Jock Duncan: Ye Shine What Ye Stan!

SCOTTISH

Here's a small selection of favourite tracks. Wishing all friends, musicians and folk enthusiasts a merry Christmas and all the best for the New Year 2018.

Christmas 2017 and a Guid New Year

Massacre Of Glencoe

The Scottish trad trio of Charlie McKerron (fiddle), Sandy Brechin (piano accordion) and Brian Ó hEadhra (guitar & vocals) are three accomplished musicians who draw on a wealth of tunes and songs from the Gaelic and Scots traditions.  They each are acclaimed composers in their own right.  

The trio have performed in Scotland and abroad and have wowed audiences with their choice of material and engaging stage performances.  Each artist is also known through their work with other acclaimed acts; Charlie performs with Capercaille and Session A9; Sandy with Bùrach and the Sandy Brechin Band; Brian with Cruinn.  

“A sparkling array of instrumentals match drive with delicacy, soul with swing and fire with finesse, potently interspersed with the timeless eloquence of Gaelic song.” – Sue Wilson

“Perfectly pitched mix of lively dance tunes, evocative slow airs and Gaelic songs earned both rapt attention and noisy applause, culminating in a fully fledged cèilidh.” – The Scotsman *****

Sometimes It Doesn't Work, Skye BBQ, Farquhar's Rocking Chair

Lista de reproducción seleccionada para el sitio:
http://leayluna.wix.com/cronicasdehyacintho
Y para la precentción del libro Tierra de Estrellas del cual soy coautora

Gaelic Song - Fear a Bhàta

Song about traditional Herring fishing in Peterhead NE Scotland
written by Pete Coutts & Jenny Sturgeon
From the album 'Northern Sky' available at
https://petecoutts.bandcamp.com/album/northern-sky

Northern Sky

Sail & Oar

Gordon Easton is from the Blackhills of Tyrie near Fraserburgh, where his family has crofted for generations. He learned many of his old songs from his mother and grandmother and is well-known for his fiddle, jew’s harp and ‘moothie’ playing, not to mention his considerable skills as a ‘diddler’. 

At the age of 84, he recorded this his first CD (www.springthyme.co.uk/ah05). In recent years he has become a fixture on the festival competition scene, sometimes entering as many as five competitions. In 2004 he was made an honorary life member of the TMSA. In 2007 he was a guest at the Whitby Folk Week.

The farm of Barnyards on the Delgaty castle estate a mile from Turriff gave rise to one of the most famous of the old bothy ballads. Greig opens his Buchan Observer article on Ploughman Songs with Barnyards (FSNE 4, GD 3: 347).

Scots Words 
The song is rich in the Buchan or Doric dialect of the Scots language. As with any language, the Scots tongue has its regional dialects. Click on the following link to discover more about Scots and get direct access to the online Scots Language dictionary: www.springthyme.co.uk/scotslanguage

The Barnyards o Delgaty

1: As I gaed doun tae Turra market,
Turra market for tae fee,
I met in wi a fairmer chiel,
Fae the barnyards o Delgaty.

Chorus:
Lilten adie touran adie, lilten adie touran ae,
O lilten lourin lourin lourin, the barnyards o Delgaty.

2: He promised me the twa best horse,
That ever gaed in iron sheen;
Fan I gaed hame tae the barnyards,
There wis naething there but skin and bane.

3: Noo the auld black horse sat on his hunkers,
The auld dun meer lay on her wime, [i.e. belly
And aa that I could up and cry,
They widna rise at yokin time.

4: Noo Lang Meg Scot she maks ma brose,
It's wi her I canna agree,
First a knot an syne a mote and then a knot, [i.e. a lump then a little
And aye the ither jilp o bree. [i.e. spill the rest

5: Noo Jean MacPherson maks ma bed,
You should see the marks upon ma shins,
Jean, the coorse illtrickit jaud, [i.e. mischievous girl
She fills ma bed wi prickly whins.

6: Fin I gang tae the kirk on Sunday,
Mony a bonnie lass I see,
Sittin by her faither's side,
An winkin o'er the pews at me.

7: Noo some can drink and nae get drunk,
Some can fecht and nae get slain,
I can coort anither chiel's lass,
An aye gang welcome tae ma ain.

8: Ma cannle nearly burnt oot, [i.e. candle
The snotter's fairly on the wane, [i.e. the wick burnt down
So fare ye weel ye barnyards,
Ye'll niver catch me here again.

Chorus:
Lilten adie touran adie, lilten adie touran ae,
O lilten lourin lourin lourin, the barnyards o Delgaty.

