Steeleye Span have developed a reputation over the years for being an ever changing group of players, the line up depending very much on who is around at the time. The line up which recorded the band's second album "Please to see the king" did however manage to remain intact long enough to record this album, but fundamental changes were made after its release.
The rather odd title needs to be taken in two unrelated parts. The "Ten man mop" part refers to an olden days job selection process, the "Mop" being the group of available employees. A ten man mop was a collection of just ten candidates. The "Mr. Reservoir Butler rides again" part refers to an obscure performer who, according to band member Tim Hart, originally sang one of the songs on the album (although he cannot recall which song). The band were so taken with his unusual name that they incorporated it into the album title.
"Ten man mop..." as a whole has more in common with the band's debut than with the second album, the electric guitar of Martin Cathy being less dominant this time around. Many of the songs have Irish origins, something which would contribute to the departure of founder Ashley Hutchings; not because he did not like the songs, but because his ambitions for the band had been rooted in English folk.
The opening "Gower Wassail" has something of a post-Sandy Denny Fairport Convention feel, as it features predominantly male vocal. The piece features strong lead guitar played by Martin Carthy, yet seems all the while to be an a-cappella rendition. The following pair of jigs continue the Fairport similarity, Peter Knight's violin playing mirroring that of Swarb. Such tracks emphasise the traditional roots of the music while offering a pleasing diversion from the songs. "Four nights drunk" is a straight duet between voice and fiddle for the most part, although the full band join in for the closing jig section.
The album closes with "Skewball", the rather cryptic sleeve notes implying this is the name of a horse (the second favourite behind the legendary "Creeping Jane".. but as Carthy will testify, that's another story). The lyrics bear out the racing analogy, the song indeed being a sort of up-tempo "Creeping Jane". Here we find strong hints of the style Steeleye Span would adopt on subsequent albums. From: https://www.progarchives.com/album.asp?id=19858
