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John Wynne and John McEvoy – Pride of the West
The combination of flute and fiddle has pride of place in traditional Irish music and many famous duos have used that classic combination — Peter Horan and Fred Finn, Josie Hayes and Junior Crehan, and Matt Molloy and Tommy Peoples, among others. Pride of the West draws on the immense flute and fiddle tradition of north Connacht and on the musicians’ strong Roscommon connections, and communicates the excitement, tension and tranquillity inherent in the combination of these two great instruments. The tunes on the album are mainly from the Sligo — Roscommon repertoire and include unusual local versions of tunes as well as some new compositions. Accompaniment is ably and subtly provided by Paddy McEvoy, John McEvoy’s son, on piano and Arty McGlynn on guitar.
Both Wynne and McEvoy are excellent exponents of the north Connacht style of playing and are established musicians in their own right. John Wynne is from Roscommon and has a strong interest in the music of Sligo, Roscommon and Leitrim. He was a member of the band Providence and recorded two albums with them, Providence and A Fig for a Kiss. He also released a critically-acclaimed solo album, With Every Breath, in 2000 and he produced and played on the recent CD The Flute Players of Roscommon, Volume 1. John McEvoy was brought up in Birmingham of Roscommon parents. He recorded the album Bakerswell with the group of the same name in the late eighties. His solo CD, Returning, was released in 1998, and he recorded The Kilmore Fancy with his sister, flute-player Catherine McEvoy, in 2004.
The album includes a CD booklet containing comprehensive background notes on the tunes. The album will be officially launched on 15 June in Spell’s Bar in Ballaghaderreen, Co. Roscommon and on 8 July at the Willie Clancy Summer School, Miltown Malbay, Co. Clare. The musicians will be playing several gigs over the summer to publicize the CD, including a performance at the Cavan Fleadh Cheoil on Sunday 3 June, a concert at the South Sligo Summer School on Tuesday 17 July and a concert at the Joe Mooney Summer School, Drumshanbo, Co. Leitrim on Sunday 22 July
Press Reviews
The Irish Examiner
Roscommon man Wynne’s forceful flute-playing coalesces with McEvoy’s bright and nimble fiddling on a sweet collection of tunes, sourced mainly from the Sligo/Leitrim/Roscommon region.
The combination of fiddle and flute is enhanced but never over-shadowed by Arty McGlynn’s guitar and Paddy McEvoy’s (John’s son) piano.
Echoes of the classic duet by Fred Finn and Peter Horan, from the same region, are discernible yet this superb disc stands on its own as a celebration of impeccable taste and tight unison playing. Judicious tune selection combined with impressively uncluttered delivery means a joyous and festive spirit is projected from every one of the 14 tracks.
A pair of locally-sourced polkas, My Love is But a Lassie/The Lakes of Sligo, display a radiance and spirit that epitomises spontaneity, gaiety and deep-rooted tradition in equal measures. Pride of the West is indeed a gem. Gerry Quinn
The Living Tradition
John Wynne – a great technique and a grand ear for the tunes – has been a leading light in Roscommon flute music since his solo recording
With Every Breath . John McEvoy, another Roscommon man many years in exile, is a fine fiddler who’s well used to playing with fluters as his sister Catherine is one of the best. The combination is powerful indeed, and continues the proud tradition of Roscommon flute and fiddle duets.
Pride of the West opens with the title jig, followed by John McEvoy’s composition Kilglass Lakes, two gentle tunes which flow very sweetly here. The pumping jigs The Wandering Minstrel and I Will If I Can are much punchier, more like the rushing style for dancing. The nicely relaxed Fairy Reel starts slow and shifts up to a medium-paced swagger, then up again to full speed for Larry MacDonagh’s. In between there are some big tunes: The Strayaway Child in umpteen parts, The Maid of Mount Cisco, The Crib of Perches as a fiddle solo and the answering flute air Edward on Lough Erne’s Shore, and of course a classic set of reels starting with The Cedars of Lebanon by fiddler Sean Ryan. There are also some surprises here. A strong Scottish influence brings two marches, including the current favourite Auchdon House, and a polka version of My Love is but a Lassie. The set dance or hornpipe An Suisin Ban is a blast from Ireland’s past, and The Tooth Fairy is a charming jig by Mrs Wynne AKA Orla McAtavie. The rest of this recording is pretty much reels, stylish duets and occasional solos, at a collected canter with just a few brief gallops.
Great playing, fine tunes, good sleevenotes and plenty of length at fifty minutes, Pride of the West combines quality with quantity. One thing to beware of if you’re thinking of playing along with the Johns: they base their music around Eb, so the fiddle is tuned up a semitone and the flute is a tad shorter than is usual these days. They do the same in sessions – so don’t be caught out. Not too much of a problem for whistles or accordions, and the drummers won’t even notice, but it must drive the pipers and concertina players mad. Alex Monaghan
The Folk Diary
This is an album of straightforward Irish traditional music; no frills; no extras, but the playing has such skill, verve and understanding of the
form that the album is a complete delight from beginning to end. The music is mainly from the Roscommon/Sligo area where the flute is the dominant
instrument and where so many traditional masters of that instrument come from.
John Wynne is clearly one of this worthy heritage. He is clearly a master of the instrument and shows good empathy with the other John, a fiddler. Their playing has great clarity even when played at speed; the sets of reels produce excitement even though the players sound relaxed and
are playing within themselves and are well- chosen to contrast one another.
Two very fine accompanists are sparingly used; Arty McGlynn on guitar and Paddy McEvoy on piano and even where they are used, they are well back in the overall mix, allowing the glory of the tunes to come through. Vic Smith
www.liveireland.com
There are certain labels where you know. You just know. Anything that comes out on them will be fab. Clo-Iar-Chonnachta is one of them. Now comes, “Pride of the West” featuring the flute of John Wynne and fiddler, John McEvoy. It is in the north Clare style. That is not important. What IS important is that if you like trad, this one is a must-have. Accompanied by the legendary Arty McGlynn on guitar and Paddy McEvoy on piano, this is a delight. Tons of tunes, perfectly played. Perfectly. Great lift and ambience. There are 14 sets of tunes. We wanted 14 more. Many are rarely, if ever, heard. We adore this album. Rating: Highly Recommended. Bill Margeson
Irish Music Magazine Aug 07
Another excellent collection from CIC and we wouldn’t expect less which brings out a beautiful blend of flute and fiddle. It could hardly be otherwise when John McEvoy is brother to Catherine, who already has a notable flute CD of her own. The opening tracks are fine examples of musical understanding, with two instruments and two players totally together.
The reels like The Cedars of Lebanon/ John Egan’s are taken at a fair lick: so also are jigs like Happy to meet, Sorry to part. But there is no sense of anything rushed or forced. It’s delightful precision playing and very often the two instruments sound as so much as one that the only way you can tell there’s a pair is when you hear the breathing on the flute.
The best track? A near-run thing, but The Stray-Away Child is a great jig that will repay repeated listening. Listen out, though, for The Crib of Perches. It’s a fine reel, and understandably a favourite. There’s strong and sinewy playing in the set of two polkas. For learners there’s a special value in having well-known tunes like The Mountain Top and The Maids of Mount Cisco, and showing how they can be shared. For a solo showing the characteristic vibrato of the Connacht style, John Wynne’s playing of the air Edward on Lough Erne’s shore is a model of lyrical restraint.
The accompaniment is also thoroughly musical: you often have to listen for it, but it’s there doing a fine job even if unnoticed first time out. One lesson from this CD is that the music is about people. The fine bi-lingual liner notes normally trace the lineage of the tunes, even back a hundred years and more.
Thus John Wynne has a couple of Scottish tunes, which come from his wife, Orla McAtavie, who comes from Ballybay in Co Monaghan. The primrose and blue may not be doing too well on football pitches these days, but there can be real pride in Roscommon for having produced music of this quality. John Brophy
The Irish Times
Regional accents are alive and thriving on this collection of north Connaught tunes. Roscommon flute player John Wynne and Birmingham-born fiddler John McEvoy make sprightly, uncluttered music: filigree playing that stitches the two instruments together seamlessly. Anyone whose flute and fiddle appetite was awakened by Peter Horan and Gerry Harrington’s sublime Fortune Favours The Merry will savour the local blas of the polka set, My Love Is But A Lassie and the wistfulness of the reel set, The Mountain Top. Although Arty McGlynn’s pristine guitar accompaniment never overwhelms, at times it veers too close to oblivion, buried too deep in the mix. John’s son Paddy lends equally subtle piano accompaniment, though: a perfect suitor for such refined musicians. SIOBHÁN LONG
The Irish Echo 13.6.07
North Connacht Clout from John Wynne and John McEvoy: “Pride of the West” Pairing Impressive
CEOL COLUMN
Several years ago a prominent Irish record company owner, who shall remain nameless here, surprised me by saying, “We don’t need any more albums of nicely played tunes.” In that owner’s mind, there were too many recordings by Irish traditional instrumentalists whose playing ranged from competent to good.
So, are trad-heads really holding their breath for further pleasant iterations of such familiar tunes as “The Maid of Mount Kisco,” “Happy to Meet, Sorry to Part,” “The Mountain Top,” and “The Strayaway Child”? Haven’t they been done to death?
All four of those tunes are on the brand-new “Pride of the West” album by flutist John Wynne, who’s from Roscommon, and fiddler John McEvoy, who was born in Birmingham, England, to Roscommon parents. It is one of the best albums of Irish traditional music I’ve heard this year and will certainly crack my top 10 list at the end of it.
What distinguishes this “tunes” album is, at heart, a paradox. The liner note written by the two musicians claims that “the commitment to compromise, in blending one’s own individuality towards the achievement of something greater, is foremost” on the CD. In short, rein in virtuosity to better serve a more coveted, higher equilibrium. But in that “blending,” Wynne and McEvoy have given us both individual virtuosity and ideal balance. Tight flourishes and nimble nips of improvisation seep from the marrow of their bone-strong tandem playing. Reach and grasp are equal here, creating an Irish traditional performance all the more impressive because it doesn’t strive to impress.
Twelve of the album’s 14 tracks are duets, all drawing on this rare ability to match temperament and talent without the slightest tapering off in separate originality. The jigs “The Wandering Minstrel/Happy to Meet, Sorry to Part/I Will If I Can” begin with unaccompanied flute and fiddle, each supporting and nudging the other, and soon Arty McGlynn gently introduces an acoustic guitar rhythm underneath the two melody players. Nuance, piquancy, drive, and non-showoff embellishment swell the fluidity of Wynne and McEvoy’s joint playing.
Unaccompanied flute and fiddle start another medley, “The Mountain Top/Ciaran’s Reel,” where again the playing features spare, spot-on ornamentation wholly within the flow created by the two. This time, the able backing eventually comes from Paddy McEvoy, John’s son, on piano.
Flute and guitar lead off the march, highland, and reel medley of “The Balmoral Highlander/Thistle and Shamrock/Thistle and Shamrock.” Wynne’s flute work is inventive and intricate, and McEvoy’s imaginative fiddling glides in beneath a flute sustain of a single note and assumes melodic responsibility. Then fiddle and flute join, gaining in pace as McGlynn complements on guitar. It is a superbly conceived and executed arrangement.
A reel sometimes attributed to Sligo fiddler Paddy Killoran that cites a town in Westchester County, N.Y., “The Maid of Mount Kisco” is a session staple performed with distinctive verve and touch by Wynne and McEvoy, accompanied by Paddy McEvoy on piano.
Paired with the album-titled trad jig “Pride of the West” is “Kilglass Lakes,” a jig composed by McEvoy as a nod to his ancestral turf of Kilglass and Kilmore in North Roscommon. Flute, fiddle, guitar, and piano blend stirringly in this track. (Finishing third in the Irish Echo’s top ten trad albums of 2004, “The Kilmore Fancy” also acknowledged the area and featured another exceptional fiddle-flute duo, John McEvoy and his sister Catherine, with Bronx-born Felix Dolan on piano.)
