Glenuig Hall, Friday 7 May 2004

Karen Matheson © Capercaillie

CAPERCAILLIE played to a packed Glenuig Hall this weekend near the start of their Spring “Back to Roots Tour” on a near perfect May evening, chilly enough not to let the midgies out but warm enough to allow interval drinkers out onto the lawn.

Before Capercaillie came anywhere near the stage, the audience were treated to the sound of Broslum, a young Fort Willam band, who show all the signs of becoming one of the future exciting sounds of the traditional Music scene in Scotland. They delighted the audience with three fine sets, including some foot tapping puirt a beul, delightful clarsach sounds with red tasselled fiddle playing and strong Gaelic vocals from all five members of the band, who include two of the Henderson family from Fort William.

It was great seeing these young people being given the chance to support a band such as Capercaillie and great also to see the members of the headliners standing in the wings listening to the band.

Donald Shaw’s first words when he walked on stage were “My this is cozy”, referring to the small stage which, surprisingly for what was billed as an ‘acoustic’ tour, was packed with sound equipment, monitors and keyboard, but with the beautiful backdrop of a mural depicting the view of the Isles from the village itself. The atmosphere was certainly cozy although some small sections of the audience took a while to warm up and really let loose and enjoy the programme.

There may have been one or two minor twitchy moments as the band members acclimatised to being back on such a small stage and being so close to the audience, but these soon evaporated and it soon became clear why this was a roots tour. The programme took us right back to the Capercaillie of previous years with beautiful songs in English and Gaelic such as ‘Am Buachaille Ban’ and ‘Fisherman’s Dream’  from the Sidewaulk album, and evocative tunes such as ‘Alasdair’s Tune’, fiddler Charlie McKerron’s tune from the Glenfinnan album.

Rollicking puirt a beul (mouth music) sets such as ‘Fosgail an Dorus’ and ‘Seice Ruaraidh’ made us marvel again at the vocal mastery of Karen Matheson, who has rightly been described as ‘having the voice of an angel’. No sign of angelic tendencies though in the puirt, just pure vocal acrobatic agility, coupled with warm sexy undertones, to make the hairs on your neck stand up!

There were several highlights of the evening for me, none more so than the beautifully crafted and spine-tingling version of the lovely ‘Iain Ghlinn Cuaich’ from Sidewaulk, a song of unrequited love from the Glenquoich area of the Great Glen. This evening’s version was simply accompanied by Shaw on a beautiful old small bellows organ, and was evocative to the point of bringing tears to the eyes.

Another high spot was the hypnotic duet between Michael McGoldrick on the Uilleann pipes and Manus Lunny on bouzouki, seemingly effortless strand after strand of sheer melody and manual dexterity – masters indeed of their art.

For me, the Double Bass playing of Euan Vernal was a complete revelation! It was impossible to take your eyes off him as he played, caressed and cajoled the  instrument into providing a warm, brown, and at times even sexy backdrop for the other instruments. No bass guitar I have ever heard could provide the same tone and feeling for this music and we should see and hear it every time Capercaillie play. One of the advantages of playing such small venues is it does give the audience a chance to watch the performers at much closer quarters and be able to appreciate the musical mastery of all these musicians.

This is the music which the millions of fans across the globe crave from tour to tour and it was great to see the band has not strayed far from its roots in the wee village of Taynuilt in Argyll in their journey to the biggest stages in the world.

We could not have asked for a better reminder of why Capercaillie are one of the most successful stage acts ever to come out of Scotland – to hear that distictive Capercaillie ‘sound’ was  a delight that night in Glenuig. A night which was capped off with a foot-stomping fast and furious set from the band, joined by Glenuig ace piper Iain McDonald and fiddler extraordinaire, Allan Henderson – a set based on ‘The Little Cascade’, turning into a full, fast and furious flood of the best in Scottish Traditional Music.

Catch one of the other tour dates if you can – it’s a treat for all the senses.

Capercaillie play at the following venues in their May 2004 tour:
Rhinns Hall, Portnahaven, Islay, Wednesday 5 May
Corran Halls, Oban, Thursday 6 May
Glenuig Hall, Glenuig, Friday 7 May
Aros, Tobermory, Isle of Mull, Saturday 8 May
Southend Hall, Isle of Uist, Monday 10 May
Vatersay Hall, Vatersay, Barra, Tuesday 11 May
Gathering Hall, Portree, Isle of Skye, Wednesday 12 May
Macphail Centre, Ullapool, Thursday 13 May
Universal Hall, Findhorn, Friday 14 May

© Fiona MacKenzie, 2004