"Various Artists" Irish Mandolin Compilation

[Aidan Crossey]

Thanks again to everyone for the interest in this project.

In case people think it's all gone a little quiet, I can assure you that I've been chipping away in the background, seeking to gee people up and interest them in the project.

Already that "geeing up" has yielded some very pleasant results and I'm pleased to say that I have in my possession some inspired and inspiring tune sets.

In particular I'd like to thank two of the stalwarts of the mandolincafe discussion board, Kevin MacLeod and Dagger Gordon who have provided me with specially-recorded material - in Kevin's case a schottiche/6/8 march/reel set and in Dagger's - a departure from the work for which he is justifiably famous and an indication of his versatility - a lovely set of Irish jigs.

More stuff has been provided and more has been promised ... I'll give more details as the weeks pass by.

However, for the moment, could people please note that in addition to material which I have solicited, I'd love to receive material from the non-professional players who congregate in places such as this discussion board. I can't guarantee that I'll use everything that I receive. The presence of some of the biggest names in Irish/Scottish/CB etc. mandolin mean that the entry threshold is pretty high. However I know that there's a lot of unrecorded and/or unheralded talent out there, so don't feel shy. If you have material that you'd like me to consider then let me have a listen. The worst that can possibly happen is that you'll get a polite private email saying that I'll not be able to include the track but thanking you for your interest and wishing you every success in your playing.

By the way ... at the request of several potential participants, I've decided to extend the deadline for submitting material to end-September. Many of the people I'd like to appear are in the midst of the festival season and don't have much spare time and since a lot of players seem very keen to record something specially, I'm delighted to give them the opportunity to do so. (I'll review the end-September deadline if necessary; however let's stick with this for the time being.)

G'luck and thanks again for your support.

Aidan Crossey

[Aidan Crossey]

Just a little update, folks.

As at this morning, I'm "... in discussions with ..." (some at a lot more advanced stage than others) some 50 artists who have either expressed an interest in submitting material to be included on the mandolin compilation which I'm working up or who I have approached directly since no recording would be truly complete unless it contained an example of their work.

Some have already submitted specially-recorded material and I'm just staggered by the quality of the playing so far.

I mention the following two tracks purely because a) the protagonists are well-known to visitors to this section of the 'cafe discussion board and not because I wish to single them out above any other artists who've given me stuff and b) because I believe this is an indication of just how exciting the album could be!!

So ... deep breath ...

KEVIN MACLEOD has recorded a superb set of Highland tunes "Old Toasty/Sabhail Iain Ic Uisdean/Roddie MacLeod, Polbain/Lord MacDonald". #The second last tune is of particular interest since it was written by Kevin's sparring partner in The Occasionals, Freeland Barbour, and named for Kevin's father.

DAGGER GORDON shows his versatility (and wonderful touch on the mandolin) by recording a set of Irish jigs. #"Sweet Biddy Daly/The Banks Of Lough Gowna/Jackson's Jig" is, quite simply, the business. #Exactly the sort of self-effacing, plaintive and soulful music that I was hoping to be able to include.

I'm using the working title "The Glass Slipper" for the moment. #Why? #Well ... on numerous occasions, I've made reference to the fact that the mandolin is a Cinderella instrument. #Hopefully this album will attract attention and give the instrument a little bit of the limelight for a change.

More news as the project unravels, but for now a big thanks to Kevin, Dagger and everyone else who has contributed.

[Aidan Crossey]

OK folks ... a progress report!

15 tracks ready to roll at the time of writing and with some 6-7 weeks to go before the "deadline" of end-September, I'm reasonably confident that we're talking a double CD at least!!

Artists whose stuff is ready to roll are as follows (in no particular order):

1. Tom Walsh (Ireland) - Mandola Jig/Queen Of The Fair
2. Fred Johnson and friends (Ireland) - The Clergy's Lament
3. Bruce Burnside (USA) - The Out and About Jig
4. Corey Ticknor (Canada) - Asturias/Gavin Baird's/Grand Marais
5. Dagger Gordon (Scotland) - Sweet Biddy Daly/The Banks Of Lough Gowna/Jackson's
6. Ewan McPherson (Scotland) - Reels
7. The F-Holes (USA) - Captain O'Kane
8. Hom Bru (Shetland) - Hornpipes
9. Kevin MacLeod (Scotland) - Old Toasty/Sabhail Iain Ic Uisdean/Roddie McLeod, Polbain/Lord MacDonald
10. Dan Beimborn (USA) - The Lark In The Morning/The Kesh
11. The Buckhannon Brothers (USA) - Seamus O'Brien
12. Steven Lawrence (Scotland) - Tommy Kane's/Amber And Steel
13. Billy Parker (USA) - Cuckoos Nest/Bill's Monroe/Staten Island
14. John McGann (USA) - The Stage Hornpipe/The Western Hornpipe
15. Rig The Jig (Ireland) - Nancy's Song

I have to say that the quality - and variety - of playing is magnificent. I'm delighted that the response has been so good!

