Here's another offering of my take on another classic song that means a lot to me.  In memory of lost friends and lovers and a salute to life with all its pain and glory.

WILD HORSES

There's about two Duran Duran songs that I really like, and this is one of them.  I had great fun recording loads of backing vocals on this cover and just used piano and multi tracked strings as the rest of the backing.

Save A Prayer

This is a cover of what is personally a very special song, originally sung and performed by Sade.  Its turned out quite different from the original!

Dedicated to my beautiful, late wife, Jackie; thank you for the wonderful life and love we had X

By Your Side

https://youtu.be/-fvuZoMEqUk
I've just written this song over the last few days, it's amazing how inspiration can suddenly come!  It's quite a different path from my other original material, but it's given freely, and with love, to all the beautiful souls out there who need reminding now and again, that......

You are, Beautiful.

You are, beautiful; you're a part of it all.
Everything is yours, as it is everyone's,
The sun shines on you as much as anyone.

You are, beautiful; you're a part of it all.
You're a child of the universe,
And as that child, know you are loved.

You are, beautiful, at one with it all.
May the rivers of love flow through your heart,
The love that was there, right at the start,
May the well that it fills, never run dry,
May it wash away the tears, so you can face the sky.

You are, beautiful, you're a part of it all.
May the rivers of love flow through your heart,
May the river of love flow through your heart,
May the rivers of love flow through your heart.

Ian Rowlands, October, 2021.

You Are, Beautiful - by Ian Rowlands.

This track comes from a live video, well worth watching! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FHmeVKMVMaQ

Recorded and filmed live at Oak Wren Studio and produced by Juliette Daum on 29th July, 2022.  The video which premiered on the 'noson gelf, art night', arts show, produced and broadcasted from Aberystwyth, at amam.cymru/cultureconomy .  
This is my arrangement of a traditional Welsh folk song that dates back to the early 15th century.  At first glance it appears to be a kind of Welsh version of, 'Who Killed Cock Robin?', because it speaks of the murder of the Lark by the hawk, and how the Swallow tells of the Faeries' distress over the issue despite their flower magic and crystals.  In fact, the song uses bird names as codenames for real people who were having to hide their actual identities and live as outlaws.

Between 1400 and 1415, Wales was in the grip of rebellion against the English crown and a war of independence, led by Owain Glyndwr who was deemed as being the legitimate and native Prince of Wales.  His vision was for a free Welsh nation, with it's own laws, church and universities.
Ultimately, the rebellion failed and severe anti Welsh laws were put in place on a land ravaged by warfare.  Glyndwr himself disappeared and was never caught and many from his armies had to live as outlaws, never able to return to their former homes and lives for fear of being horribly executed and their families being punished too.

These outlaws hid in the hills, still having to fight the English soldiers searching for them; the outlaw band called ,'y Gwylliaid Cochion', or 'the Wild Reds/Red Bandits' because of their hair colour, were infamous and lived in the hills north of Machynlleth for several generations after the rebellion, being most prominent in the 16th century.  

In this song, the Lark, is a fallen soldier who lies on the mountainside, killed by the Hawk, which represents English soldiers searching the high peatlands, with their 'guilty, cowardly hearts beating like those of murderers'.  
The outlaws discuss fetching the body home with a troop of armed men, while an outlaw called, the Swallow tells them that the Fair People/Faeries have made an 'ark of crystals covered with apple wood to bring the body back'.  
The old soldiers of Glyndwr's forces, lament that in spite of bringing an army of armed men and scaring off the Hawk, and in spite of all the crystals, flowers and skills of the Fair People, the song of the Lark won't be returning home.

Marwnad Yr Ehedydd (An Elegy for the Lark.)

Title track of Wales Today album by my old band, Abenaki, recorded in 1998.

Wales today

Ofn Dangos Mwy - 'Afraid to show more'.  
Dyma un o'r caneuon cyntaf i mi gyfansoddi yn y Gymraeg.
Here's one of my first attempts at writing a song in Welsh.
From the album 'Wales Today' by 'Abenaki'.

