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William
Jackson & Mackenzie Notes From a Hebridean Island Linn Records AKD 145 |
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I envy the visitor who is hooked by the very evocative (though not Hebridean) sleeve photograph on this CD, for inside he/she will hear some of the very best Scottish and Gaelic singing and instrumental music played by some of the best exponents of the art. Produced and recorded by Calum Malcolm, it features mainly the considerable talents of William Jackson on harp, whistles, laud and piano and the equally considerable vocal talents of sisters Eilidh, Gillian and Fiona Mackenzie. Add to that guest musicians of the calibre of James Macintosh (percussion); Iain MacInnes (pipes); Tony McManus (guitar); Aidan ORourke (fiddle); Ian Lowthian (accordion) and Calum Malcolm himself on bass and keyboards and you can understand why this is no ordinary recording. One or two of the tunes may have unfamiliar titles but are instantly recognisable and the Gaelic songs are sung beautifully. This reviewers star track so far is a haunting version of Ba Mo Leanabh (O My Baby) which is a Canadian version of Griogal Cridhe, a lament attributed to the wife of Gregor MacGregor of Glenstrae and composed at his execution. The instrumental tracks are beautifully paced, with the somewhat common recurring curse of playing everything at breakneck speed noticeably and thankfully absent. Here - aided by some clever arrangements - the melodies are allowed to stand up by themselves. There isnt a weak track on the album, but its probably worth mentioning that its music for listening to. Its a joy from start to finish and is a near perfect example of all thats attractive about traditional - and traditional sounding - Scottish music. Alan McIntosh Brown |
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