Solas....so long

Irish Flute
1

Crimey. Are these “super groups” just super bored or just super boring?
After six years, the Winnie and Seamus Happy Hour is little more than listening to old tunes in dopey ways. How many syncopated rhythms can you toss into Dick Gossip’s reel? My gawd.

So…as you can tell, the Solastic wonders were in town for the annual, and getting more depressingly average by the year, Feast of the Mabon festival. The line ups are generally pretty decent, but this year…well…
we all knew (actually merely suspected, but it was a great hunch) that the best tunes were to come from the unlikely pairing of Liz Carrol and John Doyle. Talent oozed from the stage and they were having a ball with us.
(Lesson for guitar/zook/whatever players backing tunes: Doyle was totally concentrating on what Liz was doing…then made her sound fantastic doing it! Therein the key to great backing.)

Terrific playing…as last year’s match of Martin Hayes and Dennis Cahill proved. But like Liz, they too were the middle act of what was a yawner program. Last year’s disappointing finish (actually, nearly 2/3 of the crowd walked out before the set was done…mercifully) was by former-wonder-fiddler-turned-idiotic-heroin-addict-with-dopey-delusions Ashley MacIsaac (who cares how it’s spelled…he sucked. So there).

This year’s was Solas. An electric guitar, eh? It was indeed in Seamus’ hands. Groan! And an electric keyboard set up in the back row? For what?

A friend was asking during the set (talking was encouraged…much more interesting than 3 airs played consecutively…my eyelids hurt from all the slow blinking…or were those cat naps?) why Doyle had left Solas. It was easy, I said. Just look at what their guitar player (who???) is doing. Nothing. Just sitting there, Jaba the Hut-ish, playing fairly common and non-plus backing. That’s why. He’s not in S-W’s way (that’s Seamus and Winnie for you uninformed, totally compliant fans).

Why the rant? Because the supergroups are turning super boring. I don’t care how fast you can play the stupid tune. You’ve shown me several dozen-dozen times since you started. Four All-Ireland titles, whoopee now. It’s over. Give me something worth listening to. An arrangement that’s complex and interesting would help.

He picked up the flute twice…a six-bar filler at the start (for a song, no less) and a blazing rendition of…who cares. It was a million freakin’ notes for little more than a minute intended to get the stone-headed yo-yos in the front going “woo, woo.”

Damn. They were good once. Some of you may still be huge fans.
But I can’t take it anymore.

Solas…so long.

Until the next “super group” comes along.

Pass me my Lunasa tape. At the least they’re still interesting…if not boring now, too. That’s what happened to The Chieftains. Got so bad every concert felt like a re-run. (Aye, we play now…aye, now the dancers…aye, now Kevin sings…aye, now the air…aye, now…)

Let’s see…who might the next super-IRT-studs be?

Just don’t expect me to pay silly amounts of money to see them.
What happened to the showmen?

Maybe Rod Stewart will start singing Trad, …scottish trad?
Gotta be better than Van Morrison or Seanid (spelling? who cares…she sucked, too).

The music is fine. We’re just trying to kill it by morphing it into stuff it really doesn’t want to be.

2

I agree David! Speaking of the Chieftans, any truth to the rumors of a Matt Molloy/John Carty album? I’ve heard they’ve been playing together. I bet that would be a good one. I love John Carty’s playing. I also heard a rumor that Molly and Tommy Peoples were talking about collaborating too. As lames as the Chieftans are, I think Molloy still has an interest in doing some good stuff on the side.

3

C’mon Davie, don’t hold back. Tell us what you really think about Souless and Shameless Ego..

4

:laughing: :laughing: :laughing: :laughing:

5

I quite liked the first two Solas albums; I still do. Then I noticed two things. First, as the new albums came out they just didn’t have it. Second, as John Doyle released his solo album and John Williams released Steam, I realised how underutilised they both had been in the band when I liked it. All along it had been the Seamus Egan Band, featuring Win Horan. As such it was still good while the original five were together. But I was a bit mystified. Why weren’t John Williams’ flute and whistle skills utilised? Why did John Doyle play rhythm guitar behind Egan’s uninspired nylon noodlings when he plays wonderful flatpicking guitar that leaves Egan for dead. And why didn’t his subtle side ever come across.

Recently I’ve heard several private tapes of both Doyle and Williams and they just serve to confirm the impression that Solas missed an opportunity to grow in a really worthwhile direction.

6

I had the privilege, and I mean privilege, of seeing John Doyle and John Williams reunite in a pub session in Milwaukee last summer. And Oh. My. God. That was the most spectacular music I have ever heard, on stage or off, by anyone, anywhere. (Of course, their jumping up on the snug benches without missing a lick was rather a highlight, too – what cutie-pies!)

Anyway, their pure joy combined with spectacular chops and musicianship is why I love this stuff. And why I try to play it, even though I don’t play guitar or box, and I why I keep working at it, even though I’ll never be much good at it.

And finally it’s why, today, even when I listen to the two Solas albums I like, I find myself listening to those two waaaaaay more than the flute or the fiddle.

Guys like the two Johns are why I’m in it.

7

If your interested in some of the hottest new ITM then I have one word for you …

Teada

These boys are fantastic. Lots of energy and lots of fun. I’d drive lots of miles to see these guys again.

Check them out.

BTW, there albums don’t do them any justice.

OK I got that off my chest and I feel better now. :smiley:

Colin

8

I’m envious. I always felt the Johns were underutilized in Solas. I, too, enjoy the first two Solas albums, but stopped buying them after the third. I prefer to listen to John Williams’, John Doyle’s and Karan Casey’s solo albums rather than the later Solas… stuff. Seamus Egan was at his best when he was performing with Eileen Ivers (pre-Solas); now that was a roaring good show.

