With all the coverage WFO gets on these forums I’m suprised I’ve almost never seen mention of the compilation cd put out by the Coleman Heritage Center in Sligo. It’s a compilation of fiddling, and flute playing from South Sligo with emphasis on tunes popular there. 30 tracks of good sligo styled playing and I’d say over half of them are flute, and each player only has one or two tracks on it so you get a nice sampling of players and styles. I own a copy of WFO but by far the mountain road gets more playing time. If you’re like me and don’t particularily go into the playing styles represented on WFO you might want to check that cd out instead. Just thought I’d mention it… here’s a link. Besides, I think a few more tunes should circulate amoung newer flute players than the ones they learned off of WFO… I mean come on, how many times to I have to hear that cute take on the boys of the town when I meet up with other flute players? And lets not even mention the styles… here it is, WFO for trad heads.
Great stuff from the Coleman Center. Gregory Daly is often helping pull these musicians together for projects around the Coleman Center, and has been working on a film documentary of the players for broadcast. I’m glad to have had his help in arranging the Sligo sessions (actually recorded at Paul Gurney’s studio in Longford), and bringing Peter Horan.
I absolutely love The Mountain Road album. There is a good book of transcriptions that goes along with it as well.
When I first got The Mountain Road I listened to it obsessively and I think it really helped my playing tremendously. What hooked me on it, and still appeals to me, is that it represents the true sound of sessions in Sligo, and that’s where my heart is, in the sessions.
There is a companion music book of “The Mountian Road” CD for those who like dots. Both are available through Ossian USA: http://www.ossianusa.com/. I’m sure there are other sources on the web as well.
There’s another CD collection called “The Mountain Road, Music of Cork and Kerry” but is less flute-centric. I bought a copy, but my CD player ate it before I got a chance to listen to it.
