Stringband - The Indispensable 1972-2002

Like many fruitful partnerships, Bob Bossin and Marie-Lynn Hammond found beauty amid friction. Bossin was Stringband’s banjo player, political activist and all-round ham, while Hammond was its lead singer, resident eye candy and tasteful critic within the group who found Bossin’s penchant for corny jokes and mismatched socks intolerable. And yet, individually, each wrote inspired, folky slices of Canadiana and together made such classic albums as Canadian Sunset and National Melodies. This two-CD set collects Stringband’s best-known work, including Bossin’s "Newfoundlanders,” “The Maple Leaf Dog” and “Dief Will Be Chief Again” and Hammond’s “Vancouver,” “Country Music” and “I Don’t Sleep with Strangers Anymore.” But the package also features lesser-known gems like Bossin’s “Tugboats” and Hammond’s “Flying/Spring of ’44,” from 1977’s Thanks to the Following, an album financed by the group’s fans. Ultimately, Stringband proved that even sour relationships can sometimes produce sweet harmony.