FolkWorld #71 03/2020

CD Reviews

Windborne "Recollections | Revolutions" [2 CDs]
Wand'ring Feet Records, 2019

Artist Video

www.windbornesingers.com

Old Songs, Bold Harmony: US American vocal group Windborne can claim a ten year plus history, starting out as a duo, these days performing as a quartet. Lynn & Will Rowan, Lauren Breunig and Jeremy Carter-Gordon grew up in New England surrounded by the American music tradtions. They learned to fly and became acquainted with various other traditions from all four corners of our beautiful planet. They even studied with artists and scholars from Corsica, Georgia and South Africa. This double album is back in Anglo-American waters with an awareness for the past and a mission and vision for the present and future. Out of the clear sky, they made waves in 2017 when performing the "Song of the Lower Classes" before the Trump Tower. The words had been written by Englishman Ernest Jones, a member of the Chartist's labour movement, who was arrested in 1848 for seditious speeches and spent two years in solitary confinement. He reportedly was denied the use of pen and paper and wrote in his own blood into a prayer book. Windborne added two verses to make the song up-to-date. The "Revolutions" disc features more anti-slavery songs ("Stole and Sold"), civil war songs ("Poor Soldier"), miners songs ("Fire in the Hole"), union songs ("Which Side Are You On"), strike songs ("Bread and Roses"), civil rights songs ("Where Have All the Flowers Gone"), from the 1640's ("The Diggers' Song") to the 2010's ("Slave to Time" written by Lynn & Will). The "Recollections" disc is a colourful mix of Windborne's early musical influences: English classics old and new ("I Can Hew", Cyril Tawney's "Grey Funnel Line"), shape-note singing ("Idumea"), old-time ("Darlin' Cory"), blues ("Ain't No Grave"), bluegrass ("Rollin' In My Sweet Baby’s Arms"), a prison song ("Diamond Joe"), a gold rush song ("Diggins"), a children's song ("Fox Went Out on a Chilly Night"). Windborne's vocal force is augmented here by a banjo romp and a washboard rataplan.
After all, in terms of passion, power and presentation, Windborne's harmony singing is in the same league as The Watersons, Coope Boyes & Simpson or The Voice Squad on this side of the Atlantic Ocean.
© Walkin' T:-)M


June Tabor & Oysterband "Fire & Fleet: A Tour Memento"
Running Man Records, 2019

Artist Video

www.oysterband.co.uk

It had been a match made in heaven, English folk singer June Tabor[65] and folk rock group The Oysterband.[63] Together they released two awesome albums, 1990's "Freedom & Rain" and 2011's "Ragged Kingdom".[46] Is it really that long ago? I could have sworn their Tønder gig had been yesterday![49] Not in my realm, but last autumn June Tabor & Oysterband got back together for an extensive tour. "Fire & Fleet" was the sonic companion featuring 4 new and 6 live tracks. "Lyke Wake Dirge" (lyke = corpse, wake = death watch, dirge = lament) tells of the departed soul's journey to purgatory with much of the symbolism being of pre-Christian origin. Whether it once was chanted or recited is unknown; the tune has been collected or composed by Sir Harold Boulton (best known for the "Skye Boat Song"). "False True Love" is basically the opening dialogue of the Child ballad "Young Hunting";[70] June Tabor sang a version under the title "Bird in a Cage" (included on Folk Roots magazine's 1987 anthology "Square Roots"). "Molly Bond" is an Oysterband crowd pleaser since the mid 1980's. It dates back to the late 18th/early 19th century and is usually called "Polly Vaughn" or "Molly Bawn". Bert Lloyd has recorded a version as early as 1951. Climbing up the timeline, they selected some classic songs from recent times: Bill Staines' country crooner "Roseville Fair", Percy Sledge's soul ballad "Dark End Of The Street", Jefferson Airplane's psychedelic rock song "White Rabbit", and, of course, their haunting take on Joy Division's "Love Will Tear Us Apart". That's a lot of input, and in addition you get June Tabor's sublime and gloomy vocals taken into another dimension by the Oysterband's lively grooves.
After above-mentioned tour, "Fire & Fleet" has been only available from the Oysterband website. Get it while you can, stocks might run out soon!
© Walkin' T:-)M