The sole album track without any accompaniment is “The Strayaway Child,” a jig credited to Sligo fiddler Michael Gorman that the Bothy Band memorably covered on their “Out of the Wind Into the Sun” album in 1977. Wynne and McEvoy invest this jig with a litheness and buoyancy that set into relief the separate strengths of each musician. The same performance traits surface in “The Fairy Reel/Larry MacDonagh’s Reel,” which skillfully wends its way from flute, fiddle, and guitar, to just flute and guitar, to flute, fiddle, and guitar again, and finally to flute, fiddle, guitar, and piano.
In an album chock-full of highlights, “The Cedars of Lebanon/John Egan’s/Doonagore” and “The Piper’s Despair/The Mullingar Lea” reels, as well as “My Love Is but a Lassie/The Lakes of Sligo” polkas (the second polka stems from a 1950s recording that included Joe Derrane), also stand out for flute-fiddle playing.
In addition, Wynne and McEvoy take a solo track apiece. Backed by his son on piano, John McEvoy steps out on “The Crib of Perches/The Tinker’s Stick/Come Up to the Room, I Want Ye” reels, where his bowing is nothing short of mesmerizing. For his solo, John Wynne movingly plays an air, “Edward on Lough Erne’s Shore,” followed by “The Tooth Fairy,” a jig composed by his wife, Orla McAtavie, and the traditional “Fraher’s Jig.” McGlynn’s guitar provides light, rhythmic undergirding for those jigs.
Recorded during Dec. 2006 and Jan. 2007 in Kinvara, Galway’s Open Ear Studios and in Ballaghadereen, Roscommon’s Spells Pub, “Pride of the West” avoids any trace of roteness by relying on near-telepathic communication between Wynne and McEvoy. Their fresh settings or regional variations of familiar tunes reinvigorate them, and their respect for the vaunted flute-fiddle tradition of North Roscommon-South Sligo informs every melody they play.
“Flute music is all verb, and Matt Molloy conjugates it joyfully in all its moods and tenses,” poet Seamus Heaney noted on “Stony Steps,” a 1987 solo recording by Molloy, who hails from Roscommon. Heaney’s words also fit the flute and fiddle music on “Pride of the West.” In every sense, this is a win-Wynne-McEvoy situation. Earle Hitchner
[Published on June 13, 2007, in the IRISH ECHO newspaper, New York City. Copyright (c) Earle Hitchner. All rights reserved. Reprinted by permission of author.]
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Johnny Connolly – An Mileoidean Scaoilte
Press Reviews
“This CD should be in everybody’s collection of traditional music”. Joe Mullarkey The Irish Post
“Johnny Connolly is an acknowledged master: possibly the greatest Irish melodeon player ever, certainly the best of his generation”.
The Living Tradition
“An instant classic . . . a memorable recording of Irish dance music”, Alex Monaghan/ The Living Tradition.
“This thoroughly wonderful CD is available from Copperplate Distribution”, Rod Stradling, editor, Musical Traditions web site
The Stillwater Times Reviews Star Rating: ****
“Johnny Connolly is an acknowledged master: possibly the greatest Irish melodeon player ever, certainly the best of his generation..
” The Living Tradition
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Johnny Connolly – Drioball na Fainleoige (The Swallow’s Tail)
The Swallow’s Tail
Si do Mhamo I / gan Ainm
Cuz Teehan’s / The Blackbird
Cooley’s / Come West Along The Road
The Annabla Polkas 2+1
Na Ceannabhain Bhana / Paidin O’Raifeartaigh
Amhran Mhainse
Rileanna Chois Fharraige
Give Us A Drink of Water / Hardiman the Fiddler
Kiely Cotter / The Bridge of Athlone / The Cuil Aodha Slide
The Trip to Barbados(That’s Right Too) / The Leading Role
Johnny Seoighe
The Bee’s Wing / The High Level Hornpipe
Poirt Inis Bearachain
The Bucks of Oranmore
The Friendly Robin / The Dawn Chorus
Press Reviews
The Irish Times
Fiddler/ Pianist Charlie Lennon and guitarist Steve Cooney combine with Connemara melodeon/accordion guru Connolly to produce a truly wonderful thoroughly rhythmic collection of Reels, Jigs, Flings, Hornpipes and Song.
The Living Tradition
His playing is sharp and solid and has a lovely warm quality to it…Each note is in place and spun with the hand of a weaver.
Musical Traditions
Johnny is a great technician and plays with a great deal of drive.
Rock’n’Reel
Johnny Connolly’s command of the melodeon allows some bright, sparkling moments of inspiration on Cuz Teehan’s and The Annabla Polkas. The Swallow’s Tail shows conclusively that Connolly is a very gifted traditional musician.
Sing Out
This album proves Johnny Connolly to be a mighty player of the melodeon. He plays with a strong rhythmic sense and depth of emotion not often reached by other boxplayers. There is an earthiness to his sound that seems to touch a lost chord in the soul.
Taplas
Enemies of the accordion family have its nomenclature on their side; melodeon, for instance, means different things in different places. In Ireland, it’s the humble instrument with one row of right-hand buttons and this is what Johnny Connolly plays. There’s a humility in this man too. His playing is understated and measured, but wonderfully rhythmic, forever exploring new twists and turns of expression. Charlie Lennon’s inventive piano accompaniments are exemplary (he’s also there on fiddle) and Steve Cooney’s more up-front guitar suits the two tracks of polkas and slides. Drioball na Fainleoige, meaning The Swallow’s Tail (which tune Connolly plays in three different keys) is a great second album from one of Ireland’s finest but less vaunted traditional musicians. John Neilson
The Living Tradition
Johnny Connolly’s debut album An tOile n Aerach received fulsome plaudits in the pages of this magazine, which rated it one of the musical highlights of its year of release, 1991. This pair of welcome new offerings from Clo Iar-Chonnachta are ample indication that the phenomenon which caused so much excitement back then was no flash in the pan, and that, indeed, what we’re dealing with here is … well, a living tradition.
Dreaming Up the Tunes is as fine an example as you’d hope to meet of a son following in an illustrious father’s footsteps. But to deal with the dad first:
Johnny senior – known as Sean-Johnny (“Old Johnny”) to distinguish him from his talented offspring – has presented us here with another virtuoso display of eclecticism and swing on the melodeon and accordion. The tunes come from all over the place – Johnny obviously has a soft spot for Kerry music, and slides and polkas are well represented here, played with a naturalness and surety of touch rare among non-Kerry musicians, unobtrusive accompaniment from the ubiquitous Steve Cooney perhaps helping the case. As might be expected, music from Johnny’s homeplace in Cois Fharraige is also well to the fore, song airs from Connemara providing the basis for dance tunes in a couple of cases, as in his slip-jig version of P id
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Johnny Og Connolly & Brian McGrath – Dreaming Up The Tunes
Gan Ainm / Doberman’s Wallet
Paddy Ryan’s Dream / Jimmy Batty’s
Mick O’Connor’s Reels
The Happy Hornpipe / The Souvenir
The Inis Bearachain Jigs
Ril Johnny Phadraig Pheter / Ril Joe Mhaire Mhicilin
Christmas in Spiddal / Twelve to the Bar
The Carraroe Jig / Homage to Rooney
Mountain Dew / Loughrea Reel
Dillon’s / Marion Egan’s
Bean Phaidin / Seanamhach Tube Station
Michael Coleman’s / Flanagan Meets O’Hanlon Barndances
Press Reviews
Taplas
Johnny Og is Johnny’s senior’s son and plays the slightly larger two-row button accordion with a beautiful fluent, light touch. The great Joe Burke was one of his early influences. Virtuoso banjo player Brian McGrath, one of the founders of Four Men and A Dog, currently plays in Sean Keane’s Band and At The Racket. He and Johnny Og have played together for years; there’s both tightness and an easy give and take in their duo playing. Distinguished accompanists here too, James Blennerhasset on cello and double bass, Eugene Kelly and Peter O’Hanlon on guitars and McGrath on piano. The title is apt. Several of the tunes are recent compositions by, among others, Charlie Lennon and Johnny Og himself, whose fine, intricate tunes include the lovely set of jigs Poirt Inis Bearachain(also featured on his father’s CD) and named after the now uninhabited Island off the Connemara coast, where Johnny Connolly Snr was born John Neilson
The Living Tradition
All are played with gusto and the box and banjo keep each other company with microsecond-precise timing, producing an overall sound that positively throbs with vitality.
The Irish Voice
The full maturity of Irish banjo and box playing has never been demonstrated better.
Dirty Linen
Johnny plays with a fine sense of rhythm, but also very melodically with smooth execution, a light touch and nice ornamentation.
The Examiner
Good honest playing of the highest order. Johnny Og’s strong, yet sensitive, accordion style combines perfectly with Brian’s crisp banjo picking
City Tribune
An album which mixes freshness and spontaneity with professionalism that is their second nature.
The Living Tradition
Johnny Connolly’s debut album An tOile n Aerach received fulsome plaudits in the pages of this magazine, which rated it one of the musical highlights of its year of release, 1991. This pair of welcome new offerings from Cl
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Karen Ryan – The Coast Road
The Coast Road
Debut solo album from Karen Ryan Released on the Clo-Iar Chonnacht label The long-awaited solo album, The Coast Road, by highly-regarded fiddler, music teacher and promoter of traditional Irish music, Karen Ryan, founder-member of the renowned traditional Irish music group, The London Lasses and Pete Quinn.
A musician, teacher and promoter, it would be no exaggeration to say that Karen Ryan lives and breathes traditional Irish music. Born in London to Galway and Mayo parents, it was a strong Connemara tradition of melodeon players and traditional singers on her mother’s side that initially fired her love of the music.
Karen started playing music at the age of nine, taught by the North Leitrim musician Tommy Maguire at the London Irish Centre, where she herself now teaches. It was here that she met lifelong friends and fellow fiddle players, Elaine Conwell and Teresa Connolly (nee Heanue), with whom she won the under 12 Trio competition at the All-Ireland Fleadhin 1985.
Karen was fortunate to hone her musical skills through playing with a vast array of musicians in the vibrant London Irish session scene and during frequent visits to musical gatherings in Ireland and the US. Whilst gleaning much from all these players she cites Brian Rooney, Brendan McGlinchey, Danny Meehan and the recordings of Andy McGann as having the most influence on her fiddle playing.
As a founder member of the renowned traditional Irish six-piece, The London Lasses and Pete Quinn, Karen has performed at some of the world’s most prestigious festivals and concert halls, including the Royal Albert Hall, where the band performed the first ever BBC Proms ceili in 2008. The band have recorded four albums to date.
Whether as a teacher with Meitheal Cheoil in north London, a workshop leader or an adjudicator both in the UK and overseas, Karen continues to pass on the tradition to both young and old.
Also available from Copperplate, featuring Karen Ryan:
LL001 London Lasses & Pete Quinn
LL002 London Lasses: Track Across the Deep
LoLa004 London Lasses: Enchanted Lady
LoLa005 London Lasses: By Night & By Day
for more information about Karen Ryan and upcoming tour dates, please visit www.karenryan.net.
Press Reviews
www.liveireland.com Margeson on the Music Oct 12
The Coast Road is just out on Clo-iar-Chonnachta. Veteran fiddle goddess Karen Ryan is brilliant. Never mind her work with our music’s best female group, The London Lasses (sorry, Pete!), she is a master. As good as any, we reckon. Stunning playing from a real musician. All 15 selections are instrumentals. While the album favors the jigs and reels, all tempos and time signatures are brought to the fore. We love it. Every cut. This woman is a real presence and a true musician on the scene. As she is one of the folks in charge of the wonderful Return to Camden Town annual festival, we have a recommendation. Book yourself immediately! This is a great album and she is immediately in contention as the Female Musician of the Year. Lovely, altogether. Bill Margeson.
