Fiddle
Showing 1–16 of 135 results
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Andrew Dinan & Jim Richardson: Inside Out
Track Listing
- Little Katie Taylor’s/The Blocker’s/The Silver Spear
- The Night Owl/Horsebite/Our Kid. (comp Grace Kelly)
- 10 Bar Blues. (comp Andrew Dinan)
- Old Fashoned Morphine. (vocals Nancy Dinan)
- Civil War Lament (comp Andrew Dinan)
- Ronnie Cooper’s/Tommy McElvogue’s/Sean Walsh’s
- Exile of Erin (comp Tony Sullivan)/The Conversation. (comp Grace Kelly)
- Transmission. (comp Joy Division/ vocals Nancy Dinan)
- Holes/The Strong Men From Kilfinane/Time Flies Too Fast ( both comp by Andy Dinan)
- La Polka des Ours (comp Lors Jourin)/Glen Cottage/La Polkade la Meteo Marine (comp Jean-Michel Veilon
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Ben Lennon & Friends – The Natural Bridge
- Memories of Ballymote /Gurkin Cross
- The Enchanted Lady /The Holy Land
- The Donegal Mazurkas
- The Blackberry Blossom /McFadden’s
- Song: Flora
- Maguire’s Fiddle /O’Donnell’s Hornpipe
- Rattigan’s /The Collier’s
- Mick McNamara’s /Touch Me If You Dare
- Return of Spring /The Mountain Pathway
- Johnny Henry’s /Ryan’s Rant
- Cathleen Hehir’s
- Song: The Banks of the Clyde
- McDermott’s Hornpipe
- The Lonesome Jig /The Tenpenny Bit
- Batt Henry’s Barndance
- The Boys of Ballisodare /The Five Mile Chase
- The Primrose Polka
- Farrell O’Gara /Lucy Campbell
- The Flax in Bloom
Press Reviews
Irish Music Magazine. July 2000
Originally released in 1999 it’s taken a while to pecolate it’s way through our review pages, but like that famous water, it’s the pure drop bottled. The wait only increased the thirst and pleasure from subsequent quenching. For some of us, who have already clocked up four decades, this music will recall the past masters and the sound we grew up with. Remember those old 78’s of Coleman, Morrison and Kiloran? Theirs was a regional style but was that qualitythey had just a little to do with the recording equipment? Not a bit of it, this album proves that gool old-fashioned music is as good as ever. And it can still be made.Proof too that there is a lyrical voice from Leitrim that’s accented and eloquent. Ben Lennon, the elder statesman of Leitrim music, brother of composer Charlie, and father of fiddler, Maurice and fluter, Brian, (all of whom guest on this album), is joined here by Garry O’Briain, John Carty, Ciaran Curran, (Altan) and Seamus Quinn on piano. Gabriel McArdle who plays concertina gives us a song, The Banks of the Clyde, collected from John Redhill, on an island in Loch Eirne. The acompanying 20 page liner notes area a tastefully designed store of information. I’ve now another classic recording to add to Milestone at the Garden, Paddy in the Smoke and The Long Strand, The Natural Bridge links the tunes and styles of two generations ago in a seamless road without a halt in the step, rising above the turbulent waters of fashion with elegant grace. An architectural treasure if ever there was one. You won’t really know the tradition until you number albums like this in your collection. Sean Laffey
Taplas
There’s a wonderful lilt to the tunes, especially the polkas and the barn dances, and a tremendous sense of fun and enjoyment. Not only is this CD a natural bridge between the traditions of north Leitrim and south west Fermanagh, but also between the present and the music of the past, like Paddy Kiloran, Johnny Doherty and Batt Henry.
The Folk Diary #178 Aug/Sept 99
One of Ireland’s best loved, most respected old fiddler’s offers a wonderful selection of his playing, mainly in the Leitrim/Sligo style of his birth. Though the fact that he has lived in Donegal (and played regularly with Johnny Doherty) also shines through. There are only a few solo moments as Ben immerses himself in what sound like a variety of different sessions, featuring his brother Charlie and friends. Mostly recorded in one takes and using an empty pub as a studio, this is fine, varied playing. Ben also shows himself to be a fine singer in a style that seems to derive from the same inspiration as that of Cathal McConnell. Another triumph for the company that are becoming THE company for Irish traditional music and song. Vic Smith.
The Living Tradition #34
Ben and Charlie Lennon together should be enough to make you listen: add Brian and Maurice Lennon, Gary O’Briain, John Carty, Ciaran Curran, Gabriel McArdle and Seamus Quinn, and you really sit up and take notice. This is a typical Clo Iar Chonnachta production; well balanced and with twenty pages of comprehensive notes. There’s one particular Irish label that ought to take heed of CIC’s thoroughness in that regard. “The Natural Bridge” is north Leitrim style at it’s best; flowing and unhurried, giving the music elbow-room, yet with a strong assured rhythm. Maybe maturity in traditional music comes when you don’t play floridly and fast just because you can? As the title implies, there’s feeling for the styles of near neighbours from South Leitrim, Sligo and Fermanagh. The bridge is also with the past, because Ben pays tribute to the older musicians whose records influenced him; Coleman, John and Mickey Doherty, Killoran, James Morrison, etc. There are also tributes to musicians who are still with us, like Michael McNamara of Aughavas, south Leitrim. McNamara’s influence shows through on the reel named for him. Instrumental balance in varied throughout 17 tracks of reels, jigs, hornpipes, polkas and a great barndance, as well as two songs from Gabriel McArdle. An inspired idea is Maurice Lennon’s fine Viola. It fits really well; “Rattigan’s and The Collier’s” rarely sounded so good. There are rarely played tunes as well as old favourites; and the best version of “Cathleen Hehir’s” I’ve heard yet. This is great stuff; definitely one for the ready-for-use rack. Mick Furey.
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Ben Lennon & Tony O’Connell – Rossinver Braes
Music from Two Different Generations
Rossinver Braes is the new album of traditional Irish music on fiddle and concertina from Ben Lennon and Tony O’Connell, released on the Cló Iar-Chonnachta label.
Ben Lennon is a legendary figure in traditional Irish music circles, a fiddler from Co. Leitrim who celebrates his eightieth birthday this year and who has been playing the fiddle for seventy of those years. Although almost fifty years separate Ben from his fellow musician on this album, Tony O’Connell from west Limerick, there is an undeniable musical connection between them. David Lennon, Ben’s son, says in his introduction to the CD: ‘Tony is probably the most empathetic musician I have heard my father play with. There is an understanding of phrasing, time and nuance that one finds only rarely in any musical form.’ This is O’Connell’s second album; his first album was recorded with another Leitrim fiddler, Andy Morrow, and was released to critical acclaim in 2005. The album came second in the top ten albums of 2005 of highly-respected traditional Irish music reviewer Earle Hitchner of the Irish Echo, second, interestingly, to the album Within a Mile of Kilty released on the Cló Iar-Chonnachta label that year and featuring Ben and Charlie Lennon, as well as four other superb Leitrim fiddlers.
Rossinver Braes features both traditional and newly-composed tunes. Several of Charlie Lennon’s compositions are included, including the hornpipe that gives the album its title, named after the village where Ben now lives. Charlie also composed two barn dances in honour of the musicians while the album was being recorded at his Cuan Studios outside Spiddal, ‘Lord Leitrim’ and ‘The Earl of Thomond’, tunes which he feels reflect the spirit of both musicians and their dynamic playing together. The tune selection leans toward the Sligo—Leitrim area and includes many tunes associated with Michael Coleman and James Morrison. Accompaniment is provided by Charlie Lennon (piano), Alec Finn (bouzouki) and Jerry McNamara (guitar).
Ben Lennon is from Kiltyclogher, Co. Leitrim and has recorded many albums during a long and illustrious traditional music career. He is regarded as one of the very finest of Leitrim’s fiddlers, no mean feat in a county renowned for its fiddling tradition.
Tony O’Connell is from Glin in west Co. Limerick and is currently living in Limerick city where he plays regularly and teaches at the Irish World Music Centre in the University of Limerick. He has won All-Ireland concertina titles at both underage and senior levels and has toured Asia, America and Europe with various shows and groups.
Also available from Copperplate and featuring Ben Lennon
CICD 139 The Natural Bridge
CICD 159 Within A Mile of Kilty
Press Reviews
Irish Music Magazine March 09
“When my father mentioned that he thought it would be a good idea to make a CD with Tony, I sensed that something special was happening, and so it proved to be.” That quote is taken from the CD notes of Rossinver and was written by David Lennon, one of Ben’s sons. David also said that when his father first mentioned he had been playing music with a top-class concertina player called Tony O’Connell from Limerick, he realised that this man must be good. “My father is not in the habit of praising musicians without considerable merit…”
Ben is a great living exponent of the strong, regional style of fiddle playing from the north Leitrim, south-eastern Fermanagh area and the fact that he took up with a man from far-off Limerick and almost fifty years his junior was also a bit of a surprise. “It took a while for us to get it all together,” Ben says, “because we have different styles of playing but he was able to adapt. He’s very adaptable, very musical, and he has a great passion for the music. He’s a younger man, but he really knows what it’s all about.”