Lilt "X"
Own label, 2019

Artist Video

www.liltirishmusic.com

Thanks to FolkWorld's former Washington DC representative David Hintz, the Lilt duo had been covered quite some time on our website.[50][51][56] We also paid close attention to their previous CDs.[48][54] Their 4th album "X" marks their 10th anniversary. German born Tina Tina Eck plays flute and tin whistle, Keith Carr alternates between accompaniment and melody on mandolin, 10-string bouzouki and tenor banjo. Their traditional Irish music has a steady beat and never gets hectic, even in its most tumultuous moments. It's subtle, poignant and heartwarming. "X" does not only stand for their 10-year-partnership, but also for "The Unknown Reel" which they spotted on a piece of paper but couldn't identify any composer. Here it makes a great transition sandwiched inbetween the "Return from Fingal" march and "Frankie Kennedy's Reel". There is a wealth of jigs and reels, both from the tradition and composers such as Junior Crehan, Ed Reavy, Liz Carroll, Jerry Holland or Spiers & Boden. London fiddler Karen Ryan had turned the Northern Irish song "Going to Mass Last Sunday" (see McConnell)[47] into a jig. There is a fine rendition of Turlough O'Carolan's "Catherine Martin" and another slow air named after two mountain peaks near Killarney in County Kerry, "Dhá Chich Dannan" (The Breasts of (the Goddess) Danu), followed, as Kerry's Four Star Trio already did on their 2014 album "Magnetic South", with some polkas. Lilt has employed Seth Kibel to add some peculiar clarinet sounds. Likewise, accordionist Billy McComiskey was free to play along his own "Road to Damascus" tune.
© Walkin' T:-)M


The Lasses "Undone"
Own label, 2019

Artist Video

www.thelasses.nl

Before they talked to each other, they sung along. The scene of crime was the weekly singing session on Wednesday nights in Mulligan's Irish Pub in Amsterdam. Ten years after, Sophie Janna and Margot Merah, a.k.a. The Lasses, cast a spell on audiences all over Europe, just as the sirens of antiquity seduced the seafaring hero Odysseus. In the latter case the fate had been gloom and down, we are treated to crystall-clear voices and passionate harmonies. I dare say that "Undone" (the album title is taken from a song written by American folk-singer/banjo-player Ola Belle Reed) is a musical journey that takes us from the European shores all across the ocean to the US and Canada. The first comprises traditional ballads such as the Scottish "Bonnie George Campbell" and the Irish "Tipping It Up To Nancy" alongside London-based singer-songwriter Jack Durtnall and the hundredth shot at Sandy Denny's "Who Knows Where The Time Goes". It doesn't get any better than the original, though is beautiful at all times. "The Blackest Crow" is the only traditional song from North America; the Dutch duo help themselves with songs from Natalie Merchant ("Motherland"), David Francey ("Torn Screen Door"),[67] Bob Coltman ("Lonesome Robin"), and Si Kahn ("What You Do With What You’ve Got").[69] Sophie and Margot say these songs are about losing your composure and trying to regain it and make us feel better when times are tough. This holds for their three self-penned tracks as well. With subtle musical realisation, the Lasses' album is restrained, graceful - and very personal.
Sophie and Margot reckon: For us, folk music is not about perfection, not about arrangements, talent or skill. We feel folk is about telling stories, feeling connected, sharing sadness, sharing happiness. We once had a conversation about making music with our friend Luka Bloom. He said - and we hope we quote him correctly – “Don’t use a beautiful song to show how well you can sing, but use your voice to show the beauty of a song.” And we hope that that’s what comes through when you listen to this album.
© Walkin' T:-)M


Westward The Light "Westward The Light"
Braw Sailin' Records, 2020

Artist Video

www.westwardthelight.com

Scottish trad band Westward The Light is made up of fiddlers Charlie Grey and Sally Simpson, guitarist Owen Sinclair and piano/harmonium player Joseph Peach. Not very familiar names maybe, but they also perform with folk music ensembles such as Inyal,[67] Tannara[63] and the Iona Fyfe Band.[67] Their music is deeply rooted in Scottish culture, their selected tunes are taken straight from the tradition (plus input from celebrated fiddler Nathaniel Gow (1763–1831), the 'left handed fiddler' Aonghas Grant from the Western Highlands, Cape Breton piper Paul MacNeil, as well as a composition from Sally, Joseph and Owen, respectively). There are ditties from their Irish neighbours: the slide "Behind the Bush In the Garden" has already been collected by Franics O'Neill, "Dulaman Na Binne Bui" is a popular session reel. Most selections though are of the rarer sort, and who has ever heard of "Pearlin' Peggie's Bonny" or "I'll Buy Boots for Maggie"? Westward The Light's debut album attempts to do it a little bit different. Their arrangements are simple at the core, but the execution is flawless and vibrant. The outcome is catchy and memorable, as Sally puts it in her tune title: The Smile Sustains...
© Walkin' T:-)M