The Living Tradition
London’s vibrant Irish community has, amongst many other things, evolved a style of traditional music, and particularly fiddle music, which is as identifiable as any of the major styles on the other side of the water. Karen Ryan perfectly represents this tradition, being born in London to Galway and Mayo parents and starting to play at the age of nine. She now teaches at the London Irish Centre, is a founder-member of the celebrated London Lasses and directs the Return to Camden Town traditional festival.
Accompanied here by partner Pete Quinn on piano and keyboard; Conor Doherty, guitar; Gary Connolly, accordion; Elaine Conwell, fiddle, Teresa Connolly, fiddle, Colman Connolly, uilleann pipes; and her aunt Nancy McEvaddy on vocals, Karen plays mostly fiddle, but with whistle and banjo as well.
She has a very clear playing style, which is well demonstrated in the slow air, where she lets the tune take its own time, keeping everything nicely balanced. When things speed up a bit in the jigs and reels, however, there’s no dropping off – each note is well-defined, with a crispness and deftness of touch making for a rare listening experience.
Pete Quinn should also get a specific mention for his piano arrangements – not for him the plodding thump that can mar so many otherwise good sets, rather a well thought-out and sensitive range of slightly understated playing, which reminds us what the word “accompany” really means.
As I’ve come to expect from Clo lar-Chonnacht, this is an extremely well-packaged CD, with bilingual notes and information on all the tunes and a transcription of the macaronic song.
Well worth a listen! Gordon Potter
R2
Few musicians have been as indefatigable in championing the cause of Irish traditional music in London as Karen Ryan. As part of the group London Lasses and organiser of the Camden Irish music festival she has worked tirelessly to disseminate the music to her contemporaries, aspiring players and audiences alike.
Her first sob album, The Coast Road is dedicated to her father Michael Ryan “for loving the music so much that you did everything to help me love it too” Touching but true, for this is music that is as much about family and tradition as it is musical education.
Karen honed her fiddle skills in Irish music sessions in London and Ireland, it was her own family’s ability to transmit this music to a new generation that provived her with that first real spark of creativity. Accompanied mainly on piano by Pete Quinn, Karen plays reels, jigs, polkas, hornpipes, a waltz and one song, ‘An Draighnean Donn’, sung in a disarming fashion by her aunt, Nancy McEvaddy. There are contributions from life-tang friends and fiddlers Elaine Conwell (London Lasses) and Teresa Connolly plus others, but it is Ryan’s album and her playing shines brightly throughout. John Crosby
www.tradconnect.com Album of the Month July 12
London based musician Karen Ryan is the latest in a long line of London Irish fiddlers and on this her debut album she steps very comfortably into the shoes of those that have gone before. Musician, teacher and promoter Karen is well known and established on the London scene both at sessions and as a founding member of The London Lasses and Pete Quinn. More so than any city, London is a place where the big players come out to play and I did have the pleasure some years ago in some long forgotten venue to hear Karen. No doubt in the company of Brian Rooney, Brendan Mulkaire or the crop of great talent that was coming through all those years ago. Players like Lamond Gillespie and John Blake who have since gone on to great things.
Karen Ryan is another name that rightly deserves to be heard and The Coast Road is an absolute joy of an album. Karen’s style is strongly traditional, very expressive and true to those musicians that have inspired her. It’s a classic recording that harks back to her early musical influences. This includes Tommy Maguire, Brendan McGlinchey, Andy McGann and others, and there are echoes of their contribution within the heart of her very own style. For those reasons there is a breath of traditional fresh air in the tracks she has recorded. This is exciting, passionate and driving fiddle playing inspired by a lifetime of music. When slowed down to simple solid tunes there is nothing quite like it, especially on jigs like Kitty’s Rambles/Kitty of Oulart/An Rógaire Dubh. Some of the best fiddle music has always had a strong, solid and uncomplicated vein running through it and Karen Ryan excels in this respect.
Included in the tracks is the magnificent hornpipe called McGlinchey’s which I haven’t heard for some time. A classic tune that Karen twists and turns with triplets and rolls that display the scale of the tune from low A and on up to the top of the scale. Her tone, control and phrasing is exemplary and always does justice to the music that she is playing. Even her one set of Polkas on the album, Dan Herlihy’s/Tom Billy’s, jump to life with superb accompaniment by Pete Quinn on Piano and Conor Doherty on Guitar. In addition to these fine musicians she has also brought on board long term fiddle friends Elaine Conwell and Treasa Connolly as well as Gary Connolly on Accordion and Nancy McEvaddy on voice.
The first set, The Limerick Lasses/The Gatehouse Maid/The Mountain Top is a great opener with its driving rhythm and strong piano accompaniment. The reel set Sally Gardens/Miss McCloud’s/Tommy Maguire’s pick up the pace. Karen and Pete Quinn called them the “Black Horse Anthem” as a result of repeated requests at a session in the Black Horse in London. The last in the set is a great Charlie Lennon composition. Karen also displays her banjo skills on a couple of jigs called Kiss The Bride/Shandon Bells. As a fan of Brendan McGlinchey, a set of reels composed by Brendan deserves mention. Called Mrs Lawrie’s/Karen Ryan’s the latter was written for Karen by Brendan some years back. It has all the hallmarks of Brendan and the piano accompaniment by Pete Quinn is simply untouchable with it’s phrasing and tone.
Fiddle music in all it’s forms has a place, be it with more modern influences, newly composed or with elements external to the tradition. This is music that will not disappoint and is most definitely traditional with a capital T. On a kitchen shelf bursting with great fiddle albums by Peoples, Carty, McGlinchley, Collins and dozens more this Karen Ryan album will also now sit proudly putting London and Karen on the map when it comes to touching the heart of traditional brilliance.
The Folk Diary
That the London Irish fiddler, some time visitor to Sussex folk clubs, should turn up on that most respected and highly regarded of Irish labels comes as something of a surprise. Most on this label are from rural Ireland but as a great deal of superb Irish music is played in north London, and has been for decades, there is no reason why Karen should not be represented along with her pianist partner
Most of her previous recordings have been as part of the excellent London Lasses, but the extra focus given by this album shows just what a fine fiddler she is. She has a wide and varied repertoire and the album is given extra interest when she occasionally changes to banjo or whistle and towards the end of the album she broadens the scope by introducing friends and relatives that have played with her since childhood. Ringing endorsements from the likes of Danny Meehan and Brendan McGlinchey in the booklet show just how much Karen is respected in Irish music circles – as teacher, promoter and organiser as well as musician. Vic Smith
www.LiveIreland.com
Karen Ryan is part of the best female group in the business, The London Lasses. Her new solo album with Pete Quinn is ‘The Coast Road.’ We know it is available through Alan O’Leary at Copperplate in London. Karen is such a wonderful fiddle player, and this album immediately nominates her for Female Musician of the Year. She has a lot of tasty guest musicians in, but it is her playing alone that transcends all. This is a very, very exciting album. This woman can play, and look; we know that Pete Quinn is also in the group, The London Lasses, but he is vastly outnumbered, the lucky dog! One of our favorite groups meets one of our favorite fiddle players (Karen) and here we are on The Coast Road’ and you should take the trip, also. It is a beautiful journey.
The Journal of Music: The Arts Council / An Chomhairle Ealaion
An Album of Tribute from Karen Ryan
Being dedicated to her father, Michael Ryan (‘for loving the music so much that you did everything possible to help me love it too’), and featuring so many tunes Ryan learned from Tommy Maguire in the London Irish Centre, this is clearly a recording with a strong sense of tribute at its heart.
London fiddle player Karen Ryan has released her first solo album, the Coast Road, featuring Pete Quinn on piano, published by Cló Iar-Chonnacht. Ryan is a founder member of the London Lasses and Pete Quinn group (who have recorded four albums to date), as well as a much sought-after workshop teacher and music promoter.
She started playing music when she was nine years old, taught by the Leitrim musician Tommy Maguire at the London Irish Centre, where she herself now teaches. It was here that she met life-long friends and fellow fiddle players, Elaine Conwell and Teresa Connolly (née Heanue), with whom she won the under-12 trio competition at the All-Ireland Fleadh in 1985.
While being very active in the London Irish session scene and festival and Fleadh circuit, as well as visiting Conamara regularly, she cites in particular Brian Rooney, Brendan McGlinchey, Danny Meehan and the recordings of Andy McGann as having the most influence on her fiddle playing.
Through her role as Director of the Return to Camden Town festival of traditional Irish music, song and dance, she is also an award-winning promoter. Now in its fourteenth year, the festival has become a key date in the Irish music calendar and celebrates the historical link between Camden and traditional Irish music.
Most of the tracks on the Coast Road feature Ryan on fiddle accompanied by Quinn on piano or keyboard, although Ryan plays banjo on the jig set of ‘Kiss the Bride’ and ‘Shandon Bells’, and whistle on the reel set of ‘The Swallow’s Tail’, ‘The Sunny Banks’ and ‘The London Lasses’. For some tracks they are joined by Conor Doherty on guitar. On the waltz-reel set featuring ‘Tim O’Leary’s’ and ‘The Rabbit’s Burrow’ she plays with fiddlers Elaine Conwell (of the London Lasses) and friend Teresa Connolly. And for the jig set of ‘Going to Mass Last Sunday’, ‘The Gold Ring’ and ‘The Battering Ram’ she plays with Gary Connolly on accordion and Colman Connolly on uilleann pipes. Ryan plays one slow air, ‘Sliabh Geal gCua’, which she writes that she learnt from Séamus Begley’s singing; and there is one song on the album, ‘An Draighneán Donn’, sung very naturally and gently by Ryan’s aunt, Nancy McEvaddy of Claregalway.
The twenty-two pages of sleeve notes include a short biographical note on Ryan, comments on her playing by Danny Meehan, Brian Rooney and Brendan McGlinchey, Irish and English versions of all the extensive track notes, and a wide range of photographs of Ryan, of instrument details and of family and friends.
Being dedicated to her father, Michael Ryan (‘for loving the music so much that you did everything possible to help me love it too’), and featuring so many tunes Ryan learned from Maguire, this is clearly a recording with a strong sense of tribute at its heart.
The Folk Diary
That the London Irish fiddler, some time visitor to Sussex folk clubs, should turn up on that most respected and highly regarded of Irish labels comes as something of a surprise. Most on this label are from rural Ireland but as a great deal of superb Irish music is played in north London, and has been for decades, there is no reason why Karen should not be represented along with her pianist partner
Most of her previous recordings have been as part of the excellent London Lasses, but the extra focus given by this album shows just what a fine fiddler she is. She has a wide and varied repertoire and the album is given extra interest when she occasionally changes to banjo or whistle and towards the end of the album she broadens the scope by introducing friends and relatives that have played with her since childhood.
Ringing endorsements from the likes of Danny Meehan and Brendan McGlinchey in the booklet show just how much Karen is respected in Irish music circles – as teacher, promoter and organiser as well as musician. Vic Smith
Irish Music Magazine
Of Galway and Mayo parents but born and reared in London, Karen Ryan has been a mainstay of Irish music in the province of Great Britain for longer than her youthful looks would suggest. Whether founding The London Lasses a decade ago, running the Camden Town festival, leading the young Trad Gathering ensemble, or just teaching and playing in sessions across North London, Karen’s unruly hair and restless feet have featured in most aspects of the musical life of London’s Irish community. Although best—known as a fiddler, Karen also plays banjo and whistle on this debut solo recording — no sign of the mandola she’s been toting at recent gigs. Several members of the London Irish scene drop in for a tune on The Coast Road, but most tracks are just Karen and her ivory—tickling husband Pete Quinn.