That said, Ben is no stranger to playing with musicians from all over Ireland, having lived at various times in Cork, Limerick and Donegal. “When I was in Cork we had a group with Jackie Daly and Charlie Piggott and Gary Cronin. At that time there was great music in Cork and we had regular sessions, maybe twice a week. We formed this little group and called ourselves The Shaskeen, long before the well-known band of the same name came along. I enjoyed that very much. Then in Donegal we had a band called Dog Big Dog Little that featured himself, Seamus Quinn, Gabriel McArdle & Ciaran Curran. I liked playing with them very much. And then I played with my own family, my sons, Brian and Maurice, and my brother, Charlie.”
David notes: “Tony is probably the most empathetic musician I have heard my father play with. There is an understanding of phrasing, time and nuance that one finds only rarely in any musical form.” You can check it out for yourself in this delightful fifteen-track album of reels, jigs, hornpipes and barn dances that comes with the typical Clo lar-Chonnachta attention to detail in notes that are full and generously informative on the musicians and their music. Aidan O’Hara
LiveIreland.com
You can always, always count on Clo Iar Chonanachta to put out wonderful, traditional music. Now the label brings us Ben Lennon on fiddle and Tony O’Connell on concertina in a magical thing called, Rossinver Braes. Wonderful. Guest musicians include Charlie Lennon on piano, Alec Finn on bouzouki and guitarist, Jerry McNamara. A contender for Instrumental Album of the Year. If you love real Irish music, this one is for you. A wondrous and lively piece of work, altogether. Rating Four Harps Bill Margeson
The Folk Diary
The much-loved octogenarian fiddler from Co. Leitrim with the totally distinctive way of phrasing his tunes teams up with a much younger concertina player from west Limerick.
The instinctive way that their instruments phrase together belies the near half century that separates their ages. This is delightful inspiring music that produces a sense a
relaxed control in their playing, even when they are playing reels and the sense of space in The Cavan Reel/The Galway Rambler is delightful though the real beauty of their playing
is when they playing at a slower pace – barn dances and hornpipes and even a tune that is somewhat dubiously deemed to be a foxtrot.
The recording mix favours strongly the lead instruments so that the superb playing of the likes of Alex Finn of De Danann fame and Ben’s brother Charlie on piano is very much in the background. As well as being Ireland’s top accompanist of choice, Charlie Lennon is also one of his country’s leading composers of dance tunes and here he contributes two barn dances,
each named for the lead musicians. Vic Smith
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Bobby Casey – The Spirit of West Clare
West Clare is a place of natural beauty with a magic all its own. Though it is now a very popular tourist destination, it is still possible to be completely alone there. Even on the warmest day in summer, just wander a mile off the beaten track and you will be all by yourself. The views, the sounds and the smells are all yours. Wherever I hear Clare music I am instantly transported back. As a young man I spent lots of time in Clare listening to the old musicians. Too numerous to mention all by name, but the Russells of Doolin, Paddy Killoury and Junior Crehan spring immediately to mind.
The music of Bobby Casey takes me instantly to that place. I can be in The Burren looking over the Atlantic Ocean towards the Aran Islands, or standing on the Cliffs of Moher hearing the seagulls shriek or drinking a pint of porter in Miltown Malbay, despite the fact that I am many miles away, maybe even on a foreign shore. The fiddle playing of Bobby Casey does that to me. DERMOT KEARNEY, SEPTEMBER 2007.
“I knew Bobby Casey primarily as a pub musician in London, and, although his lonesome fiddle playing reeked of rural Ireland, it was equally the voice of the Irish working men who settled in great numbers in north London. Born into a rich tradition of music-making and country-house dancing at the Crosses of Annagh in Co. Clare in 1926, he is reputed to have had all his fathers tunes by his early teens, and throughout his life he retained the
style he had inherited from his youth. He continued to learn all the current tunes as they came out, and, as can be seen from these recordings,
he transposed even Coleman and Killoran material into his own method of playing. In the early 1950s, he regularly partnered his townie, the piper
Willie Clancy, and the Galway fiddle player Martin Byrnes in the Laurel Tree in CamdenTown, and he maintained long-term musical friendships with Andy Boyle from Co. Mayo and Claremen Paddy Breen and Tommy McCarthy. In fact he knew all the West of Ireland musicians of his generation in town and had played in just about every Irish music venue in Greater London. The odd parish concert, the occasional broadcast on Radio Eireann and a few Fleadh Ceoil successes put his name about a bit, but his real forte was playing his heart out for his fiends in some quiet back-street pub in Kentish Town for little fame and no fortune. He is for many of us one of the greatest artists Ireland has produced”. REG HALL, OCTOBER 2007.
Press Reviews
English Dance & Song Mag
“The technique at work here is breathtaking, but this is traditional music that moves the heart and mind in equal measure”.
Bobby Casey, who died in 2000, was one of the leading lights of the generation of Irish traditional musicians who arrived in London in the years after the Second World War. This CD is a collection of recordings made by Reg Hall between 1966 and 1971, and both the technical and musical quality is nothing short of outstanding.
Bobby Casey’s style was highly ornamented and flamboyant, relying on ornamentation and expression rather than speed. His playing was highly individual and multi-faceted, with a very rich combination of drive, rhythm and precision. The technique at work here is breathtaking, but this is traditional music that moves the heart and mind in equal measure.
Many of the tunes have since become well-known through the later recordings of younger artists, but there’s no denying the thrill of hearing recordings of tunes that are now so familiar, from the man who would have been the source for many younger musicians — especially as these performances are every bit the equal of any later versions and, for the most part, their superior.
My own favourites include the epic set of reels starting with ‘The Liffey Banks’, where Bobby’s playing really takes flight — the set is over eight minutes long but it goes by in a flash. The set dances, ‘The Ace and Deuce of Pipering/Rodney’s Glory’ give him plenty of opportunity to display his talent for ornamentation but never to the detriment of the tune. However, there is so much great music on this collection that something new jumps out every time I play it (and right now I’m playing it a lot).
These recordings were made over a period of some years and a few tunes appear twice, like ‘The Star of Munster’ and ‘The Legacy’. It’s notable, however, that you can’t tell which are the earlier or later recordings — this is a player at the height of his powers and the consistency of performances is very striking.
Collections of music of this quality from this period don’t come out very often: for those of us who came to traditional music as kids in the 1960s and 70s, it’s a reminder of why we did so in the first place. For musicians who’ve come to traditional music since then, through the music of artists such as The Bothy Band, Lunasa and Martin Hayes, this is an eye-opener: music from the source (or as close as you’re likely to hear).
Either way, this is an essential purchase and I can’t recommend it too highly. All credit to Reg Hall and Dermot Kearney for bringing this collection together and to Alan O’Leary and Copperplate for making it available. Chris Boland
The Folk Diary
In the 1970s I booked the Clare piper and concertina player, Tommy McCarthy and his three young daughters to play at a folk club in Lewes; they were excellent but the revelation of the evening was the magnificent fiddle playing of the older chap that they brought with them. This was Bobby Casey.
The same feeling engendered by that evening is brought by the mesmerising playing on this album. Bobby is a truly rounded player, excelling on all aspects of the repertoire from a very moving slow air, The Dear Irish Boy, to some exciting driving reels. As well as being a supreme solo player, he shows himself to be an alert and responsive ensemble musician on the tracks that he shares variously with Tommy McCarthy, Paddy Breen, Andy O’Boyle and his own son, Sean. This album, reassembled from tracks recorded by Reg Hall and Bill Leader from 1967 to 1971 is surely destined to become one of the all-time classics of Irish traditional music. Vic Smith
www.netrhythms.com
West Clare fiddler Bobby, who died a little over seven years ago, was an undisputed doyen of, and a major influence on, the London Irish traditional music scene in the 50s and 60s. He made some recordings for Bill Leader and Reg Hall in the mid-to-late 1960s, including the sterling examples of his playing which appeared on Topic Records’ landmark collection Paddy in the Smoke; the hour’s worth of tapes comprising this new release were recorded both at around the same time (1966/67) and slightly later (1971).
The phrase Banish Misfortune (being the title of that wellknown jig of course) could easily and rightly be used as an epithet for Bobby’s playing. Yet it’s also probably atypical of the West Clare style, in that it’s characterised by both a sweeping flamboyance and a relatively heavy level of ornamentation (albeit still exhibiting a degree of fluidity). It also carries traces of the Sligo style and the Irish-American Michael Coleman records to which he was exposed, but Bobby’s biggest inspiration was arguably Junior Crehan.
What impresses me most on the recordings collected here, though, is the sheer weight of tone Bobby achieves from his fiddle for much of the time, a richly layered sound that often almost makes you think he’s been doubletracked!
Bobby’s sense of conveying the tune’s essence is unerring: unhurried but still unbridled. Just listen to the slyly sliding swing on the final Moving Bogs reel-set, for instance.
A very small handful of the disc’s 18 tracks feature other musicians in tandem: there’s a particularly invigorating set of jigs (track 7) with Tommy McCarthy on concertina. But I never tire of Bobby’s constantly inventive fiddling (and his tin whistle playing is pretty nifty too – he also gives us a brief reel on that instrument, The Laurel Tree). This is a happy celebration of Bobby’s talent indeed. David Kidman
The Irish Democrat
THIS IS some of the finest and most authentic traditional Irish fiddle-playing that you could hear anywhere. It is re-mastered from recordings made in Camden Town, London in 1966-71 by Reg Hall and Bill Leader – both of whom certainly know their subject.