Gordon Easton: Barnyards o Delgaty

The Wassail celebration involves Christmas revellers taking a Wassail bowl, usually a large wooden vessel from house to house to distribute good cheer. This version was recorded in 1972 from Lemmie Brazil - a member of a large Gypsy traveller family in Gloucester. A near complete collection of the songs and music of the family is available as a 3CD set on the Musical Traditions label: The Brazil Family: Down by the Old Riverside - although this song was not included. But here it is sung by the 82 year old Lemmie:

Wassail Song
From the singing of Lemmy Brazil, Gloucester 26 December 1972.  Collected by Peter Shepheard  (Springthyme 67.8.3). 

He said I ain’t come here not to beg or not to borrow,
I have come here just to drive away my sorrow,
A bit of your good cake an’ a drop of your strong beer,
An’ I hope you merry Chrissemas an’ a happy New Year.

Come all you lucky gentlemen that sits around the fire,
Remember us poor wassailers who walks through muddy mire,
A bit o’ your good cake and a drop o’ your strong beer,
An’ I hope you merry Chrissemas an’ a happy New Year.


Lemmie Brazil: Wassail Song

Iain McLachlan: An Island Heritage

Iain McLachlan's music comes as fresh as the sea breezes wafting over the Uist machair - Highland and Gaelic as his island heritage. I recall two wonderful music sessions with Iain at a ceilidh and dance in Daliburgh in South Uist back in 1976 and again at one of the famous Kinross Festivals where he played about a dozen pipe marches off the cuff with the unbroken link up that comes of playing at a thousand dances.

Iain, from Benbecula, is best known as an accordionist, but on this recording he also plays fiddle and melodeon, and is joined by Calum Iain MacCorquodale of Bayhead, North Uist on accordion and fiddle and by Calum Campbell of Balivanich on goose and jaws harp. His Highland Harry using the trill grace note which was a favourite ornament with the old Highland fiddlers, and the two pipe reels of Drummond and The Sheepwife on accordion with Calum on the goose, are truly inspiring.
[from sleeve notes by Aonghas Grant, Lochaber].

Here he plays a set of reels on the single row melodeon: MRS MacLEOD OF RAASAY
and HIGH ROAD TO LINTON. The set was recorded at the Kinross Festival in September 1976.

This is a track from the album Iain McLachlan: <a href="http://www.springthyme.co.uk/1022/" target="_self">An Island Heritage</a>.

Iain McLachlan: Mrs MacLeod Of Raasay/ High Road To Linton

Bill Black: Reels: ITCHY FINGERS/ WICKED WILLY/ DINKY'S REEL/ MISS JANE OF VIOLET BANK

Based in Perthshire, this is the fourth album on Springthyme from Bill Black and the band: Scottish dance music played with a rich style and a solid enthusiasm that has ensured the popularity of Bill and the band at ceilidhs and dances for over 30 years. The band are: Bill Black: button box; Kathryn Nicoll: fiddle; Niel Caul: piano accordion; Mabel Gray: piano; Robert McFadyen: drums.

The album includes dance sets for the Barn Dance, Polkas, Reels, St Bernard's Waltz, Postie's Jig and a Virginia Reel. Fiddler Kathryn Nicoll plays a superb slow air Fyvie Castle by Scott Skinner followed by a reel Mary Claire by the Canadian fiddle composer J. Holland.

This is a track from the album Bill Black Scottish Dance Band: <a href="http://www.springthyme.co.uk/1037/" target="_self">The Dawning</a>.

Bill Black: Itchy Fingers/ Wicked Willy &c

GRUEL

On Springthyme SPRCD 1039
Jock Duncan - Ye Shine Whar Ye Stan!

A favourite comic song about a cantankerous and newly wed weaver whose only desire was to sup his gruel - his porridge of oatmeal. Jock remembers his father humming and singing snatches of the song.

Jock: Ma faither wisna a singer by any means, it's the only een I heard him gaun on wi. But his cousin from ower the hill of Belnagoak, Charlie Duncan, sang it - with his melodeon.

1: Oh there wis a weaver in the north,
And oh but he wis cruel,
For the very first nicht that he wis wad,
He sat an he grat for gruel.
He sat an he grat for gruel,
Oh he couldna want his gruel,
For the very first nicht that he wis wad,
He sat an he grat for gruel.

2: "Oh there's nae a speen in aa the house,
For tae sup your gruel."
"Oh the gairden spad'll dae wi me,
For I maun hae ma gruel.
For I maun hae ma gruel,
Oh I canna want ma gruel;
Oh the gairden spad'll dae wi me,
For I maun hae ma gruel."

3: "Oh there's nae a dish in aa the hoose,
For tae sup your gruel."
"Oh the horse's troch'll dae wi me
For I maun hae ma gruel.
For I maun hae ma gruel,
Oh I canna want ma gruel;
Och! the horse's troch'll dae wi me
For I maun hae ma gruel."