Leonard Barry, Declan Folan, Shane McGowan "Hurry the Jug"
Own label, 2019

Artist Video

www.barryfolanandmcgowan.com

This Trio is based in the County Sligo in the North West of Ireland. Fiddler Declan Folan and guitar player Shane McGowan already started playing together in their teenage years. They never lost sight of each other, all the while Declan became one of the finest proponents of the distinctive Sligo fiddle style[66] and Shane a much sought-after accompanist (he was over here in Germany lately with David Munnelly's new outfit).[71] On the other hand, uilleann piper Leonard Barry grew up near Tralee in County Kerry; his music is informed by various traits from Sliabh Luachra up to Donegal and he prefers the legato style of piping[23] which was handed down from the travelling people of Ireland and can be found in the playing of the Keenans and the Fureys.[39] Recently he performed with the New Road ensemble.[53] Declan had met Leonard in the early 1990s in London, where they had played together on the Irish music circuit. When Leonard eventually took up residence in Sligo, this trio was just a question of time. Their tune selection is rooted in Sligo, but makes forays into other traditions. Most of the tunes are traditional, such as the swinging jig "Hurry the Jug" I have heard before at Irish set-dancing. A few recent compositions associated with the likes of Joe Liddy, Tommy Peoples, James Kelly and Philip Duffy are thrown in for good measure, Declan himself offers the terrific "The Carousel" reel. Declan and Leonard take turns, sometimes take a solo, but when playing along each other they reveal a mutual understanding that gives birth to something greater than their individual merits. It's easygoing but sophisticated and virtuosic at the same time. Rounding up the triumvirate, Shane uses his familiarity with folk, jazz and rock music for his guitar backing, sensitive and subtle in general, propulsive if appropriate.
© Walkin' T:-)M


Will Woodson, Caitlin Finley and Chris Stevens "The Glory Reel"
Own label, 2019

Artist Video

www.woodsonfinley.com

"The Glory Reel" is a traditional tune of presumably origin in the Irish north as played by Donegal group Altan or Belfast flutist Harry Bradley.[40] It is also the album's title or respective the group's name of the team play of New England's Will Woodson (flute, uilleann pipes), Caitlin Finley (fiddle) and Junior Stevens (piano, melodeon, button accordion). They produce a smart and elegant tone, at times getting quite cheerful and/or expressive. It is firmly based in the Irish tradition, or let's say, the swinging Irish-American traditional music as played in the 1920s and 1930s in dance halls and on vaudeville stages. Their source are the 78rpm records of fiddlers Michael Coleman and James Morrison, and thus the regional music of counties Sligo, Leitrim and Roscommon, as well as the larger-than-life John Doherty and the fiddle tradition of Donegal, and Galway-born uilleann piper Patsy Touhey whose groundbreaking presentation added to an unmistakable American style of piping.
© Walkin' T:-)M


Ies Muller, David Munnelly "Detached"
Appel Rekords, 2019

German CD Review

Artist Video

www.iesmuller.com
davidmunnelly.com

David Munnelly is a diatonic accordion player from the County Mayo in the west of Ireland. His musical output is rooted in the oral tradition within his family and his native country, to an extremely high degree spiced up with the swinging Irish-American music of the 1920/30s.[27][49][62] In recent years, he perfected his composing skills and throw a glance far beyond the traditional artist's nose.[46][68] Before he left his homestead now to bring the Irish Spring to High Germany, David made a pit stop in the Low Countries to join forces with flutist Ies Muller. Ies is an inquisitive musician with two feet in traditional Irish and Breton music but deep interest in various genres including modern jazz and the various strands of today's world music. M&M launch into a creative dialogue by turning traditional music upside down and open a new chapter for acoustic roots music that is entirely of their own handwriting. In the process they deal with jigs and reels, barndances and highlands, a Breton lament and a country song, throwing a couple of original tunes into the mix. It is a thrilling, if not unsettling affair, which is not made to be locked up in the studio but breath in the great wide open. So get up please and start the journey ...
© Walkin' T:-)M