Bill Leader has made a great contribution as a recorder of folk music of these islands. Reg Hall, though an Englishman, used to be well-known in the London Irish scene in the 1960s and 70s as a musician, as well as being active in the English folk music revival of that period (when he had a lot of influence on this writer).
I remember him playing piano at The Favourite in Hornsey Rise, one of the best Irish music scenes in London at that time, accompanying some of the finest Irish musicians with his own unobtrusive, supportive style.
He also played melodeon in The Rakes, often with Geordie singer Bob Davenport at The Fox in Islington, linking up the Irish and English musical traditions and introducing London’s Irish and English communities to each other on a cultural level.
Bobby Casey was part of that thriving Irish music scene in London and I often heard him (and even played with him) in pubs where the Irish community gathered at weekends.
Most of the tracks are solo fiddle, but in some he is joined by Tommy McCarthy on concertina. (McCarthy was another stalwart of that London scene, with his numerous children whom he taught himself, although they all played different instruments). On others Bobby is joined by Sean Casey on mandolin and Paddy Breen on tin whistle.
On one track Bobby plays the reel The Laurel Tree on solo tin whistle and on another his fiddle playing is joined by Andy O’Boyle on fiddle and Paddy Breen on tin whistle.
There are many reels and jigs, two hornpipes, two set dances, two waltzes and one slow air (The Dear Irish Boy, beautifully played), though for my own taste I would have preferred to hear an even greater spread of rhythms (set dances, polkas, slides, slip-jigs and more slow airs) at the expense of fewer reels.
The skill and the personal and regional style of a fiddle player are expressed in the bowing, and Bobby Casey is a master of it. This is a wonderful recording and I’m delighted that this great exponent of the old West Clare style has been captured for all time on CD. Ken Keable
The Irish Post 21.3.08
Irish fiddler Bobby Casey’s music on CD
ONE of the greats of Irish fiddle playing, Bobby Casey was born at the Crosses of Armagh near Miltown Malbay, Co. Clare. His father John ‘Scully’ Casey, who died when Bobby was a teenager, was a well-known fiddler as well as being a flute and concertina player. Scully gave lessons to Junior Crehan, as did Scully’s cousin, the noted dance master Thady Casey Bobby in turn learned much of his playing from Junior Crehan and the two remained lifelong friends.
He moved to London in 1952 and was a regular at the Sunday morning sessions in the Favourite and Bedford Arms pubs which became rallying points for Irish musicians and rural emigrants in the ’60s.
In 1959, Ita Crehan helped him record Casey In The Cowhouse, literally recorded in an old cowhouse and which, along with four other tracks, are now available on tape.
“A musician’s musician,” is how Muiris 0 Rochain of the Willie Clancy Summer School described him.
He had an easygoing and likeable personality His style was described as gentle “with an exceptional flair for variation”. With Seamus Ennis, he performed at the first Willie Clancy Summer School in 1973 and returned frequently to Miltown Malbay to give classes.
In later years he moved from London to live in Northampton. Bobby died in 2000 and is buried in his native Clare. Dermot Kearney said:”Wherever I hear Clare music I am instantly transported back. The music of Bobby Casey takes me instantly to that place. I can be in The Burren looking over the Atlantic Ocean towards the Aran Islands or standing on the Cliffs of Moher hearing the seagulls shriek or drinking a pint of porter in Milltown Malbay, despite the fact that I am many miles away, maybe even on a foreign shore.
“The fiddle playing of Bobby Casey does that to me.” Always associated with West Clare, the music of Bobby Casey brings to mind the sights, the sounds and smells of Clare.
Bobby Casey is the most influential and inspirational fiddler of his generation and at long last his music is now available on CD.
Hopefully the listener will get an idea of the nature and humour of Bobby and will have your heart warmed by his music. Musicologist and collector Dr Reg Hall, who was at the original sessions, has produced this 18 track CD, lovingly restored and remastered for the 20th century. Initially recorded in Camden Town, London by Bill Leader and Reg Hall in 1966, it was produced by Dermot Kearney and Reg Hall. Joe Mullarkey.
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Brendan Hendry, Paul McSherry & Nodlaig Brolly – Stringtones
www.liveIreland.com The Livies Awards 2012 Musician of the Year – Brendan Hendry
This Northern Ireland fiddle player defines what it means to be an Irish musician. His style and taste are impeccable, and nobody deserves this award more. A stunningly gifted musician as evidenced on his two albums so far, Stringtones and Tuned Up. His grasp of the music and soulful playing is what the Irish fiddle is all about. As with all the great musicians, when you hear this artist playing the fiddle, you are hearing Ireland. A master.
Press Reviews
The Living Tradition Jan/Feb 2011
Brendan Hendry – Fiddle, Paul McSherry – Guitars and Bouzouki, and Nodlaig Brolly – Clairseach, Piano and Vocals, have produced a very nice album of music and song.
Traditional and traditionally set items sit comfortably together in one of the best programmes of recorded music I have heard for a long time. Their repertoire includes songs, two sung in Irish, one in English,
reels, jigs, strathspeys, a slow air, and hornpipes. The songs are perfectly suited to Nodlaig’s slightly wistful voice, and the arrangements are very sympathetic to the mix of instruments.
Everything is faultlessly performed – these three musicians are very together. All three are new to me and so I know nothing of their backgrounds or influences, but based on the evidence of this CD they must
be wide and varied. Highly recommended. Danny Saunders
American Public Radio
What a great new album! More to come, as we will be playing it a lot.
This is great stuff. Sounds like the real deal to us!
Chicago Irish American Newspaper
Thhis is such a brilliant piece of music from one of the best musicians in the business. Wonderful stuff, true to the bone.Terrific follow up to his first album. Stringtones brings together Brendan Hendry on fiddle (excellent) , Paul McSherry on guitar and bouzouki in a very tasty accompaniment and Noldaig Brolly playing a lovely harp and piano, while singing beautifully. The whole thing has a real sense of class, style and real musicianship in the tradition.
LiveIreland.com
Another great piece of work from Derry and Brendan Hendry. Real trad played and sung perfectly. Oh! Such a tasty treat! Stringtones is one of our favorites of the 2010 albums. We trust Brendan Hendry and his fiddle to bring music of real quality. Here, backed by John McSherry on guitar and Noldaig Brolly on piano and harp, we have a real treat. We also really like Brolly’s voice. Great job all round!!!
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Brian Conway – Consider the Source
Brian Conway
Born in the Bronx, New York, to Irish parents from Co. Tyrone, Brian Conway was fortunate to have grown up in a home frequented by some of the best Irish traditional musicians of the time, such as Vincent Harrison, Louis Quinn, Tom Connolly, Paddy Reynolds and Andy McGann, a musician who was to have an enduring influence on him. His tutors were also musicians of note, Martin Mulvihill and Martin Wynne. Brian’s first solo album, First through the Gate, was released on the Smithsonian Folkways label in 2002.
Also available from Copperplate
Brian Conway: First Through The Gate
Brian Conway/Joe Burke/Felix Dolan/ A Tribute to Andy McGann
Press Reviews
www.LiveIreland.com
We first heard Conway at a special concert for Andy McGann last year at the Irish-American Heritage Center in Chicago, along with Joe Burke on button box and Felix Dolan on piano. The resultant live album won a number of Awards, and rightly so. This is a lively 14 tunes and a beautiful song, Highland Mary by Niamh Parsons. Guest musicians are sitting in, including Billy McComiskey on button box , Joanie Madden on flutes and whistles, and Felix’s son, Brendan on piano. Terrific. We MIGHT have preferred one of the many pics not to be showing Brian displaying his great teeth through so many smiles, but we quibble. The music is the thing here, and it is lovely. Rating: 3 and
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Brian Conway – First Through the Gate
First Through The Gate
In his long awaited, stunning solo debut, premier Irish-American fiddler, Brian Conway performs with a skill, grace and force that are steeped in tradition but distinctively his own. Well known in the New York Irish community. Brian has won numerous All-Ireland fiddling competitions, and has been called “one of the best fiddlers of his generation”. Nothing is missed or missing in his Sligo style fiddling. From hop jigs to hornpipes,
from highland to slow airs, Conway preserves and passes along the best of the past, while melding it with the talent and imagination of the present.
Brian Conway’s new recording on Smithsonian-Folkways offers the “Sligo-New York Style” of fiddle playing. One special moment includes three generations of fiddlers where Brian plays with former mentor Andy McGann and former student Pat Mangan. Another great moment is the set of 4 Martin wynne reels back to back. The title “First Through the Gate” refers to W.B. Yeats’ poem: The Fiddler Of Dooney. Includes extensive liner notes.
Named “CD of the Year” for 2002 by the Irish Echo, the largest Irish American newspaper in the United States, this long-awaited, stunning solo debut was identified as a benchmark release. Premier Irish American fiddler Brian Conway performs with a skill, grace and force that are steeped in tradition but distinctively his own. Well known in the Irish Celtic community, Conway has won numerous All-Ireland fiddling competitions, and has been called one of the best fiddlers of his generation. Nothing is missed or missing in Brian Conway’s Sligo-style fiddling. From jigs to hornpipes, and highlands to slow airs, Conway preserves and passes along the best of the past while molding it with the talent and imagination of the present.
Press Reviews
Conway, Kanes Head Up Best Traditional Albums of 2002
CEOL
By Earle Hitchner
[Published in Earle Hitchner’s “Ceol” column in the IRISH ECHO newspaper on January 15, 2003, in New York City. Copyright Earle Hitchner. All rights reserved. Reprinted by permission of author.]