Every set comes with a story: the sparkling Limerick Lasses learnt from Leitrim man Tommy Maguire in the eighties, or the sprightly version of Saddle the Pony from her grandma’s melodeon days. Karen’s repertoire includes all the old favourites, and she isn’t afraid to play them. The Sally Gardens, Shandon Bells, Miss MacLeod’s, The Battering Ram, Trans—Roscommon Airways and The Musical Priest, great tunes all, are trotted out in fine form here. There are rarer delights too, Kitty of Oulart and Walsh’s Hornpipe among them. Brendan McGlinchey’s distinctive dark style is beautifully demonstrated on his reels Mrs Lawrie’s and Karen Ryan’s, while Karen’s own composing gift gives us three flowing slip—jigs. The final few tracks ring the changes with a sean nos song from Nancy McEvaddy, a fiddle trio waltz, and a set of céilí jigs featuring pipes and accordion, before the final big set of reels on fiddle and piano.
The Coast Road combines the best of old and new music, the antique gold of An Roghaire Dubh and Sliabh Geal gCua alongside a bit of bling and skank on Dan Herlihy’s Polka. This mix and match approach also applies to the glossy sleeve notes, which add photos and fancy graphics to the trusty old way of listing the names and composers. It seems Karen can put her own sheen on more than just the music. Livelier than a Camden pub on Paddy’s Night, and more full of Irish spirit than the off—licence across the street, this is a cracking new album. Alex Monaghan
www.folking.com
This is the kind of recording that harks back to the old days of “Paddy In The Smoke” and Danny ‘Concrete Fingers’ Meehan playing at The Favourite. Possibly aimed at a more traditionally biased audience Ryan’s style of fiddle playing (sometimes opening with the predominantly two chord piano introduction so beloved of Irish set dancers everywhere provided by long term associate Pete Quinn) will give some indication to those like myself who used to sit at the altar of the likes of Raymond Rowland, Liam Farrell and John Bowe. There are plenty of great standards including “Sally Gardens”, “Miss McCloud’s” and “Saddle The Pony” but it’s Karen’s beautifully fluid whistle playing on “The Swallow’s Tail/The Sunny Banks/The London Lasses” set that does it for me. This may not be a rip-roaring album or one that’s trying to be ‘different’ but if its rock solid performances of some excellent tunes you’re looking for I’d suggest you check it out. PETE FYFE
www.musicaltraditions.com
Clo Iar Chonnacht have a reputation for releasing quality Irish traditional music CDs and this one is no exception. It’s a thoroughly enjoyable recording. There is a mix of mainly reels and jigs, but with a hornpipe, a couple of polkas, a waltz, a slow air and a song. There is also a variety of ensembles, duets and some group playing so that the CD gives the impression of listening in to a high quality session.
Fiddle player Karen Ryan is well embedded into the trad Irish scene in London. A founder member of the London Lasses and Pete Quinn, she teaches, judges and also organises the Return to Camden Festival. Although from London, Karen Ryan’s parents are both from West Ireland and she has inherited the traditions of Connemara from her Mother’s side of the family. Some of the music was recorded on a trip back home with her relatives in Galway.
Her fiddle playing is confident, energetic and expressive and she puts in some interesting twists and turns into the tunes which are mainly well known favourites. Ryan takes one track on the tin whistle and is also a handy banjo player, though not to the same standard as her fiddling and it sounds as if she has twisted the setting of Shandon Bells to fit more comfortably under her fingers. Overall there is plenty of evidence of her London heritage in hints of the fierce drive of Danny Meehan mixed with Brian Rooney’s creativeness. The sleeve notes mention the influence of New York’s Andy McGann but her tone is quite different to McGann’s so it’s not so easy to hear him in her playing
The CD starts with a real swing with three duets from fiddle and piano; reels followed by jigs, then hornpipes, showcasing Karen’s vigorous fiddle playing and Pete Quinn’s excellent accompaniment and the opening track is certainly strong enough to pull anybody into wanting to hear more. There’s a bit of a dip in the next track of polkas which seemed both geographically and musically out of place here. They just seemed too long and repetitive and just don’t have the Sliabh Luachra style to make this a good track. By contrast, the slow air, the song tune Sliabh Geal cCua, learned from Kerryman Seamus Begley, is beautiful and tender, and not overworked demonstrating Karen’s sense of musical integrity. Karen’s Auntie Nancie’s song An Draighnean Donn is delicate and captivating. The CD finished very strongly with a final set of reels from fiddle and piano.
It is obvious Karen and Pete enjoy the music and have the depth of skill to let the music speak for itself and for the most part the recording is clean and straight, without tricks, too much ‘drip’, or over arrangement. There’s no sense that the players are stretched or ‘performing’ to a crowd, the music is always centre stage and is just gorgeous for that. It takes a lot of sensitivity and understanding to take old tunes like Miss McLeod’s (here interestingly titled Miss McCloud’s) or The Lady on the Island and make then sound new and vital. Karen deserves a lot of credit for the way the choice of tunes on this record reinforce the impression that this is a few friends playing for an intimate circle.
The CD is well produced, the piano might be a bit too high in the mix for some and the squeak of fingers on guitar strings is a personal dislike, but these are minor niggles. The sleeve notes give just enough information about sources and influences to introduce Karen to those who don’t know her as a solo player.
This CD should give pleasure to enthusiasts and casual listeners alike, and there’s a lot of depth that will reward repeated listening. Ken Ricketts & Marya Parker – 5.4.12
Rock solid performances of some excellent tunes
This is the kind of recording that harks back to the old days of “Paddy In The Smoke” and Danny ‘Concrete Fingers’ Meehan playing at The Favourite. Possibly aimed at a more traditionally biased audience Ryan’s style of fiddle playing (sometimes opening with the predominantly two chord piano introduction so beloved of Irish set dancers everywhere provided by long term associate Pete Quinn) will give some indication to those like myself who used to sit at the altar of the likes of Raymond Rowland, Liam Farrell and John Bowe. There are plenty of great standards including “Sally Gardens”, “Miss McCloud’s” and “Saddle The Pony” but it’s Karen’s beautifully fluid whistle playing on “The Swallow’s Tail/The Sunny Banks/The London Lasses” set that does it for me. This may not be a rip-roaring album or one that’s trying to be ‘different’ but if its rock solid performances of some excellent tunes you’re looking for I’d suggest you check it out. PETE FYFE13/03/2012
£14.99 -
Kate Purcell – Independent Soul
The West of Ireland and in particularly Co. Clare is the home turf of many talented, respected and indeed famous musicians. One such respected musician is Co. Clare native, Kate Purcell. Some of you may already be familiar with Kate from being resident entertainer at Dromoland Castle for a number of years. A residency Kate really enjoys in parallel with her touring & recording commitments alongside being mother of two young children!
“Independent Soul” is Kate’s third album and will be released via her own label Dream Records. Unlike her previous releases, together with featuring some of her own co-written material with long time writing partner and best friend of over twenty years, Mary Fitzgerald, this album also contains Kate’s versions of some of her favourite songs.
Kate has recently been on a three week tour in the USA, where she regularly gigs. Purcell’s albums to date feature contributions by artists such as Tommy Flemming, Martin Hayes Charlie McGettigan, Steve Cooney, Brendan Begley and Tommy Hayes and this album is no different. Kate has been invited to guest on some of her peers projects also. Indeed, she duets with Tommy Flemming in his most recent album. She recently appeared in Vicar Street along with Paul Brady, Neil Hannon, Jack L and Lisa Hannigan as part of the “Gigs for Gaza” series there
A natural born singer, possessing a truly rich and moving voice, capable of captivating every ear and touching each spirit. Growing up in Feakle in County Clare her early musical influences were inevitably traditional/folk. However, she has a deep love for all music types siting influences in the most recent chapters of her career as including Alison Krauss, Sinead O’Connor, Jack Lukeman and Mary Chapin Carpenter.
Her music has taken her across Europe, Hong Kong and as previously sited the USA. Kate Purcell has one ‘of those’ voices that simply ‘needs to be heard’!
Press Reviews
Taplas
SINGER, songwriter, guitarist Purcell is joined by a host of well known Irish musicians: Steve Cooney, Martin Hayes, Winnie Horan and others. But don’t be fooled. This is more country style with no significant instrumental breaks. The guests mostly embellish the vocals, though there is some particularly enjoyable nylon string guitar and harmonica playing. It’s fairly slow paced and includes
songs from Ewan McColl, U2, some traditional and much of Purcell’s own co-written material. Imogen O’Rourke
Rock’n’Reel
County Clare native Kate Purcell calls on the considerate talents of Ireland’s folk and traditional music fraternity on Independent Soul, her third album, including contributions from guitarist Steve Cooney, fiddlers Martin Hayes and Winnie Horan and accordion players Brendan Begley and Tim Eady.
Independent Soul is consistently appealing, Purcell’s breathy and assured vocals adding much to a series of standards including The First True Ever I Saw Your Face’ (credited here to one misspelled Ewan McColl-tut), a deliciously evocative Lili Marlene and a poignant and atmosphere ‘Suspicious Minds’. She excels on the masterful and very personal reading of traditional song ‘The Green Hills Of Clare, which speaks to emigrants everywhere.
Purcell and writing partner Mary Fitzgerald manage to pull a couple of treats out of the bag to close the album with ‘All About Love’ and ‘This House Can Whisper’, two originals that showcase their mellow blend of jazzy acoustic roots-pop. Seen McGhee
The Irish Democrat
KATE PURCELL’s third solo album, is an eclectic and thoroughly charming mix of original material and a selection of some of her own favourite songs, spanning a variety of popular music genres.
I must admit to approaching the album with a degree of unease – largely down to the inclusion of Ewan McColl’s The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face. Although there are a number of fine versions in existence, McColl’s love song has been done to near death on more than one occasion – the Celine Dion and Englbert Humperdink MoR monstrosities springing most readily to mind.
Unfortunately, my apprehension diminished not a jot when I saw that other of her personal favourites included Hans Leip’s Lilli Marlene, popular with both Axis and Allied forces during the second world war.
By the time I’d learned from the accompanying blurb that Die Hard actor Bruce Willis counts himself as one of her biggest fans, I was ready for the worst. I needn’t have worried.
The album kicks off with one of five fine original songs penned with best friend of twenty years Mary Fitzgerald. A slightly edgy love song, it provides an ideal curtain-opener to a collection of songs which showcase the songwriting and musical talents of both women.
The two friends are assisted throughout by a clutch of top-drawer Irish musicians: Steve Cooney (guitars), Martin Hayes and Winnie Horan (fiddle), Breandan Begley and Tim Eady (accordion), Mark Kinsella (harmonica), Jim Hornsby (dobro) Gavin Murphy (piano and keyboards) and Tommy Hayes (percussion).
The arrangements are uncluttered, understated and tight. Always subtle, they allow prominence to to be given to Kate’s distinctively rich but mellow voice. They also succeed in creating a warm and intimate feel. It’s a combination which, I am happy to report, lifts her interpretation of McColl’s love song well beyond the clutches of MoR mediocrity.
There’s only one traditional song on the album, The Green Hills of Clare. This is given a contemporary make-over, with some fine guitar and fiddle playing complementing the sweet and sonorous tones of Purcell’s voice. The singer-songwriter’s love of country music is apparent on the album’s self-penned title track and on her rendition of Suspicious Minds, the latter featuring the excellent harmonica playing of Mick Kinsella.
However, the album’s biggest, and for me, most pleasant, surprise is Purcell’s version of the U2 song Bad. Stripped of any pomp-rock pretensions, it emerges powerfully reborn, filled with passion and the tension of a troubled love.
Overall, the cover versions turned out to be far better than I’d at first anticipated, though I’m still not partial to Lilli Marlene. However, there’s no doubt that the album’s real strength lies with the original Purcell-Fitzgerald compositions, their subtle arrangements and the excellent musicians who lent a hand in the production of a fine album. Let’s hope that it’s a partnership that continues to thrive in the years ahead. David Granville
No other debut album has caused such an audience reaction
Mike Harding – BBC Radio 2
“This Ennis-based singer completely enthrals with her album “Shadows Of You”. What a voice! And, she is a gifted writer. She is a major, major new talent who will only get more famous as more people hear her magic. It is on Dream Records. Find it… Wow!
