Alan Stivell - Olympia Concert (France 1972) @320

By Request

À l'Olympia (Also called At the Olympia and Olympia Concert) was Stivell's first

live album, recording in Paris Olympia. It was released by Fontana in 1972.

This live concert was divided into two parts: the first acoustic folk, the second part being electric folk in a style then known as Celtic rock. The evening is a musical tour around the Celtic fringe, from Brittany northwards. It was broadcast live on one of the three radio stations in France (seven million listeners live on Radio Europe 1) Alan Stivell was accompanied by Dan Ar Braz on guitar, Michel Santangelli (the future drummer for Jacques Higelin) on percussion, Gabriel Yacoub, René Werneer, Pascal Stive, Gérard Levasseur, Serj Parayre and Michaël Klec’h.

Stivell à l'Olympia sold a staggering 1,500,000 copies in just over a year (more than 2 million thereafter) and put both Stivell and Breton music on the cultural map once and for all.

 

01. The Wind of Keltia   3:42

02. An-dro   3:07

03. The trees they grow high   3:04

04. An Alarc'h (The swan) 2:25

05. An Durzhunnel   3:23

06. Telenn Gwad / The Foggy Dew   3:57

07. Pop Plinn   3:37

08. Tha mi sgith   4:22

09. The King of the Fairies   3:20

10. Tri Martolod   4:27

11. Kost ar c'hoad   3:54

12. Suite Sudarmoricaine   3:29

Alan Stivell: Singing, harp, Irish flute, bombard

Dan Ar Braz: Electric Guitar

Michel Santangeli: Drums

René Werneer: Fiddle

Gabriel Yacoub: Guitar, Dulcimer, Banjo

Gérard Levasseur: Bass

Henry Delagarde: Bombarde, Cello, Flute

Mikael Klec'h: Bombarde, Flute

Pascal Stive: Organ

Serj Parayre: Percussion

Folkabbestia - Il Senso della Vita [The Meaning of Life] (2003 Italy) @ 256M4A

FOLKABBESTIA are six young guys from Italy who play an
energetic and fun-laden mixture of Ska, Polka, Tarantella,
Irish Folk, Slavic melodies and Italian Canzones. With "Il
Senso della Vita", their international debut CD, FOLKA-
BBESTIA spread their distinctive and sometimes anarchic
humour across Europe - and finally, the meaning of life -
Il Senso della Vita is solved.

In a laconic and ironic way, FOLKABBESTIA tell their tales
of tragic love stories or other adventures with an unhappy
ending.

FOLKABBESTA play sentimental sailors' songs, Italian
anthems like "Azzurro", songs about love and loss, pirates
and partisans, presented with an optimistic punk attitude.

The members of the band come from the city of Puglia, one
of the southernomst regions of Italy, opposite the coast
of Albania. Far from the frenetic hurry, and law and or-
der of the industrial cities of the north, the tip of the heel
of Italy plunges deep into the Mediterranian Sea.
So it is easy to understand how the musical traditions
of the southern Italian region, as well as neighbouring
cultures, have influenced FOLKABBESTA's compositions.

With modern as well as traditional instruments (violin,
accordion, mandolin), FOLKABBESTA deliver a great
live performance, transferring their own sense of fun onto
the audience - jigging and whirling around until completely
exhausted.

Lorenzo Mannsarini (Gesang, Gitarre)
Michele Sansone (Akkordeon)
Guiseppe Porsia (Flöte, Gitarre)
Francesco Fiore (Bass)
Nicola de Liso (Perkussion)
Fabio Losito (Violine)


Tracklist:
1. LA CASSARMONICA  0:23
2. CANZONE D'AMORE 3:19
3. AZZURRO 2:52
4. TAMMURRIATTA A MARE NERO 3:43
5. LA FUGA IN FA 3:43
6. BREVE SAGGIO FILOSOFICA... 4:02
7. CHANSON ETILIQUE 2:54
8. NEL CIRCO UNGEHRESE 3:47
9. AMANDO ARMANDO 3:34
10. IL SABATO NEL VILLAGIO 2:51
11. MEMORIE DI BREIZH 4:47
12. STYLA LOLLO MANNA 2:17
13. LA SINFONIA DI MR TAMBURINO 2:43
14. IL FROTTOLIERE 2:31
15. IL CASTELLO OTTAGONALE 3:58
16. IN VIA SPARANO 3:58
17. PIRATERIA 3:35
18. CANZONE D'AMORE repetiscion 3:35

Hanggai - Introducing Hanggai (2008 China) @256m4a

Sometimes, an album takes you so by surprise that it takes days to get your mind around just how much you like it. Hanggai's debut was like that for me-- this record floored me the first time I played it. Simply described, this album takes traditional Mongolian folk music and instrumentation and projects them into a loosely rock-based structure. This is not really a folk album, though it sometimes has the feel of one. Producers Robin Haller and Matteo Scumaci, Westerners both, allow the band to straddle the folk and pop worlds, creating something new and exhilarating in the process.