CD sales, including for Irish music, can generally be summed up last year in two words: slipped disks. As of late December, the number of units sold fell 9.3 percent, from 688.2 million in 2001 to 624.2 million in 2002.
Record companies put much of the blame for this decline on the downloading, file-sharing, and pirating of copyrighted music. Not surprisingly, the Recording Industry Association of America has increased its efforts to monitor these activities and prosecute transgressors. But you have to wonder how successful the RIAA will be when just recently hackers broke into its website and posted fake messages such as this: “Government bans music as final desperate attempt to control piracy.”
Ironically, as mainstream music market woes deepened last year, the number of Irish traditional recordings I received for review grew exponentially. In 2001, I got roughly 300. In 2002, over 1,000 arrived from all points of the globe (farthest: from a tenor banjoist in New Zealand). Though there was inevitable mediocrity and dross among these CDs, the overall quantity of quality was encouraging.
The vast majority of the recordings I received were self-released, and half of my top 10 picks were self-released as well. It’s a clear sign that established record companies, major or indie, are no longer the only recourse for musicians who know how to slap Sonex on the walls of a spare bedroom and use affordable recording equipment and computer software to create a home studio.
In this brave new world of technological advances and marketplace regresses, these 10 Irish traditional albums stood out. Over the years I’ve been warned many times that a top 10 list “really only sends one artist home happy.” I accept the risk, partly because I dislike critical cop-outs and partly because I’m confident these choices pose no risk at all aesthetically. They’re the cream of an abundant crop and belong in your music library.
Conway, Kanes Head Up Best Traditional Albums of 2002
First Through The Gate
Smithsonian Folkways Record 40481
Review by Ken Ricketts and Maya Parker
used with Permission
Brian Conway, a fiddle player born and raised in New York, is one of those rare musicians who has developed a naturally Irish way of playing without having spent long periods in Ireland. This is his first solo release made up from studio sessions over a few years. This unhurried approach to making a CD means all the tracks are top class and have a freshness and clarity which adds to enjoyment of the music. He is joined on some selections by his mentor Andy McGann and by his own pupil Pat Mangan, another New York native.
It takes a special combination of circumstances to produce a fiddler of this maturity and style, and Brian has enjoyed his fair share of help and encouragement. His first teacher was Martin Mulvihill from Limerick. Brian’s other big influence was Martin Wynne, one of Sligo’s best-loved sons who died in America a few years ago. As his experience and ability grew he became friends with Andy McGann, himself a native of New York but a man who in his early days met, studied with and played with some of the great names of the 78rpm era, including Michael Coleman, Lad O’Beirne, Paddy Killoran and others. Brian has stayed faithful to the style of those exiles of the past and it pleasing to report that the influences of American swing, jazz and all the other paraphernalia that are obvious in the playing of Eileen Ivers or Liz Carroll are completely absent from this record.
Kicking off with a set of reels, Brian’s mastery of the instrument is immediately obvious, as is the influence of Andy McGann. Anybody who has listened to McGann’s classic Shanachie LP from the ’70s will recognise the master’s tricks; a wonderfully light touch on the bow that emphasises the triplets and rolls and a fierce rhythm that bounces the tunes along without ever feeling hurried. What can’t be learnt though is the way traditional players introduce subtle variations in ornamentation and melody. Brian Conway shows tremendous understanding of the possibilities presented by the idiom in his own use of rolls, triplets and the occasional drop to the bottom string to play a note an octave lower than normal.
The choice of tunes often has references back to those recordings that McGann made with Paddy Reynolds or Joe Burke, although they are not slavish copies. A brisker tempo than McGann’s in the slip Barney Brallaghan show that Brian Conway is his own man. The McGann and Reynolds LP is also brought to mind when Conway plays a couple of duets with his guests. All three fiddlers join forces for one selection each of reels and jigs and their playing is wonderful throughout. This is a good example of how Irish music bridges the generations. There are more links with the past when Brian and Pat Mangan play four of Martin Wynne’s reels. Three of these tunes are fairly well known and widely played but this is the first time the fourth has been recorded. The sleeve notes tell a nice tale of how Brian coaxed this reel out of Martin.
Mark Simos on guitar and Felix Dolan on piano provide most of the backing. Dolan’s piano has graced some of the great New York recordings since the ’70s and his touch is always sure and supporting. The guitar sounds very well mixed and sits comfortably against the fiddle, clear and yet never dominant.
The sleeve notes on this CD are exemplary. Running to nearly 30 pages, they give a short biography of Brian and his musical influences and each selection of tunes is supported by some brief but informative notes.
All in all this is an unassuming classic and a worthy addition to the Smithsonian catalogue. There has been no great hype to launch the CD and indeed it took several months before it was available in the British Isles. If you see a copy grab it with both hands.
Ken Ricketts & Marya Parker – 21.9.03
£14.99 -
Brian Hughes – Whirlwind
Brian is joined on Whirlwind by guest musicians Garry O’Briain, Nollaig Casey, Brendan O’Regan, Donnchadh Gough (Danu), James Blennerhasset and Bruno Staehlin.
Copperplate is very proud to have this title on our roster and to help it achieve its full potential will be supporting this release with a full-scale promotional mail out to media and retail.
Press Reviews
… “superb technique and a fine feel for the music. We’ll be seeing more of Brian Hughes, and the sooner the better”.
The Living Tradition (reviewing Whistle Stop)
The Folk Diary
Brian is from Co. Kildare and is known as a flute-player and uillean piper, but this album is devoted entirely to his playing of the simpler tin whistle and a lovely job he makes of it with some sparkling playing and a lovely fluid, liquid tone. He plays a wide variety of rhythms and we hear in play in quite a range of settings, but it is always the whistle that is well to the fore. His playing is at its most interesting when he is playing highly decorated slower items and the two airs, De Bharr na gCnoc and Nóirín Ní Riain’s standing out.
In one sense, we can judge Brian’s status by the company that he keeps, for some of the top names associated with Irish music are here in including Nollaig Casey, James Blennerhasset and the man who was also the album’s producer, Garry O’Briain. Vic Smith.
Irish Music Magazine May 07
This is a lovely album of whistle tunes delivered by one of the sweetest players on the scene. Brian Hughes’ first album “Whistlestop ” was a revelation: his second is a confirmation. Sticking pretty much to the old Generation whistles in D and C, Brian effortlessly handles a wide range of Irish dance music from polkas to waltzes with a gorgeous tone and crisp fingerwork.
From “Rosemary Lane ” to “The Eel in the Sink”, Brian’s jigs and reels sparkle like summer raindrops. “Alexander’s Hornpipe “is one of three at a bright jaunty pace, showing this man’s control and ability to improvise. “The Piper’s Waltz ” flows smoothly into “The Table-Top Tumble “, a charming Hughes composition. Trios of slides and polkas trip off Brian’s tongue and fingers: “O’Keeffe’s, CuzTeehan’s, O’Connell’s, O’Leary’s “, all grand old names. “Tuohy’s Reel ” and “Man of Aran ” are slowed down to a gentle stroll a la Lunasa.
Nollaig Casey and Brendan O’Regan add fiddle, mandolin and bouzouki to Brian’s whistle on a few tracks. There’s also percussion and upright bass, and varied accompaniment from Garry O’Briain throughout. The two slow airs on “Whirlwind ” don’t tempt Brian onto low whistles, but he does switch to a wooden Seery high D which gives a fuller tone in the low octave. “De Bharr Na gCnoc ” is rarely heard, a simple song melody played straight and pure here.
“Noirin Ni Riain’s” comes from the well-known singer’s repertoire, another unusual air.
The wooden whistle is also featured on the final set of reels: “Rip the Calico, Dispute at the Crossroads “, and “Martin Wynne’s “. And there you have it, a nicely rounded recording by an exceptional whistle player, well produced and packaged, with interesting notes and artwork. Alex Monaghan
LiveIreland.com
We opened the mailer from one of the essential Irish labels, Clo-lar-Chonnacta. ALWAYS tasty stuff on this label. One of the best. Hmmm. A tin whistle album. Disappointment. Another whistle album? Really? Well, okay. On it goes. Stunned! Gobsmacked! This Brian Hughes out of Kildare has delivered a massive winner! Let’s start with technique. Lots of whistle players have the technique. Great breath control is the problem. The god of breath control, and of whistling generally, is Mary Bergin. Well, make room for Brian Hughes! Of course, he is out of a musical family. Goes without saying. This album has a huge repertoire, and lots of styles. Such excellent musicians helping out! Nollaig Casey on fiddle. Garry O’Briain on guitar, mandocello and keyboards. Brian O’Regan (one of our favs) on mandolin and bouzouki. Bruno Staehelin on percussion, Donnchadh Gough on bodhran and James Blennerhasset on bass round it all out. Whistle albums, like harp albums, can get very, very boring—unless in the hands of a master. Brian Hughes is a master. Big league, all the way! Great, great. Hughes also plays the pipes. Wish he would have given us some more here. Ah, let’s not get picky. This is one of the best whistle albums we have EVER heard. Get it! Title is ‘Whirlwind’, which also describes Brian’s playing. We love this. Rating: Four Harps Bill Margeson
£14.99 -
Caladh Nua – Happy Days
Caladh is an old Irish word meaning “Harbour” or “Shelter place”. Caladh Nua means a “New Harbour” or “New Shelter place”. Caladh Nua could also refer to a new comfortable place where music and song sets a warm lovely atmosphere. With all this in mind, this is “Caladh Nua”, the traditional Irish band. This very unique band was founded in early 2009. Like many of the great Irish traditional bands Caladh Nua simply formed as a result of great musicians crossing paths, realising a special connection and then wanting to share it with the world audience. The ensemble comprises of five qualified musicians from three beautiful regions in Ireland, counties Carlow, Waterford and Kilkenny. The tasteful musical arrangements of Caladh Nua include traditional Irish dance music, traditional songs alongside some more recently composed pieces. Caladh Nua has a perfect balance between innovation and preservation of Irelands wonderful music and song tradition, the bands special repertoire and energy is guaranteed to capture an audience of any generation
Press Reviews
Net Rhythms.com
Caladh is an old Irish word meaning “harbour” or “place of shelter”; thus the band name signifies a state whereby they’ve found a new comfortable place to showcase their musical talents in a warm and convivial atmosphere. And that turns out an apt description of the genially energetic music on offer from this fairly new young five-piece band who hail variously from Counties Waterford, Carlow and Kilkenny.