Julia Dignan "The Tea Wife"
Brechin All Records, 2019

Artist Video

Fiddle player and tea fanatic Julia Dignan is from Montrose on the east coast of Scotland. She relocated to Edinburgh in the late 1980s to study classical piano and violin, but rather fell under the spell of traditional music in the great number of public houses with their gigs and sessions. In the 1990s, Julia was a founding member of Gaelic band Tannas,[11] before motherhood and illness terminated her music-making for quite some time. Only recently, she returned onto the session circuit, namely accordionist Sandy Brechin's Sunday night session at The Ensign Ewart near Edinburgh Castle, and got the opportunity to take part in Edinburgh’s Hogmanay with Sandy's The Sensational Jimi Shandrix Experience.[70] Julia's debut album, released on Sandy's Brechin All Records, includes an immense number of guest musicians: Tannahill Weavers' John Martin (fiddle), Tartan Records' Simon Thoumire (concertina), ex-Shooglenifty's Iain MacLeod (mandolin), to name just a few. Each set of tunes is dedicated to a particular pub session or one of Julia's period of life. "Royal Oak" and "The Tron" are named after venues and feature particular session tunes such as the Shetland reel "Da Full Rigged Ship". "Tannas" is a sequence of puirt à beul, Scotland's answer to scat singing ("A Nighneag A' Ghràidh"/"Eilean Beag Donn A' Chuain"/"Filoro"). "The Tea Wifie" features four tunes which had been composed in honor of Julia (Simon Thoumire's "Starjump" / Sandy Brechin's "The Tea Wife" / David Preston's "For Julia" / accordionist Jason Dove's "Look Behind You"). The album closes with the lament "The Half Pipe," co-written by Julia and guitarist Calum Wood. A fine tune, and beautiful fiddle playing on the whole.
© Walkin' T:-)M


Mossie Martin "Humours of Derrynacoosan"
Own label, 2019

Artist Video

www.mossiemartin.com

The traditional music of Sligo, Roscommon and Leitrim in the north west of Ireland is said to be an exquisite and unrivalled delicacy. It is linked to iconic artists such as Michael Coleman, James Morrison, Fred Finn, and more recently with Peter Horan, Ben and Charlie Lennon and Kevin Burke. These are the footsteps that Mossie Martin (from the vicinity of Keadue close to Turlough O'Carolan's grave) tries to fill. After all, the first step is a success by all means. Mossie is a gorgeous fiddler who has played with the Dartry Céilí Band[43] and recorded with Lúnasa as part of the Leitrim Equation project.[39] He plays with bold bow strokes but puts wagonloads of heart and soul in every single note and embellishment. Mossie is kicking off with two original tunes, one in memory of his mother and another in honor of his native townland Derrynacoosan. He follows it with a couple of barndances that flutist John McKenna had recorded in the 1930s. And so forth. There are compositions by regional residents such as flutist Josie McDermott, fiddler Charlie Lennon and Dartry Céilí band leader Philip Duffy. Mossie dug up three North Connaught polkas, and these are a quite different beast than the bog-standard from County Kerry. Last but not least, he included a Carolan piece for good measure and his "Himalayan Hornpipe," which he already recorded with fellow fiddlers Shane Meehan and Sean Smyth for the Leitrim Equation project.
© Walkin' T:-)M


Charlie Le Brun "Madness Is Convention" [EP]
Own label, 2019

Artist Video

Artist Video

www.charlielebrun.com

Through the various fest noz events all over Brittany, flute player Charlie Le Brun had been in contact with the country's tradition since crawling out of the cradle. He first performed classical music, but soon got captivated by the timber flute and its possibilities to produce a very pure and pristine tone in his hands. Ten years ago, he moved to Ireland where he joined the session scene perfecting his craft and building up a repertoire. Though as much as Charlie relishes session music, he even loves to add to the tradition with new compositions. Alongside two traditional reels often recorded together ("Cabin Hunter / Delia Crowley's") and a jig set from the pen of Peadar Ó Riada, he introduces us to some whimsical and subtle melodies. Charlie is joined on this much too short five track collection by Aoife Kelly (concertina), Feilimí O'Connor (guitar) and Eamon Rooney (bodhrán).
© Walkin' T:-)M


