Farquhar MacDonald's band is attracting audiences with its dancy, funky celtic rhythms played on fiddle, accordion, whistles, guitars, pipes allied to effects and samples. The six piece band has a big sound and the tracks, mainly penned by Farquhar, are full of interesting surprises. The title track "The Ghost Shirt" was written by him and played for the ceremony when the famous artefact of the Lakota Sioux Indians, held in a Glasgow museum since the 1890s was returned to its original owners.
Farquhar's music is fun, fiery and fiercely individual, and at times it is simply beautiful. Ghost Shirt is well worth getting hold of: it'll open your eyes, and perhaps unblock your ears.
Frenzied fiddler Farquhar MacDonald has been a mainstay of the Skye music scene since he was old enough to get into a session. His high-energy mix of highland fiddle and pipes with contemporary weirdness is a winner at festivals and ceilidhs, and his composing talents are widely acknowledged, but this is his first solo recording. Once you get past the pounding beat and sampled soundscape, there's plenty to recommend this music to anyone who enjoys fine fiddling and well-blown pipes and whistles. And, of course, for the young at heart, the 'drums and bass' groove is loads of fun too: perfect party music.
The throbbing opening track The Ladies of Minginish takes liberites with a couple if traditional tunes in the style of 4 Men & a Dog, adding self-indulgent vocals and honky tonk accordion. Next comes Sevens, a pure dance track in the style of Martyn Bennett or the Afro Celts. Track three is the glorious slow air Bob's Tune which reminds me of melodies by Ashley MacIsaac and Phil Cunningham. Finlay claims it as his own, and certainly the second half of the melody seems original. It's followed by the atmospheric march, The Perpex Ball, one of several tracks with a slightly new-age mystic feel and an intriguing story.
For pure atmosphere though, the title track takes some beating. Composed to mark the return of a Sioux artefact after 150 years, Ghost Shirt is an immensely powerful piece which blends the plangent strains of Scottish piping and native American chant. Here, too, the relentless drums and gut-shaking bass are never far away, but this demonic cocktail is a total success. The music takes over, becomes alnost hypnotic, and is somehow deeply appropriate for the mixture of joy and tragedy.
The second half of this recording is more of the same; mystic marches from Celtic middle-earth, stomping dance tunes from reels to rap, and a breath-taking slow version of The Ness Pipers to finish. The precision quick-fire fiddle on Famous MacLennan is seriously impressive, likewise the controlled piping on the final track.
Farquhar's music is fun, fiery and fiercely individual, and at times it is simply beautiful. Ghost Shirt is well worth getting hold of: it'll open your eyes, and perhaps unblock your ears.
Customer Reviews
Ghost Shirt Davie
Amazing album, excellent mixture of tunes with many influences, too many brilliant tunes to name a favourite. everyone who heard album has loved it. got to be up there as one of best albums of 21st century.
1 Excellent cd from Farquhar Broono
This is an excellent Cd with a great selections of songs, thats trying to bring a more modern twist to folk music.. Great stuff Farquhar Let the good times roll
now frank
tractor man (sometimes 'handyman'),can play the fiddle. he is sometimes too shy to sing! i will never forget those few days.........it's a terrible pity the mist came down over Harport........as i type this i listen to the ladies'
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