Although there’s no shortage of musicianship, the band members don’t force the issue, preferring instead to concentrate on letting the music speak for itself. Theirs is an easygoing style, as demonstrated on this collection that readily intersperses tune-sets and songs in sensibly varied and clean, uncluttered arrangements that let the individual musicians have their say without fear of being drowned out or interrupted mid-flow. And yet, considering that the lineup sports two fiddlers (Paddy Tutty and Lisa Butler), the overall texture isn’t always as rich as you might expect — but this isn’t ever a problem when the playing is so deliciously pointed and the arrangements kept so simple. The lineup’s completed by Eoin O’Meachir (banjo, whistle, mandolin), Derek Morrissey (button accordion) and Colm O’Caoimh (guitar, bouzouki), who together provide a fortuitous balance of timbres that’s impeccably judged, with melody line and harmony support well proportioned at all times.
The opening set of reels is a good illustration of the band’s flair for balance between sensitivity of internal dynamics and outright energy, although there are instances on later sets where one feels that a little more capital might have been made out of the tunes (for example The Jolly Beggarman, which flits by in just under three minutes) and that a touch more loosening-up might have helped in dispelling the hint of “by rote” that just occasionally creeps into the rhythm of the ensemble. Interestingly though, one of the most appealing of the instrumental tracks is a swinging ragtime-cum-vaudeville-flavoured piece By Heck (which originates from the playing of the Flanagan Brothers, who emigrated to America in the early 1900s).
The rest of the tune-sets contain a nice mixture of jigs, reels and hornpipes and barndances, and the chosen pace is well managed but never too frantic even in the concluding head-of-steam stages of a set. Colm gives us a delightful solo performance too, the Gort Na Mona set (comprising a jig and a hornpipe): light and lyrical guitar picking at its finest (and, like his rendition of The Humours Of Ballyloughlin on the disc’s final medley, inspired by the duetting of Paul Brady and Arty McGlynn). As far as the songs are concerned, Lisa takes the vocals for three out of the four, and she has a pleasing, warm, generous tone with a good sense of line without resorting to over-use of ornamentation; I particularly enjoyed her rendition of Cad É Sin Don Té Sin, a Donegal song dealing with the issue of personal freedom and individuality, although her treatment of Banks Of The Lee is a little too much on one level to rise above the standard. The fourth of the songs is the odd-one-out in two respects: it’s the only contemporary composition – Richard Thompson’s Beeswing – and it’s sung (albeit rather attractively too) by Colm, but it ends a little abruptly and in the end doesn’t add anything to the song’s already massive discography.
Overall, then, Happy Days is a pretty impressive debut, for these musicians are undeniably talented and have already learnt some key lessons in the successful presentation of Irish traditional music. And even though I’m left with a feeling of being ever so slightly shortchanged, it proves an enjoyable listen. David Kidman October 2010
www.LiveIreland.com
Caladh Nua is another young group out with a stunner, Happy Days. What a quintet! Fab songs meet wonderful, wonderful tunes
£14.99 -
Cathal Clohessy & Eamonn Costello – Bosca Ceoil & Fiddle
Eamonn Costello (button accordion) and Cathal Clohessy (fiddle) have being playing together as a duo since 2008.They released their debut album Bosca Ceoil & Fiddle, an album of Irish traditional music, in June 2010. On the album Rodney Lancashire guests on five tracks playing bouzouki and mandolin. The remainder of the album consists of solos and duets. On a number of traditional tunes Cathal and Eamonn experiment with: tempo, dynamics, and counter melodies. However, the majority of tracks on the album are played in a more ‘traditional’ manner. Cathal and Eamonn have also composed a number of pieces on this album.
Cathal hails from Fedamore in Co. Limerick. He is influenced by the music of his own West Limerick, as well as the music of North Connacht. He is from a very musical family; both of his sisters and his brother play Irish music. One of his main teachers on the fiddle was Maureen Glynn Connolly (R.I.P). Cathal holds a number of All-Ireland titles at under-age level in duet and slow-air playing. He has also toured extensively with various traditional ensembles.
Eamonn is from An Cheathru Rua (Carraroe) in the Connemara Gaeltacht. His style of accordion playing is influenced by the music of Connemara and the music of North Connacht. He has guested on collaborations with a number of musicians and groups, including: Mactira (2000), Frozen Fish (6-Pack, 2004), Papua Merdeka: Tribal Songs of Love and Freedom (2004). Eamonn holds a B.A in Irish Music and Dance from the University of Limerick and an M.A in Ethnomusicology from University College Cork.
Rodney is originally from Cotehill in Co. Cavan. His style of accompaniment is inspired by the bouzouki playing of John Faulkner and Andy Irvine. Rodney has recorded two traditional/folk albums: Mactira (2000), and Tireile (2003). He has also produced a number of albums, and he has toured England, Europe, and America with various traditional groups. In 2007 Rodney graduated with a 1st class Masters in Irish traditional music from the University of Limerick.
Press Reviews
TRADCONNECT
There are times when we should treat ourselves to music that has at its core the essence of what it’s all about. This is always best appreciated in duo’s or trio’s. The accordion and fiddle combo have featured over the years on many great recordings and when they fuse it can indeed be a magical pairing.
On Bosca Ceoil and Fiddle Cathal Clohessy and Éamonn Costello have now added to this collection. It is an album that hits all the right notes and creates some magic in the process. They have pared the music right back and have opted to present it in a refreshingly clear and crisp manner. They have intentionally divided the album into three sections: duets on button accordion and fiddle, trio on button accordion, fiddle, and bouzouki, and accordion and fiddle solos. It is gently restrained music that lets the tunes live and breath. It is traditional music as it should be played and it is an album that you can fall in love with. The arrangements are perfect.
The Stray-Away Child is a lovely five part jig to open the album with. Likewise Sean Ryan’s/Return To Milltown/Farewell to Milltown which is predominately accordion shows what a self assured player Éamonn is. He takes the tunes, and with a great tone that he gets from his accordion, delivers a beautiful set. With his home being the Connemara Gaeltacht, his playing has been very much influenced by the music of North Connaught region according to the album notes and this is evident here. As a pair they tackle the reels The Tempest/Farrell O’ Gara’s/Rhattigan’s and deliver as tight a combination as your are likely to encounter on any album. I haven’t had the pleasure to listen to many accordion and fiddle duet albums recently and having listened to Bosca Ceoil and Fiddle I am quickly realising what a pleasure I have been missing. It’s good to get back to basics and these musicians deliver an album worthy of their talents. It captures two musicians with a deep love and understanding of the music.
The Living Tradition
‘If you can’t think up a fancy title for an album, then just tell people what it is’ seems to be as good a marketing strategy as any, and you know that you’ll never get done under the Trades Descriptions Act. Bosca Ceoil is Irish for button accordion, and fiddle is English for fidil, so that’s cleared that up. Cathal (fiddle) and Eamonn (accordion) have been playing as a duo since 2008, and this CD is mostly duets and solos, but with Rodney Lancashire guesting on bouzouki and mandolin on five of the fourteen tracks.
The musicianship throughout this release is outstandingly good. Cathal and Eamonn take a ‘less is more’ approach, eschewing flashy pyrotechnics and preferring a gentle yet direct style which gets to the heart of the music and embodies it with a lift and drive whilst allowing all the subtleties of the tunes to be fully appreciated. This doesn’t stop them from introducing counter melodies and arrangements, however, and, all in all, it’s the sort of playing that draws the listener in and then rewards them handsomely for their time.
The music is influenced a fair bit by the mighty Michael Coleman, who is often held to be the most influential Irish traditional musician of the twentieth century, and the respect which this duo show to the background to their music ensures that twenty-first century playing passes on the flame. Just to give a contrast, the last track combines a Breton and A Neapolitan dance, which also gets the respectful treatment without losing any of the flair or drive needed. It really doesn’t get much better than this. Gordon Potter
R2 ****
Cathal (fiddle) from Limerick and Eamonn (button accordion) from Connemara have been playing together as a duo since 2008. Their album title translates literally as Music Box [accordion] and Fiddle and apart from some sensitive bouzouki and mandolin accompaniment from Rodney Lancashire, that’s exactly what you get. This is an album of two halves – duets and solos. However, Cathal and Eamonn are at their best when playing together, which they do with great precision. This is well illustrated on ‘Farewell To Eyrecourt’ where box and iddle are as one. Most of the arrangements are simple, though a few liberties are taken on occasion. For example, the start of Miss Langford turns it from being a reel into a slow air, with fiddle and accordion playing counter-melodies.