Ofn Dangos Mwy

Inspired by a very special and old friend who shone a light when I was in a very dark place.

Light Up The Darkness

Tune by Ian Rowlands, lyrics by Claire Jones- Abenaki. 1998

Hunllefau y Nos (Nightmares)

Can a gyfansoddwyd yn dilyn y ffamin yn Sudan.
This is a comment on the famine in Sudan in the 90s and on the injustices of the world-
'Cariad yw fy nghrefydd' - 'Love is my creed'.

Ffoadur(Refugee)

This is a song I wrote on the beach at Church Bay one evening when I was about 20 years old.  Dedicated to an old friend, Vicky Harries and to all the souls lost in the chase.

Dragons

Another track off Abenakis' 'Wales Today' album, 1998.

Think of Me

Y trac olaf ar albwm Cymru Heddiw gan Abenaki.
The final track off 'Wales Today' by Abenaki.

Goleuni

This is my arrangement of one of my favourite songs from the 60s psychedelia era.  Originally a 1967 no. 1 for Simon Dupree and the Big Sound.

Kites (by Simon Dupree)

I wrote this song and recorded it on my phone on 29th August,2023.
It's especially dedicated to my late wife, Jackie, also to Susan Walmsley and Sarah Hulme, and to all the beautiful people who were taken too soon, too young.
I hope it honours them, and expresses some of the collective grief that our communities are feeling after losing so many friends.

Never Grow Old

This is from a poem, in the Welsh language (Cymraeg), by Harri Webb, and set to music.  It was written in the 1960s as a protest against the erosion of the Welsh culture through the exploitation of Wales' resources, with none of the benefits or profits reaching the Welsh population.  Specifically, inspired by the destruction of a Welsh community, Capel Celyn, in order to build a reservoir to feed the city of Liverpool, outside Wales' borders.  Cofiwch Dryweryn!

Colli Tir

I recorded this just for a bit of fun and experimentation!  It's a classic Status Quo track, but done in a completely different mood.

Deeper And Down

Y Chwyldro – the Revolution.
Di'r frwydr byth yn gorffen, di'r chwyldro byth ar ben - the battle's never won, the revolution's never done.

Rwyn caru Linton Kwesi Johnson, a’i farddoniaeth brotest wedi’ gosod i gerddoriaeth reggae dyb, a cherddoriaeth, Geraint Jarman a’r Cynganeddwyr.  Roedd gen i bennillion heb diwn, a rhodd fy hen ffrind. Meic, y syniad i mi, o’u hadrodd dros fiwsig.  Felly wneis i ddewis gynhyrchu’r trac mewn steil LKJ a dyb.

I’m a big fan of Linton Kwesi Johnson, and his social poetry set to dub, and the music of Geraint Jarman and the Cynganeddwyr, who first introduced reggae into the Welsh language music scene in the early 1980s.  I had some verses I’d written,  in Cymraeg/Welsh, but without a tune, (I usually write lyrics and the music at the same time).  My old mate, Meic, suggested just reading them like a poem, over music, as Jarman had done, so I was inspired to create this dub track in an LKJ style and in Welsh as a tribute to Geraint Jarman and his band.


Sgrifennais y geiriau yma am ddiwylliant Cymru heddiw, a'r bygythiadau yn ei herbyn o'r asgell dde Brydeinig. Mae'r baich o amddiffyn ein hawliau, os dim ond i fodoli fel Cymry, ar ysgwyddau'r cenedlaethau heddiw. Y werin bobol, y dosbarth gweithiol sydd wedi gorfod, 'dal y darian' ers i'r bonheddigion droi ei chefnau a throi at Loegr canrifoedd yn ôl. Ni, y bobol cyffredin sydd wedi brwydro dros ein hawliau, ac wedi cadwr iaith ac ati, ac mae arnom ni heddiw, i warchod y hyn wnaeth cymaint o'm blaenau frwydro amdano, ac i ennill fwy.  Cymru am Byth!

I wrote these words about Wales’ culture, and the current threats it faces from the British/Unionist, right wing who would take away our devolved parliament and hard fought for language rights, etc.  Many before us have made huge sacrifices so that we still have our unique culture. That’s why our history is relevant to today – its a living legacy of a very long struggle against oppression and cultural genocide.  Wales Forever!

