Track Listing

1. Peter Stewart, 1910
2. Buain A, Choirce (Reaping Song)
3. Suid Mar Chuir Mi 'N Geamhradh Tharram (Nightvisiting Song)
4. Uamh an Oir (Cave of Gold)
5. Fhleasgaich �ir, Leanainn Thu (Young Man, I'd Follow You)
6. H� Rinn O (Unrequited Love Song)
7. Thearlaich �ig (Oh Young Charles Stewart)
8. Cumha Lain Gairbh (Lament for John Macleod of Ramsay)
9. Hi�raibh �, Ghr�idh an Tig Thu? (Will You Return, My Love?)
10. DH, �irich Mi Moch Maduinn Ch�itinn... (Walking Song)
11. Air Bhith Dh�mhsa (In Praise of Brothers, Happy)
12. Cumha Mhic Criomain (MacCrimmon's Lament)
13. Oran Nam Mogaisean (Indian Moccasin Song)
14. Fhir A, Leadain Thl�th (Lad with Smooth Tresses)
15. Griogal Cridhe (Glen Lyon's Lament)

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #72121 in Music
• Released on: 2002-03-11
• Number of discs: 1

Customer Reviews

Happily lost in Glen Lyon
'Glen Lyon' is Martyn Bennett's first release since the industrial-folk of 'Hardland', and you couldn't ask for two more different albums. Bennett has gone right back to his roots for a 15 track exploration not only of his own family's musical heritage, but also of Gaelic Scottish culture.
Bennett's family figures heavily - almost all the tracks are sung by his mother, Margaret, with help on one track from her mother Peigi Stewart. Also included on a couple of tracks are recordings of Bennett's own great-great-grandfather, Peter Stewart, recorded on wax cylinder in 1910. The tracks are all in gaelic, but for the non-gaelic speaking listener the detailed sleeve notes make the songs accessible.
Margaret Bennett's performance is one of effortless quality, and to add to her talent there are a host of samples which her son has gathered on his travels around the west coast of Scotland and further afield. The reaping song, Buain a' Choirce, is brought vividly to life using samples from a 1920s threshing machine, and a sampled bee buzzing gives the track Uamh an Oir (Cave of Gold) a distinctly otherwordly and slightly unsettling feel. Perhaps one of the most memorable tracks is Oran nam mogaisean (Indian moccasin song), featuring sampled Native American chanting overlaid onto a song from Newfoundland - stirring stuff.
All in all, anyone listening to 'Glen Lyon' can feel they're experiencing an album into which a lot of thought, love and attention has gone. All too often, attempts to bring fresh life to traditional folk music can end up sounding contrived, but Martyn Bennett has once again delivered an album which is both engaging and a pleasure to listen to.

Disappointing departure
Of all the Martyn Bennett albums, this is far and away the most rooted in traditional Gaelic song, and it is clearly a highly personal venture that traces the generational evolution of Bennett's own musical background. For anyone who, like me, was drawn to Bennett through his earlier albums, such as his eponymous first album and his breakthrough Bothy Culture, or the later Grit, this album will certainly come as a disappointment.

If, however, you are a fan or traditional Gaelic song and would like to hear some classic old recordings presented with a slightly modern twist, this could be the album for you.