JOHN SAICH draws inspiration from the talented CLOUD NINE as he catches up with them on the 2003 Ceilidh Trail.

It’s not that long ago that the concept of an all female traditional band was pretty radical. I remember seeing Cherish the Ladies perform in America circa 1988 – probably not long after Sprangeen were similarly trail blazing over here – and wondering why it was still so unusual. Prejudice might be too strong a word perhaps, but what else can you call it when people who should know better are surprised that an all female band can get an audience to its feet stomping for more?

Well, that was then. Thankfully, no-one is surprised any more, just glad, and we’re not far off the day when it won’t be an issue at all if bands like Cloud Nine have anything to do with it. The only thing that might surprise anyone is how young these world class musicians are and that they don’t yet have a record deal, though that will only be a matter of time.

Having undergone three name changes in their short history, Cloud Nine are a natural and evolutionary product of the Feis Rois Ceilidh Trail which at the time of writing is selling out village halls and venues across the Highlands & Islands. The four girls – Rachael Newton, Mairearad Green, Lynsey Payne and Fraya Thomsen – all met as a band on last year’s Trail, though Rachael and Mairearad are cousins and all have spent summer holidays in Mairearad’s home land of Achiltibuie. With a line up of fiddle, accordion, clarsach, saxophone and flute, and mesmerising Gaelic song, their mature and thoughtful arrangements lend a stunning headline quality to the current Ceilidh Trail programme, as I witnessed for myself in the rapturous environs of Hootananny, Inverness, near the start of the tour.

For anyone who hasn’t experienced a Ceilidh Trail concert, it is a jaw dropping showcase of some of the youngest, most talented singers and instrumentalists you’ll ever see in one room. As a visitor from the Netherlands said, “this is why we came to Scotland”. It’s also why I, and many musicians of my generation, have to go home and practice.
Most importantly, it isn’t a competition – just a celebration, a great opportunity for young players to learn and integrate, and a right good night out into the bargain. Feis Rois director Rita Hunter astutely points out that the Ceilidh Trail, like the folk tradition itself, is a “circle of inspiration”, as the musicians coming up through the years can eventually inspire the new entrants to take their music more seriously, and even consider it as a career.

Cloud Nine are the best possible example of the process. Individually they have performing experience well beyond their years, and are all veterans, as it were, of the Feisean. Mairearad Green is a former pupil at the Centre of Excellence in Traditional Music, Plockton, and was a finalist in the Young Traditional Musician of the year competition at Celtic Connections in 2001. The Ceilidh Trail tour is providing an excellent opportunity for the band to refine their music collectively, and also inspire the younger supporting musicians into the bargain. Even better, it is giving us, the heard-it-all public, a most welcome wake up call. The set at Hootananny was a joy, an affirmation of all that is hopeful in the years to come, with traditional and original tunes perfectly interwoven with Gaelic singing at it’s best. The room was packed, it was hot, and they totally did it and got a standing ovation. They even had a heckler for extra rock ‘n’ roll points.

The future is indeed bright for these young women. All are currently studying for degrees in Glasgow and Edinburgh, but, as Rachael says, fully intend to “just go for it” once they have completed their studies. I have a feeling they will start going for it even sooner, as many international summer festivals will surely want to snap them up over the next couple of years. They have a web site in development (www.cloud9music.com), which already has a visitor’s book and will shortly feature photos from the tour and forthcoming dates. If they’re not in the studio recording an album by next summer I’ll be very surprised. But then, these are smart people. Whatever is going to happen for them will be of their choosing and in their own good time, and I think we should just watch and wait. It’ll most certainly be worth it.