The lads’ playing is rock steady throughout and very traditional in style. There’s nothing showy, even on the solo tracks. What counts here is their clear respect for the music. Keith Whiddon
Taplas 11.2011
THIS DUO from Connemara and Limerick play mostly traditional tunes at a measured pace on button accordion and fiddle, with Rodney Lancashire’s occasional bouzouki or mandolin adding extra colour.On some of his solos Eamonn Costello’s box playing seems to try a little too hard with the ornamentation, but as a duo they experiment with interesting counterpoint melodies (as on the lovely version of The Strayaway Child, which opens the album) and throughout Cathal Clohessy’s fiddle provides flow and bounce.
A careful selection of interesting tunes played with intensity and admirably devoid of any fashionable over-dressing. John Neilson
www.netrhythms.com
Cathal and Eamonn have been performing together as a fiddle-and-button-accordion duo since 2008, and yet this is their debut CD release. As the disc’s plain-spoken title would appear to indicate, much of the record consists of solos and duets. Pick of these has to be Cathal’s vigorous yet highly musical treatment of a pair of hornpipes (track 2 — the second of which, Clay’s, was penned by Cathal himself), and Eamonn’s tricky solo set of reels (track 4), but in truth every single track dazzles with a vital combination of proven musicianship and the virtue of exercising restraint in pacing above expressiveness. Taking that track 4 set of reels as an example, there’s no lack of nifty precision in Eamonn’s expert handling of his chosen instrument, and yet there’s no feeling that he’s hurrying through the notes to prove a point, and the musical communication of those notes is paramount.
The pair of jigs at track 6 is another key example of the musicians’ empathy and their ability to combine and interpolate both unison and counter-melody techniques in their trade-offs; on this and a further four tracks, Eamonn and Cathal are augmented by Rodney Lancashire playing bouzouki or mandolin in nimble and refreshingly understated supporting mode. But it’s for the brilliance, the precision and the sheer presence of the main players’ contributions, naturally, that this disc will be purchased — and for those it will doubtless be hailed as a supreme example of its kind, both uplifting and invigorating, cutting but not grating in its rhythmic drive (check out the marvellous track 7 reel-set) and yet capable of flowing lyricism and impressive dynamic shading on slower pieces like Sergeant Early’s Dream and the air Aisling Gheal.
Presentation is accomplished too; the booklet’s notes on the tunes’ sources are excellent, detailed and most informative. One engineering decision with which I would take issue, however, is that of leaving insufficient space between the individual tracks. The vast majority follow on absolutely instantaneously, with no chance to pause for breath even — this is not standard session practice, and I can’t see the rationale for adopting this technique, even for a continuous home-listening sequence; it does mar the impact of the music-making ever so slightly, I feel, albeit a very minor point to make in the overall scheme of things. David Kidman August 2011
US NPR
Cathal Clohessy and Eamonn Costello are out with Bosca Ceoil & Fiddle. We know this one is also available from Copperplate in London, as it was they who brought it to our attention. This all-instrumental treat of 14 cuts is only for the dyed-in-the-wool, honest-to-heavens trad fan. But if that describes you, this is a great piece of business that you will love. A lot of the tunes are rare treats to be recorded and recorded perfectly. We cannot urge this album upon the real trad fan highly enough. A must-have.
Musical Traditions web site
I was sure that I’d like this CD before I’d even played it – for a start, the two gentlemen pictured on the sleeve look as if they’re really enjoying the music and each other’s company. Then there’s the fact that Eamonn Costello is playing the same Cairdín melodeon that I play myself. And, to top it all, I’ve heard a melodeon called a lot of things in my time … but ‘music box’ has never been one of them!
So – what of the record? A reviewer at alt-celtic-music wrote: ‘A gentle master-class in the art of traditional Irish music’, and I couldn’t have put it better myself. We start with a very restrained version on Margaret Barry’s splendid 5-part jig The Stray-Away Child, followed by The Minstrel’s Fancy, a hornpipe I know as The Buck in the Mountain … though we play it a little slower, in the English way – and call it The Duck in the Fountain! It’s followed by the excellent Claw’s Hornpipe – a tune we’ll definitely have to learn.
Next comes Sergeant Early’s Dream, described as a ‘slow reel’ – though it’s played here as an air, or ‘piece’. Six more conventional reels follow, including the lovely Gan Ainm. A nicely judged pair of jigs come next – it’s always surprising to find such a lively tune as The Drowning of Bruckless commemorating the loss of more than 80 fishermen’s lives. The reel Miss Langford is treated as was Sergeant Early’s Dream, but then breaks into normal tempo after a couple of iterations.
It would be a bit tedious going through each track in turn, though mention should be made of track 13, Philobus / Brian O’Kane’s (waltz and march) , though it should be noted that the ‘march’ is actually played as a barndance – and a damn fine one it makes, too!
It seems a shame to have any grumbles about such an enjoyable and interesting CD, but one thing does rather annoy me. I feel that any record should allow the listener a moment or two to digest what they’ve just listened to before setting off on the next track. The default 2 second gap is usually insufficient, in my opinion. Here we find that the gap has been cut to 1 second (or even less in a few cases), so that there’s often no noticeable break between one tune and the next. This must have been done deliberately, since defeating the default 2 second gap has to be a conscious decision, and doesn’t happen inadvertently. Damned if I understand why that decision was made. But it’s a lovely record all the same. Rod Stradling
www.liveIreland.com
For the true true trad fan, it is hard to do better than Bosca Ceoil and Fiddle from Cathal Clohessy and Eamonn Costello on fiddle and button box, respectively. Copperplate in London has it available. This is a hard to find gem. The trad fan will adore this. Really terrific playing from two young men who really understand the tradition and play it gorgeously. We play this a LOT in the office. Just Google Copperplate. Welcome to heaven. Bill Margeson
Fatea Online Magazine
The title of the is album, “Bosca Ceoil & Fiddle” becomes blindingly obvious if you know that bosca ceoil is gaelic for accordion, what with Cathal Clohessy being a master fiddler and Eamonn Costello being virtuoso on the squeezebox. Despite the duo having performed together since 2008, this is actually their debut album, it’s been a long time coming, but definitely worth the wait. Occasionally adding the bouzouki and mandolin of Rodney Lancashire, this album brings in stunning individual solo flights to complement the captivating duets. Reel, jig and waltz to great tunes.Tim Carroll
www.allcelticmusic.com
Another gentle master-class in the art of traditional Irish music.
The Irish Times
It’s not every day a debut cuts through the ether with such razor-sharp precision. This box and fiddle duo lay claim to regional styles stretching from north Connaught to west Limerick, but the most striking features of this fresh-faced collection are the idiosyncrasies of their musical personalities and the delicateness of their arrangements. The gothic grandeur of Sergeant Early’s Dream, where fiddle and box don’t so much play the tune as infiltrate its every pore, is akin to the delicate deconstruction of tunes so beloved of Martin Hayes and Dennis Cahill. Costello’s box playing is impressively restrained, and his own waltz composition, Aile Dhomhain, a masterclass in minimalism. Clohessy strikes the kind of mournful tone on the Breton An Dro that haunts the subconscious long after the tune has evaporated. Pin-prick precision crossed with musical curiosity. (Four Stars!) Siobhan Long
Irish Music Magazine
Tunes are the order of the day with ‘Bosca Ceoil and Fiddle’ the new CD by fiddler, Cathal Clohessy and box player, Eamonn Costello with Rodney Lancashire on bouzouki providing gentle accompaniment.
Bringing a West Limerick and North Connaught influence the lads begin with ‘Stray away Child’ a five part jig composed by the late Margaret Barry from Cork. This track sets the tone for the rest of the CD in that it prepares the listener for purely unadorned playing with no added extras. The box and the fiddle blend perfectly together note for note and it is obvious that a lot of technical thought has gone into the tune. This carries through and is apparent in ‘Sean Ryan’s’ set and the ‘Tempest’ set which pace steadily and are again note perfect.
For some reason I can’t quite pinpoint, I prefer the solo renditions on the CD with ‘Claw’s Hornpipe’ a composition by Cathal flowing beautifully on the fiddle and Eamonn’s jig ‘Loch Pholl an Ghaine’ timed flawlessly. Watch out for a breathy waltz by the name of ‘Aille Dhomain’ and an emotive air on track ten in the form of ‘Aisling Gheal’.
The detail and historical depth on the sleeve notes are a major benefit to the tune dissection with mini biogs of the composers and descriptive anecdotes adding to the vivid imagery of the recordings. This CD is all about technical skill and intellectual arrangement with a subtle experimentation on dynamics. If your perception of a good traditional CD is an explosion of fast paced jazzed up music then this is not for you, however, if you prefer thoughtful sensitivity then this is right up your street. Eileen McCabe.
froots magazine
There’s nothing quite like a fiddle/button accordion pairing to warm the cockles and the combination of Limerick’s Cathal Clohessy and Connemara’s Eamonn Costello (with occasional accompaniment from Rodney Lancashire on bouzouki and guitar) proves more than up to the task.Costello shows sensitivity lacked by many box merchants, exhibited to great effect on the reel Sean Ryan’s, and in cahoots with Clohessy, an equal aficionado of the hidden note, produce music that both lifts the spirit and sets the toes tapping. Geoff Wallis.