Hanggai are a Beijing-based sextet of Mongolian musicians, a few of whom originally hail from China's Inner Mongolia province. Two of the members play the morin khuur (horse-hair fiddle), while another plays the tobshuur, a two-stringed lute, and these instruments comprise the foundation of their sound. Tobshuur player and bandleader Ilchi was formerly in a Beijing punk group and put this band together after hearing the traditional khoomei throat-singing technique. Enthralled by the sound of this centuries-old singing style, he went to Inner Mongolia to learn it, where he ultimately met fiddle players Hugejiltu and Bagen. The combination of the group members' raspy, deep throat singing with a Western compositional sense of tension, build-up, and release is hard to describe apart from saying that it works very well.

It is rare that such attempts to modernize (read: Westernize) traditional folk forms actually enhance the power of the music, but that is the case here. Haller and Scumaci's very subtle additions of electric guitar, bass, and electronic textural elements nicely complement the traditional instrumentation-- the fiddles can produce long drones or billowing melodic figures, and the tobshuur is often used to give the songs a heart-racing rhythmic underpinning, with the help of some hand percussion.

The album's stunning centerpiece, "Five Heroes", opens with a long passage of throat-singing, with one member producing a steady, low drone while another manipulates the high, whistling overtones produced by it. The minimal guitar part has elements of surf, and is later used to inject a long, descending phrase between the verses. It's stunningly dramatic, and on hearing it my wife remarked that, even though they were singing in Mongol, she could feel the storytelling taking place in the lyrics. I have to agree.

The album is well-balanced between up-tempo and down-tempo offerings, and fast, rhythmic tracks like "Flowers". The natural ease with which these young musicians fit their mother culture's traditional musical arsenal into structures provided by another culture is remarkable-- unlike that horrible Yat-Kha album with the awkward throat-singing covers of Joy Division and Motörhead from a few years ago, there is never a sense of novelty in this music, just the sense that these unique, singular traditions can have a place in music moving forward.

And that's perhaps the biggest reason that Hanggai's debut is an unmitigated success. It distills everything powerful about Mongolian folk music and makes something new from the ingredients. If you like this, I recommend trying out some actual traditional Mongolian music, though an understanding of it isn't remotely necessary to enjoy Hanggai. As it is, if you've never heard throat-singing or given a second (or even first) thought to Central Asian music, this album is a great place to start. Moreover, it succeeds on a purer level than that, as transcendently powerful music that anyone from anywhere can understand.

Tracklist:
1.    My Banjo and I    5:10
2.    Yekul Song    3:46
3.    Zhaoderen Nana    3:56
4.    Five Heroes    2:37
5.    Flowers    5:33
6.    Haar Hu    3:26
7.    Wuji    2:01
8.    Lullaby (Borulai)    2:57
9.    Drinking Song    4:02
10.    Four Seasons    3:01

Alan Stivell - Live in Dublin (France 1978) @320

By Request

In Dublin is a folk/rock album by Alan Stivell, recorded live at the National Stadium, Dublin, on 26 and 27 November 1974, and originally released in 1975.

The album was produced by Alan Stivell and Peter Rice for Keltia III. It was recorded by Frank Owen on the Island Mobile, and mixed by Howard Kilgour at Island Studios. The original LP release (in the UK, Fontana 9299 547) was cut at Apple Studios, with sleeve photography by Roy Esmonde and Ian Gwenic and design by Alain Batifoulier and Blandine Durand. Packaged with the original LP was a poster drawn by Irish artist Jim Fitzpatrick.

 

01 - Spered Hollvedel

02 - Delivrance

03 - Ha Konpren't Vin Erfin

04 - Tenwal Eo'r Bed

05 - Digor Eo An Hent

06 - Debhair An Rinceoir

07 - Pachpi Kozh Pachpi New

08 - Laridenn

09 - Ton-Bale Pourled

10 - Bal Ha Dans Plinn

11 - An Droiou

Alan Stivell: Vocals, Harp [Celtic], Bombarde, Flute [Irish], Bagpipes

Padrig Mollard: Bagpipes

Pierre Mayel: Bagpipes

Jacky Thomas: Bass 

Mik Ar Biz & Padrig Sicard: Bombarde

Michel Santangeli: Drums

Dominique Mollard: Drums [Scottish]

Rene Werner: Fiddle, Dulcimer

Alan Kloater: Flute, Bombarde, Other [Biniou Kozh] 

Dan Ar Bras: Guitar [Acoustic & Electric]

Pascal Stive: Organ

Alan Stivell - 'Raok Dilestra - Avant D'Accoster [FRENCH VERSION] (France 1977) @320

Vinyl Rip - Not released on CD

(Thank you Thierry!)

'Raok Dilestra is the ninth original album by Alan Stivell and his seventh studio album, released in 1977. It was published on CD in 1992 with a distribution by Dreyfus / Sony Records Music. It is an album-concept, entirely composed by Alan Stivell, retracing the stages of the history of Brittany at first, then the events that the Britons experienced in the twentieth century, finishing, turned towards the future, By a "free Britain" chanted in three languages. A step he considers necessary in his transmission cycle before turning to the future.