Keep 'em coming!

Aidan

[Dagger Gordon]

Looks good Aidan. I met Luke Plumb from Shooglenifty last week. Mentioned that I'd recorded a solo track, and he thought he'd probably do the same.

It would be good to get a bit more out of Ireland ...


Dagger

[kmmando]

Hey Dagger, I happened to have a grand tune with Luke on Saturday night in Sandy Bells. He's a great player, and the Gilchrist F5 he has is stunning. Trust you're well up in the Heilans. The Occasionals survived the Coigach Gathering dance, but only just!

Delighted to see Ewan MacPherson is on this collection - he has recently joined Malinky, a fine traditional band based in Edinburgh. He is a great player, at home on a variety of instruments, and a super mandolinist - I look forward to hearing his, and all the other contributions.

Slainte Kevin

[Dagger Gordon]

Doing fine Kevin, my bunch did the Coigach gig last year. Grand night.

Right! Haven't seen you for ages. When are we going to have a tune? Achiltibuie? Ullapool? Let's have a mando get-together with everybody we can get this summer.

Dagger

[otterly2k]

Awesome lineup... truly.
And also makes me wonder ... where are the women? Are there truly so few out there?
If so, we're going to have to remedy that in time for the next compilation!!

[Dagger Gordon]

Good point Otterly,

Mary Shannon should be on any Irish mandolin compilation. From my own part of the world, Anna Massie is a great player.

[yoods]

Hi Aidan ,
I sent you a PM on this subject. Hope it helps.

[nigelgatherer]

I have recorded my track - at least I think I have. I may try again next week, thanks to the extended deadline. I had forgotten how un-fun recording was, but as I'm planning to record a CD this autumn, it's maybe just as well I was reminded. I suddenly had a fear that I was doing tunes that lots of other people might do, but there's so many tunes around that I doubt it. Very much looking forward to hearing the finished product - it should be tremendous!

[mad dawg]

What a great list of performers and tunes, Aidan; I am really looking forward to it. Thank you for spearheading this project.

(Anyone run into Iain MacLeod lately? I wonder if he would enjoy contributing a track to this effort as much as I would enjoy hearing it? )

[Dagger Gordon]

Hey Mad Dawg,

'Announcing Aidan James MacDaniel, born August 21 2005'.


Congratulations, man! You just slipped that in at the bottom there, but we can't let it pass without comment.

Anyway, I don't really see Iain MacLeod and I couldn't tell you what he's doing.
Hi Nigel - good to hear you've recorded. I'm pleased to hear of your own CD plans.

[mad dawg]

Thanks Dagger. Little Aidan is doing pretty well for being 9 weeks premature. He also has some pretty big hands for his size -- if he doesn't grow into them, I suspect he may have to switch from mandolin to Zouk or Cittern some day.

[Aidan Crossey]

Dear all ...

Apologies for "radio silence" on this thread since late-July. August was a hectic month which got off to a bad start when the family car died when we were on holidays in remote North Wales and we had to extend our holiday to scrape around to find a cheap car to travel home in.

Then, on my return, I had no more than a day at home before I was asked by my family in Ireland if I could come home for a week to help them sort out some family matters which have been unresolved since my father's death some years ago. (All very boring, but the sort of issues that need to be discussed and agreed so that a later point, family members don't start falling out with each other!)

Still, I see that there's been a lot of emails with me on this issue and so I'll deal with these in the course of the next few days. Also several more tracks have arrived since my last posting.

Just to echo some of the points made above. Firstly, much though I greatly appreciate the efforts of those who've got material to me from countries other than Ireland, I would dearly love to feature some more Irish artists (or artists from other countries primarily known for playing Irish music). So, any Irish mandolinists (of whatever nationality!) out there who wish to contribute, please get in touch.

Secondly, I'm disappointed that so few women look set to feature in the collection. It's a sad fact that so few women are represented in the ranks of trad musicians. There certainly doesn't seem to be any bias against women musicians by the trad community itself. I believe it's the usual old societal mullarkey whereby we men are likely - even in today's "enlightened" times - to have more opportunity to make music "outdoors" than our women contemporaries. However, I certainly didn't set out to make a "boys own" recording and would be delighted to feature women mandolinists!