Cheers,
Yet another John (but not nearly as talented)

9

:laughing: Now there’s a sentence with double duty.

10

:laughing:
Or … double doo-doo? :wink:

11

:astonished:

Clarification: that was not a slam on John the Third (aka jsluder :slight_smile:); I wuz just playing with words again.

12

WistleEnvy’s note is a good one.
Teada were here last year’s Mabon festival (forgot about them!)…
and I’m already playing a couple of their sets from the recording.
Very high energy playing, very trad and very fun.
Good kids, too. Quite personable and easy going in person. Approachable.

dm

13

That’s true. :wink:

Before they left the group, John Doyle and John Williams were underutilized. And now, based on the amount of sh!# on the newer CDs, the “johns” are underutilized. Just my opinion, of course.



But it fits the intended meaning of the sentence. :smiley:

John

14

I heard good things about Teada from someone with the Potomac Festival and mentioned them to our Irish Fest organizers for this year – but alas, as so often happens, things fell thru the cracks between suggestion and realization.

However, speaking of kids, great trad playing, etc. … Glen Road played here this past weekend, and wow! Terrific! Darned sweet, too even if some of them look too young to drive cars let alone legally hoist a pint.

(Then again, maybe I’m just looking older?!)

Anyroad, I’m looking forward to getting a CD of them, and if you’re looking for a great-playing band for your festival that’ll even share their show with the local Irish dance kidlets, Glen Road’s a fine choice.

In fact, not that I’m an expert, but 4 times out of my 5 I’ve found myself enjoying the smaller, less well-known bands more at the festivals I’ve attended. I don’t know whether the show just gets too big or old or tiring for the more famous/well-traveled bands or what, but it seems like the smaller groups are more fun. :slight_smile: Maybe it’s the Avis thing – i.e., “we try harder”?

15

I suppose it’s just personal taste but I LIKE Solas…and Lunasa…and many of the other “super groups” that have been around for awhile…just saw Altan and Teada last weekend and enjoyed them immensely…seeing Solas this weekend, and despite the harshness of this post, I am STILL looking forward to seeing them.

shrugs

~Crysania

16

Someone should explain to all supergroups that we don’t want them to change! We want them playing the same kind of music and arrangements. Boring? I don’t think so…I’ve stopped buying Solas CD’s too after “The hour before Dawn”, I’m not bored about original Solas sound, I listen first Cd’s over last ones.
On the other hand I suposse great musicians want to do a musical evolution, but the price the audience have to pay is perhaps a bit expensive sometimes. I want to see Seamus Egan playing flute (where he is unique),not electric guitar (where he is not unique).
Serafin.

17

I’m not sure I would call Egan’s flute playing particularly unique. It’s more just the standard Matt Molloy imitation, isn’t it? Even he admits it.

I do quite like his banjo playing, and there is something sort of neat about some of his flute playing - I quite liked it at one point, especially the “Yellow Tinker” track on the first Solas album - but all in all I find it doesn’t really stand up to any of the masters, old or new. Nothing remarkably interesting but not quite grounded enough for my taste.

To move on to a slightly different supergroup rant, what do you guys think of Danu at the moment? I really don’t care for the singer as much as their old guy, and in general their last full band album seemed rather bland and unswinging to me. I admit I haven’t heard their last sort of “solo” effort, but in general what would other peoples comments be?

18

I’m in general agreement with what has been said about the early vs. later Solas efforts. I seriously miss John Doyle as part of the group. As great as John Williams is, however, I want to put in a plug for Mick McAuley as his replacement. He’s both a fine player and singer, with a sly sense of humor to boot. If you want to hear him playing more traditional music, check out his solo CD, An Ocean’s Breadth.

Terry

19

My comment is that I agree entirely.

20

I think Serafin’s hit on one of the toughest issues for supergroups, and in fact many bands, in general. You play, and practically live, with the same people 300 days a year. You play a lot of the same stuff over and over again. You play it year after year (because hey, to sustain the band commercially you have to do what the audience likes) … and no matter how much you try to vary things within that framework, I suspect it’s easy to get restless, bored, etc. So you try new things; sometimes they work, sometimes they don’t. Sometimes new personnel add new life, sometimes they suck what little is left right out. And sometimes it’s just about impossible to find that new niche, let alone redefine your old one that all those new bands are rushing to fill. I do give these guys credit for trying ideas – after all, you certainly don’t get better just standing still – so flexibility is key: but it would seem that, after two or three less-than-wildly-successful CDs, it might be good for a band to take stock, and then a sabbatical or a rethink or whatever.

Heck, our band maybe plays together 30 gigs a year if we’re lucky, but even after a few years of that we’re struggling with what we want to do next … I can feel the first traces of boredom wisping in under the door :frowning:

Finally, here’s a phenomenon I’m wondering if anyone else has experienced: I’d say 90% of the time, my favorite CD of a band’s series is their very first one. Even though it’s usually rougher on the production end, etc. there seems to be a fire and freshness that are different. Often that’ll carry through to a second CD, but then … well… I don’t know. Anyway, it doesn’t seem like Solas is going through anything different than any other band. I just wonder if they’ll find their right road or whether they’ll continue on in what seems to be a sad death-spiral.

Anyway, I think I’ll go watch that “Metallica in therapy” movie soon. Could be illuminating. (in a wry, sad sort of way … )