Face A - Tu A : Hon Amser-Dremenet (Notre Passé) ( En Enor- Dédié à - Glenmor) 
1 - Ar Gelted Kozh (Les Anciens Celtes) (4:20)
2 - Ar Vritoned 'Ba' Inis-Breizh (Les Britons Dans L'Ile De Bretagne) (1:59)
3 - Les Britons En Armorique (Ar Vritoned D'An Arvorig) (1:25)
4 - Rouantelezh Vreizh (Le Royaume De Bretagne)  (3:22)
5 - Dugelezh Vreizh (Le Duché De Bretagne) (3:04)
6 - Le Traité D'Union Franco-Breton (An Aloubidigezh Gant Bro-C'Hall) (1:03)
7 - Emsawadegoù (Révoltes) (2:11)
8 - La Révolution Française Et Le 19e Siècle (Dispac'H Bro-C'Hall Ag An 19e Kantwed)  (2:25)
9 - Première Moitié Du 20e Siècle (Lodenn Gentan An Ugentwed Kantwed) (2:36)
10 - Eil Lodenn An Ugentwed Kantwed (Deuxième Moitié Du 20e Siècle) (2:36)

Face B - Tu B : Hon Amser-Vreman (Notre Présent)
11 - Da Ewan (A Ewan)  (4:12)
12 - Gwriziad Difennet (Racines Interdites) (3:19)
13 - Marw Ewid E Fobl (Mort Pour Son Peuple) (4:11)
14 - Naw Breton 'Ba' Prizon (Neuf Breton En Prison) (5:03)
15 - Tamm-Kreiz New' (Nouveau Tamm-Kreiz) (1:34)
16 - Plinn (Slogan) (3:11)


Alan Stivell : chant, lecture, harpes celtiques, cornemuse écossaise, bombarde, flûte irlandais, claviers
Dan Ar Braz : guitares électriques et acoustiques, chœurs
Padrig Kerre : mandole, dulcimer, fiddle, chant
André Hervé : claviers
Michel Hervé : basse
Jean-Luc Danna : percussions, batterie
Yann-Jakez Hassold : chant
Maria Popkiewicz : chant
Brigitte Hassold : lecture
Adam Skeaping : violoncelle
Lyn Dobson : flûte traversière, sitar, tablas, psalterion
Richard Harvey : cromorne, flûte à bec
Bagad Bleimor (avec les penn-soner Yann-Fañch ar Merdy et Youenn Sicard)

Naw Breton 'ba' prizon et Gwriziad difennet (pistes 12 & 14) :
Clément Bailly : batterie
Dominique Luro : claviers
Patrick Kiffer : basse
Dave Swarbrick : fiddle
Alain Hatot : saxophone ténor (piste 12)

Gabriel Yacoub - Quatre (France 1994) @320

By Requet

01 - Solide

02 - Leplus rapide des oiseaux

03 - Tant pis que l'exil

04 - Beauté Twelfth song of the thunder

05 - Letter from America

06 - Je suis à court

07 - Tourne tourne

08 - La mariole

09 - Les blés sur l'eau

10 - Regarde bien petit

11 - Le sel et le sucre

12 - Ces dieux-là

13 - Les bannières qui claquent

14 - LFA [reprise]

Gabriel YACOUB (Adaptation (paroles), Auto harp, Guitare, Mandoline, Mandocello, Auteur de la musique, Parolier, Voix)

Mélaine FAVENNEC (Auteur de la musique, Parolier, Voix)

Jacques BREL (Auteur de la musique, Parolier)

Patrice CLEMENTIN (Auto harp, Didjeridu, Keyboards, Kora, Percussion, Piano)

Nikki MATHESON (Voix)

Paul BRADY (Voix)

Yannick HARDOUIN (Basse)

Jean-Pierre ARNOUX (Drums)

Nicolaïvan MINGO (Guitare électrique, Slide guitar)

Gilles CHABENAT (Percussion, Vielle à Roue [Hurdy-gurdy])

Jean-Pierre RASLE (Cornemuse)

Gildas ARZEL (Backing vocals, Slide guitar)

Elizabeth BOUDJEMA (Violon)

Claire-Hélène SCHIRRER-GARY (Violon)

Virginie MICHAUD (Alto violin)

Pascale JAUPART (Violoncelle)

Jean BLANCHARD (Cornemuse)

Manu LE HOUËZEC (Bombarde, Cromorne, Flûte, Saxophone, Tin whistle)

Elie ACHKAR (Qanun)

Sylvie BERGER (Voix)

Brian GULLAND (Basson, Flûte à bec, Hautbois)

Eric MONTBEL (Cornemuse)

Robert AMYOT (Cornemuse)

François HADJI-LAZARO (Accordéon, Kaval [Bulgarian flute])

Pererin - Yng Ngolau Dydd (1985 Wales) @320

Tracklist:

1. Yng Ngolau Dydd
2. Mab y Saer
3. Cyntaf dydd o Fai
4. Ar gyfer heddiw'r bore
5. Dacw Nghariad i Lawryn y Berllan
6. Can Job
7. Hogia Llandegai
8. Jasmin
9. Mae gen i farch glas
10. Y Ddraenen Wen
11. Bachgen bach o Lyn
12. Henffych i ti

Arfon Wyn : guitar, mandolin,bouzouki,vocals
Dafydd Wyn : guitar
Emyr Afan : guitar,vocals
Mair Davies : soddgrwth
Einion Williams : bodhran, congas, bongos,percussion