“This is wonderful. Music of the heart, intuition, ability, understanding and beauty”.
Bill Margeson LiveIreland.com U.S.A
“To say her voice is pure is inadequate, when Kate Purcell gives herself to a song she moves into another dimension” – The Examiner
The Irish World 05/05/09
Kate’s Mates
Independent Soul’ is the latest release from Clare native, Kate Purcell.
By Shelley Marsden – 05/05/09
Her third album, released through Dream Records, it features material that was co-written with friend and long-time collaborator Mary Fitzgerald but also, for the first time, Purcell’s own covers of some her favourite songs (including a take on U2’s Bad).
If you’ve never heard of Purcell before, you’re in for a pleasant surprise. Her voice is simply something that has to be heard to be believed, and her rich vocals are capable of moving the most heard-hearted listener.
Highlights include a gorgeously stripped back version of Ewan McColl’s The First Time I Ever Saw Your Face, followed by a traditional-sounding take on Patsy Cline’s I Fall To Pieces (with Brendan Begley on vocals), making gorgeously subtle use of the accordion. A tricky song for any singer, it showcases her powerful voice to perfection.
A highly-respected performer, Purcell’s albums have always included contributions by artists like Tommy Fleming, Martin Hayes, Brendan Begley and Charlie McGettigan.
Album no.3 continues to open its arms to fellow-musicians (Brendan Begley, Winnie Horan, Tim Eady and many more). Purcell duetted with Tommy Fleming on his latest album, and
appeared at Vicar Street in Dublin with Paul Brady, Lisa Hannigan, Neil Hannon and others for its ‘Gigs for Gaza’ series.
Growing up on the fertile terrain of Co Clare (in the small village of Feakle) and surrounded by people like fiddle virtuoso Martin Hayes – he was her neighbour – you could say Purcell’s path towards Irish folk was pretty much pre-destined.
Yet as well as reflecting her Irish influences (The Green Hills of Clare is the singer’s own composition), Purcell also developed a love over the years for contemporary styles, particularly
blues and American country from artists like Alison Krauss and Mary Chapin Carpenter and her music spans these genres – an attractive mix of the traditional and the contemporary.
Check it out. Shelley Marsden
£14.99 -
Kathleen Loughnane – Harp to Heart
Press Reviews
Hot Press KATHLEEN LOUGHNANE HARP TO HEART
Acclaimed both as a solo player and for her work with the group Dordon, harpist Kathleen Loughnane has already made two fine solo albums. Affairs Of The Harp and Harping On.
Like its predecessors, Harp To Heart was co-produced by Loughnane with De Dannan’s Alee Finn. The arrangements are kept nicely varied, with Loughnane’s deft, precise playing always to the fore, as is only right.
A high point is her adaptation of the Allegro from Corelli’s Sonata XI, originally written for violin and harpsichord. Performed here on flute, whistle and harp, it loses none of its baroque elegance in the translation. EIGHTPOINT FIVE/TEN
Irish Music Magazine Dec 05
Many people will know Kathleen Loughnane from the all-woman group, Dordan, which she co-founded in 1990. Kathleen Loughnane is from Nenagh, Co. Tipperary, and began playing the harp at an early age and has been based in Galway since 1982.
She has a particular interest in arranging traditional Irish dance tunes and airs for the harp and researching the music of the Irish harper composers of the 17th and 18th centuries. Her arrangements for harp have appeared in several publications.
Her new CD “Harp to Heart” is her third album and features harping tunes from Edward Bunting’s collecting work in 1792 and tunes from the aural tradition. Kathleen says: “In the former case, I have tried to imagine how they might have been played had the tradition remained unbroken.” And isn’t that what we all wonder? How the harp music of the distinctive Irish harping tradition might have sounded two hundred years ago before it died out in the early decades of the 19th century. But however they might have sounded, and they were noted for their skill and dexterity, Kathleen’s playing is wonderfully fluid and full of ‘elegant musicality’, a phrase I once 1 heard an old man use to describe a musician’s performance.
Kathleen is not alone on this CD; with her are friends, Alec Finn (bouzouki, guitar, tenor guitar), Cormac Cannon,(uilleann pipes, whistles), and Martin Hughes (flute). Their ensemble playing is very pleasing and perhaps could be said to be evocative of the ‘big house’ gathering of musicians described by people like the Tyrone harper, Arthur O’Neill(1734-1818) in his memoirs. Paul Mulligan of Mount Scribe Studio, Kinvara, Co. Galway, is to be commended for his sound engineering and mixing skills; there is a delightful and satisfying clarity everywhere, not least in the balance he gets from the solo harp playing.
There are detailed notes accompanying this CD and they are full of useful and fascinating information. Take track 1, for instance, where Kathleen tells us that the tune,”The Two William Davises”, is heard both in Ireland and Scotland. “As an O’Carolan tune,” she says, “this is known as ‘Planxty Davis’, but it would seem that it was composed by his predecessor, Thomas Connellan, from County Sligo, Ireland.” And she adds that in Scotland, where Connellan spent some years, it is known as “The Battle of Killecrankie”. There are several other Carolan pieces,and with a musical nod of deference to the great man, there is even one tune called “Planxty Finn” which Kathleen wrote for what she says was Alec Finn’s “?th birthday”! Aidan O’Hara
“In 1792, Edward Bunting, then a young assistant organist at St. Anne’s Church, Belfast, noted down the music of the harpers attending the Belfast Harp Festival. These musicians represented a distinctive Irish harping tradition dating back at least to the 12th century. When, this tradition of harping died out in the early decades of the 19th century, Bunting’s collection remained as an invaluable record.
Continuity within the instrumental tradition as a whole would have resulted in the sharing of tunes and similarities in the manner of their interpretation. With the demise of the harping tradition, some of the tunes lived on in the repertoire of the uilleann pipes and fiddle, to be ‘minded’, to be developed and re-shaped.
But many lovely harping tunes remained on the page, the details of their nuancing and interpretation fading from memory.
On this CD I have included harping tunes both from Bunting’s collection and from the aural tradition. In the former case, I have tried to imagine how they might have been played had the tradition remained unbroken”. Kathleen Loughnane.
£14.99 -
Kev Boyle – Palestine Grove
Kevin Boyle follows up his cult classic of 1997 Bon Cabbage with his latest statement of intent, Palestine Grove named after the recording studio of master producer and multi instrumentalist, Gerry Diver.
For many years the Boyle family have been the mainstay of the brilliant London Irish music scene. Driven on by their father Paddy they studied the traditional music of his native Donegal. Kevin became a multi instrumentalist, his sister Maggie the flute and bodrhan and using her brilliant voice to adorn many’s a great song. Younger brother Paul was a brilliant young fiddler until his very sad passing. Kevin carved a great reputation as a musical accompanist firstly on piano and then guitar. He started at the top by accompanying the fiddle maestro Sean Maguire on piano when 16 years old. Kevin has mastered this art and is most sought after accompanist in London, bringing comparisons with the mighty Paul Brady.
He became a regular at The Favourite and The legendary White Hart, Fulham Broadway playing with Raymond Roland and Liam Farrell and seat once filled by the ample rear of Christy Moore. He was the driving force behind the super group Le Cheile which featured several musical heavies who regularly played in The White Hart . They released two classic & much sought after LPs, Lord Mayo and Aris. They built up a mercurial reputation for fiery Irish music. Later Kevin was a founder member of Carrig, an outfit which produced one LP. Kev has recorded with Maguire, Seamus Tansey and Ralph McTell who much admires Kev’s work. The Boyel family Kev also did some playing for The Ballet Rambert’s production of Sergeant Early’s Dream.
For while The Boyle Family were residents at Hammersmith’s Riverside Studios where they made many friends among the artistic community including on one memorable occasion Irish playwright and whistle player, Samuel Beckett.
As one who has played a lot with Kevin, he has a priceless ability to make everybody sound good.
This pervades his music and now his songwriting, his love of his fellow man and his care for the future as the father of daughters. In recent years he has thrown himself into the current affairs and delved deeply into the shadowy parts of politics and their masters. This surfaces on many of the songs on Palestine Grove which attacks the trivia obsessed press of 2009. His Randy Newmansque Death of Martin Isreal. Kevin also has a whimsical side, which we enjoy greatly at Coppeprlate ably demonstrated on Blue Sky Blue and Sunny Little Avenue his take on domestic utopia in Norwood. And Bon Cabbage in Catford.
These days Kev plays regularly with fiddle master and composer, Brendan McGlinchey, also a regular member of Give Me Your Hand a loose collection of session players much favoured by Guy Ritchie and his ex! But he is just as likely to turn up at your local session with guitars and banjo and quietly sit in.
Press Reviews
Kev Boyle
***
Palestine Grove BLUE SKY MUSIC
His gruff voice can make Tom Waits sound like a choirboy and his maverick songs dart erratically between the anger of the title track, moving narratives, charged anthems, adapted traditional tunes and a knockabout return to one of his best-loved songs Bon Cabbage, but this London Irish stalwart could be the British Isles’ answer to Tom Russell. Outstanding multi-instrumentalist Gerry Diver helps smooth the edges on an album brimming with character. Colin Irwin
R2 Rock ‘n’ Reel * * * Sept/Oct.09
When someone of Ralph McTell’s stature tells you that Kev Boyle’s songs deserve your attention, you listen. A kingpin of the London Irish music scene, Boyle’s been a little slow in following his cult 1997 classic, Bon Cabbage, but it’s been worth the wait.
Palestine Grove is a model of perceptive songwriting that radiates compassion for humanity and shimmers with a pure spirituality, nowhere more so than on The Walls Of Eden’ where’… earth is just and man is free/And every living soul can see/There are no walls in Eden’.
And then there’s lines On The Death Of Martin Israel’, a paen to the pathologist, former lecturer at the Royal College of Surgeons and a priest in the Church of England who passed away
in 2007. Or ‘Big Blue Train’, a contemporary take on ‘This Train Is Bound For Glory’ where’… the age that is awaiting/Might not be the one you see/For when Jesus comes the demon runs/And from the body flees’.
Boyle is a throwback to when the song offered hope in a cruel world. The same crusade indeed that McTell’s been on for close on five decades. David Burke
Fatea Magazine
Kev Boyle strikes me as a complex man with a raging spirit. I get the feeling that had he been born to another generation he would have become a renown poet or author, but he was born to a generation where music joined those words and his muse delivers songs. It’s a muse with a wicked sense of the world, because whilst all the words come from within, some of the tunes are borrowed, but you can’t fault the genius of doing a song called “Liar” to the tune of “The Battle Hymn Of The Republic”. “Palestine Grove” can be gritty, spiritual, emotional, it can’t be ignored.
The Irish World
London-Irishman Kev Boyle was the man behind Bon Cabbage, a cult classic of 1997 vintage, and now he’s back to make another statement with new release ‘Palestine Grove’.
Music, as the man says, is a great form of therapy. Surrounded by the sounds of traditional music from children, he has been a mainstay in the London Irish traditional scene for many years and was a founding member of the legendary Le Cheile.
Boyle began recording ‘Palestine Grove’ at weekends in 2008, in ‘The Tunehouse’, studio of talented multi-instrumentalist Gerry Diver. As a result, Drever can be heard on nearly every track on the album. Martin O’Leary’s bass makes an appearance in a few tracks, and Boyle’s daughter Lucy was roped into contributing harmonies to four songs.
The gravely, well-travelled and atmospheric voice that fans of Boyle will be all to familiar with is one that brings real tangibility and passion to each song, and also lends them a rough, Dylan-esque quality that works on both traditional and non-traditional tracks
Boyle also plays guitar and piano, and his fine group of fellow-musicians add faultless layers to a smoothly produced and eclectic set of songs, ranging from the light and upbeat (‘Sunny Little Avenue’ and ‘So Summertime’) to the slow and rousing. Boyle’s voice, of course, is not the only striking about this album, it’s the lyrics too.
