ALBUM REVIEW:James Galway and The Chieftains Over the Sea to Skye: The Celtic Connection

RCA, 1990 | 60424-2-RC

By Sarah Adams

This is the second collaboration between Galway and the Chieftains. Music on this album includes Scots and Irish tunes and Concert selections recorded in Sydney, Australia with Galway. I am fond of several tracks on this album. The album starts off with the mysterious Carolan piece "Carolan's Quarrel with the Landlady" My other favorites included Three Hornpipes: Eugene Stratton, The Banks, and Arthur Seat which was arranged by Sean Keane. This track really showcases Keane's pyrotechnic fiddle style. One can almost grab a partner and go waltzing or perhaps even tango across a ballroom. The album also includes the haunting piece "The Dark Island" featuring Molloy on flute; "Lilibulero" is where Moloney has taken a Scottish tune and paired it with a Jacobite tune of "The White Cockade" creating an unlikely marriage between the green and the orange. The album also features "A Fanfare" written by Martin Fay. The concert tracks are the most interesting. One can almost visualize a fairy waking up, stretching, and break into a lively dance to celebrate the dawning of a new day. The most fun track to listen to was the Solo Salutes at the end where each person played a solo inbetween choruses of "Rachamid Bhean Bheag". The most interesting solo was turned in by Derek Bell who burned up the ivory on the piano with a lively ragtime piece. All in all it is an interesting and lively album to listen to and one cannot help but tap one's toes.