Pererin - Tirion Dir (1982 Wales) @320

Tracklist:
1. Llosgi Yn Fflam (Burn Crooked Flame)
2. Harri'r VIII (Henry VIII)
3. Boed Fy Nghalon
4. Niwl a Than (Foggy Dew)
5. Lisa Lan
6. Y Gelynen
7. Gweld y Gwir (See the Truth)
8. O Ferch y Ffair (The Fair Girl)
9. Y Capten Newydd
10. Mynwent Eglwys (Churchyard)

Arfon Wyn ab Eurig - acoustic and electric guitars, vocals
Einion Williams - bodhran, congas, bongos
Emyr Afan - 6 and 12 string acoustic guitar, vocals
Sioned Webb - mandolin, flutes, whistles, synthesizer, backing vocals
Gethyn Evans - bass

Pererin - Haul Ar Yr Eira (Sun of the Snow) (1980 Wales) @320

Tracklist:
1. Haul Ar Yr Eira (Sun on the Snow)
2. Titrwm Tetrwm
3. Dechrau Y Gan
4. Can Y Melinydd (The Flour Miller)
5. Ni Welaf Yr Haf
6. Royal Charter
7. Gloyn Byw
8. Llongau Caernarfon (Canarvon ships)
9. Hiraeth Y Mor (Yearning)
10. Pan Ddaw Y Brenin Yn Ol (Here comes the Crooked old King)

Arfon Wyn ab Eurig - guitars, vocals
Charli Goodall - guitars, bass, vocals
Einion Williams - bodhran, congas, bongos
Aneurin Owen - flute
Nest Llwelyn - vocals, keyboards

Pererin - Teithgan (1981 Wales) @320

Awesome second longplayer by Welsh psychedelic folk-rockers Pererin. Traditional Welsh folk meets rock with psychedelic guitar leads, flute, male/female vocals... This was originally released in 1981 on the Gwerin label and for many it is their best work, and it's definitely its rarest one. Exact repro of the original, including the insert. Definitely one of the best albums of the genre, another superb rarity brought to you with a legit reissue by Guerssen.
(green-brain-krautrock.de)

Pererin biography
PERERIN, meaning "Piligrim" in Welsh, is to Wales what RUNRIG has been to Scotland, only more so. They perform traditional and traditionally inspired original material that combines spiritual and romantic themes with a strong helping of Nationalistic pride and a desire to preserve their own unique culture. They sang only in Welsh, and even English sleeve notes are even hard to find. Their original
LPs command a high price, but recent CD reissues have guaranteed their accessibility and their legacy.
Pererin evolved from a more overtly progressive rock group named BRAN that released three albums between 1975 and 1978, to release three of their own from 1980 to 1982. While PERERIN emphasized the folk element, they were no less
progressive, thanks to thoughtful arrangements that featured plenty of mellotron and mildly acidic electric guitar, imaginative percussion, ambitious song structures, and various mood shifts. The variety of styles explored was impressive, from very traditional to symphonic to country flavoured to just plain eclectic, so unless you have a real aversion to folk or non-English songs, you will find something to like among Pererin's rich if abbreviated legacy.
 

 Tracklist:
1. Y Drws (Hearts Door) (4:16)
2. Y Gwr O Gefn Birth (The Man from Cefn Brith) (4:20)
3. Ddoi Di Dei (Will you come Dai) (3:40)
4. Draw Dros Y Bryniau (Far over the hills) (4:02)
5. Mae Nghariad in Fenws (My Love) (3:52)
6. Symffoni Lawen (Joyful Symphony) (3:02)
7. Teithgan (Journey) (5:25)
8. Ble'r Wyt Ti'n Myned (Where are you going my Fair Maid) (4:43)
9. Diferion (A Few Trickles) (1:30)
10. Mynydd Parys (Pary's Mountain) (5:13)

Arfon Wyn ab Eurig - acoustic guitars, vocals
Charli Goodall - acoustic and electric guitars, vocals
Einion Williams - bodhran, congas
Aneurin Owen - flute, keyboards, backing vocals
Lilo Haf - flute, keyboards, backing vocals

Gabriel Yacoub - Yacoub (France 2001) @320

By Request

1. Mes Belles Anciennes Compagnes (3:24)

2. Si C'Était (4:47)

3. Gris (5:29)

4. You Stay Here (3:05)

5. Trahison (4:45)

6. Pour Une Joie Au Loin (3:05)

7. Dame: Petite Dame (2:58)

8. Les Rues Des Vieilles Capitales (3:36)

9. Le Poids Du Passé (4:13)

10. Je Vois Venir (3:05)

11. L'Amour Marin (7:47)

Vocals, Acoustic Guitar, Mandolin, Mandocello – Gabriel Yacoub

Bagpipes [Uilleann] – Ronan Le Bars

Cello – Jean Claude Auclin

Hurdy Gurdy – Gilles Chabenat

Violin – Nathalie Rivière

Vocals – Sylvie Berger

Cello – Paul-Antoine De Rocca Serra

Acoustic Bass – Yannick Hardouin

Percussion – Paul Jothy

Violin – Fayçal Kourrich

Electric Guitar, Acoustic Guitar – Nicolas-Yvan Mingot

Low Whistle – Ronan Le Bars

Percussion – Jean-Pierre Arnoux

Trombone – Jorgi Kornazov

Keyboards – Hughes De Courson

Trumpet – Martin Saccardy

Organ [Hammond] – Yannick Hardouin

Gabriel Yacoub - The Simple Things We Said (France 2002) @VBR

By Request.

