Streaming Memory Forward
Listening Post 388. Cuimhne means “memory” in both Scottish Gaelic and Irish, and as the title track of Allt, Vol. II, it evokes calm mornings, warm afternoons and tranquil evenings (see videos). And like the human forces that shape our world, beneath the surface and across 10 additional songs the album’s meditations weave through an enchanting landscape of music, poetry, history and language. It’s no coincidence that this collection comes from the Celtic supergroup comprised of two couples—Julie Fowlis and Éamon Doorley, Zoë Conway and John Mc Intyre—artists who in other permutations and solo careers have for years been primary forces in the ongoing renaissance of Scottish and Irish cultures, especially in the creation of songs in two ancient languages that until recently were labeled as “declining.” The quartet released the first volume of Allt in 2018 and now return to their magic of mixing old and new lyrics and music into works that concurrently honor tradition and point it forward. With lush voices and acoustic instruments—bodhran, bouzouki, fiddle, guitar, piano, whistle—they fashion an album of palpable and subtle currents, of personal journeys that turn into cultural touchstones and of hardships that feed hope. Aching nostalgia courses through Nuair a sheas sinn (When We Stood on the Shore), telling a story of emigration from the viewpoint of those who stayed home, as well as in the pilgrimage saga Ge fada mo thriall (Though My Journey Has Been Long), with a poignant Irish waltz as a coda. Connla eulogizes a fallen hero of mythology, son of an Irish demigod and a Scottish warrior woman. And the choral masterpiece Lá Róúil (A Great Day), ends with a concise evocation of revival: “It won’t be long till we are as we were.” Allt, Vol. II, could have been merely beautiful, but these are artists with higher cliffs to scale. (Machair Records)

Allt (Stream): Vol. II, Cuimhne (Memory)
Julie Fowlis: Vocals, whistle
Éamon Doorley: Bouzouki, fiddle, vocals
Zoë Conway: Fiddle, vocals, whistle
John Mc Intyre: Guitar, piano, vocals
Dónal Lunny: Bodhran, bouzouki 

Related posts. Julie Fowlis, Éamon Doorley, Zoë Conway and John Mc Intyre. Allt, Listening Post 216, Aug 28, 2019. https://worldlisteningpost.com/2019/08/28/julie-fowlis-eamon-doorley-zoe-conway-and-john-mcintyre-allt/
Julie Fowlis, Alterum, Listening Post 147, April 24, 2018. https://worldlisteningpost.com/2018/04/24/julie-fowlis-alterum/

Cuimhne / Memory
Lyrics: John MacLean/Music: Julie Fowlis
Performed in Scottish Gaelic and Irish 

(English translation)
I don’t often think
of storms or cold
or the agony and hardship of poetry

but of calm mornings
the new sun shining
making the dew on the ground sparkle

or the sultry heat of noon
and us in Òsgaig, of hay
running round the Taigh Stòir and the shore

or evenings in the tranquility of
Sgeir Cnapach, of the birds
scooping fish from the sea

Nuair a sheas sinn / When We Stood on the Shore
Lyrics: Aonghas “Dubh” MacNeacail/Music: Julie Fowlis, Éamon Doorley
Performed in Scottish Gaelic

when we stood on the shore –
looking across the endless sea –
remembering the people who had departed
who left their homes and won’t return
hear from your grandfather a story that will not tire in the retelling forsake
about the ships that sailed
across the ocean to a new land
that promised them neither ale nor food

hear the melody sung by the one
who carried you from seed to step
who guided directed your growth with loving care
folding you up in all her esteem
you sitting on her knee
she giving you your story like a poem
on your journey to protective shelter
which comes to you in deep sleep

and in your memory they are alive
as you play, without journeying
to distant nameless towns
with their trust that the inhabitants were generous
but in our returning to the places
which gave us our upbringing without hesitation
feeding spirit and heart beyond fate
it was acknowledged that distance from us was sufficiency

Ge fada mo thriall (Catullus) / Though My Journey Has Been Long
Lyrics: Translated to Scottish Gaelic from the Latin by John MacLean/Music: Traditional, arranged by Julie Fowlis

though my journey has been long
across faraway countries
and through rough weather at sea

reaching the place
where you are at rest
in the narrow silent eternal bed

now at last
receive the sacrifice of my tears
falling into the earth surrounding your grave

beloved brother
plucked from me by death
like a tender white daisy in a meadow

that the plough cuts
as it passes in haste
and its head will never rise again

+ Aili Gheal Chiúin Ní Chearbhaill
Traditional, arranged by Conway / Doorley / Fowlis / Mc Intyre

Connla
Lyrics: Pádraig Mac Seáin/Music: John Mc Intyre
Performed in Irish 

I am Connla, the gentle son of the hound.
Alas your hand leaves me fallen.
O bright Cú Chulainn of best intent,
Here on my finger lies the ring

O gentle Connla, what tragedy this is,
You were the makings of a faultless king.
I regret that you did not commit my murder
Before I reddened your precious body

I am the boat from wave to wave.
I am the ship whose course has changed.
I am the apple upon the tree.
Little I thought you’d return to your grave

I curse the women of the world,
Especially the director of your instruction.
Above all else she is to blame,
That your scapulae lie bloody

If I and my pleasant Connla were
Playing tricks together on the same side,
Of all the men of the world, from wave to wave,
You would imagine that we would have been strongest

Lá Róúil / A Great Day
Lyrics & music: Zoë Conway, John Mc Intyre
Performed in Irish

A great day, great day, I’ll have a great day
It won’t be long till I see you again

Our spirits and our hearts will be lifted
The joys of life will be upon us
The great grief will be lifted from us
It won’t be long till we are as we were

I won’t be separated forever
From your hand, from your embrace, from your side
We, that were happy once
It won’t be long till we are as we were