Hope that the events in Louisiana and its surrounds haven't had any personal impact on anyone who's been contributing to this thread. It was horrendous to watch this story unfold over the past week. The scale of the disaster was so huge that I'm sure that many mandolincafe regulars will live or work or will have had loved ones living and working in the path of Katrina.

But nice to see that amidst all the personal tragedy, there is personal joy! So, finally for this post, congrats to mad dawg, to his partner and to little Aidan! I'll lift a glass to you next time I'm out in the pub and I'll drink your health.

For the moment, then, it's off to the emails and watch this space for more news as I've digested the latest!

[Dagger Gordon]

Regarding the number of women in trad music, in the North of Scotland the trend is overwhelmingly in favour of the girls in recent years.

My kids have been involved in two fiddle groups - their school fiddle band The Gizzen Briggs from Tain in Easter Ross, where there are at least 30 good fiddlers in the line -up (this has been the case for many years) -nearly all female, and with The Kiltearn Fiddlers - a group associated with an organisation called Feis Rois which is dedicated to furthering Scottish and Gaelic music. Again, mostly girls on fiddle.

There is of course the possibility that many of these able players will give up as they leave school, but girls from the area who are forging successful music careers include the afore-mentioned Anna Massie and Lauren McColl, who won the BBC Young Traditional Musician of the Year Award in London last year, so good female role models are certainly around.

As regard mandolin playing, Anna is brilliant at fiddle, guitar (playing tunes), mandolin and tenor banjo, but there isn't too much interest otherwise. I teach guitar for Feis Rois. It seems to me that many fiddlers are quite intersted in mandolin as a secondary instrument, but there is a lack of instruments around for them to have a go at, and I think this is holding back any significant development. I must see if I can persuade the Feis to buy a few for hire, and perhaps we can try to get a class going.

Other young musicians from the area who are doing well and have come through Feis Rois include Gaelic singer and whistle player Julie Fowlis, the band Croft No 5, fiddler Adam Sutherland, Gaelic singer Rachel Walker and several others.

Believe me, the trad music scene is very active up here, and the girls are an integral part of it. Is that not the case elsewhere? I'd be interested to know.

[Aidan Crossey]

Dagger ... let's hope that the current crop of women trad musicians continue to keep the music up into adulthood. Women are, of course, well represented in Irish music. The names of Mrs Crotty, Josephine Keegan, Lucy Farr, Maeve Donnelly, Karen Ryan, Joanie Madden, Liz and Yvonne Kane, Sharon and Mary Shannon, Laoise Kelly, Kathleen Nesbitt all spring to mind without any bidding. However I'm aware that the proportion of women who drop out of music is a big concern to many, including many Irish music teachers, and their absence is doubtless a huge loss to the music which can become more testosterone-fuelled than necessary. Perhaps the fact that much Irish music activity is centred on pubs - some of which are from time to time less than salubrious! - is a deterrent to those (male and female) who would prefer to take their music forward in environments which are more conducive to grace and stateliness, rather than encouraging hell-for-leathery.

Just an off-the-cuff observation. I'm sure there's a PhD thesis lurking in this vexed question!

[Aidan Crossey]

I've just sent the following email to all those who've expressed an interest so far in taking part in this project (and to all those who've so far come up with the goods).

Just have a look at the draft track listing ... I'm so excited and proud to have been instrumental in bringing this together. Most of the material has been specially recorded and is not available elsewhere ...

Update : 23rd September 2005

Thanks to all who've submitted tracks to "The Glass Slipper" ... my attempt to pull together a compilation of Irish, Scottish and related traditional music featuring the mandolin as the lead instrument.

I've already extended the deadline for submitting material to end-September. At the request of one potential participant, who is committed until then, I've agreed to extend the deadline until Friday 14th October.

This will, however, be the final extension. I'm keen to move on to the next phase of the project ... i.e. having the material professionally mastered and copied to CD.

I'm delighted that people have been so generous with their time and with their talent. The collection is stunning; the musicianship is first-class throughout and the material is extremely varied and well-chosen.

However, I would be delighted to receive further material. So, if you would have liked to have contributed to the project, but perhaps feel that you've somehow missed the boat, then please be assured that three weeks remain during which you may get material to me.