Dàibhidh Stiùbhard "An Sionnach Dubh"
Wildtune, 2020

Artist Video

www.daibhidhstiubhard.com

Ever heard of Tullywiggan? Probably not, it is a hamlet in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. And it must be a hub for Gaelic culture, because it is the native place of Dàibhidh Stiùbhard, a photography graduate from Ulster University who is a champion of Gaelic language and traditional singer in his spare time. In 2018 Dàibhidh had his shot to fame. He became Senior Traditional Singing Champion at the Tyrone and Ulster fleadhs, and he also supported Scottish group Malinky on their anniversary album.[69] On his own debut album, "An Sionnach Dubh" (The Black Fox), he selected traditional songs from the Ulster-Anglo-Irish tradition and both the Irish and Scots Gaelic tradition and added samples from his own songwriting for good measure. "Belfast Market" and "The Stately Woods of Truagh" are well-known folk songs in the English language. "A Stór Mó Chroí" (Treasure of My Heart) has been recorded a million times, including Joe Heaney and Tommy Sands. (It had been originally sung in Irish, translated to English in the 19th century, served as macaronic song (both Irish and English) until recently when it was translated back into Irish.) You may know "Úirchill An Chreagáin" (By Creggan Graveyard), written by Art Mac Cumhaigh (1738-73), from the singing of Clannad; it is one of the most popular aisling poems (i.e. a genre where the poet is visited by a fairy woman lamenting the current state of affairs and predicting an auspicious future). Scottish bands such as Capercaillie or Dàimh have already introduced "Òran Eile Don Phrionnsa" (Another Song for the Prince); it is credited to one Alexander MacDonald (is that poet Alasdair Mac Mhaighstir Alasdair (1698–1770)?) referring to the Battle of Culloden in 1746, ending Scottish independence once and for all. Dàibhidh's own lyrics include a paean to Thomas Clarke, one of the leaders in Dublin's Easter Rising of 2016,[59] titled "Kin of Cú Chulainn," making Clarke a spiritual descendant of the legendary hero of Irish mythology. Indeed, you cannot separate poetry and song from politics and current events. Dàibhidh is not only a singer who uses his pristine voice and irreproachable execution to put emotion and passion in any given set of words, he is a gifted storyteller. The musical accompaniment suits the stories, providing, if required and appropriate, ​a congenial fiddle and accordion, a haunting harmonium and a swinging piano. To put a long story short, Dàibhidh is one in a line of artists who try to make the ancient music cool and sexy again.
© Walkin' T:-)M


Seamus Egan "Early Bright"
Own Label, 2020

Artist Video

Artist Video

www.seamuseganproject.com

Seamus Egan, originally a traditional flutist but meanwhile an all-encompassing instrumentalist, nearly dominated the Irish music scene in North America in the past two or three decades. Especially with heading the traditional Irish music group Solas,[32] who burst on the scene in the mid 1990s and managed to remain relevant, despite of multiple line-up changes which also meant a changing soundscape. At the time being, Solas is taking a break of indeterminate duration. Seamus already had recorded a solo album, but that was in 1996. Thus he locked himself down in rural Vermont to browse through his compositions that didn't make in into the Solas repertoire. To revive it and put it on record, he invited a couple of musician friends: Moira Smiley (piano accordion), Kyle Sanna (guitar, piano, lap steel), Owen Marshall (bouzouki, harmonium), Joe Philips (double bass), and string quartet The Fretless (Eric Wright, Trent Freeman, Karrnnel Sawitsky, Ben Plotnick, arrangements by Maeve Gilchrist). Seamus himself is playing the tenor banjo, nylon-strung guitar, mandolin, low whistles, and a little bit of keyboard and percussion. The music is drawing on Irish roots but informed by his previous work on movie soundtracks and orchestral music. Don't expect any pyrotechnics, instead cleverly devised arrangements splendidly put into effect. He says, “What does virtuosity mean now? I think the most important thing to me is the musicality of something. That’s always been important, but it’s the conveyance of understanding and hopefully a little bit of wisdom in the note chosen and the space that’s left between notes. When you’re younger, you want to get the notes out! I think that as time goes on, you start to pull back a little and you realize you can say the same thing without as many notes. It can be just as impressive, just in a different way.”
© Walkin' T:-)M


Ewelina Grygier "szplin"
CM Records, 2019

Artist Video

www.ewelinagrygier.art.pl

Ewelina Grygier from Poznań in western Poland is a jill-of-all-trades. She is an ethnomusicologist, digitalising recordings of traditional music for the Polish Academy of Sciences, running a blog about musical traditions (blog.tradycjemuzyczne.imit.org.pl). She works as as a lecturer and tutor, and of course she is performing, recording and touring with her favoured musical instrument - the wooden traverso flute. Ewelina has been playing traditional Breton music in the Duo Grygier/Biela, jazzed up Celtic music with Polish-Austrian sextet Danar,[40] Javanese music with the Warsaw Gamelan Group, step dance group Usłyszeć Taniec, to name just a few. Her solo album "szplin" (i.e. crazy about something in the Poznań dialect) is a collection of original compositions, based upon various strands of European and sometimes non-European music and replenished with modern grooves and improvisations that come straight around the jazz corner. The title track is based on the Breton dance form named plinn which obviously sounds a little bit like szplin. Tunes have been inspired by the Grimm brothers tale of the Pied Piper of Hameln and the vineyards of Liesing (Vienna). "Lockenhaus No 1" is named after the Austrian Castle where she ran flute and tin whistle workshops for a couple of years; this is the place where Countess Elizabeth Báthory reportedly killed young women to bathe in their blood... There is another hanter dro and an oriental sounding reel, which leads me to the two exceptions to the rule of originality: the traditional Breton "Dans de l'ours" and Edinburgh flutist Niall Kenny's "Trip to Pakistan". Niall once said he wrote the latter tune more in the Breton style rather than as a reel, but as such it has been incorporated into the worldwide session reportoire (and recorded by the Old Blind Dogs for example).[36] "The Pakistan" is a challenge but one Ewelina is well prepared for. Her technique is flawless and her execution is sophisticated. She doesn't need any assistance, but there is, to name just violonist Paul Dangl[42][64][69] besides a handful of ethno and jazz musicians from Poland I'm unfortunatly not familiar with.
© Walkin' T:-)M