‘Palestine Grove’ is the loving work of a man with a talent, not only for music but songwriting. He writes about the search for our soul, how we should treat our fellow humans. Each song is a little source of joy on this album, but Lines on The Death of Martin Israel’ took me to a special place; beautiful tune, beautiful lyrics.
‘Come All You’, a paean to youth and avoiding its trap-falls, is another quietly gorgeous track urging us to never stop dreaming; ‘Liar’ takes the listener into bluesy territory as we are drawn into the lonely world of an alcoholic, while the title track is a traditional number whose lethargic pace belies the unflinching message of the lyrics: ”We keep our peace and get on with our little lives/Abd close our minds and hide our eyes..’
From toe-tapping fun to heart-wrenching message, this album has all the hues of an album that grows on you the more you hear it, and which the listener will go back to time and time again; full of strong yet well-balanced musicianship and, often, moments of pure poetry. Shelley Marsden
WWW.NETRHYTHMS.COM
The Boyle family from Donegal have for many years been mainstays of the London-Irish folk music scene, latterly embracing residencies at Hammersmith’s Riverside Studios and even playing for
Ballet Rambert’s production Sergeant Early’s Dream. Throughout the 60s and 70s, father figure Paddy had inspired and encouraged his three children Kevin, Maggie and Paul, nurturing their undoubted musical talents. Paul (who sadly was to die young) was by all accounts a brilliant fiddler, and Maggie, whom we know from her many wonderful ventures including harmony trio Grace Notes, is one of the country’s finest singers and a flautist and bodhrán player of no mean stature.
Kevin, on the other hand, is a multi-instrumentalist who carved an early reputation as skilled (piano) accompanist for fiddle maestro Sean Maguire, moving on to become the driving force behind the fiery supergroup Le Cheile which was built around the talented musical regulars at Fulham’s White Hart. But I first encountered Kev’s music over ten years ago in quite another context, on his very unusual CD Bon Cabbage, which was (less than helpfully) credited to Movies CB (the initials somewhat perversely standing for Ceili Band, which the contents of the CD itself most definitely did not reflect
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Kevin Crawford – Carrying the Tune
Lunasa flute player releases new solo album
Carrying The Tune is the latest solo album by Kevin Crawford. A member of the internationally acclaimed traditional Irish music group Lunasa, the ace flautist and whistle player has taken time out from his busy touring schedule with the band to record this new disc in West Clare. The album also features John Doyle on guitar and bouzouki, bodhran player Brian Morrissey plus Mick Conneely on bouzouki. Recorded by Martin O’Malley at Malbay Studios, Carrying The Tune contains fourteen tracks and is a joyful romp through an eclectic yet seamless collection of tunes that are sourced from both the deep well of tradition and from more recent compositions by the likes of Paddy O’Brien, Donal Lunny, Maurice Lennon and Crawford himself.
Born in Birmingham, England to parents from Miltown Malbay, Co Clare, Kevin Crawford’s early life was sound-tracked by the resonance of the lively traditional music scene in the midlands city. Moving to Co. Clare in 1989, he soon became a pivotal member of the effervescent session trail in the Banner county before enhancing his burgeoning reputation in the group Grianan and the trio Raise the Rafters. He then propelled himself to international recognition with Moving Cloud, with whom he recorded Moving Cloud in 1995 and Foxglove in 1998. Kevin joined Lunasa in January 1997 for a tour of Australia and has been ever-present in the group since. To date, the instrumental quintet have eight albums to their credit while Kevin has released two solo records, V Flute Album (1994) and In Good Company (2001). He joined fellow band member, piper Cillian Vallelly for a critically acclaimed duet album, On Common Ground, in 2009. The innovative flute player has appeared as a guest on several albums, including singer Sean Tyrrell’s Cry of a Dreamer (1994) accordionist Joe Derrane’s The Tie That Binds (1998). and American singer-songwriter Natalie Merchant’s 2010 release, Leave Your Sleep.
A year earlier along with his four fellow members of Lunasa, he performed on The Leitrim Equation. One of Kevin’s latest side-projects is the formation of a new super-trio, The Teetotallers alongside John Doyle and fiddler Martin Hayes. They have an Irish nationwide tour mid January 2012.
The music on Carrying The Tune is loving embraced and made anew through the mastery of Crawford’s technical prowess in conjunction with an informed passion for tradition. The overall result is an exuberant celebration of Irish music in its most innovative form. With sympathetic and inventive accompaniment by Doyle throughout and occasional contributions by Conneely and Morrissey, Crawford’s flute and whistle playing creates inspiring music that’s full of surprises sophisticated and completely accessible all at once.
Also available from Copperplate BOR 001 Kevin Crawford & Cillian Vallely: On Common Ground
Press Reviews
TRADCONNECT
The virtuoso flute and whistle player Kevin Crawford has gifted us once again with a superb exposition of the finest in flute and tin whistle playing with his latest solo album ‘Carrying the Tune’. His last solo album was entitled ‘D’ flute album (1994) so perhaps it is no coincidence that this latest album now features Eb, C and Bb flutes.
The album comprises 14 tracks, each containing lesser known tunes (the Hula Hoop reel anyone?) that now demand to be added to the common repertoire. Reels, jigs, airs, horos (yes I said horos) and self-compositions make up the tracks. For the most part the music is energetic, rhythmic and full of pace. However with the tempo turned down we also get to be carried away with sensitive and haunting sounds such as in his whistle rendition of ‘ The Dear Irish Boy ‘.
Crawford’s Grinter flutes purr like a cat, giving us a master class in tightly controlled phrasing, ornamentation and surgically delivered crans. Although a predominantly flute album, it is the measure of the man that his whistle tracks are on equal basis in terms of musicality and technical genius.
Recording standards are also being pushed to new levels. On Slippery Slope a combination of double and treble tracking is used. On the first tune in the set he has double tracked a counter melody line on the flute which drops out for the second tune leaving room for the bodhrán to shine. The third tune kicks in with three flute parts, one main melody flute and two harmony flute tracks basically playing thirds and fifths whilst sticking to the exact same phrasing as the melody line. Ingenious stuff and worth the cover price of the album alone.
Kevin is accompanied for the most part by John Doyle ( guitar/bouzouki ) whose steady and faithful rhythmic playing is a joy in itself. The accompaniment on Double Barrelled deserves repeated listens for its syncopated rhythms, again setting new standards.
Accompaniment is also provided by Brian Morrissey (bodhrán) and Mick Conneely (Bouzouki). Crawford’s latest creation joins the canon of great Irish traditional flute albums and comes highly recommended.
The Living Tradition
If you expect this solo album to resemble edited highlights of Kevin’s Lunasa career, you’re about half right. Fluter extraordinaire though he is, and a defining element of the best band in Irish music for a long time, Kevin Crawford has taken a step back from that intense modern trad vibe. A gentler mood prevails through most of Carrying The Tune, a return to simple arrangements of time-polished melodies. Kevin carries the tune alone: strings and drums are provided by Doyle, Morrissey and Conneely, but the front line is just flutes and whistles. Nothing wrong with that, certainly, and there’s few people better able to fill an album – plus there are none of Kevin’s terrible jokes and stories here. Instead, every minute is packed with the finest of Irish music.
Mostly Irish, anyway. In amongst the compositions of Paddy Taylor, Paddy O’Brien, Pat McNulty, Donal Lunny and Maurice Lennon are two tip-top Scottish waltzes from
Cunningham and Campbell, together with a Bulgarian horo picked up in Brittany. Kevin’s own fine compositions feature strongly too, of course – but only five of them, as he makes room for many traditional favourites.
He has a lovely light touch on John McKenna’s, and a hefty punch for Tom Dowd’s. The slow air The Dear Irish Boy is deeply moving on Bb whistle, and the twin whistles on Flatwater Fran are a clear echo of that great Lunasa sound. Kevin pairs whistle and flute, flute and flute, and mixes the keys from B to F. Its all first rate stuff, with several outstanding moments: Michael Hynes’ jig The Smithstown Jaunt, Willie Clancy’s slide, the traditional Ivy Leaf.
Crawford leaves the best to last, I think, as the three final tracks include a pair of fabulous slow reels, two perfectly crafted Crawford pieces, and the happy joining of a classic Irish air with a grand old reel. No fanfares, no fireworks, just flawless flute. Enjoy. Alex Monaghan
Hearth Music Web Site
This album has exactly what you’d expect from Kevin Crawford: rare and carefully sourced tunes, impeccable playing on the Irish wooden flute and tin whistles, tasteful accompaniment, and a modern edge to an old sound. Crawford’s best known as the Irish fluter in all-star ensemble Lunasa, and though a few tracks here have the kind of angular modern arrangements that made Lunasa one of the best and most in-demand Irish trad bands on the planet, most tracks are subtle, tasteful performances of purely traditional music. Carrying the Tune is an all-flute/whistle album, which can get a bit tiring, but Crawford’s one of the few who can pull off an album like this and make every track sound refreshing and different. It helps too that he’s got John Doyle on guitar. Doyle’s got quite the Midas touch in Irish trad today; everything he touches comes out golden. Together Crawford and Doyle are a formidable duo, and if you’re a big fat Irish trad nerd like me, I know you’re waiting very impatiently for the album from the new super-group The Teetotallers, which features Crawford and Doyle together with Irish fiddle genius Martin Hayes. But until that drops (and until you start your own blog to get a promo copy), we’ll have to content ourselves with this album. Actually, rumor has it that this album was intended to be a Teetotallers album, but schedule conflicts kept Hayes from joining Doyle and Crawford. Anyways, we’ll take what we can get, and this is certainly more than we expected! The liner notes here track the source of each tune, and the tunes range the gamut of Irish tune families (including two nice waltzes!), so there’s a ton of great material here for the budding Irish musician. And throughout there’s such a genuine love for the music that it’s hard not to fall in love too. In short, this is the kind of masterful album one would expect from Kevin Crawford. –Devon Leger
www.folkworks.org
In 1989, a young man from Birmingham, England moved to Ireland in order to concentrate more fully on his passion for Irish traditional music and most specifically, on the wooden flute. Instilled with a love and appreciation of Irish music and culture from his Irish-born parents, he quickly settled into the local session scene and a few short years later released his first solo CD. That young man was Kevin Crawford and the CD entitled simply, ‘D’ Flute Album, quickly became a classic of the Irish trad genre and required listening for Irish flute players worldwide. Crawford went on to join the band Moving Cloud, with whom he toured and released two albums. In 1997, he was asked to join the band Lunasa, replacing departing flute player Michael McGoldrick. Crawford’s addition to the then up and coming supergroup marked a turning point in the band’s sound and he has remained a driving force in the group’s arrangements over 7 albums as well as their frontman in concert. In 2001, he released In Good Company, an album of duets with favorite fiddle player friends, and in 2009 he collaborated with fellow Lunasa bandmate Cillian Vallely for On Common Ground, a duo album featuring Crawford on flute and Vallely on uilleann pipes. During this time, he continued to refine and expand his playing and the many years spent on the road and in the studio are highly apparent on his most recent offering, released in February of 2012. Carrying the Tune marks Crawford’s first return to the true solo album format since 1994s ‘D’ Flute Album and the wait, while long, has been more than worthwhile. Teaming up with Irish guitar phenomenon John Doyle, Kevin Crawford proves once again why he is one of the top Irish flute players in the world, and why he continues to be such an influence on the current generation of young Irish musicians.
Originally intended to be a Teetotaler’s album (a trio comprised of Crawford, Doyle and fiddler Martin Hayes) the project was quickly revised into a solo album when schedules conflicted. Mostly recorded over the short span of a few days, Crawford and Doyle recorded their tracks together live and then picked out what they felt to be the best performances of each track for the album. Later some additional bouzouki, guizouki and mandola were added by Doyle, along with some flute and whistle overdubbing from Crawford and some additional rhythm work from Mick Conneely on bouzouki and Brian Morrissey on bodhran. For the most part the overdubs are spare and this combined with the short recording period and rich, warm production value gives the album a lovely intimacy that is often lacking in the great wealth of trad albums now being offered.
