At 50, Mary Black is just hitting her vocal prime. Her 11th album sees her singing with a newfound ease and confidence, neither forcing herself to belt unnaturally nor restricting her voice to a breathy whisper. Full Tide is also her first album to feature original material. The poignant "Your Love", inspired by her mother's death in 2003, and "Stand Up" were co-written by Black with her son Danny O'Reilly. Both songs hold their own in the august company of Bob Dylan, Sandy Denny and longtime favourite Noel Brazil - who died tragically of a brain aneurysm in 2001 and to whom the final bonus track is dedicated.

Score: 8.5/10