Ross Miller "The Roke"
Own label, 2020

Artist Video

www.rossmillermusic.com

Ross Miller is from the Ancient and Royal Burgh of Linlithgow, bordering Edinburgh south of the Firth of Forth, where he serves as the official Town Piper and plays "The Roke, the Row and the Wee Pickled Tow" every June when the town boundaries are checked. He began piping aged seven and studied at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, graduating with a First Class Honours Degree in Traditional Music in 2017. Subsequently he won the World Pipe Band Championships, the Danny Kyle Award[68] (in the company of fiddler Charlie Stewart) and became a finalist in last year's BBC Radio Scotland Young Traditional Musician of the Year competition. His debut solo album "The Roke" has been released on what has been his 25th birthday. Linlithgow had been birthplace of Maria Stuart and Star Trek's Scotty (sic!), and Ross Miller embraces the past, present and future of piping, so to speak. The roots lie in classic pipe bands music he grew up and played with, for sure, but executed with a sense for contemporary aesthetics, even soloing that is creeping in from jazz music if not entirely from Outer Space. So, even on Starship Enterprise his music will not be out of place. The tune selection encompasses a lot of own compositions as well as favourites from the tradition, such as "Lucy Campbell's Strathspey", the puirt à beul "B'fheàrr mar a bha mi 'n uiridh" and a Breton "Ton Doubl" played as polka (!), fellow pipers like Angus MacDonald[68] and Ben Miller,[67] and multi-instrumentalist Hamish Napier,[61] who had been his former lecturer at Royal Conservatoire. Ross has surrounded himself with the best musicians he could get, including fiddler Charlie Stewart,[67] guitarist Craig Irving, pianist Rory Matheson and percussionist Callum Edwards (Red Hot Chilli Pipers).[61]
© Walkin' T:-)M


Lisa O'Neill "Heard A Long Gone Song"
River Lea Recordings, 2018

Lisa O'Neill "The Wren, The Wren" [EP]
River Lea Recordings, 2019

Artist Video

www.lisaoneill.ie

Heard a long gone song from days gone by blown in on the great North wind, goes Shane MacGowan's "Lullaby of London." In 2018, Irish singer Lisa O'Neill had shared the stage with U2's Bono, Sinéad O'Connor and Nick Cave to celebrate the former Pogues frontman's 60th birthday.[65] She eventually picked Shane's lullaby as her fourth's album's spooky outro. "Heard A Long Gone Song" also features a couple of traditional folk songs: "The Galway Shawl" (sung for a film based on the life of sean-nós singer Joe Heaney), "The Lass of Aughrim" (a short excerpt from the Child ballad "Lord Gregory"[65] as sung in the film adaptation of James Joyce's "The Dead"), "The Factory Girl" (featuring Lankum's Radie Peat).[71] This is heavy stuff, dark and desolate, as is her own songwriting: "Violet Gibson" celebrates the English lady who tried to shoot Mussolini in 1926, unfortunatly she missed. "Rock The Machine" laments Dublin's dock workers that were made redundant because of the advancing mechanisation. "A Year Shy of Three" has been inspired by a painting in the National Gallery of Ireland, Frederick William Burton's depressing "The Aran Fisherman’s Drowned Child". It is set to the melody of "The May Morning Dew" and at least this musically kindles a dimmed light in all this darkness. Lisa's voice is aching and gripping and conjuring up the Long Gone Song. Whereas her previous albums relied on ensemble playing, this is stripped to the bone, she sometimes sings a capella, sometimes only in the company of a lonely banjo, fiddle or concertina. It's about the song, not the singer...

