Reviewed by Alastaire Reece

Being a self confessed lover of all things Celtic, I looked forward to chucking this one in the CD player. At first I didn't think I could get into it, but after a second listen I found my foot gently tapping and my mind wandering back to home in the Outer Hebrides. Echoes of The Electrics, The Waterboys, The Crossing and even Don Francisco merge to capture a spirit of, in the words of the blurb, "healing and hope". Clearly a very personal album, primarily apparent in Rodney's lyrics, but the eloquent fiddle of Jean-Pierre is also very emotive, especially the instrumental pieces. Hope is clearly a major theme of the album. I feel that two lines from "Strange Master" talk of such hope: "But pain is such a small price/To know mercy again". However, for me, I found the re-arranging of the traditional "Spancil Hill" really soaked into my soul. A song about a man dreaming of Ireland whilst living in California, being at home in his mind. My "Ireland" is Benbecula and my "California" is Birmingham. Over all a very good album, once I got in to it, recommended for fans of Celtic authenticity.

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.

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