Y Chwyldro / the Revolution.

“They’re eating the dogs
They’re eating the cats
They’re eating the pets
of the 
people who live there.” 
                       Donald J Trump.

It’s all fake news, full of lies
I'm confused and hypnotised
Do my research, on you tube
Get on the Web Google my truth

All those planes flying by
Leaving chem trails in the sky
Birds aren't real that's no surprise 
I only believe what's in front of my eyes 


They’re eating the dogs
They’re eating the cats
They’re eating the pets
of the 
people who live there



No fuel down the station
Its a ‘lectric reservation
Cities full of tin huts
‘llowed out for fifteen min uts

5G’s gone left me insane
Vaccine’s gone and hurt my brain
Veins are full of microchips
I can’t feel my fingertips 

They’re eating the dogs
They’re eating the cats
They’re eating the pets
of the 
people who live there

Forgive me if I speak too soon
But mankind never walked the moon
We can never leave our home
There is no space outside the dome

And earth is flat and water’s level
And science is the work of the devil
Down the rabbit hole, hell for leather
Damn democrats control the weather

They’re eating the dogs
They’re eating the cats
They’re eating the pets
of the 
people who live there



I'm scared of Muslims, scared of Jews
Scared of woke, alternative views
Scared of reds, scared of blacks,
Scared of books, scared of facts.
Scared they wanna kill us all
Armageddon's trumpet call
Scared to look into the void
Screwed up tight and paranoid. 

They’re eating the dogs
They’re eating the cats
They’re eating the pets
of the 
people who live there


I know I’ve lost it, ‘m not all there 
Put my faith in a billionaire
Fell for lies and dirty tricks
Gave power to the lunatics

Fuck you MAGA, way to go
May you reap just what you sow
You made the deal, now pay the rent
A fascist pig for president.

They’re eating the dogs
They’re eating the cats
They’re eating the pets
of the 
people who live there
They’re eating the dogs
They’re eating the cats
They’re eating the pets
of the 
people who live there

They're Eating the Dogs

Link to accompanying video: https://youtu.be/5i9vuZ0puS4

This is a song written in support of todays Anarchists in Spain who are facing a major clampdown on their civil rights. Spain has a proud history of anarchist organisation and direct action and todays anarchists are again under serious attack from the right wing. This song relates back to the heroes of the Spanish revolution who fought Franco and his Fascist/Nationalist forces between 1936 and 1939, while at the same time managing industry and agriculture in an equal, libertarian, non-hierarchical way- a great inspiration to Anarchists ever since. 
SOLIDARITY WITH SPANISH ANARCHISTS!...for tomorrow, the same laws will be applied to us.
For more info on the 'Ley Mordaza' law -
revolution-news.com/spain-congress-…conian-gag-law/
autonomies.org/en/2014/12/yo-tam…-spanish-pandora/
https://youtu.be/5i9vuZ0puS4

            Yo Soy un Anarquista

In the 30s a general called Franco proclaimed,
The people had no right to run their own Spain. 
So he turned on his country and its freedom he tore,
And set Spains own army on her people in war.
Under Hitlers bombs towns like Guernika fell,
And Mussolinis shells, blasted 'em to hell,
While Franco claimed victory and looked on with pride,
The governments of Europe just turned a blind eye.

But they came from all nations, no state to their name,
To fight against the Fascists with the people of Spain.
Through frozen sierras and deserts parched,
The Anarchist militias marched.
No masters, no gods, no kings and no prison,
the factories owned by the workers within them,
And the fields that they sowed
With the seeds of their souls
That cried out for freedom
For one and for all.

(Chorus)
Those warriors of conscience 
Who chose to insist
On the right to their freedom 
and the right to resist
and today their grand-children 
are raising a fist
Yo soy un Anarquist-, yo soy un anarquist-, 
yo soy un anarquista.


