When I was planning my second recording trip to Scotland, I knew I had to meet some local musicians who could well represent their culture. I was following in the footsteps of greats after all, like Alan Lomax, who spent a good deal of time in the far North recording folk songs. Some of you might have seen the first video from this Scottish series, with the incredible ballad singer Iona Fyfe ( • Iona Fyfe, "Mill o' Ti... ). Another traditional musician I reached out to was Sam Shackleton, (allegedly related to the notable Artic explorer, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ernest_...) or Sorley, if you prefer the Gaelic spelling. Sam, a student of traditional music, Scottish culture, history and the Gaelic language invited us with open arms into his home in Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland, and showed us a night on the town i'll never forget. We drank our fair share of pints, caught some incredible sessions packed into pubs the size of American closets, and talked of Scottish independence late into the night.
Sam has been deep in traditional study at University the past couple years, and busking on the streets of Edinburgh. You can always tell a busker from a studio musician, I like to think. Buskers are louder, more emotive, a throwback to a time of traveling Bards, before amplification. You have only moments to impress a passerby for tips, and it forces you to hone your craft. Sorley lives up to his moniker, "the Bard", and puts on a show. This won't be the last time we meet, as I hope to return to Scotland for more recording, and Sam is keen to visit the Appalachian mountains hes heard so much about, where so many of his ancestors (and ours!) emigrated.
This song is a perfect example of the cross-Atlantic trade in culture, and you can learn more about it here
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Cuc...)
Find more of Sam's music here;
www.samshackleton.com/links
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