It is originally an American production (New York label Prime CD) intended for the American market but the album is also available in France (exclusively) via the site of Gabriel Yacoub. The Simple Things We Said is a collection of Gabriel's entirely acoustic songs, new & old, augmented by some unpublished. The album is released mid January 2002 in the United States at the time Gabriel is at the beginning of a US tour of 14 dates.

01 - The Simple Things We Said

02 - Dame  Petite Dame

03 - Le Jeu Des Grillons  Je Serai Ta Lune

04 - Le Garcon Jardinier

05 - Mes Belles Anciennes Compagnes

06 - Letter From America

07 - Ami  Âme  Amen

08 - Pluie D'elle

09 - Jour De Lessive

10 - You Stay Here

11 - Désir

12 - Ces Dieux-Là

13 - Beauté  12Th Song Of The Thunder

14 - Les Choses Les Plus Simples

Gabriel Yacoub: guitar, mandolin, mandocello, autoharp, vocals

Nathalie Rivière: violin, vocals

Yannick Hardouin: bass, mélodica, electric piano, vocals

Gilles Chabenat: vielle à roue

Jean-Claude Auclin: cello

Sylve Berger: vocals

Brian Gulland: bassoon

Nicolaïvan Mingot: slide guitar, guitar J.P. Arnoux—percussion

Kate & Anna McGarrigle: vocals

Elizabeth Boudjema, Virginie Michaud, Pascale Jaupart: strings

Mélusine - 1977 - Lève-toi et danse! (Vinyl Rip) @320

Not available on CD

Tracklisting

A1 Rondeaux    
A2 Laridé
A3 En Dro
A4 Bourrées à 2 temps
A5 Rond d'Argenton
A6 Bourrées d'Auvergne


B1 Polkas
B2 En avant-deux
B3 Rond de Saint Vincent
B4 Cercle circassien
B5 Mazurka - mazurka-valse - mazurka


Crédits

Bodhrán, Bouzouki, Hurdy Gurdy, Vocals, Zither [Épinette Des Vosges] – Jean-François Dutertre
Bodhrán, Oboe [Chalémie], Crumhorn, Oboe, Recorder, Vocals, Bagpipes [Musette Renaissance], Clarinet, Recorder – Yvon Guilcher
Melodeon [Diatonic Accordion], Vocals, Recorder, Zither [Épinette Des Vosges], Bodhrán – Jean-Loup Baly
Violin – Marc Rapillard

René Werneer - Musiques Traditionnelles Et Savantes Pour Les Violons (France 1981) @320

Vinyl Rip - Not released on CD

(Thank you Thierry!)

01 - La Danse Du Roi - Cortège Du Fou

02 - Deuil Et Souci

03 - Planxty Scott

04 - Spike Island Reel

05 - Volte Anglaise

06 - Gaillarde

07 - Almain's Reel

08 - The Queenes Almain

09 - Paddy O' Rourke's Fancy (Jig)

10 - D'où Viens-tu (Gaillarde)

11 - Canzonetta A 3

12 - Les Miens Aussi

13 - Planxty Nancy Vernon

14 - Brogan's Reels

15 - Courante

16 - Pavane A 3

17 - Cronin's Jigs

18 - Basse Danse De Couserans

19 - Pavane

20 - Bourrée - L'âge

21 - Volte Française

22 - Canzon A4

- René Werneer - Violons

René Werneer - Ecoutez Tous Pauvres Et Riches (France 1978) @320

Vinyl Rip - Not released on CD

(Thank you Thierry!)

01 - Branle De Daigny

02 - Le Sort Des Mariniers

03 - Pavotte

04 - A) Au Châteu De Belfort B) Pavanne

05 - Allemagne Du Duc De Brunswick

06 - Allemande D' Entrecasteaux

07 - Arles Qui Est En France

08 - Le Récit Des Plus Grandes Misères

09 - Le Docteur Bull Va A La Chatre

10 - Ecoutez Tous Pauvres Et Riches

11 - Gaillarde

12 - Pavanne De Thomas Morley

René Werneer: violon, orgues, clavecin, chant

Pierre Roussel: basse 

Pierre Marcault: batterie

John Faure: banjo, guitare, chant 

Patrice Quef: enregistrement

René Werneer - L'Habit De Plumes (France 1977) @320

Vinyl Rip - Not released on CD

(Thank you Thierry!)

In the family, or rather the group of the best French musicians, I ask the violinist ... 

