Review: A Celebration of Scottish Music by various artists

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Some Reviews of Scottish Music

A Celebration of Scottish Music

Temple Records. CTP028.

An album containing 13 tracks of traditional Scottish music with a variety of artists giving a celebration of song (several in Gaelic) and instrumentalists contemporary and traditional, pipe band, Scottish dance, Scottish small pipes, all from the top of the present scene.

Track 1 opens with the Battlefield Band and their lovely Celtic sounding “Frideray”, through “The Duchess of Gordon” and “Silver Darlin’s” to two 6/8 marches. Track 2, vocal and small pipes in a nice combination of “Bonnie Susie Clelland” then changing in Track 3 to the sweet Scots rhythm of Gow’s “Lamentation for James Moray of Abercarney” (full of grace, this), contrasting with the Gaelic Air and Working Song on Track 4, of Christine Primrose reminding us of the singular contribution of this side of the Scottish heritage.

Track 5 cracks into life with typically crisp piping from Shotts and Dykehead in the increasingly popular “Troy’s Wedding” and “Fraher’s Jig”. Side B starts with Shotts and Dykehead, plus Battlefield, in a catchy arrangement of “The Seagull” and includes the lilting “Sandy’s new chanter”. This is followed in Track 2 by the wistful clarity of Cilla Fisher’s “Far over the Forth”. Alison Kinnaird continues in Track 3 with two Gawlic Harp solos, whilst on Track 4 “Calum ‘Sgaire” is traditionally sung by Christine Primrose.

The mood changes on Track 5 as Jim Johnstone and his band play jigs in typically foot-tapping, shoulder-swinging style. The port-a-beul and piping on Track 6 is a fitting introduction to what is for me one of the album’s highlights, with Hamish Moore excelling as always on the Scottish small pipes, contrasting superbly the air “Fair Maid of Barra” with “Drops of Brandy” and all the Moore-ish variations. I would have enjoyed another track of this. The tape concludes with Jim Johnstone and his band in great style, giving a driving lesson in four good jigs. This is a veritable pot pouri of Scottish music for all tastes, and I look forward to a sequel.

Gordon Mooney - “O’Er The Border”

Temple Records. CTP031.

As the title implies, this is an album of mainly border music of all types, some dating back to the 17th century. Gordon plays both solo and accompanied pieces on a variety of small pipes. He has conducted a terrific amount of

The Bagpipe Society

Review: A Celebration of Scottish Music by various artists