Borrowing lyrics has long been part of the folk music tradition, and Old Calf gathered all of the lyrics for Borrow a Horse from Appalachian and British folk songs from the past few centuries. (For example, the opening track “I Saw a Peacock With a Fiery Tale” is a 17th-century British nursery rhyme.) The words are set to original arrangements that reference country rock and folk rock, and the whole album has a relaxed, casual charm that never sounds contrived. They get loose and jangly on “Do Not Play With Gypsies” and “Stool-Ball,” which sound like outtakes from the Kinks’ Muswell Hillbillies, “Far from Home” and “What Did I Dream” evolve into textured psychedelic jams, and the richly detailed playing and harmonizing on “A Gift, a Ghost/Monday Alone” brings to mind the Band. The quartet includes Ned Oldham (The Anomoanon, Palace Music), who sings lead in his mellow croon, Marty Metcalfe, Michael Clem, and Brian Caputo who collectively play guitars, bouzouki, pedal steel, piano, organ, bass, harmonica, and drums. Borrow a Horse is a rich and understated link between past and present.