I want to confirm that I'm happy to receive material in any format - digital or otherwise. So that means (the list is not exhaustive!) mp3s, wave files, CD tracks, AIFF, minidisk, cassette tape, vinyl(!) or wax cylinders(!!).

The line-up of tracks at the time of writing is as follows. Please note that the order here is probably not as it will appear on the CD; it more or less corresponds with the order in which tracks arrived with me.

1. Tom Walsh (Ireland) - Mandola Jig/Queen Of The Fair
2. Fred Johnson and friends (Ireland) - The Clergy's Lament
3. Bruce Burnside (USA) - The Out and About Jig
4. Corey Ticknor (Canada) - Asturias/Gavin Baird's/Grand Marais
5. Dagger Gordon (Scotland) - Sweet Biddy Daly/The Banks Of Lough Gowna/Jackson's
6. Ewan McPherson (Scotland) - Reels
7. The F-Holes (USA) - Captain O'Kane
8. Hom Bru (Shetland) - The Galway Hornpipe/The Poppy Leaf
9. Kevin MacLeod (Scotland) - Old Toasty/Sabhail Iain Ic Uisdean/Roddie McLeod, Polbain/Lord MacDonald
10. Dan Beimborn (USA) - The Lark In The Morning/The Kesh Jig
11. The Buckhannon Brothers (USA) - Seamus O'Brien
12. Steven Lawrence (Scotland) - Tommy Kane's/Amber And Steel
13. Billy Parker (USA) - Cuckoos Nest/Bill's Monroe/Staten Island
14. John McGann (USA) - The Stage Hornpipe/The Western Hornpipe
15. Rig The Jig (Ireland) - Nancy's Song
16. Mike Black and Three Bean Salad (USA) - St. Ruth's Bush/Dick Gossip's/The Cup Of Tea
17. Luke Plumb and Kevin MacLeod (Scotland) - O'Carolan's Draught/The Log Cabin/Bean A' Ti Ar Lar
18. Nigel Gatherer (Scotland) - The Warlocks/Hatton Burn
19. Dave Firestine (USA) - Coleman's March/Bank Of Turf/Killavil/Frank's Reel
20. Fred Wilkinson (Scotland) - Gairsay
21. Dick Glasgow (Ireland) - Halfhanged MacNaughten/The Toastrack

In addition to the above outstanding contributions, I've been promised by Brian Connolly (from the band Craobh Rua) a set of a few of Carolan's lesser-known 6/8 tunes.

And finally, I hope to record two tracks of my own playing. TWO tracks? Compiler's prerogative? Not really ... it's simply the case that at this stage there's a shortage of material from Ireland itself and I hope to balance the scales just a little.

I'm hoping to record one of my favourite reel sets of the moment, "Jim Donoghue's/The Earl's Chair". And by way of contrast I'll likely record either a slip jig set (The Swaggering Jig/Táimse In Arrears/The Foxhunter's Jig) or a set of marches (Kelly, The Boy From Killane/The Boys Of Wexford/The Mountains Of Pomeroy).

So ... remember ... 14th October is the closing date for submitting material. If you had hoped to submit some music, but this date gives you a problem, then please email me and we'll discuss!

Thanks again to everyone who's contributed material. I'm so impressed with your musicianship and your generosity of spirit!

Aidan Crossey

[Dagger Gordon]

Good stuff.

I'm already thinking about the launch party! Where's it gonna be?

[mad dawg]

Looking forward to it Aidan!

Thank you tons.
-jim

[nigelgatherer]

DAG sed, "I'm already thinking about the launch party! Where's it gonna be? "

There is such a strong Scots contingent that we should maybe have our own launch?

[Dagger Gordon]

Why not?

I suppose it should be at the weekend, but people are probably gigging then. It would be good to have the Shetland guys.

[otterly2k]

Aidan-
thanks for doing this great work! I can't wait to hear this recording... perhaps I'll be ready to submit something the next time 'round. Meanwhile, I'll be happy to learn from listening to these folks.
KE

[danb]

aw c'mon, it's only fair that everyone else come down to London.. after all that's where Aidan lives.

Easier commute for me too

[glauber]

I definitely can't make it. First they implemented a shoot-to-kill policy on Brazilians, and now they've started to arrest nerds. Too dangerous for me.

[Dagger Gordon]

Out of interest, how many of the contributors live in England? The only two I think I can see are Aidan and Dan in London. For what it's worth, I think the launch should be wherever Aidan wants it, and I assume that's gonna be London.

There are some names here that I'm not familiar with at all, and I'm looking forward to hearing them.