The opening set of reels, titled McHugh’s/Michael Murphy’s/The Humors of Tullycrine, immediately dispels any uncertainties about what kind of an album this is. Crawford and Doyle are in top form as they effortlessly plow through a set of reels featuring Crawford on the Eb flute, soaring above Doyle’s driving, syncopated guitar. Indeed, perhaps in a nod to his original ‘D’ Flute Album, there is not a bit of ‘D’ pitched flute to be found on this recording, replaced by C and Eb flutes and D, C and Bb whistles. These differences in pitch from the usual concert D flute allow Crawford and Doyle to play with some interesting textures and tunings for the accompaniment instruments which further adds a very different vibe to the proceedings.
2 Days, the second track, consists of two slip jigs written by Kevin and originally pitched as a set to Lunasa. Vetoed by the band, the version here begins with some gorgeous textures set by Doyle on bouzouki and guitar with Crawford playing whistle and later layering in flute on the second tune. Lucky, Lucky Day, the second slip jig in the set, is a stunning tune that I predict will be making the Irish session rounds in the very near future and the tight, tasteful playing and chordal progressions make this track worth the price of the album alone.
Autumn’s Apples/Cormac O’Lunny’s/Paddy Sean Nancy’s is a light, straight ahead set of reels showcasing the two musicians’ obvious delight in playing together as the flute and guitar call and answer one another through one tune variations after the other. How many of these little bits of the musical “conversation” were planned out and how many were happy accidents in the studio we will probably never know but it is a wonderful track that nicely showcases two master musicians at the height of their craft.
Flatwater Fran/Mrs. Jean Cambell BSC is a set of waltzes, performed by Crawford on several overdubbed low F whistles and a low Bb harmony flute. For fans of Lunasa, this is probably the track that is closest in sound to the band’s now famous “low whistle trio” arrangements. The first tune is a composition of Scottish accordion maestro Phil Cunningham. The second comes from the playing of Scottish piper Rory Campbell and was originally recorded by the band Deaf Shepherd. I had not heard the tune in years and was pleasantly surprised as it is one of my favorite waltzes, and both tunes are given a wonderful life and quality here by Crawford and Co.
On an album that features primarily flute and guitar, even well played music can quickly become stale if the same formula is repeated over and over and Crawford wisely finds ways to avoid this problem without ever losing the essential momentum of the recording as a whole. I have long said that Kevin is one of the Irish music’s premiere air players and on The Dear Irish Boy he takes up one of the big standard pipe airs on the Bb whistle, infusing the tune with his usual sense of melodic taste and emotional clarity. The result is a truly haunting performance, supported by sparse but perfect guitar accompaniment from John Doyle. The two then continue on with a set of darkly rhythmic jigs, The Hole in the Boat/Sally Sloan’s.
The Slippery Slope may take my vote for favorite track on the album. Finely textured guitar opens this set of slip jigs with Crawford leaping forward on both melody and harmony flutes. I have always appreciated musicians who, while talented, restrain themselves from the absolute craziness you know they could ascend to if they wished, and instead choose to implement that prowess for just the right moments. Crawford exercises that tasteful restraint here though you hear his energy and enthusiasm bursting at the edges of his music until the track hits the final tune (a traditional Bulgarian ‘Horo’). He then unleashes several harmony flutes and, along with Doyle’s lush chordal arrangements, builds the track in intensity until the satisfying climax.
Repeal of the Union is a set of reels starting with the eponymous old piping tune before switching into one of the nicest and most interesting versions of the Ivy Leaf I have ever heard. This particular reel is oft played by many pipers and flute players and Kevin presents an interpretation that combines elements of many different versions of the tune while adding in various aspects of his own inimitable style.
Della the Diamond is a set of three tunes written by Crawford, each for a member of his family (mother-in-law, sister-in-law and wife, Tracy, respectively) and it provides a wonderful example of his tune writing abilities. This is one of several tracks that feature bouzouki player Mick Conneely. Conneely plays a Greek bouzouki with 6 strings and his style is very reminiscent of Alec Finn’s classic approach to the instrument. You would think that his rolling, old school playing on the bouzouki would clash with Doyle’s very modern, syncopated style on the guitar but in fact the two very different accompanists mesh perfectly on this track, providing a sure and measured textural net underneath Crawford’s lilting whistle playing.
The Hula Hoop opens with a jig written for a neighbor and snooker rival of Kevin’s and it is another example of his gifts for hiding subtle musical ‘winks’ in his playing. The tune takes some unexpected variational paths, replacing legato phrasing with a staccato phrase here and there and is a testament to the sheer joy and love of playing that is inherent in this album. The set then shifts gear into a reel and churns along to the solid, neatly locked rhythms of Doyle on guitar and Brian Morrissey on bodhran.
The album ends appropriately with the air Ag Taisteal na Blárnan (Travelling Through Blarney) on the low C flute, once again displaying the ease and understanding with which Crawford presents slower melodies. The air is then followed up by one last reel in the form of the session favorite, Come West Along the Road.
Kevin Crawford has said that this album was meant to be primarily about musicality rather than showy technique, and this choice becomes more and more evident upon both first and repeated listenings. The technique and pyrotechnics are there, but they never get in the way of the melody and there is a excitement and playfulness to his music that grabs the listener from the first note. All in all, this album succeeds brilliantly because it takes no shortcuts in how it presents the material. Talented and inventive musicians with a deep respect for their craft and tradition coupled with a simple approach to the arranging and a stellar production make this CD a must have for fans of the genre and for Irish flute players especially. Zac Leger
Folkworld 47
Kevin Crawford of Lúnasa fame is taking a break from the band’s hectic touring schedule. Together with the help of John Doyle on guitar and bouzouki and occasionally Mick Conneely on bouzouki and Brian Morrissey on the bodhran, Kevin recorded 14 tracks that weren’t meant to become part of Lúnasa’s repertoire, though I see no reason why not. It’s a party, it’s fresh and innovative as we knew it from Lunasa – though more stripped down here, of course. I love the nice slip jig set of Maurice Lennon’s “La Ollamh” and Donal Lunny’s “Lucky Lucky Day”. There’s a pair of lovely waltzes, Phil Cunningham’s “Flatwater Fran” and Rory Campbell’s “Mrs Jean Campbell (BSC),” and before finishing off Kevin throws in a couple of his own original jigs. The highlight though is in the middle of the album, the song air “Dear Irish Boy” followed by two jigs with a total lenght of seven minutes. For sure, Kevin Crawford can carry a tune. Great traditional Irish music, not only for flute afficionados!
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Kevin Glackin, Ronan Browne, Sean Tyrrell – And so the story goes
and so the story goes…
Inspirational Traditional Trio Tour Ireland
A new album and a national tour, scheduled for this May & June, 2011, will harvest the talents of three of the most highly respected musicians within the Irish traditional/folk scene.
Sean Tyrrell, renowned for his unique singer/ songwriter talents, legendary fiddle player Kevin Glackin and creative uilleann piper Ronan Browne will fuse their talents on stage, for what promises to be an inspiring tour. Gigs have been scheduled across Ireland, from Dublin to Clifden and from Monaghan to An Daingean.
Sean, Kevin and Ronan have been playing together socially and for tours and shows since the 1980s but are only now (after major hounding by their fans) releasing a CD of songs and tunes. The CD is nicely balanced between gentle and wild music, without suffering from
that dreadful modern ailment of over-production; just warm, friendly music and singing. The tracks are rounded out beautifully by the delicately responsive accompaniment of three fine musicians.
Commenting on the forthcoming tour, Sean Tyrrell said, “Although the three of us are old hands in the business, we are very much looking forward to this tour. We respect one another’s talents and know that, as always, we will each benefit from this collaboration. We are also confident that our audiences will have the opportunity to enjoy an honest performance.”
Full tour details available at www.tyrrellglackinbrowne. com
Press Reviews
R2 Magazine
Irish musicians Sean Tyrrell, Kevin Glackin and Ronan Browne, each well respected in their own right, are also longstanding friends who’ve played together socially since the 1980s. And So The Story Goes is a collection of their favourite songs and traditional tunes
Glackin and Browne are at their best on Micho Russell’s Jigs’, which are actually from Sliabh Luachra rather than from the playing of the late Micho’. Their logic for the naming of this set perhaps sumes up the sentiment of the CD. “No idea what happened, but why change our ways at this late stage!” However the story goes, the fiddle and pipes meld into one in a way that is only achieved through years of playing together.
Tyrrell’s songs are unusual yet charming. Dan O’Hara was made famous by Ronan Browne’s grandmother, Delia Murphy, tells of th eimpact of the 1846-47 famine on the life of a Connemara farmer.
The recording makes you feel you’ve been invited to sit in on a live kitchen session, rather than it being a studio piece. As the lads put it. And So The Story Goes,..is warm, friendly music and song”.
Keith Whiddon
The Irish World 7.7.11
And So The Story Goes is the new album by Sean Tyrrell, Kevin Glackin and Ronan Browne, harvesting the talents of these three greats of the traditional music scene. As you can imagine, the result is pretty good.
Relaxed and honest, each track on this long-awaited album exudes a natural ease which can only be earned between musicians who go back a long way and have seen out more than a few lively sessions together.
Tyrrell, renowned as a singer-songwriter, legendary fiddler Kevin Glackin and unique uilleann piper Ronan Browne fuse their skills both on this album and on stage, as the three have just finished a set of acclaimed dates across Ireland.
As old friends, Sean, Kevin and Ronan have been hooking up to play a few tunes together as well as shows and concerts since the 1980s, but only now (after a serious amount of pressure from fans!) have they released a CD together.
And So The Story Goes balances both the gentle and the wild elements of their musk, warm, friendly and not at all overproduced; letting the talents of each of these three brilliant musicians reign supreme.
Unusual song choices and a deep-rooted vivacity underpinning each offering make for a truly excellent listen.
Sean Tyrrell said of the trio getting back on the road together – also very fitting with regards to the album: “Although the three of us are old hands in the business, we are very much looking forward to this tour.
“We respect one another’s talents and know that, as always, we will each benefit from this collaboration. “We are also confident that our audiences will have the opportunity to enjoy an honest performance.”
For more on the band and live dates, see www.tyrrellglackinbrowne.com.
The Irish Post 19.6.11
Although great friends this is the first time Sean Tyrrell, Kevin Glacken and Ronan Browne have actually recorded an album of their own.
They have, however, been performing together in various combinations on and off for about 30 years. I have always liked Sean Tyrrell’s voice and choice of material and the Galway man’s vocals and mandocello combined with the fiddle and pipes of Dublin men Glackin and Browne works perfectly.
When you add in touches by guests Fergus Feely on mandola, Jimmy Fitzgerald on guitar and Paul O’Driscoll on double bass the overall sound is one of taste and style where nothing is overdone or intrusive. They combine brilliantly to get the best out of each other and you get the impression that they are playing to their individual and collective strengths.
It is a lovely album and I was delighted to see that Sean included Dan O’Hara on the CD. This sad song of forced emigration in the aftermath of the famine has always been a favourite of mine and he does a lovely job on it. Putting WB Yeats’ poem Cap and Bells to music was a brilliant idea with a jig added in for good measure. Joe Giltrap.
