View Full Version : Alec finn etc on you tube
kmmando
Oct-30-2006, 6:51am
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FTFg_rx1tUY
Found this interesting clip of Alec Finn accompanying Frankie Gavin and Jackie Daly, as an example of his rather unique and effective bouzouki style.
Kevin
Steve L
Oct-30-2006, 10:34am
There's also a clip of the Bothy Band up now from 1979 doing Pretty Peg/Craig's Pipes. Great stuff.
MandoSquirrel
Oct-30-2006, 2:43pm
There are also some Planxty & Andy Irvine vids.
Keith Miller
Oct-30-2006, 6:20pm
that video was not taken yesterday http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/laugh.gif
Paul Kotapish
Oct-31-2006, 10:55am
Boy, that brought back some great memories. Those first few De Danann LPs were magical, largely because of the amazing interplay between Frankie Gavin and Alec Finn. Their duet LP was a classic, too. It's still available on CD and well worth ferretting out.
http://www.celt.com.au/Images/gavin.jpg
For my money, Alec Finn's bouzouki playing is far and away the most appropriate and lovely accompaniment for trad Irish tunes. It's interesting and never obtrusive, and his groove is amazing. Donal Lunny has probably had a bigger influence--and he is arguably more inventive and maybe even more exciting--but Finn's work is sublime.
kmmando
Nov-01-2006, 2:35am
Paul, I couldn't agree more with these comments. It speaks volumes that no-one has ever come close to emulating his sound and style, simply because Alec has a unique and highly spontaneous approach to accompanyment.
There must be a whole lot more film of De Dannan lurking unseen in various archives. It can't be long before it all becomes "e"vailable to access as per other things like concerts on sugarmegs. Roll on the day. I'd love to see more of De Dannan in their prime again.
If you want to know how Irish traditional music should be played, then these guys have it nailed completely. Nothing finer, to my ears, and boy does it swing and groove - love it!
Kevin
rmcintos
Nov-01-2006, 6:14pm
Found another clip of De Dannan. Awesome!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EqpB7N0NPi0&NR
kmmando
Nov-03-2006, 2:40am
Wow - where on earth are these clips surfacing from?
fabulous!
I'm looking to spot Kevin in the crowd http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif
About 1:00- 1:30 into that clip there is a great video pass showing Alec's technique. One thing that impressed me the first time I watched him play is his economy of note, how seldom he picks. The sustain from the greek bouzouki makes it much easier to get a jig rhythm with straight down/up picking and a hammer or pull-off for the middle note or notes.
You can see that for the most part he has a downstroke on the 1 & 4 beats of the jig, and usually a note in the middle from the left hand. Make a very nice rolling boom-ba-da boom-ba-da pulse to the music.
In the reels there is a great view showing the hard down stroke followed by a slow upstroke to gtet a triplet rhythm as he strikes the three strings, that adds a lot of lift to the Reel with nice tension just before the downbeat.. great clip!
kmmando
Nov-03-2006, 6:20am
this stunning clip keeps stopping and starting and I can't get far into it - anyone know why?
Kevin
Steve Baker
Nov-03-2006, 6:30am
<<this stunning clip keeps stopping and starting and I can't get far into it - anyone know why?>
I had the same problem. You need to do something else for a few minutes while the entire package loads. The playing cycle moves faster than the loading and eventually runs out of material. You can track it on the timer bar at the bottom.
Steve
There's a firefox extension that lets you save local copies of youtube/google video clips by the way, handy..
Martin Jonas
Nov-03-2006, 10:21am
Dan --
there seem to be quite a few different Firefox extensions that say they can do it: which one do you use?
Martin
I've used one called "fast video download"
Paul Kotapish
Nov-03-2006, 12:13pm
That second clip is wonderful. Two bouzoukis, no waiting. Charlie Piggot was a heck of a tenor banjo player until the fingers of his left hand got caught in a slammed van door. Now he's a heck of a melodian player. Also a good reminder about what a superb percussionist Johnny (Ringo) McDonagh is. Always musical, never obtrusive.
This lineup of the band is probably my favorite, although the singing of Dolores Keane was pretty great, too.
Hope some more clips of De Danann and the Bothy Band and other groups from this vintage emerge.
I just did a quick search, and there are a bunch of Planxty videos posted. I'll check those out next. This is a great trip down memory lane.