4: She gaed ben the hoose for wine an cakes,
And brocht them ben on a stool,
"Oh gae wa, gae wa wi yer falderals, [i.e. go away
For I maun hae ma gruel.
For I maun hae ma gruel,
Oh I canna want ma gruel;
Oh gae wa, gae wa wi yer falderals,
For I maun hae ma gruel."

5: Oh come aa young lassies and listen tae me,
An dinna mairry a weaver,
The very first nicht that he wis wad,
He sat an he grat for gruel.
He sat an he grat for gruel,
Oh he couldna want his gruel;
For the very first nicht that he wis wad,
He sat an he grat for gruel.

An the very first nicht that he wis wad,
He sat an he grat for gruel.

This song is from the Springthyme CD Jock Duncan: <a href="http://www.springthyme.co.uk/1039/" target="_self">Ye Shine Whar Ye Stan!</a>.

Jock Duncan: Gruel

RHYNIE

On Springthyme SPRCD 1039
Jock Duncan - Ye Shine Whar Ye Stan!

Jock Duncan learned this Aberdeenshire masterpiece from the singing of the great John Strachan (farmer at the farm of Crichie the other side of Fyvie from Jock's parents family farm) - who sang it accompanying himself on concertina. The song was included in Norman Buchan's influential 101 Scottish Songs published in 1962 and is in the Greig-Duncan Folk-Song Collection (GD 343) under the title Jock o Rhynie. An old man, William Forsyth, told Greig thet he 'remembered as a boy his mother sing Jock o Rhynie and this would take the song back to say 1830.' The farmer at Mains o Rhynie (in the high glens of Auchindoir in Strathbogie about 8 miles south of Huntly) from 1830 until his death in 1851 was John Gordon and he was known as 'Jock o Rhynie' but there may have been earlier Jocks at Rhynie and the song could well be earlier. He is said to have denied his work was 'ill to work' although he admitted that Rhynie's work was 'very hard.'

1: At Rhynie I sheared my first hairst,
Doun by the fit o Benachie,
Ma maister there was ill tae fit, [hard to please
But laith wis I tae loss my fee.
 Linten ourin ourin addie,
 Linten ourin ourin ee.

2: Rhynie's wark is ill tae work,
An Rhynie's wauges is bit sma,
Rhynie's laws are double strick, [i.e. very strict
And that's fit grieves me warst of aa.
 Linten ourin ourin addie,
 Linten ourin ourin ee.

3: Rhynie is a cauld clay hole,
It's nane een like ma father's toun,
Rhynie is a hungry place,
And it disnae suit a Lawland loon.
 Linten ourin ourin addie,
 Linten ourin ourin ee.

4: Sair I've focht and sair I've vrocht, [i.e. worked
Until I won my penny fee,
And I'll ging back tae the gate I cam, [i.e. the way I came
And a better bairnie I will be.
 Linten ourin ourin addie,
 Linten ourin ourin ee.

Jock: John Strachan was never bettered at this song about the hand shearin days before the reaper made short work of it. This young man's first shearin wis an unhappy experience, wages were sma and it wis a hungry place and the farmer's laws were double strict. Folk think o Rhynie as being 'My God, thats a wild place, there canna be much growin up there.' It's hilly and there's a lot a sheepie grun, but it's (also) some o the finest corn growin country that ever wis.

Jock never worked on Rhynie, but not long ago he and his wife Frances climbed the nearby hill Tap o Noth to look down over the lands of Rhynie.

Jock: Whit drew me to Tap o Noth wis the fine walk through the whin and up through the breem. You're gaun back 4, 5000 year because ye'd the vitrified fort on the top. And here's me standin on the top o the vitrified fort singin Rhynie, lookin doun, a beautiful sunny day, on the hairst parks o Rhynie away in the distance. And I wis thinkin o Jock –

This song is from the Springthyme CD Jock Duncan: <a href="http://www.springthyme.co.uk/1039/" target="_self">Ye Shine Whar Ye Stan!</a>.

Jock Duncan: Rhynie

Springthyme is a record label dedicated to presenting Scotland's living tradition in song and music. Founded in 1974 by musician and singer Pete Shepheard, the label has introduced many fine singers, musicians to the world of recorded music. The very first album was recorded during the weekend traditional music festival held in Kinross in 1973 with musicians including Aly Bain and Tom Anderson and the Shetland Fiddlers and the first recording of ballad singer Stanley Robertson of Aberdeen. Other artistes on Springthyme include Jim Reid, The Foundry Bar Band, Ossian, Jock Duncan, Bill Black, Duncan Williamson, Lizzie Higgins, Jim Crawford, Tom Hughes, John Watt & Davey Stewart, Iain McLachlan and many more including a CD from Pete's own band Shepheard, Spiers & Watson. Springthyme has also issued recordings from their field recordings archive in cooperation with the Musical Traditions label.