Jump to content

Chance of a Start

Add links
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Udar (talk | contribs) at 19:58, 26 October 2012 (Added cover art). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Untitled

Chance of a Start is the second studio album by American Irish folk musician Patrick Clifford, released in 2012. As on American Wake, the album uses instrumentation typical of the American folk music idiom (such as harmonica, piano, bass, and organ), to arrange six notable twentieth century Irish folk standards and four original songs. Clifford described the resulting sound as "Irish at its heart with an American manifestation."[1]

Unlike American Wake, Chance of a Start contains no instrumental tracks.

David Yeates and Martin Kelleher provide backing vocals on numerous tracks, the first published recordings of Four to the Bar members' collaboration since the band's 1995 release, Another Son.

Songs

The album includes one song by Pete St. John: "The Ferryman".

Two songs by Ewan MacColl, "Freeborn Man of the Traveling People" and "The Shoals of Herring", are given modern arrangements, featuring piano and synthesizer as well as more typical instruments such as guitar and fiddle.

Dominic Behan's "The Auld Triangle" appears as a lament, complemented by an ostinato on the violin and a men's chorus.

The traditional waltz "The Galtee Mountain Boy" is reworked as a folk ballad, and the traditional ballad "The Parting Glass" is given a dark setting, with polyrhythm.

An original song, "The Morning Sun", has been characterized as a "sunny acoustic alt-country arrangement hid[ing a] down-on-his-luck character."[2]

The three remaining tracks-- "Pole to Pole", "Don’t Look Now", and "Travel" are also original compositions.

Track listing

  1. "The Ferryman" (Pete St. John) – 03:19
  2. "Pole to Pole" (Clifford) – 03:40
  3. "The Morning Sun" (Clifford) – 05:05
  4. "Freeborn Man of the Traveling People" (Ewan MacColl) – 04:31
  5. "The Auld Triangle" (Dominic Behan) – 04:32
  6. "The Shoals of Herring" (Ewan MacColl) – 05:36
  7. "The Galtee Mountain Boy" (Trad.; arr. Clifford) – 05:05
  8. "Don’t Look Now" (Clifford) – 04:26
  9. "Travel" (Clifford) – 05:07
  10. "The Parting Glass" (Trad.; arr. Clifford) – 05:19

Personnel

  • Randy Decker: Drums/Percussion, backing vocals
  • Marty Guilfoyle: Accordion
  • Wolf Hul: Fiddle
  • Ed Hummel: Fiddle
  • Peter Kane: Fiddle
  • Martin Kelleher: Backing vocals
  • Judy Minot: Vocals
  • Dan O'Dea: Fiddle, mandolin
  • Mark Stewart: Bouzouki
  • David Yeates: Backing vocals

References

  1. ^ [1] New York Irish Echo; October 24, 2012.
  2. ^ [2] New York Irish Voice; October 12, 2012.
Stub icon

This 2010s album–related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Chance_of_a_Start&oldid=520009428"