Rough Guide To Scottish Folk

This compilation goes beyond sensational. As the title implies, the record gives a great "rough guide" or starting point to one of Europe's strongest living musical traditions. I have always loved various artist albums because of their variety, and how they allow you the opportunity to explore and hear the different styles of many performers. From the opening guitar and fiddle of Battlefield Band, through the final "drones" of John Burgess's highland pipes, you will be energized with a variety in song and dance. I have many favorites, but my top three would include: Track 7, where Rory Campbell (low whistle) and Malcolm Stitt (guitar) both from the group Deaf Shepherd play a mysterious, haunting sort of jig. Added to this, at certain intervals, is just the right amount of electronic vibrations to give it an eye-opening "eerie" feeling. On track 13, Johnny Hardie (fiddle) from Old Blind Dogs, and Gavin Marwick (fiddle, guitar and mandolin) from The Iron Horse put on a 3-part show. It begins with a "quiet" fiddle/guitar duet, which builds in velocity (but not intensity) in part two. By the time the final set arrives, you won't be able to stop the toe-tapping due to the slightly increased tempo and volume. What makes this a nice piece, is the predominant fiddle does not overshadow the other instruments, but compliments them. Track 14, makes me feel like I am being entertained in a 16th century castle. Played by twin sisters on recorders, it begins with a nicely plucked mandolin solo by Steve Lawrence (Iron Horse). He is joined by the recorders, which materializes into a sweet, melodic Renaissance aire. Then, at 1:45 into the piece, all of a sudden Steve adds percussion to the mix. This, along with a harder driven guitar surrounding the recorders, builds enough momentum (puh rum pum pum)for a rousing finish.

Again, this is a great way to start a collection of Scottish folk music, or explore new territories. It is also an exceptional value... with approximately 70 minutes of recording time.

I teach K-8 music, and have found a way to play this CD in nearly all of my classes. Regardless of their tastes, ("I only listen to rap," for example) the kids can't help bopping their heads and even asking, "can we dance to this?" My own copy spent a month in my mother's car before I got her own. Although the music on this CD varies from track to track, the quality does not. I highly recommend this CD to anyone.

These Rough Guide CDs make for excellent introductions to music from cultures and places all over the world. Few places offer the musical depth of tradition as Scotland, of course, and this CD features a plethora of great music blending the old with the new of that land. I should point out that I know virtually nothing about Scottish music, so I really can't do much in the way of putting the featured artists in a proper context; the best I can do is offer my impressions of the nineteen tracks in question.

There is a lot of variety packed into this 70-some minute CD; if you think Scottish music means bagpipes and more bagpipes, you know even less about it than I do. Certainly, you'll get a little bagpipe music here, but you'll also hear some fantastic guitar, fiddle, harp, pipes, whistles, and a lot of other instruments I can hardly pronounce, let alone describe adequately.

I was familiar with the name, if not the music, of one featured artist: Capercaillie, one of the most prominent Gaelic bands out there; not only is the group represented here with The Tree, their famed singer Karen Matheson contributes an impressive Gaelic tune called Rithill Aill. This brings up an obvious point: you will hear a lot more Gaelic than English vocals on this album; Gaelic truly is a more beautiful, musically emotive language; the drawback, of course, is that few of us understand any of the words. By my count, only three of these tunes feature English vocals. Silly Wizard leads the way in the English vocals department, as far as I'm concerned, with a live recording of The Queen of Argyll, my favorite track on the album. Wolfstone isn't far behind them, though, imparting a wonderfully full and busy sound to their track Heart and Soul. Then there is Dirty Old Town by the late Ewan MacColl, one of the most important and influential figures in the preservation and perpetuation of British folk music.

Mac-Talla delivers arguably the most poignant song on the album with Griogal Cridhe, a Gaelic lament and lullaby dating all the way back to 1570 (yes, 1570). Mac-Talla's Christine Primrose also offers a beautiful Gaelic song of her own, Tha M'Eudail Is M'Aighear 'S Mo Grandh (a song which probably dates back to the 18th century). Then there's the much more energetic 'S Gann Gunn Dirich Mi Chaoidh from folk revival band Ossian.

All of the remaining tracks, if I'm not mistaken, are instrumentals. I'm not a big fan of instrumentals, but there are some really impressive ones on this album, ranging from the evocative to the frenetic. You've got the haunting pipes of Rory Campbell & Malcolm Stitt, an unusually pleasing waltz from Fiddlers Five, harp-playing at its finest from Alison Kinnaird on The Crags of Ailsa/Staffa's Shore, fiddle mastery at the hands of Jonny Hardie & Gavin Marwick, and amazing reels from the likes of Tannahill Weavers, Ross Kennedy & Archie McAllister, and Aly Bain and his former teacher Tom Anderson. Whirligig blends the traditional and the modern in fine fashion with The Harper/Lady Catherine Ogle, and John D. Burgess, the "King of Highland Pipers," closes out the album with the incomparable bagpipe strains of The Swallow-Tailed Coat/Turf Lodge.

This CD represents only a tiny dip in the immense pool of Scottish music, but it definitely does do a wonderful job showcasing the variety and unique sounds of a land where music seems to be a vital if not essential part of life.