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BRID O'DONOHUE - Tobar an Ouchais

BRID O'DONOHUE - Tobar an Ouchais
Traditional Irish Tin Whistle Music from County Clare
BOD 001

Give an expert player a melody instrument and let them go, and you end up with something like this. Whistle and flutes have a propensity to be able to carry an album by themselves, driving tunes along with jollity, or sadness, but always with panache.

It helps, of course, when they are in the hands of an expert, and Brid O'Donoghue is certainly that; an unsung relative of Willie Clancy and many other traditional musicians. There's jigs, like 'Banish Misfortune, reels, like 'The Green Groves of Erin', hornpipes , slip jigs - 'Hardiman the Fiddler and The Kid on the Mountain' and some plaintive airs. Fifteen tracks, but many more tunes as she slides and jumps through her arrangements.

It is no mean feat to carry off an album with no supporting musicians, just a series of tin whistles in different keys but Brid does it with ease and power. This set includes a sixteen page bilingual booklet explaining the origins of the tunes and containing some nice photographs of Brid and family. The record company reckon it's understated. As music it is as understated as punk, and deserves to be played as loud. Play it loud in your car and drown out those whose driving musical tastes are less intelligent.

Bob Harragan

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This album was reviewed in Issue 66 of The Living Tradition magazine.