Serpent in Paradise

• Track Listing

With sparkling production by Roland van Steijn at his 'Art of Sound' studio in Holland, this album really stands out as one of the greatest of the genre because of it's beauty, intimacy and almost prophetic poetry, and plaintive, deeply emotive melodies. Some of the tracks are genuine classics, like the tender 'Silently spinning' and the inspirational native American song 'The river is flowing'. These are at once personal love songs but also universal messages, with an element of shamanic imagery in the lyrics. The phrase that best describes the overall atmosphere... as so often with Asher's music... is 'other-worldly'. Asher forged his initial reputation as a new-age instrumentalist, but is now better known as a mystical singer-songwriter, slightly reminiscent of Peter Gabriel in some respects. But the combination of Asher's pure vocals, innocent, melancholy melodies and startling imagery render him quite unique in the genre... a complete one-off! This is the passage quoted on the back of the CD artwork, from the track 'Sweet dreams of the ancient ways'... almost Dylan-esque in it's visual intensity: My song has wings, to fly below The vampire moon, the body blow The naked truth, the master's whip The unknown cargo upon your ship... If Asher had a previous life it may well have been as William Blake!