Interesting albums from the folk and roots music history, by Marius Roeting.
An album which we definitely would not call a high-flyer, a masterpiece or an indispensable gem, but still proposed in Disc-Cover? We never claimed it to be only top scores to which we pay attention to in this series, but to albums who played a part in the history of the roots music, with respect to the development of a style, a genre, or were of importance in general or otherwise worth mentioning. Of course next to the masterpieces that everyone should listen to…
De Partir…. C’ est mon plaisir is such an album which never got any high turnover figures and which never appeared on year lists of connoisseurs and lovers. But still…
The group Crossroads consisted of three Australians and two Bretons. Llew and Mara Kiek and Steve Elphick came from down under, Padrig Sicard and Yann Cariou from Brittany. They met each other once on a festival and from one came another. Around the turn of the century plans were made concrete and the album De Partir… c’est mon plaisir was released. It’s a mix of Celtic (Irish, Scottish and Breton) songs and instrumentals, that are supplemented with contemporary compositions. In the performance the typical jazzfolk by Mara! – the group around the Kiek’s and Elphick – and the Slavic influences which they interweave in their music, particularly vocal techniques, were connected to typical peculiarities from Celtic music. With that, Crossroads was one of the first formations who mixed Breton music with other genres and styles. Later, more successful attempts followed with a.o. the Breton Balkan folk by Erik Marchand or the folk punk by Les Ramoneurs de Menhirs or collaborations with (North) African musicians. Crossroads paved the way… a little bit…
Ogham – Boked eured – Keltia III Kel02
- Ton newez rouanezed kernew (trad, Stivell) 3.12
Mara! – Images – Plant Life PLR070
- Nesa nesa (trad) 2.03
Crossroads – De Partir…C’est Mon Plaisir – KH-XR 001
- An Hini Dilezet-Sadila Jana (trad) 4.43
- Baidin Fheilimi (trad) 4.10
- Bonny Birdy (trad) 5.15
- M’en allant sur la lande (Sicard, Cariou, trad) 4.30
- The border widow’s lament (trad) 4.44
- Mari Mariko (trad, Larsen) 5.06
- The trip i never forgot (trad) 3.46
- Banks of the Somme (Mara Kiek) 4.27
- Norfolk Whalers (Harry Robertson) 4.26
- De partir c’est mon plaisir (trad) 2.15
- Gavottes (trad) 4.34
- Bonny Wee litt’un (trad) 3.16
