creating his own record label, Donovan Discs. He also began to write an autobiography and search for studio tapes that were deep in record company archives.
In the meantime, Beat Goes On Records reissued many of Donovan's albums in the UK. Many of these albums had been out of print since their original vinyl release. With the combination of selecting rare albums and offering them on-line, Beat Goes On Records were able to capitalize on these releases by selling them in the US as imports. These releases included two of his children's albums, For Little Ones (from A Gift from a Flower to a Garden) and H.M.S. Donovan.
In light of these releases, Rhino Records subsidiary Music for Little People contacted Donovan to release another children's album. He recorded new songs and new versions of many of his children's songs for the subsequent album, Pied Piper. The album name and title track both come from the 1972 Jacques Demy film The Pied Piper which starred Donovan as the Pied Piper. The album was released in conjunction with his new label and became the first release by Donovan Discs.
The following is a list explaining the original releases of each song:
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |    link |
All tracks by Donovan Leitch, except where noted.
Donovan Phillips Leitch, known mononymously as Donovan, is a Scottish musician, songwriter and record producer. He emerged from the British folk scene in early 1965, and subsequently scored multiple international hit singles and albums during the late 1960s. His work became emblematic of the flower power era with its blend of folk, pop, psychedelica, and jazz stylings.
Harold McNair was a Jamaican-born saxophonist and flautist.
Jeremy Steig was an American jazz flutist.
"Wynken, Blynken, and Nod" is a poem for children written by American writer and poet Eugene Field and published on March 9, 1889. The original title was "Dutch Lullaby". The poem is a fantasy bed-time story about three children sailing and fishing among the stars from a boat which is a wooden shoe. The names suggest a sleepy child's blinking eyes and nodding head. The spelling of the names, and the "wooden shoe," suggest Dutch language and names, as hinted in the original title.
Island of Circles is a tribute album to singer-songwriter Donovan that was released on June 26, 1992, by Nettwerk. The title song "Island of Circles" is provided by Donovan himself. Along with Donovan's contemporaneous box set collection Troubadour: The Definitive Collection 1964–1976, the album contributed to a resurgence of interest in Donovan's music in the early 1990s, after he had been deemed unfashionable and out of step with changing musical tastes in the 1970s.
A Gift From a Flower to a Garden is the fifth studio album from Scottish singer-songwriter Donovan, released in December 1967 through Pye Records in the UK and Epic Records in the US. It marks the first double-disc album of Donovan's career and one of the first box sets in music. In the US, Epic also released the two discs separately as the stand-alone albums Wear Your Love Like Heaven and For Little Ones.
Mellow Yellow is the fourth album from Scottish singer-songwriter Donovan. It was released in the US in February 1967 (Epic Records LN 24239 / BN 26239, but not released in the UK because of a continuing contractual dispute that also prevented Sunshine Superman from a UK release. In June 1967, a cross-section of both albums was released as Sunshine Superman in the UK. "Mellow Yellow" was the name of Donovan's hit single released the previous November.
The Hurdy Gurdy Man is the sixth studio album by Scottish singer-songwriter Donovan. It was released in North America in October 1968 on Epic Records, but not in the UK due to a continuing contractual dispute that also prevented Sunshine Superman (1966) and Mellow Yellow (1967) from being released there. A songbook of lead sheets to the album was nonetheless issued in both countries. In Canada the album reached No. 19.
Donovan's Greatest Hits is the first greatest hits album from Scottish singer-songwriter Donovan. It was released in the United States in January 1969 on Epic Records and in the United Kingdom in March 1969 on Pye Records. Donovan's Greatest Hits peaked at No. 4 on the Billboard 200, and has been certified platinum by the RIAA. In Canada the album reached No. 2.
Barabajagal is the seventh studio album and eighth album overall from British singer-songwriter Donovan. It was released by Epic Records in the United States on 11 August 1969, but was not released in the United Kingdom because of a continuing contractual dispute that also prevented Sunshine Superman, Mellow Yellow, and The Hurdy Gurdy Man from being released in the UK. The album reached No. 22 in Canada and the title single reached No. 20.
Open Road is the eighth studio album, and ninth overall, from Scottish singer-songwriter Donovan and the debut album from the short-lived band Open Road. While his previous work was composed by his playing solo on acoustic guitar and then recorded with a shifting cast of session musicians, Open Road was Donovan's effort toward writing and recording music as a member of a band.
HMS Donovan is the ninth studio album, and tenth album overall, from Scottish singer-songwriter Donovan. It marks the second album of Donovan's children's music, after the For Little Ones portion of A Gift from a Flower to a Garden. HMS Donovan is the second double album of Donovan's career, and was released in the UK only, in July 1971.
Rising Again is an expanded version of the 1990 live album Rising from Scottish singer-songwriter Donovan. It was released in the UK on 22 May 2001.
Greatest Hits Live – Vancouver 1986 is the fifth live album, and 24th album overall, from Scottish singer-songwriter Donovan. It was released in the on October 2, 2001 on CD.
"Barabajagal" is a song by British singer/songwriter Donovan Leitch, released by Donovan in 1969. It was later used as title track to the album Barabajagal. The instrumental backing is provided by The Jeff Beck Group, with backing vocals by Lesley Duncan, Suzi Quatro and Madeline Bell.
Donovan in Concert is the sixth album from Scottish singer-songwriter Donovan, and the first live album of his career. It was recorded in the Anaheim Convention Center in Anaheim, California on 17 November 1967. It was released in the United States in June 1968 and in the United Kingdom in September 1968. The album reached No.18 on the US charts.
Sally Emery Hamlin was an American child actor, pianist, and recording artist.
In Harmony: A Sesame Street Record and In Harmony 2 are two compilation albums of children's music performed by various artists, released in 1980 and 1981, respectively.
The Pied Piper is a 1972 British musical fantasy film directed by Jacques Demy and starring Jack Wild, Donald Pleasence and John Hurt and featuring Donovan and Diana Dors. It is loosely based on the legend of the Pied Piper.
There Is an Ocean is a film documenting the Scottish songwriter Donovan during his time spent in Greece with his band Open Road in 1970. The film remained unreleased until 2005 when it was included in the box set Try for the Sun: The Journey of Donovan.
