Ashley MacIsaac

Subject: Ashley MacIsaac
From: Lidi
Date: 15 Jul 97 - 05:36 PM

Has anyone heard of him? I saw a bit of his concert at the Roskilde Festival and I enjoyed what I heard. Now, my question is; could someone tell me a bit about him, and perhaps recommen some albums?

Subject: RE: Ashley MacIsaac
From:
Date: 15 Jul 97 - 06:13 PM

Ashley is a like a two headed beast. On the one hand he is one of Cape Breton, Nova Scotia's finest young traditional fiddlers. His flip side is his rock/disco/r&b/folk influenced stuff which I think is great (and I consider myself somewhat of a traditionalist.) despite that I know members of the group will dissapprove of his packaging despite the fact that he and Gaelic singer Mary Jane Lamond had a hit in Canada with a 200+ yr. old Gaelic song. I would suggest Ashley MacIssac-Fine Thank You Very Much for some of the best fiddling in the traditional style that you will hear from any style. I also recommend his more modern sounding Hi How Are You Today both on A&M records. Good Stuff. As this is a song list I must also suggest any of the recordings by gaelic singer MAry Jane Lamond (who still sings with Ashley occasionally). Bho Thir Nan Craobh (From the Land of the Tree's) is all traditional while Suas E! is more modern. Great songs from the Cape Breton Gaelic song tradition.

Subject: RE: Ashley MacIsaac
From: Karina
Date: 15 Jul 97 - 08:44 PM

Hi Lidi,

I have to agree with the previous message, and haven't got tons to add, except that if you like the sound of his fiddling, you might want to check out Lahey as well. They are an incredibly talented Canadian family of musicians specializing in folk music. I'm not exactly certain how many of them there are, but there are at least 7 brothers and sisters. Again they do some very traditional fiddle and step dance tunes. You might also want to check out the Riverdance CD based on the travelling show. There's some pretty great music on that too.

Karina

Subject: RE: Ashley MacIsaac
From: ron k
Date: 15 Jul 97 - 09:09 PM

Ashley is a very talented Cape Bretonner. A lot of tradionalists do not like the music he is doing at the present. I am a tradionalist myself, however I think it's great that he is bringing Celtic fiddle music to a new plane. Check out his web page at

www.citw.ca/ashley

Subject: RE: Ashley MacIsaac
From:
Date: 16 Jul 97 - 01:55 AM

He also has another traditional album called "Close to the Floor".

I have listened to Cape Breton fiddle music for many years, long before it was popular. (Beatons of Mabou, Scotty Fitzgerald; all those old timers) I must say that of all the traditional Cape Breton fiddlers I have listened to over the years, Ashley MacIsaac is the very best when he wants to play in a traditional style. His sense of timing is impeccable, and even when he is playing true Cape Breton fiddle music in that old Celtic style he still manages to do something different from everyone else.

I have seen him in concert and don't mind his new-fangled attempts. He also can play Cajun and Yiddish fiddle as well as anyone. His fiddle version of Stayin Alive and of Macho Man are worth hearing live.

You should know that in Canada he is somewhat of a character, what with his talk of his selling his soul to the devil and his sixteen year old boyfriend which caused him to lose a national award from a national magazine. A loose cannon indeed, but the best Cape Breton fiddler I've ever heard and a true eccentric. He is nobody's man but his own.

Subject: RE: Ashley MacIsaac
From: Tim Jaques
Date: 16 Jul 97 - 02:05 AM

I forgot mention in the above post that if you like traditional Cape Breton fiddling, you will like Natalie MacMaster, a relative of the famous Buddy MacMaster, who plays in nothing but the traditional Cape Breton style. Like MacIsaac, she can also step-dance while she fiddles if she so chooses, beating out the time with her feet, something often done by Cape Breton fiddlers at house parties and dances back in Cape Breton -- which is of course the best place to hear Cape Breton fiddling.

If you ever go to Cape Breton, go to the dances at Glencoe Mills. If you like Celtic fiddling and dancing you won't regret it, and it is not something they put on for the tourists. It is something they do to entertain themselves.

Subject: RE: Ashley MacIsaac
From: Lidi
Date: 16 Jul 97 - 07:16 AM

Thanx to everyone for helping me out with this. I´ll pay the recordshops in my city a visit as soon as possible, but I fear that it´s going to be a difficult task to get hold of the music from the mentioned artists.

Lidi

Subject: RE: Ashley MacIsaac
From: Bob Landry
Date: 16 Jul 97 - 11:46 AM

Tim, I dug up my Close to The Floor tape this morning intending to post comments about Ashley's more traditional playing. You hit the nail on the head. BTW my Dad was in the army during WWII with Scotty Fitzgerald. Dad was a fiddle player who improved his skills as a result of that friendship.

Lidi - You might also look for traditional CB fiddle music by other CB fiddlers such as Brenda Stubbert, Jerry Holland, Richard Wood, The Barra MacNeils, and the Beatons of Mabou. I will post for you some URL's from where you may be able to order CB tapes and CD's direct.

Subject: RE: Ashley MacIsaac
From: Bob Landry
Date: 16 Jul 97 - 11:54 AM

Lidi - Try these sites:

http://www.morandan.com/morandan/Music.html

and

http://www.morandan.com/morandan/Baddeck/Blue Heron

Good luck in your quest.

Bob

Subject: RE: Ashley MacIsaac
From: Cliff McGann
Date: 16 Jul 97 - 03:19 PM

My apologies for not putting my name to my original post regarding Ashley being a two headed beast. Anyway I just wanted to add two things. First there is a Cape Breton mailing list which discusses maritime/canadian folk music. I think if you e-mail [e-mail] you should be able to find out how to subscribe. Secondly regarding tim's comment regarding Natalie MacMaster as playing "nothing but the Cape Breton style" that really is not true. Her music is as radical (and more so in some ways than Ashley's). She has incorporated Texas Swing, Irish, Bluegrass, C&W etc. into her playing and has done so in such a way that it appears she really isn't doing much to the music. I love her music and I think what she is doing is interesting but she definitely doesn't play strictly Cape Breton music. If you wan't strictly CB music from some of the younger players active today try Wendy MacIssac (Ashley's cousin), Brenda Stubbert, Jackie Dunn, Stephanie Wills, Kendra Macgillivary etc. who all have Cd's available.

Subject: RE: Ashley MacIsaac
From: Lidi
Date: 17 Jul 97 - 02:01 AM

gee....I´m going to be really busy checking everthing out. A bit poorer as well, if I was to order everything....it might be worth it, though Thanx a million Bob and Cliff Lidi

Subject: RE: Ashley MacIsaac
From:
Date: 18 Jul 97 - 12:15 PM

Well, I suppose I shouldn't have spoken as I only have one Natalie McMaster CD. I must get some more. I like the addition of interesting variants.

If you want to order traditional Cape Breton fiddle tapes and CD's, try writing to the following and asking for a catalogue. They may be on the Web now so you might check. (And incidently, other than ordering CD's from them I have no connection with the following)

Breton Books and Tapes Cape Breton's Magazine Wreck Cove, Cape Breton Island Nova Scotia, Canada B0C 1HO

They have or used to have some pretty hard-core traditional stuff Scotty Fitzgerald, Mike MacDougall, re-releases of the old Celtic 78's and LP's, etc.