I mistakenly put Side 2 on first and from the first few chords I was immediately grabbed. Yes, ‘Fiesta’ isn’t what you expect after the first few notes, but still good fun, and the remaining music is simply stunning. Who can’t help be moved by ‘Streets of sorrow / Birmingham Six’ and it helps you see the band in a different light.
For anyone who has spent any time in Ireland it immediately transports you to the bars, the countryside, the people and the lifestyle. You don’t even have to close your eyes. And if you’ve never been it offers you a tempting taste of what is in store. I can’t describe. Sometimes you need to feel and touch it.
But I think, for me, what stands this one out, is that the music, whilst very ‘traditional’, is, in the main, original from the hands of the band. And that has to come from the soul. You cannot ‘knock this up’ in terms of authentication, it has to come from birth. It is earthy, deep set, from the feet upwards, not simply a commercial offering to latch onto a bandwagon. It’s part of what Ireland has to offer, in the best possible way. None more so than Side 2 which is where I came in….
