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| Blackwood and Hickory - Mid Argyll Pipe Band |
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| I tend to approach a CD bearing the catalogue numbers 01 with a degree of sympathy (first steps, and all that) but Blackwood and Hickory by the Mid Argyll Pipe Band needs no sympathy vote whatsoever: it stands on its own feet, and then some.
A band of long standing (founded 1927) but of considerable youth as well - encouraging young players is a particular aim - they offer an eclectic collection of trad and pioneering tracks. They are influenced by Brittany, Cornwall and of course Argyll - "recorded at Argyll and Bute Council Chambers, Lochgilphead" is a pretty rare accolade in itself.
Most of the tunes will ring a bell with piping fans of any level, but it's what the Mid Argyll do with them that ensures the pizzazz, with quirky titles, slick and unexpected arrangements - the syncopated "Cheryl's Wedding", the protracted Mooo! that starts "Sweeney The Coo Killer", for example - and much more.
Definite proof that piping is alive and well, indeed thriving, in Campbell country: and all the more so as this is actually a sell-out stage show translated on to CD. |
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