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Kevin Rowsome – The Rowsome Tradition
- The Limestone Rock / The 5 Mile Chase
- The Woods of Kilkenny / Young Roger Was a Ploughboy
- The Broken Pledge / The College Groves
- The Wexford Hornpipe / Murphy’s
- The Woodcock / Put Your Clothes On
- Up and About in the Morning / Old Man Dillon
- The Dublin Lasses / John Doherty’s
- Blind Mary
- Kilcooley Woods / The First of May
- Lament for Staker Wallace
- Kitty’s Rambles / Fraher’s
- Trip to Bantry / The Coming of Spring
- Archive Recordings from Rowsome Family Archives
- O’Donnell Abu / The Boys of Wexford
- The Liverpool Hornpipe
- The Irish Rover
- Freedom for Ireland Polka Set
- Ar Raibh tu ag an gCarraig
- The Coolin
Press Reviews
Folk World #33
Five generations of uilleann piping: The Huguenot family “Rousome” came to Ireland in the late 17th century and settled in Co. Wexford. Samuel Rowsome of Ballintore (*1820), a prosperous farmer, introduced piping into the clan, but it was piper and pipe maker Leo Rowsome (1903-70) who is widely regarded as “Rí na bPíobairí” (King of Pipers). Leo performed on the opening of Irish radio in 1926. He co-founded Cumann na bPíobairí Uileann in 1934 and he recorded the very first LP for Claddagh Records in 1959. His pupils make a hall of fame: Liam O’Flynn (Planxty), Willie Clancy, Joe McKenna, Paddy Moloney (Chieftains), Peter Browne (Bothy Band, Afro Celts), Gay McKeon, Al Purcell. The latest offspring of that talented family, Generation 5, grandson Kevin Rowsome (Kevin Rowsome) continues the family tradition. Kevin took his first lessons from his grandfather when he was six years of age. “The Rowsome Tradition” presents a terrific mix of classical pipe tunes, displaying delicate skills on both chanter and regulators, joined occasionally by fiddler (and wife) Lorraine Hickey and backed gently by bouzouki and guitar. Kevin plays a concert pitch (D) set of pipes made by Leo about 1948 and a C-sharp pitched set made by great grandfather William about 1898. Boths sets were restored by German pipemaker Andreas Rogge. Generations 3 and 4 provide six bonus tracks from the archives (1957-69): grandfather Leo, father Leon, and uncle Liam (fiddle) Rowsome. Walkin’ T:-)M
Musical Traditions Web Site
There is, at the end, no doubting the accomplishment on this CD: of its kind well judged in setting Kevin Rowsome’s own contribution in the grand line which he is at pains to emphasise at all points, finishing with a dedication to his parents. Roly Brown
The Living Tradition Sept/Oct 2000
Kevin Rowsome is the grandson of Leo, known as ‘The King of the Pipers’. A celebrated Irish piper, maker and teacher, Leo Rowsome taught many of today’s great pipers; his pupils included Liam O’Flynn, Paddy Moloney, Joe McKenna and the late Willie Clancy. Kevin learnt his piping from his grandfather and father and has acquired the Rowsome style and repertoire. As well as a dozen tracks of his own high-quality piping, Kevin’s debut album includes six archive tracks featuring Leo Rowsome and his two sons. All this is squeezed into 53 minutes, with very informative notes and some old family photographs. There’s a broad range of traditional tunes here, from 17th century compositions to tunes written in living memory, all great melodies which fit comfortably on the pipes. Kevin plays three sets of uillleann pipes, in C. C# and D, each producing a different tone. The pipes are temperamental at best, and he occasionally struggles to keep them in order, but his playing in generally a pleasing combination of fluid and staccato styles. Accompaniment is appropriately sparse; the tunes speak for themselves, a mixture of reels, jigs, hornpipes and airs gives plenty of variety.
Well known pieces such as ‘The Broken Pledge’ and ‘The Wexford Hornpipe’ are treated very nicely here. There are no startling new tunes, but we must remember that much of the classic piping repertoire came from the playing of Leo Rowsome so Kevin is performing his family’s music. The link with previous generations of pipers is amply illustrated by the inclusion of six tracks from the 50s and 60s. These feature Leo, Leon and Liam Rowsome on amateur recordings. The two fiddle solos from Liam which end the album are quite remarkable for the time, but the quality of the other four archive tracks is only enough to whet the appetite. Fortunately, there are clearer recordings of Leo Rowsome available. Overall, this is a very interesting and informative CD which gives a good feel for the Rowsome piping legacy. Alex Monaghan
Fintan Vallely’s review 6/2/2000 The Rowsome Tradition
A wonderful evocation of the story of Irish concert and “flat” uilleann piping from a fifth generation master. A pity perhaps that guitar is ever-opresent, but over 12 tracks the playing is a neat balance of open and tight fingering, and solo on the air Staker Wallace, and jig Kitty’s rambles is superb. Six archive items have grandfather Leo on The Liverpool with father Leon on piano, and are deeply nostalgic with honking regulator in The Irish Rover and a sad resonance on uncle Liam’s fiddle
The Irish Times 8/3/2000
Alongside recordings of his male near ancestors from the otherworld of the late 1950s, the modern Rowsome has an earnest, aisily swaggering style born of total co-ordination. Each set is a technical study, wandering down, say, an Ennis byroad with barping regulators on a hornpipe; always with that emphatic little upskip I associate with Liam O’Flynn (indeed Liam O’Flynn’s pipes were made by Kevin’s grandfather). He breaks for the ditches more on reels like, The Broken Pledge, neatly sideskips the ould beat of a jig, and is forever adding in the odd unprovoked squoozh of ornament.
Yeah, it it’s pipes you’re after, this steady stream of nuggets is a real pleasure. Mic Moroney
Musical Traditions Web Magazine.
The result is a beautifully played and conceived CD which is a credit to the Rowsome tradition. Ron Kavana
Irish Music Magazine June 2000
There are names in piping that have pedigree; anything from a Rowsome, Ennis or Clancy is a must have. Kevin Rowsome is the current custodian of the family tradition.The five generations in the title refers to numbers 3,4 and 5 and samples the Rowsomes legacy over the twentieth century; from William Rowsome in 1902 to Kevin today.
The first 12 tracks are from Kevin; the treatment is mainly modern with the addition of guitar, bouzouki and (Pat March, Noel Ryan and Lorraine Hickey).These are post Bothy Band arrangements, tastefully done with the pipes always out front and sounding like pipes, no sound desk trickery at work here.
Then comes track four, a solo set of Hompipes (the Wexford and Murphy’s), with lovely deft touches on the regulators, great taste and at a danceable pace.
There are also more complex and demanding solo pieces, The Lament for Staker Wallace and the hompipes KilcooleyWoods and The First of May.
If this isn’t enough there are 6 archive tracks, (a CD within in a CD) These latter tracks were recorded between 1957 and 1969 the first four by his grandfather, Leo Rowsome, the latter of Liam Rowsome on fiddle.
Those looking for changes of style over the three generations will find much to discover in this album. Clothing is a good indicator of prevailing modes; Kevin is seen in white jeans and a red open necked shirt. His forelbear’s are suited and be-tied. Fashions change, but the common thread is the gra for the pipes, it’s a lovely album this, one for the top drawer. Sean Laffey.
Folk Roots July 2000
Building on the tradition as well is a young man who has inherited skills andinstruments and the name of the afore mentioned, Leo Rowsome. His grandson, Kevin Rowsome has at last made a CD that pays homage to his grandfather and his late father, Loen, yet shows Kevin is his own man, influenced yes, but I think possibly the most skilful of them all. Leo, very much a man of the early 20th century, could play anything on the pipes that he was also adept at making., but his considerable recorded work included some awful turkeys and many of his 78s dont make easy listening because of the over-use of the regulators. Leon was a most able player, but I always got the impression that he wasn’t that interested, preferring the piano accordeon. Kevin, however, has developed into quite a tasty player. He lived in England for many years, and busked on the London Underground, recorded with the Bristol based group, Afterhours, and generally honed his craft along with a little bit of pipe making on the way. He returned to Dublin and lives in the same area as his grandfather, Leo did.
Kevin manages to avoid the overuse of the regulators and dubious choice of tunes that Leo was prone to. The album is a a delightfully varied mixture of playing finesse with a mixing of different keyed pipes giving different wood tones. The addition of Lorraine Hickey, a sparkling young Sligo fiddler on some tracks and unobtrusive, appropiate accompaniment makes for a first-rate album. In addition you get some rare archive recordings of Leo, Leon and Liam Rowsome.
It tells the whole dynastis story in a way, and so there is a strong possibility that the Rowsome dynasty of pipers will continue well into its third century. Joe Crane
The Irish Post 20/1/2000
It is unusual, to say the least, for one recording to involve 3 generations of musicians from one family, but that’s one of the many boasts, The Rowsome Tradition can make. This album features the third, fourth and fifth generation of the famous Irish musical dynasty, a family which shaped the very way uilleann pipes are now played.
However, The Rowsome Tradition is by no means just a vinyl monument to academia — it’s full of some unforgettable music. Kevin Rowsome, who contributes 12 tracks to this album, is the grandson of the most famous member of the family, Leo. Kevin first gained recognition in 1991 by winning first prize at An t-Oireachtas, just 100 years after his great uncle; Tom Rowsome had won the same competition.
On this album he is joined by guest musicians Lorriane Hickey (fiddle), Pat Marsh (bouzouki) and Mark Lysaght (guitar). Kevin and Lorraine’s unison playing is faultless — note perfect, rhythm and pace steady. Many of the “big” reels are given an outing; The College Groves, The Broken Pledge and The Five Mile Chase.Jigs are well represented by such “heavies” as, Kitty’s Rambles and Fraher’s. Powerful Stuff.
The pipes are always heard to best effect on slow airs and there are two classics here, Carolan’s Blind Mary and The Lament for Staker Wallace. Here Kevin demonstrates his total command of the instrument — mastery of the chanter, sparing use of the regulators and rich ornamentation.
The Rowsome Tradition includes 6 archive tracks featuring Kevin’s grandfather, Leo Rowsome, his father, Leon and his uncle, Liam on fiddle — recorded between 1957 and 1969. This is one of the most interesting pieces of music I’ve heard in a long time. It is by no means an ancient recording (after all, by 69 the Beatles were thinking of calling it a day!), but it represents a direct link to the masters of Irish music of centuries past. The tracks feature Leo and Leon (on pipes and piano), plus Liam (Kevin’s uncle) on the fiddle.
This is a very important archive recording of one of Ireland’s greatest musical families, but chock full of stonking tunes as well. If you’re only going to buy one traditional album this century, I’d stick your money on this one. Malcolm Rogers The Irish Post
Hot Press 8/12/99
If Tradition means passing on and according due respect, then The Rowsome Tradition lives up to its title to a tee. Kevin Rowsome is lucky enough, by an accident of birth;
to belong to one of Dublin’s finest piping families.
This is a CD of two halves, Brian. The two are quite different beasts, differing in every aspect: size, hue and chronology. The first dozen tracks are snapshots of Kevin’s own playing, stylistically adventurous and imaginative. The last 6 bonus tracks are archive recordings of Kevin’s grandfather, Leo, his father Leon and his uncle, Liam, three stalwart pipers who were never afraid to put their own blas on the music either.
Kevin Rowsome’s own repertoire draws from a broad palette. The opening set of reels, from The Limestone Rock and The 5 Mile Chase with its gutsy guitar percussion underscoring Rowsome’s stealthy tracing of the tunes, to the more expected twinning of fiddle and pipes on Kilcooley Woods and The First of May (with Lorraine Hickey on fiddle) whisper of a player at home in his own musical skin.
The archive recordings fit seamlessly beside the contemporary pieces. With some technical wizardry (courtesy of Trevor Hutchinson), excess interference has been excised, revealing playing of immense virtuosity, skill and passion. Hearing O’Donnell Abu recorded at an impromptu session along with the almost music-hall ambience of The Liverpool Hornpipe with Leo on pipes and his son, Leon on piano is a timely reminder of the root and branch system of the music.
The Rowsome Tradition bears witness to the fiery past, and celebrates the rosy health of the present. A fine debut, auguring well for Kevin’s next excursion into the studio. Siobhan Long 10/12 Dice Dots. Hot Press
£14.99
