Jesse Ferguson, the Bard of Cornwall, hosts this week's Irish & Celtic Music Podcast with music from his Canadian Celtic musical inspirations.
Jesse Ferguson, Haggis, Heroes of the Highland, Brent Santin & Gary Mallon, Brent Santin, Jim Malcolm, Susie Malcolm, Bang on the Ear, The Two Paddys, TinWhistler, Different Folk, Katherine Moller
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THIS WEEK IN CELTIC MUSIC
Welcome to the Irish and Celtic Music Podcast. I'm your guest host, Jesse Ferguson, also known as the Bard of Cornwall on YouTube. I'm a Celtic music performer, recording artist and YouTuber based in Cornwall, Ontario, Canada.
My own music has been featured in the Irish & Celtic Music Podcast over 20 times in the last 10 years, so it's fair to say that our usual host, Marc Gunn, has been a big supporter of my music. I'm very grateful for that support, so when he asked me to guest host an episode, I jumped at the chance.
This episode of the podcast will feature music that has a personal connection for me, from artists who have inspired me in my early folk music days, to those I know personally from my area, to those I've performed with live in venues from Canada's east coast to my original and current province of Ontario.
But, on with the music. First I'll play you “Brennan on the Moor” off my next CD, The Sally Gardens. I had fun arranging the harmonies in the chorus.
“Brennan on the Moor” by Jesse Ferguson from The Sally Gardens
The next two songs are by the now disbanded Cornwall, Ontario group Haggis, that were hugely influential in getting me into Celtic music.
4:18 “Loch Lomond” by Haggis from This Ain't Your Mother's Cooking
9:50 “Medley of Minors” by Haggis from This Ain't Your Mother's Cooking
That was “Loch Lomond” followed by “Medley of Minors” from their 1999 album, This Ain't Your Mother's Cooking, which can be streamed free on Sounclick.com. A couple of the original members of Haggis have also contributed newer material to this episode, including their drummer Jason Mitchell, whose latest group is called Heroes of the Highland. Here are two of their latest recordings:
14:12 “Irish Rover” by Heroes of the Highland from Heroes of the Highland
17:06 “Drunken Sailor” by Heroes of the Highland from Heroes of the Highland
That was “The Irish Rover” followed by “Drunken Sailor” by Heroes of the Highland. The original flute player for Haggis, Brent Santin, has also gone on to do new recordings, and has contributed two to this episode. Here he is performing “A Scarborough Settler's Lament” with Gary Mallon.
20:07 “Scarborough Settler's Lament” by Brent Santin & Gary Mallon from Sounds Like the 19th Century
And here is one of Brent's solo efforts, which incorporates some more electronic elements:
25:00 “Tear Down the Sink, Dear” by Brent Santin
Nick Seguin, lead singer of Haggis, was a major influence on my vocal style for folk music. Another of my main influences is our next artist, Scotsman Jim Malcolm. His former work with the band Old Blind Dogs, and his solo material have been very important for me. He now records with his wife Susie Malcolm, herself a talented musician. The first track here is the Robbie Burns song “A Man's a Man for a' That,” followed by a track from Jim and Susie's latest album Spring Will Follow On.
29:32 “A Man's a Man” by Jim Malcolm from Acquaintance
33:33 “Pad the Road” by Jim Malcolm & Susie Malcolm from Spring Will Follow On
That was Jim Malcolm's “A Man's a Man for A' That” and Jim and Susie Malcolm's “Pad the Road.”
The region of Eastern Ontario where I reside has a strong tradition of Celtic music, which derives from the huge influx of Scottish immigrants to the region. The tradition here is alive and kicking, and from my early days getting into Celtic music, it has incorporated pride in our past with embracing modern musical approaches. In that spirit, here are two songs from Glengarry, Ontario band Bang on the Ear.
37:37 “The Rising of the 45” by Bang on the Ear from Tales from the Glen
41:40 “Thistle and the Rose” by Bang on the Ear from Songs for Glengarry, Vol. 1
That was “The Rising of the 45” and “Thistle and the Rose” by Bang on the Ear. The next two songs are by another Glengarry, Ontario group, The 2 Paddys. They've long been a fixture of The Glengarry Highland Games, in Maxville, which was a crucial place for nurturing my love of Celtic music. Here are their recordings of “The Foggy Dew” and “The Galway Races.”
45:31 “The Foggy Dew” by The Two Paddys
48:45 “The Galway Races” by The Two Paddys
Next we head to Majorca (my-OR-kah), Spain for two tracks from TinWhistler, a duo of brothers whose videos on YouTube I've been a fan of for years. We Celtic podcasters and Youtubers need to support each other, so I was delighted that they were willing to send us these two tracks.
51:18 “Castle Kelly/The Man of the House” by TinWhistler from TinWhistler
54:33 “Toss the Feathers/The Ale is Dear” by TinWhistler from TinWhistler
That was “Castle Kelly” and “The Man of the House,” followed by “Toss the Feathers” and “The Ale is Dear” by TinWhistler, from the brothers' first album, available now.
When I lived in the East Coast of Canada, in particular Fredericton, New Brunswick, I met up with musician Bill Toner. We played a regular gig at a little wine bar called The Sour Grape in a small town called Oromocto. We didn't make much money, but it sure was a lot of fun. Here's a song from Bill's latest group, Different Folk.
58:58 “Star of the County Down/Cooley's Reel” by Different Folk from Live
That was “Star of the County Down” and “Cooley's Reel,” by Different Folk. I shared the stage with some of its members at least once, and here are a couple of solo tracks from the band's award winning fiddle player, Katherine Moller.
1:02:34 “The Friar's Walk” by Katherine Moller from Storm Queen
1:05:37 “Sunshower” by Katherine Moller from Storm Queen
That was “The Friar's Walk” and “Sunshower” from Katherine Moller's album Storm Queen.
That brings us close to the end of this guest episode, and I'd like to thank Marc Gunn, the Celtfather, for inviting me to take this on. Now that I've put a show together, I have a better appreciation of just how much work it is. If you appreciate all the hard work that he puts in to promoting independent Celtic music, I'd encourage you to consider becoming a Patron of the podcast on Patreon. Thanks, Marc, for all that you do!
I'd also like to thank the artists who contributed their awesome music for me to include. It's been a fun experience. I'll leave you with another song from my next album, The Sally Gardens. The song is written for my lovely wife, and is likely my oldest complete original. I finally got around to recording it for an album and I hope you like it. Again, this is Jesse Ferguson, the Bard of Cornwall. You can learn more about my work by visiting www.jessefergusonmusic.com. Thanks for listening.
1:09:44 “Me Darlin' Laura-Ann” by Jesse Ferguson from The Sally Gardens
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