No medals, no honours, November parade.
No recognition of the warriors so brave.
No white cross for the ones that remained,
To die in the fields of Spain.
Betrayed from all sides, stood in a line,
The firing squad bullets, ending their time.
Though their bodies in ditches lie bloodied and stained,
Like the Black and Red flag
Their spirits remain.

(Chorus)

Muerte a todos los fascistas (death to all Fascists)
Yo soy un Anarquista.
                                                            
by Ian Rowlands

Yo Soy un Anarquista (I am an Anarchist)

Oddi ar albwm Abenaki, Cymru Heddiw o 1998.  Cyfansoddwyd yn wreiddiol, fel ymateb i'r trachineb yn Omagh, lle ffrwydrodd fomb yr IRA yn ystod gwasanaeth coffadwriaeth.  Cân am faddeuant yw, ac am sut mae'n rhaid edrych i'r dyfodol er mwyn symud ymlaen.  Yn y diwedd, cariad sy'n tyfu a chasineb sy'n pydru; rhaid agor dwrn cyn gallu gafael mewn gobaith.
Cadoediad means ceasefire and this track is off the 1998 Abenaki album, Wales Today.  It was originally inspired as a response to the bombing of a remembrance day parade in Omagh, northern Ireland, but deals with moving on/letting go and themes of forgiveness on a personal level.  There's always the chance of a fresh start, on a new day and a new dawn.  A fist has to open before it can grasp a new opportunity or receive a hand. 

Cadoediad

Dyma un o'm hoff ganeuon gwerin Cymreig.  Mae'n cynnwys y cyfan - cariad, hiraeth a galar, adar hudolus, mynyddoedd ac enaid yr hen Gymry wedi ei glymu i'r tir fel y briodas rhwng y geiriau a'r alaw yn y gan hon.
This is one of my favourite traditional Welsh songs.  As is common in Welsh folk songs, it tells of a longing and a loss for a loved one and includes a common, if not unusual, theme in Welsh songs, that of magical, talking birds who carry a message of love on behalf of a suitor.
The song is about a man who is away from his beloved, Gwen.  He asks the Lark, the Nightingale and all the little birds of the mountain to fly off and visit Gwen who has developed an illness.  They all fly off until they reach the end of Gwens' bed where they explain that they are comrades representing the one that loves her and he wants to know if she is recovering or not.  Gwen in turn also gives them a sad message to pass back to her lover, "tell him gently that my time left, is short.  Before the end of what is left of this summer, I'll be lying with the soil and gravel."

Adar Man Y Mynydd (the Small Birds of the Mountain)Trad.Welsh folk song by Ian Rowlands

Sadly, tragically, devastatingly, my beautiful wife, Jackie passed away on the 26th of May, 2019 following a long illness that was only diagnosed as cancer three months previous to her death.
She leaves myself and our two beautiful, strong boys, Cai (13), and Osian (9) but will forever be carried in our hearts and remembered as a wondrous, loving wife and mother.
I have recently added to this track, to play the recording at my wife's funeral, and this song is a tribute to her and will remain for all time a testament to her memory and to how much she was very much loved.

All For You

Contact via e-mail: rockrowlands@gmail.com
Live performances and videos:
You are, Beautiful. https://youtu.be/-fvuZoMEqUk
Marwnad yr Ehedydd. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FHmeVKMVMaQ

'Ceidwad y Goleudy' with Harriet Earis on Celtic harp.  Live at Cafe Musique, Lampeter, 18th of December, 2015.
https://youtu.be/0E4l97l1JLc

Yo Soy un Anarquista - video
http://youtu.be/5i9vuZ0puS4

UV Art Workshop
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k8glo-FWDuE&feature=youtu.be

All Happy Now
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7mgIxwd2O7k&feature=player_detailpage

Myfanwy with Harriet Earis
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HszvKY8CQA8&feature=player_detailpage

Oko Vela a Chavo, with Harriet Earis - harp, Andy 'Wal' Coughlan - bass and Sam Christie - percussion playing at Acoustic Meeting Ground 25 April 2014 - Pontardawe Arts Centre.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T1oVjdyHbVw&feature=player_detailpage

E-mail: rockrowlands@gmail.com

Ian Rowlands

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