Small reminder of history. René WERNEER, flammande of origin, is basically a traveling musician, which was formed by attending rallies and music artists including folk in the 60s with his friend guitarist Gabriel Yacoub, they are enrolled in the legendary group that accompanied Alan Stivell in the early 70s (for me the biggest francophone group in history), alongside guitarist Dan Ar Braz and drummer Michel Santangeli. Alan dissolved the group in 1975 and some of its former musicians including WERNEER and Ys Santangeli form the group which publishes his only album, Madam Frontier in 1976. The experience is exciting and the least well received, but Rene is unsatisfied. He left Ys becomes Keris, officiates during a small year in Malicorne group of his friend Gabriel Yacoub replacing Laurent Vercambre and share record his first solo album in London, with a few choice of musicians like Alvarez-Claude Pereyre, guitarist Jean-Luc Chevalier (which is found later with Tri Yann), bassist Claude Le Peron (who would later ... with Jean-Jacques Goldman!) and English multi-instrumentalist Brian Gulland who will play later with Malicorne and Gabriel Yacoub. 

1. L'habit De Plumes

2. La Fille Aux Dragons

3. Belle, Je Me Suis Levé

4. Reel De Saint Irénée

5. L'ordre Du Roi

6. Basse Danse D'allevans

7. La Sainte Madeleine

8. Les Métamorphoses

- René Werneer (vocals, violin, organ, harmonium, dulcimer) 

- Claude Alvarez Pereyre (guitars, violin, harmonium, portable organ, Arran) 

- Jean-Luc Chevalier (guitars, bass) 

- Claude Le Peron ( bass) 

- Jean Knight (drums, timpani, drums, tambourine) 

- Brian Gulland (bassoon, crumhorns, flute recorder) 

- Gustav Klarkson (alto) 

- Timothy Kraemer (cello) 

Hans P. Og Rasmus Kjorstad - Pusinshi Ulla (2016 Norway) [Free Group Promotion]

"Together, we endeavour to play tunes somewhat unsentimentally, by peeling away any national romantic ideas about folk music. We are interested in a form of expression that has a sense of urgency, that grabs the listener and sends them off into the music."

The Kjorstad brothers from Fron are young and ambitious, they are excellent fiddle

players, they are inquisitive and study at The Norwegian State Academy of Music.  They take folk music seriously and are developing a new, powerful form of interplay.

Norwegian folk music comes into its own when performed solo. That's because the tunes often have a simple basic shape which, through ornamentation, greater or lesser variations, as well as personal characteristics regarding tonality and rhythm, become much more sophisticated and impulsive music. Together with kveding (solo, traditional singing), or "to sing in the old way" as Kristian P. Åsmund Stad called it, fiddle music is one of the most distinctive forms of cultural expression we have.

The history of arranged folk music in Norway is much less interesting. At one time, Norwegian folk music was heavily influenced by classical European music. In this national romantic form of expression, the most important elements of folk music vanish, namely the peculiar tonality, the asymmetrical rhythms and the uneven structures. The music became more streamlined and less distinctive.

"We have been so lucky to grow up with this music, but we have also wanted to go in other directions, such as the baroque music of, amongst others, J.S. Bach and H.I.F. Biber, via the 1960s and 1970s folk revival in the United Kingdom, to contemporary and improv performers such as Nils Økland, Christian Wallumrød, Streifenjunko, Sheriffs of Nothingness, Moskus and others associated with record labels such as SOFA, ECM and Hubro.

It is, in any case, our enormous respect for the older tunes tradition in Gudbrandsdalen that lies at the core of this project, and we thrive on taking ahold of something that is extremely local and placing it into a larger context. 

The engineer, Audun Strype, understood immediately that we wanted to bring out the raw and unpolished aspects of the music. He has, in many ways, been a theme throughout the project; with roots in Fron, he has traveled around the world in service for all kinds of strange music. With great support from producer Anders E. Røine, we now have the confidence to truly run with this idea."

   

You can buy it from:

ITunes, Spotify, Wimp and all other big streaming companies.

And also from the label: www.talik.no

Styrbjörn Bergelt - Tagelharpa Och Videflöjt (1979 Sweden) @192

Vinyl Rip

01 - A01 - King Orfeo

02 - A02 - Skjeldmöyslått

03 - A03 - Springar Från Sogn

04 - A04 - Melodi Från Vest-agder

05 - A05 - Gökhalling

06 - A06 - Polska Från Järna Finnmark

07 - A07 - Brudmarsch efter Gyris Anders

08 - A08 - Ringlek Från Malung

09 - A09 - Favoriten Efter Anders Söderst

10 - A10 - Kärleksvisa Efter Hjort Anders

11 - B01 - Kruspolskan

12 - B02 - Långsdans Efter Nämndemans Ola

13 - B03 - Sörmländsk Brudlåt

14 - B04 - Sorultäkultä

15 - B05 - Kött Och Vitt Bröd

16 - B06 - Harplaien

17 - B07 - Den brinnande

18 - B08 - Flöjtlaiken

19 - B09 - Brudlaiken

20 - B10 - Laik Nr 3 Efter Hans Rönnqvist

21 - B11 - Ära Tuul Tubaje Tule

22 - B12 - Petis Peiu

23 - B13 - Laulu 1 efter Feodor Pratsu

24 - B14 - Rinkitanssilaulu

25 - B15 - Laulu 2 efter Feodor Pratsu

26 - B16 - Ralli

John Kirkpatrick - Going Spare (1978 England) @192

01. The Gas Almost Works (2.36)

02. Dan the Dustman (3.02)

03. Saint George (4.15)

04. What Do Doggies Do When They Get Bogies up Their Nose? (4.38)

05. Slip Jigs: So There I Was / Rosy Cheeks and Purple Bloomers / Bridget's Delight and Fancy (5.05)

06. What Do You Do in the Day? (4.47)

07. Burning the Water (3.36)

08. Jogging Along With Me Reindeer (3.58)

09. As the Sun Was Setting (4.11)

10. Eddie Baker's Muckspreader (7.02)

11. Pepper in the Brandy (3.55)

John Kirkpatrick, vocals, accordion [1-11], concertina [9], kazoo [4], triangle [7];