Martin Jonas
Nov-03-2006, 4:32pm
Dan, that one works just fine -- many thanks! I've installed FLV Player (http://www.martijndevisser.com/blog/article/flv-player-updated), which can play the .flv files downloaded from Youtube outside the web browser.
Martin
zoukboy
Nov-03-2006, 7:53pm
That second clip is wonderful. Two bouzoukis, no waiting. Charlie Piggot was a heck of a tenor banjo player until the fingers of his left hand got caught in a slammed van door. Now he's a heck of a melodian player. Also a good reminder about what a superb percussionist Johnny (Ringo) McDonagh is. Always musical, never obtrusive.
I'm with you, Paul. Charlie's playing made a big impression on me the first time I saw them way back in 1981...
What a great clip, but we don't hear much out of Johnny Moynihan on that one. And it's interesting to hear them without the box that became such an important part of their sound.
zoukboy
Nov-03-2006, 8:05pm
For my money, Alec Finn's bouzouki playing is far and away the most appropriate and lovely accompaniment for trad Irish tunes. It's interesting and never obtrusive, and his groove is amazing. Donal Lunny has probably had a bigger influence--and he is arguably more inventive and maybe even more exciting--but Finn's work is sublime.
Amen. I wish more folks emulated him.
Keith Miller
Nov-04-2006, 11:53pm
here is another, didn't you play with De Dannan at one point Kevin ?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-SahWPo3cis
Keith
Several more there, thanks Keith http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif
kmmando
Nov-06-2006, 3:19am
Keith, I had the immense honour of being dragged up on stage with the band on several occasions, probably the most memorable being a spectacular gig in a massive marquee in Galway, at the Arts Festival, when they celebrated 25 years (I think) of playing as a band, and they had most of the alumni of the band there. It was wonderful and the 1500 local crowd were in paroxisms of delight. That night I recall that I played my mandolin with them on the great Irish waltz set which ends "Half Set in Harlem", and Briain Bourke sang. Alec and Frankie have always asked people up for a tune or song, with Harry Dean Stanton on one occasion singing "Borderline" with the band! So to have sat on stage with these great musicians remains one of the great high points of my life. Incidentally, I recall playing my National resonator tenor guitar with them on a couple of occasions. Such a shame the band are no more.
Kevin, can you send me contact information for Pete Hill? We could post the video we have of the pair of us playing with Alec & Roger at Zoukfest
Seth Austen
Nov-06-2006, 6:49am
Great clips. I've been going back to Alec's work a lot the last couple of years, especially the duo recordings w/ Frankie Gavin and Tommy Peoples. While checking out the clips I found this Bothy Band video from the same year.
<http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EOrReDJEpNQ&mode=related&search=>
Seth
Keith Miller
Nov-06-2006, 6:50am
Kevin,
I agree , shame they split. Do you know if the gig they did with Andy Statman is available on CD ? Would love to add that to the collection, I even bought Hotel Connemara http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/laugh.gif
Keith
kmmando
Nov-07-2006, 6:00am
Keith, there is no recording, except for the brilliant clarinet parts that Andy Statman did on the "Half Set in Harlem" cd. If my memory serves me right, De Dannan did three gigs on the East Coast with the Andy Statman Klezmer Orchestra in 1984. Dan Collins of Shanachie Records was actively involved with the idea, I think. I recall going to the Town Hall NY, Philadelphia, and one other place I can't recall. The bands did a set each, then played sets of their own styles of music as a complete double band ensemble. It was an amazing sound, and a real world crossover event. Pity no-one thought to video it. Andy was absolutely breathtaking, and I sat entranced in the corner of the room when they did their rehearsals. He is the greatest mandolinist, for me, but fiddler Frankie Gavin and meolodeonist Mairtin O'Connor were fired up for the challenge and the results were a stunning whirlwind of Klezmer/Irish dance tunes and poignant songs from Maura O'Connell. Great times indeed. Someone in the band entitled the ensemble band "The Leprecohens"!
Keith Miller
Nov-07-2006, 12:42pm
Kevin, thanks, there is a sort of klezmer track on one of the albums but I would have loved the statman set... must have been amazing, just shows how music crosses all genres. Also heard that it was Alec Finn who christened the set maybe Im way off though
Keith