Irish Music Magazine
This album by Eamonn Costello and Cathal Clohessy is leisurely music not heady in any extreme, yet it reaches the emotional core … Cathal Clohessy’s fiddling shines on the Minstrel’s Fancy, while Eamonn’s solo on Sean Ryan’s shows a player who is assured in both technique and style and is well able to coax many nuances out of the tunes. Aisling Gheal offers Cathal Clohessy a solo opportunity which he takes and triumphs, his telling of the air bordering on definitive. Rodney Lancashire’s bouzouki and mandolin […] contributes minimalist though subtle and highly ornate work on the album. John O’Regan.
Folk-World
Remarkable and routine simultaneously, this debut recording from two young bucks is a multi-layered mixture. Cathal plays West Limerick fiddle, while box-player Eamonn hails from Connemara, and the two meet musically somewhere in North Connacht. They are joined for a few tracks by Cavan man Rodney Lancashire on bouzouki and mandolin, but this CD is basically box and fiddle, separately and in combination. One of the remarkable things is that these lads take their time: The Strayaway Child opens at a nice steady pace, and The Minstrel’s Fancy follows with a slightly flat rhythm but clearly at hornpipe speed. In fact, one or two selections here are a little too slow for my liking – or too metronomic in their observance of the slow tempo. I’m thinking of Sergeant Early’s Dream and Brian O’Kane’s. No complaints about the slow version of Miss Langford, though: this piece is beautifully interpreted. There’s plenty of toe-tapping music here too, including the oddly cheerful jig The Drowning of Buckless and a great selection of reels starting with Farewell to Eyrecourt. Another remarkable aspect of this CD is the detailed notes and monochrome photos which give an air of maturity and consideration to the whole project.
Contrary to my natural inclination, I was more taken with the fiddle solos than the box-playing on this album. Whether it’s on his own Claw’s Hornpipe or the well-known air Aisling Gheal, Cathal’s fiddle holds the attention effortlessly. Not that there’s nothing good coming out of the box: Eamonn contributes an intriguing little jig Loch Pholl an Ghainne and a graceful modern waltz, both his own. The routine aspect of this music is the easy familiarity of the tunes and style, the relaxed duetting [sicjas though this was just another local session, and the total immersion in each other’s playing which is usually the preserve of much older musicians. When the fiddle and box come together here, they can meld completely into the most perfect of duets, where it’s impossible to hear where one instrument ends and the other begins. The Tempest is a case in point, and the final meaty track of Breton and Italian melodies underlines their tight timing. With this degree of understanding, Clohessy and Costello are certainly a pair to watch for the future. Alex Monaghan.
£14.99 -
Ceide – Like A Wild Thing
- Cis Ni Liathain / The Bucks of Oranmore.
- The Dunmore Lasses / Mother’s Reel
- Flowers of the Forest.
- John the Baptist.
- The Woods of Old Limerick / Nora Rooney’s Favourite / Farewell to Tarpey’s
- Le Voyage pour L’Irlande. Air
- Within a Mile of Dublin / Ballinasloe Fair/ Mickey Finn’s.
- Like a Wild Thing.
- Gan Ainm / Cuir Barr Ai r/ My Love is in America.
- Mrs Kenny’s / Adam & Eve / Babes in the Wood.
- If I Had a Boat.
- The Pullet that Wants the Cock / The Night Before Larry was Stretched / Islay Rant.
The musicians are:
- Brian Lennon – Flute/Whistle/Vocals
- Tom Doherty – Button Accordion/Melodeon
- John Mc Hugh – Fiddle
- Kevin Doherty – Double Bass
- Declan Askin – Guitar/Vocals
The group is Céide, (pronounced Kay-ge) named after the 5000 year old Mesolithic hunter/gatherer settlement found in north Mayo called the Céide Fields
‘These five lads from various backgrounds first started to play together at a regular Sunday night session in my pub in Westport. It soon became clear that they were developing a distinctive and original sound, combining the best of traditional music with contemporary songs and arrangements. This recording does great justice to their individual and collective talent. It has a very broad appeal and I highly recommend it.’ Matt Molloy
Press Reviews
Irish Dancing International Review Sept 03 CD of the Month
Living away from the “centre of the universe”, you sometimes yearn for the “real drop” when it comes to traditional Irish music. Well, you gotta listen to this album from Ceide as it’s as close as you can get to “real” music.
It’s a delightful, genuine trad Irish album, the spirit and atmosphere of Mayo exudes from every track, starting with, Cis ni Liathain and The Bucks of Oranmore. On track two, we get Dunmore Lasses, erstwhile glorified by the Chieftains and the man behind the bar himself, Matt Molloy, in their album, “The Long Black Veil”. A lovely treatment to this, speeded up to a spirited reel pace, and again, a tried formula of lovely whistle playing, giving way to accordion, fiddle and guitar, with all five lads cutting in for good measure.
The title track, Like A Wild Thing is a slow, easy song, composed by local, Tony Reidy. It’s sung by Declan Askin and supported by all the musicians on board. It’s very meaningful and well suited to the album’s title. The CD is a fine mix of jigs, reels and polkas and a Finnish Waltz (sounds French). The musicians are exceptional and, all through the album, a polished unhurried quality pevades every note.
Oh, and leave the CD running after the last track and you get a delightful blues harmonica number by Declan with all the boys “cutting in” again, a great finish to a splendid album. Donal Lynch
Pay The Reckoning Web Site Review
Mayo-based 5-piece, Ceide, are one outfit who won’t have any difficulty in staking their claim on airtime on Pay The Reckoning’s CD carousel.
The band came together in sessions at Matt Molloy’s pub in Westport and what sparks must have flown between them when they realised they were on the same musical wavelength! Intelligent with a sense of fun; able to hold their enthusiasm in check during the first repeat of a tune yet ready to drop all inhibitions and barnstorm their way to the finish line.
Ceide combine traditional tunes with contemporary songs. In this regard they are the latest torch-bearers in a musical institution which already has an illustrious history. (Stockton’s Wing and Four Men and a Dog, to name but two groups, have walked a very similar path and to very similar effect.) Ceide’s choice of contemporary material is exemplary. They interpret John Martyn’s “John The Baptist” beautifully, allowing Kevin Doherty an opportunity to strut his funky stuff on double bass while Declan Askin showcases his guitar and vocals. Lyle Lovett’s “If I Had A Boat” also gets a well-deserved, sensitive treatment. However to our ears the stand-out song on the album is local singer/songwriter Tony Reidy’s song “Like A Wild Thing”. The song catches a former farmer, forced into office work as a result of not being able to make a living out of his farm, reflecting bitterly on his current lot. The soul-destroying bereftness which lies at the heart of this song is communicated perfectly in Ceide’s arrangement and the words linger afterwards, nagging away at the listener. “Farewell to the land where I grappled with stone/Farewell to the hills where I was soaked to the bone”.
And what of the tunes? Well … there are some beltin’ sets here. We’ve already mentioned Kevin Doherty’s double bass playing. It’s remarkable how much it contributes to the tune sets. On the first set of reels, for example, Cis Ni Liathain/The Bucks of Oranmore, the bass is in evidence throughout the first reel, lending the tune a degree of “bottom” rarely encountered in traditional Irish music. At the change, Doherty holds back, allowing Brian Lennon on flute and Declan Askin on guitar to carry the first round of The Bucks Of Oranmore. At the repeat, Doherty rejoins, immediately anchoring the sound once again.
These lads know their stuff. Tom Doherty (boxes and snare drum) and John McHugh on fiddle haven’t yet been mentioned by name, but their contribution is equally vital. There are a couple of slowish tracks (the Finnish waltz “The Flowers of the Forest” and the air composed by Pierre Bensusan “Le Voyage Pour L’Irlande”) which spotlight the band’s ability to maintain the rigid discipline necessary to put such tunes across.
Which is not, of course, to deny that discipline is also necessary in successfully playing jigs and reels and so forth. Ceide prove on this album that they are masters at constructing and playing exhilarating tune sets. Here you’ll come across old standards and tunes you might not be familiar with as well as tunes which take you completely by surprise. In the final category is the inclusion of “The Night Before Larry Was Stretched” played as a slip jig in a set in which it is sandwiched between The Pullet That Wants The Cock and The Islay Rant, and benefitting greatly from the eeriness which it borrows from Doherty bowing, rather than plucking, his bass. All the sets are outstanding and are therefore all worthy of a mention. As well as those which already get a namecheck above, then you’ll be excited by “The Dunmore Lasses/Mother’s Reel”, “The Woods Of Old Limerick/Nora Rooney’s Favourite/Farewell To The Tarpeys Of Arderry”, “Within A Mile Of Dublin/Ballinasloe Fair/Mickey Finn’s Favourite”, “Gan Ainm/Cuir Barr Air/My Love Is In America” and “Mrs Kenny’s/Adam And Eve/Babes In The Wood”.