Stewart Goldring, acoustic and electric guitars [1, 8, 11];

Colin Goldring, bass guitar [1, 8, 11];

Nigel Pegrum, drums [1, 8, 11], tambourines and plummeting tom [8];

Bill Caddick, 12-string guitar [2], Arthur the English bottleneck guitar [2, 11];

Sue Harris, oboe [3, 9], hammered dulcimer [7, 11];

Alan Harris, tenor banjo [4, 5], fretless electric bass [5], banjo and double bowed bass [11];

Derek Pearce, tenor banjo and percussion [4, 5], banjo and cornet [11];

Chorus: Derek Pearce, Alan Harris, Fi Fraser, Martin Brinsford [10];

Jean-François Dutertre - 1978 - La ronde des milloraines (Vinyl Rip @320)

 

Never released on CD

Jean-Francois Dutertre is a French singer-songwriter and player of the hurdy-gurdy, épinette des Vosges, and traditional French music. He also plays the bodhran and the bouzouki.
He has been a member of the band Mélusine and a house collaborator on the disk "Le Chant du Monde".

A1 La ronde des Miloraines
A2 La brèche
A3 Bourrée de Saint Antoine
A4 L'habit noir
A5 Le Petit-Musc
A6 Bruine

B1 La salamandre
B2 La fleur de bruyère
B3 Danse de Morgane
B4 La ville de Falaise
B5 Andaine

Jean-François Dutertre - Zither [Épinette Des Vosges], Hurdy Gurdy, Percussion
Dominique Paris - Bagpipes [Northumbrian Pipes]
Dominique Maroutian - Guitar, Banjo
Dominique Regef - Rebec
Yvon Guilcher - Recorder [Flûtes À Bec, Pipeau], Oboe [Hautbois Rustique]
Marc Rapillard - Violin

Monseigneur - 1979 - Monseigneur @VBR (Vinyl Rip)

Vinyl Rip, never released on CD

Monseigneur was a folk group of the Swiss Alps.
In 1979, they released their self-titled album of cover songs and traditional Celtic melodies and original compositions of the band.

FACE A

1. Tom Billy's jig - Bill hearts (trad )
2. Les filles
3. Green leaves - Morning on a distant shore (trad )
4. Tru hags purse - Morrison's jig  (trad )
5. My poor shoes - Hanter dro (trad )

FACE B

1. Blues Breton - Gwerz penmarc'h
2. Complainte du triste monde' (trad )
3. La danse des gnomes

Kepa Junkera & Sorginak - Maletak (2016) [Ireland @ MP3 VBR V0 276

Leading Basque diatonic button accordion (trikiti/eskusoinua) player Kepa Junkera once again is joined by women vocal group Sorginak and instrumentalists from Galicia, Aragon, Catalonia, and Castilla y Leon in a joyful folk music-inspired album.

Animals is the theme of one track, and the cover has the musicians Photoshopped with critter heads. The other theme is traveling, and baggage are found everywhere in the album; maletak is Basque for suitcases. The grandly recorded music has additional instruments of large and small tambourine panderos, zambomba stick-membrane pulled drum, bass drums, triangle, alboka double clarinet, French horn, guitars, harmonica, violin, wooden xylophone-like percussion, jaw harp, metallic toberak bar percussion, cascabeles jingle shakers, and other percussion. The strong bass drum and rhythmic percussion produce a tribal trance dance aspect to the album, but the essence of this music is excitement, happiness, and cheer. The sweet sound of the trikiti is as unique and functional in feeling as the Argentinian bandonéon. After 17 tracks over 74 minutes, expect smiles.

Tracklist:
1.    Ama    4:58
2.    Drakian    4:59
3.    Arrano fandangoa    3:53
4.    Marea Zumaian    3:33
5.    Mikeldi    4:43
6.    Errauts bihotza    4:12
7.    Errekarriak    4:37
8.    Amilotxa    3:30
9.    Trikua    3:10
10.    Txipiritona    4:19
11.    Sukarrieta    3:03
12.    Animalizkoak    3:54
13.    Garnika    3:14
14.    Sandinderi    4:13
15.    Pottokak    5:53
16.    Mallokuko sua    5:16
17.    Maletak    6:53

Beoga - Live At the 10th Anniversary concert (2013) [Ireland @256m4a]