Artist Video

To kill the time until the next full-length album, Lisa has released a short 3-track EP. Indeed it starts with a killing, namely the slaying of the wren on St. Stephen's Day on December 26th. The young boys tie the King of the Birds to a stick and carry it from house to house collecting money for the burial. It's supposed to bring good luck for the New Year, albeit not the little creature's. Lisa's "John Joe Reilly" follows up with an original story of a girl seduced and cheated by a wren boy. Last but not least, "Come Back Paddy Reilly to Ballyjamesduff" is a popular ditty from the pen of songwriter Percy French (1854-1920),[71] feigning a land of milk and honey in the County Cavan which - you guessed right - is Lisa's birthplace and stomping ground.
© Walkin' T:-)M


Andy Irvine "Old Dog Long Road Vol. 1 1961-2012" [2 CDs]
Own label, 2019

Mozaik with Chrysoula Kechagioglou "The Long and Short Of It"
Own label, 2019

Article: Andy Irvine: Old Dog Long Road

Artist Video

www.andyirvine.com

Andy Irvine[23][35][55] was there, when the folk revival of the 1960s gathered momentum. Others faded away by and by, when musical fashions changed and times got tough for independent and original artists, even more so when they insisted in playing folk and traditional music. Old Dog Andy kept moving on along the Long Road. Temporarily joining bands such as Planxty etc.,[65] Andy always felt comfortable just in the company of his guitar, bouzouki and harmonica. This two-disc collection features recordings Andy made himself from 1961 to 2012: demos on his reel-to-reel tape recorder, studio recordings that didn't make it onto any album, and live recordings from all around the world. (A special thanks goes to Jeremy Kearney's 1970's Foxrock Folk Club.)[60] The very first song, Si Kahn's[69] "Goodbye Monday Blues" about North Carolina's mistreated cotton mill workers, makes a personal statement, Andy has invariably been a musical champion of labour, human and environmental rights. He also selected one of Ewan MacColl's radio ballads ("Come All Ye Fisher Lassies")[37] and, of course, a piece from his hero Woody Guthrie ("Seamen Three"). Andy himself wrote about the Mexican revolutionary leader Emiliano Zapata. There is traditional Irish music too, a number of times taken from the Sam Henry collection Songs of the People (e.g. "Bonny Light Horseman"), and instrumental dance music, including the 7/16-time "Chetvorno Horo" he brought home from his Bulgarian travels. Andy plays mainly solo, at times he is joined by the usual suspects (Dónal Lunny, ...) and a pre-Patrick Street ensemble.[24]

"Old Dog Long Road Vol. 1 1961-2012" has been released by Andy as a limited edition for his hardcore fans, though I would wish it a wider circulation, it has much to give to the folk music connoisseur. After all, it is not meant to be his swan song, it is just Volume I of vintage recordings to be put into the limelight.

www.chrysoula-k.com

In the early Millennium, Andy Irivine's dreams came true to put together a multi-cultural folk music supergroup. Under the moniker of Mozaik[30][36] Andy together with fellow Irishman Dónal Lunny (bouzouki), American Bruce Molsky (fiddle, five-string banjo), Dutchman Rens van der Zalm (fiddle, mandolin, pipes) and Hungarian Nikola Parov (gadulka, kaval, gaida, ...) are pleasing us every now and then. I have seen them live at Tønder Festival in 2005 and I have still vivid memories of gorgeous ensemble playing and slick arrangements of traditional and newly-written folk music from all their respective backgrounds.[31] Mozaik's third studio album "The Long and Short Of It" has been recorded at Nikola's house outside Budapest in the fall of 2015. Kicking off with Andy's great neo-folk song about the escape artist Houdini, the group takes us across the Western Ocean from the Old World to the New, including a traditional whaling song ("The Coast Of Peru"), a Romanian couple dance and an old-time waltz. It is the broadest spectrum conceivable - by musical style, by acoustic colour and by resourceful delivery. Generally, Andy and Bruce take lead vocals by turns. Celebrated Hungarian singer Ágnes Herczku introduces Nikola's attempt on the traditional Moldavian "Gyimes," and a total of three tracks feature the renowned Greek singer Chrysoula Kechagioglou. What can I say, her song titles say everything: Song of the Nightingale ... Like A Soft Breeze ... I have no clue why it took four years to throw this album onto the market. Thank God, here it is, safe and sound. But, boys, don't let us wait that long again.
© Walkin' T:-)M