All things considered, a superb debut by a bundle of accomplished musicians, about whom we expect to hear very big things in the near future. It’s no exaggeration to say that in the space of a few days, this has become one of Pay The Reckoning’s favourite recordings … we’ll be singing its praises at every opportunity! Pay The Reckoning
Folk Roundabout Review. 01/02
This is the first release from a new Mayo-based five-piece, and comes highly recommended by Matt Molloy at sessions at whose pub in Westport he first encountered their distinctive collective approach and individual talents. Matt sure has a finely tuned ear, for this album’s appealing blend of traditional tunes and contemporary songs makes for a good listen.
The opening set defines the mood and pace, with spirited front-line accordion (Tom Doherty) offset by gently rhythmic guitar (Declan Askin) and smooth bowed double-bass (Kevin Doherty), before fiddle (John McHugh) and whistle (Brian Lennon) join the front line for the repeat and the rhythms take off, though maintaining a level of restraint that’s attractively managed.
The band’s general method of attack remains thoughtful rather than full-tilt, and their ensemble tightness conceals a considerable degree of internal fire, and there’s some very expert shading in the playing that repays many further listens. With an innate and well-considered sense of poise, Céide have a healthy attitude to repertoire too, unafraid to essay a Finnish waltz (and bring in a handbell-choir to boot!) alongside reels and jigs (those on track 5 feature Charlie Lennon’s wonderfully gentle guest piano playing as a bonus). There’s also a hidden track, where a wailing blues harmonica drives the whole train off on holiday!
The choice of songs (just three out of the twelve tracks) is clearly tailored to suit the winning combination of softness and strength in Declan’s blues-inflected vocal style – Lyle Lovett’s If I Had A Boat, John Martyn’s John The Baptist and the hitherto unfamiliar title track, a fine composition by local Mayo resident Tony Reidy that rather belies the image evoked by that title. I liked this album a lot, and look forward to hearing more of Céide. David Kidman
Folking.com Web Site
If none other than Matt Molloy recommends a band, you can rest assured you should be on pretty safe ground. I’m pleased to report that this CD met all expectations and then some. The line-up of flute, accordion, fiddle, guitar and double bass will undoubtedly bring comparisons to Lunasa etc but I personally think these lads have it if only for the fact they have included some vocals.
Reading from the sleeve notes gives a fair indication of what to look forward to and first impressions are that here the musicians have put a lot of thought into the construction of the set pieces by concentrating not only on the rhythms but the keys they are performed in as well. Years ago De Dannan sussed that if you played tunes in unusual keys such as Eb that the listener’s ear isn’t used to this and therefore makes your performance sound ‘different’ from the crowd. Ceide utilise this to good effect and, take for instance ‘The Bucks Of Oranmore’ in the key of A major this technique gives the tune more character. Off setting the tradition with contemporary songs including John Martyn’s ‘John The Baptist’ definitely sets the band in a field of its own. I look forward to further outings. Pete Fyfe
Ita Kelly, Irish Music Magazine, Vol 7 No 3. Oct 2001
‘The debut release from this Mayo based band is an interesting mix of traditional tunes and contemporary songs. Declan Askin is responsible for those songs and they represent his own influences and personal taste for the work of Lyle Lovett (‘If I had a Boat’) and John Martyn (‘John the Baptist’). The title for the album ‘Like a Wild Thing’ is taken from a song written by Tony Reidy a singer songwriter from the village of Aghagower near Westport. It’s an apt song for this Mayo based group, representative of the Céide area in North West Mayo where infrastructure is nil and the lot of the small farmer is very harsh as depicted in this song. Brian Lennon’s low whistle permeates throughout and Kevin Doherty’s bass is allowed to be heard very naturally. Tom Doherty on melodeon and accordion and John Mc Hugh on fiddle complete the Céide line-up. The perky Mrs. Kenny’s Barndance again has the lovely dropping bass and the Pierre Bensusan tune ‘Le Voyage’ is beautiful, the ‘Flowers of the Forest’ sweet and ‘John the Baptist’ funky and a little Gospel. While this group achieves the full-blooded swing of the tunes sets they also have plenty of insight into music from farther afield than Co. Mayo.
Very thoughtfully arranged and great reading in the sleeve notes.’ Fintan Vallely, Sunday Tribune
‘Slick musicianship and great, solid arrangements.’ Siobhan Long, Irish Times
‘Débutantes Céide are a quintet with not just attitude, but finesse by the bucket load.’ Gráinne Ní Ghilín, Foinse
‘The song ‘Like a Wild Thing’ written by Tony Reidy from Aghagower, Co. Mayo is extremely powerful.given a heartbreaking rendition by Declan’
Irish Music Review Web Site
Back in the days when he had more money than sense, a certain friend of mine would gouge additional grooves into records to ensure, as a consequence, that those tracks he disliked were skipped by the needle. Of course, when he later had more sense than money, he found himself with a heap of unsellable vinyl and regularly being sneered at by Nottingham’s own especially surly brand of second-hand record shop assistants. In subsequent years I sometimes wondered whether the advent of the compact disc player and its programmable facilities had been invented with him in my mind for, certainly, his fingers would be fiddling with the remote control’s buttons to erase certain tracks from this debut album by Céide to create his own preferred version. In an interview in The Journal of Music in Ireland (Vol. 2, No. 2), the Cork singer Jimmy Crowley railed against the encroachment of ‘mid-Atlanticisms’ into Ireland’s music: You see this a lot in younger people, I’m afraid. If someone from Kerry, say, sings an Irish song in an LA accent, that’s the end of my interest. But if it’s a Kentuckian singing in a Kentucky accent, that’s great, of course. I’d criticise some singer/songwriters for these American accents. There’s no worth in this mid-Atlantic stuff, they haven’t been true to their culture, to the land they’re living in. Often too, the songs aren’t saying anything either.
There are many exceptions (for example, Danú, Altan, Dervish, Providence etc.) where singers have remained true to their roots and, importantly, their voices, but also far too many cases where songs from other genres are interpolated into the band’s repertoire and delivered in the kind of accent that Jimmy despises.
As such, it is questionable whether Mr. Crowley would be especially enamoured with Céide’s album Like a Wild Thing and, especially, the band’s singer, Declan Askin, who has three outings of variable worth on the album. The first is John Martyn’s John the Baptist from the 1970 album Stormbringer recorded with his wife Beverley. In the Martyns’ hands, the song was an epic with the contrast between the pair’s voices and the subtlety of the arrangement highlighting the latent violence of the relationship depicted in the lyrics. While noting that Scullion also recorded the song in 1979, Céide inform us that ‘To improve on such history is very difficult, if not impossible, but we have tried to give the piece a contemporary groove, while highlighting the song’s unusual lyrics’. Actually, they’ve turned it into a jaunty little singalong with Askin’s mid-Atlantic drone and quasi-rock singer intonations to the fore, thereby losing any of the song’s quirky impact.
Next up comes the title track, written by a County Mayo man, Tony Reidy, a song about the economic exigencies of a small farmer forced ‘To make a living I must sit at a chair, Sit at a chair and stare at a screen’. This is far more successful and entirely because Declan forsakes any extraneous accents and sings in his own voice.
Lastly, however, comes a rendition so horrific that the album case should carry a warning sticker, a song interpreted so terribly that it makes Dessie O’Halloran sound like Christy Moore. The song in question is Lyle Lovett’s If I Had a Boat. Céide’s notes state that their ‘arrangement, while deviating quite considerably from the original still shows what a talent Lyle is’. It certainly does, but not in the way the band intended. Askin sings as though he’s auditioning for a biopic of Michael Bolton, albeit while suffering from a hernia and, as a consequence, manages to miss all the ironic humour of Lovett’s lyrics.
The question is ultimately, of course, why a band based in Mayo should want to sing about Roy Rogers, Trigger, the Lone Ranger and Tonto (as Lyle understandably might) rather than about their own childhoods or locality (wherein lies part of the success of Like a Wild Thing). If this was not bad enough, Céide have employed one of modern musical technology’s most irksome innovations, the hidden track. Islay Rant, though included in the track listings, appears several minutes after its predecessor. The novelty of this device has worn thinner than a cigarette paper. There is one further feature of Céide which may irritate some – the presence of a double bass player, one Kevin Doherty. In the Crowley interview quoted earlier, Jimmy also attacked what he sees as the increasing commercialism of Irish music: One result is that it’s getting bland, and Ireland was never bland. Much of it sounds boring to me, too many not-very-good clones of the Bothy Band.
To this I would add a new phenomenon, the sub-Lúnasa clone and one that is likely to reappear thanks to the sales of their last album, The Merry Sisters of Fate, and its subsequent critical acclaim in the USA. Like a Wild Thing’s opening track, yet another version of The Bucks of Oranmore, simply sounds too close to Lúnasa for comfort (albeit there’s accordion instead of pipes, but the bass drone gives the game away and elsewhere Céide employ some of Lúnasa’s trademark rhythmic shifts).
That being said other parts of Like a Wild Thing are at times excellent and others delightful. The best moments feature the flute and low whistles of Brian Lennon, a member of the prominent musical family from Leitrim (he is the son of Ben, the fiddler) and one of the most lyrical players around. Equally, Tom Doherty is no mean accordion and melodeon player and well to the fore on a set of jigs kick-started by The Woods of Old Limerick. Fiddler John McHugh, however, hardly gets a look in until the very last track (not the hidden one!) where his rendition of the slow jig The Pullet that Wants the Cock has all the kind of lugubrious qualities that make you check his photograph for signs of a pension book. Geoff Wallis
£14.99