Beoga are an Irish folk music group. They were formed in County Kerry in 2002 at the All-Ireland Fleadh although the original four members of the band hail from County Antrim and County Londonderry in Northern Ireland. The line-up features Damian McKee on accordion, multi-instrumentalist Seán Óg Graham, pianist Liam Bradley and Eamon Murray on bodhrán and Niamh Dunne, from County Limerick, joined in 2005, on vocals and fiddle


Beoga (gaelic for ‘lively’) are based in County Antrim, in the north of Ireland. The bedrock of their sound lies firmly within the Irish tradition. However, they are not afraid to incorporate other genres’ nuances into their music. From bluesy riffs to Astor Piazzola-style jazz, to a raunchy New Orleans jamboree vibe, their music always returns to a wonderfully bouncy Irish sound. The result is traditional, with a huge sense of fun and adventure and it all works - wonderfully well.  The Wall Street Journal describes them as “the most exciting new traditional band to emerge from Ireland this century.” Irish Music Magazine writes, “Beoga are at the forefront of the new Irish wave.”

The band was drawn together in 2002 after ‘jamming’ in a ferocious session at the All-Ireland Fleadh. Their unique sound featured the twin dueling accordions of Damian McKee and multi-instrumentalist Seán Óg Graham, pianist Liam Bradley and four times All-Ireland bodhrán champion Eamon Murray. In 2005, the lineup was complete, with the addition of Niamh Dunne, one of Ireland’s premier young talents, on vocals and fiddle.

Tracklist:
1.    B\C Set    3:31
2.    Woman Of No Place    3:22
3.    Mischief    3:33
4.    Soggy's    5:24
5.    Dolan's 6am    3:44
6.    Our Captain Calls All Hands    4:04
7.    Prelude Polkas    4:59
8.    Flyfishing    3:54
9.    Factory Girl    3:20
10.    Kick 'n The Box    3:10
11.    Antics    3:42
12.    Home Cookin'    3:10
13.    Bellvue Waltz    4:03
14.    Exploding Bow    4:30
15.    Boxy Set    3:36
16.    Ballymacaldrick    3:41
17.    Please Don't Talk About Me When I'm Gone    2:36
18.    Bodhrán Solo    5:08
19.    A Lovely Madness    4:44
20.    Cuchullain's Despair    5:16

Baltic Crossing - Baltic Crossing (2008) [Nordic @320]

Kristian Bugge, Ian Stephenson, Andy May, Antti Järvelä, Esko Järvelä

Baltic Crossing use their strong affinity for old dance music and respect for each others traditions to bring a new youthful energy to the folk music of Europe.
Wherever they meet, at least one must cross the Baltic Sea.
With award-winning members hailing from the UK, Finland and Denmark, Baltic Crossing bring you fiery Scandinavian fiddles, bubbling Northumbrian pipes and a driving guitar and double bass rhythm section.

Danish Kristian Bugge (fiddle) and Englishman Ian Stephenson (guitar, melodeon) met at a Finish festival in 2002. They employed Antti Järvelä (double bass, mandolin, banjo, guitar), Esko Järvelä (fiddle) and furthermore Andy May (Northumbrian & uilleann pipes) to make ready for a Baltic Crossing. The band's name is exactly the best description for their music. They play Nordic music such as the slängpolska, polska and schottish, plus the odd English hornpipe. Sometimes not one after another, but at the very same time. For example, the band members couldn't agree if Andy May's original "Vänkärin Polska" (Shotgun Polska) is a Northumbrian hornpipe 3/2 time or a polska. It got a Finnish tune title anyway. Another Finnish quadrille was titled "Space Cowboys," because they felt that the chords just sounded like Steven Miller's classic pop song "The Joker". The band's crossing over the Baltic Sea is one that is quite turbulent at times, but it is a pleasant journey anyway.

Tracklist:
1.    Sextour    4:17
2.    Vankarin Set    3:56
3.    Original Polka Set    3:05
4.    Den Strejkende General / The Striking General    3:17
5.    Ostindiens Velkomst    3:31
6.    Sir John Fenwick's    4:53
7.    Korv och Mos    2:04
8.    Space Cowboys    4:58
9.    Mofodragon Set    3:30
10.    Schottis Set    4:37
11.    Grønne Aal / Green Eel    1:56

Estremìa - That's folk, baby! (2015 Italy) @320

Estremìa, a term which in patois indicates the bell that sounds the alarm in an emergency, is the name of the duo formed by Vincent Boniface (Accordion) and Marta Caldara (Piano) with the incursion of Bramo (Beatbox).
Estrémia remind us of the emergence in music culture, showing the emerging of this new style of Folk, certainly danceable but also in search for new combinations of sounds: a piano that complements the "good old" accordion , and the contemporaneity of Beatboxing with Bramo. 

Tracklist:
1. Finisterrae          4:04
2. Les Doigts de Carmen / Vache Folle     4:11
3. Slogan     4:39
4. Mensonge pour Danser     3:36
5. One Pound Less / Kamala     5:10
6. Aladin's Doubt     2:52
7. Boing     4:54
8. Juskaskeu     2:53
9. Polemique     3:10
10. Mazurbloise / L'impasse / Motorway Mazurka     4:38
   
Vincent Boniface (Accordion)
Marta Caldara (Piano) 
Bramo (Beatbox)