Aoife Scott "Homebird"
Wendypops Records, 2020

Artist Video

www.aoifescott.com

Her mother being Frances Black and her aunt Mary Black,[57] Irish singer Aoife Scott has been early set on a road to success.[61] Her song "Grace," featuring cousins Róisín O and Danny O'Reilly from The Coronas (what a morbid band's name at present), got to the top of the Irish charts; so did her "All Along the Wild Atlantic Way" which even superseded Ed Sheeran. Her recent full-length album "Homebird" also made it to number 1. Though based on the musical traditions of her home country, there is a transatlantic undercurrent. Quite fittingly, her new music came into existence in both Dublin and Nashville, featuring artists such as flutist Éamonn de Barra as well as Sierra Hull and Stuart Duncan, with renowned bluegrass artist Ron Block standing at the helm. Four songs have been written or co-written by Aoife. She sings about gloom and doom, love and hope, both personally and politically. Andrew Meaney's "Irish Born" is an emigration song about those who went the long way to America, Dominic Behan's "Building Up and Tearing England Down" stays close to home, but nevertheless the troubles and worries are the same. Barry Kerr's "Ireland's Hour of Need" addresses the present issues and problems, though with the futile illusion that the Irish heroes of the past may sort things out. "Do Mhuirnín Ó" is a love song in the Irish language written by Enda Reilly,[55] and the one and only traditional ballad, "The Night Visiting Song," is from the singing of Luke Kelly, thus bearing a political mark regardless of what is sung about. Aoife possesses many forms and ways of expression; her vocals volatile on occasion, bursting with energy and ecstasy every now and then.
© Walkin' T:-)M


Thomm Jutz "To Live In Two Worlds: Volume 1"
Mountain Home, 2020

German CD Review

Article: Thomm Jutz

Artist Video

www.thommjutz.com

German born singer-songwriter-guitarist Thomm Jutz arrived in Nashville TN fifteen years ago. Today his credits include playing the Grand Ol' Opry, placing several number 1's at the Bluegrass Charts, and writing songs that have been covered by luminaries such as Mac Wiseman, Nanci Griffith, Balsam Range or Chris Jones & The Night Drivers. Thomm Jutz as been writing a good deal about US American history. So he had been the producer of The 1861 Project, a three-record collection about the American Civil War. Likewise, his new album "To Live In Two Worlds" embodies his interest in bygone times. There are fourteen songs, written or co-written by Jutz, peopled by blues and country musicians from the Depression era to the foundation of the Newgrass movement: Charlie Pool, Jimmie Rodgers, Blind Willie McTell, Skip James, and John Hartford. "Where The Bluebirds Call" brings to mind the song collecting trips of Cecil Sharp, the godfather of the English folk music revival in the early 1900s.[26] It is no academical study, but a soulful musical journey into the heart of the American South. Thomm Jutz says, "I'm not a historian, but I'm a chronicler of emotions." His language is genuine Bluegrass, half of it rather contemplative solo renditions, the other half more uptempo group recordings. This might be representing the Two Worlds of the album's title, or it might be living with the fascination for the past and at the same time coping with the daily routine in the here and now.
© Walkin' T:-)M


Mejram "Erase You"
Kakafon Records, 2019

Artist Video

www.mejramofficial.com

This Swedish quartet, formed at Göteborg Academy of Music and Drama, is named after the marjoram plant, which is very aromatic and spicy and contains a large percentage of essential oils, said to have a positive effect on the autonomic nervous system and the immune system. This holds for Mejram's muscial output as well, spicing up Swedish husmanskost. Their debut album is a fine blend of American country and Nordic folk music with a contemporary pop attitude and making inroads into the Celtic realm. There is a nice instrumental mix consisting of fiddle, harmonica, mandolin, bouzouki guitar, piano, double bass and drums, with additional strings and lap steel guitar on two tracks, respectively. Mejram tell their stories about the ups and downs in human life in both English and Swedish. Amanda Frisk's lead vocals are expressive and haunting, the harmonies are tight and confident. The overall effect though is still heart-warming; the Mejram ingredient increases the quality of the dish not the quantity.
© Walkin' T:-)M


Peat & Diesel "Light My Byre"
Wee Studio Records, 2020

German CD Review

Artist Video

www.peatanddiesel.band

"Light My Byre" (or: Burn Down Our Cowshed), the second album from Scottish folk-punk band Peat & Diesel, gives an impression as if you had put Johnny Rotten into a kilt and grabbed his undisguised balls. The three lads from the Outer Hebrides off the west coast of Scotland position themselves in a fresh and brave manner as the answer of unemployed high sea fishermen, who in their spare time fiddle around with accordions, electric guitars and drums, to the soft-washed Runrig sound.[68] It says: We are harder! Uncompromising! More nasty and funny! "Horo Gheallaidh" celebrates what the Scots call a shindig: a wild house party. There is a lot of brandy flowing and some crude verses intoned. Since there was not enough own material on offer, the trio complemented it with some popular songs: Gordon Menzie's (Gaberlunzie) "The Kishorn Commandos" (an excursion from the Islands to the Highlands), Michael Considine's "Spancil Hill" (crossing over to the Emerald Isle) and Ewan MacColls "Dirty Old Town" (a return to the north of England via London-Irish The Pogues). Meanwhile, Peat & Diesel have played Glasgow on the Scottish mainland, as you can see from the videos in the net. If their vehicle allows, more mileage is conceivable. I can imagine some good locations over here in Germany ...
© Walkin' T:-)M



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