The Christmas party season is
starting to take its toll on me, as I feel like I have too many people to
socialize with and not enough time. Today at brunch was the first time I’d had
a chance to have a conversation with Sheila in three days.
All that socializing has also
delayed this next review – but here we are!
Disc 812 is….In My Hands
Artist: Natalie
MacMaster
Year of Release: 1999
What’s up with the Cover? Natalie sits on a chair, skirt
riding gently up above her knees, looking sexy as hell.
How I Came To Know It: Recently my colleague Lindsey put
me onto a Scottish folk song called “Blue Bonnets Over the Border” – when I
realized Natalie MacMaster did a kick-ass version of it, I knew I had to have
it.
How It Stacks Up: I have two Natalie MacMaster albums; this one
and 1998’s “My Roots are Showing” (reviewed back at Disc 683). Of the two,
“My Roots Are Showing” wins 'by a hair'.
Ratings: 3 stars but almost 4
“In My Hands” is Natalie MacMaster’s most mainstream
effort, but make no mistake: this is still traditional Cape Breton fiddle music. If that doesn’t float your fish boat, this album isn’t for you.
Fortunately, a well-played Cape Breton fiddle does
float my boat, and I found “In My Hands” inspiring and joyful. The playing
style I fell in love with on “My Roots are Showing” is on full display here.
MacMaster’s style is sprightly and precise in equal measure. Even the airs on
this album are brimming with a crackling energy. When the speedier jigs and
reels came on while I was waiting for a light to change, it was all I could do
to not start dancing as the December traffic whirled by.
MacMaster is so precise that she can sometimes stray
close to losing the narrative of the tune, but she seems to have a sixth sense
of knowing when to pull back and let the tune ‘play’ her back to its emotional
core.
“In My Hands” seems to be making a conscious effort
to reach a larger audience. Gordie Sampson, who guested as a guitarist on “My
Roots are Showing” not only plays on “In My Hands,” he also produces the album.
The result is a slightly more contemporary feel, as he brings some of his rock
n’ roll sensibilities to the studio.
The results of all this effort is a mixed bag. The
album’s title (and opening) track adds a lot of sighs and percussion and
generally sounds like it is trying to do contemporary world music. The
modern style that results is a bit out of step with MacMaster’s old soul. The song has lyrics (sung by MacMaster) which are generic expressions of art that don’t
inspire the way they want to. Also, while MacMaster is one hell of a fiddle
player as a vocalist she is just OK.
Conversely, “Get
Me Through December,” a song written by Sampson and fellow Cape Breton
singer-songwriter Fred Lavery is a beautiful piece. With vocals by the divine
Alison Krauss, this is a song that would stand up to anything similar by
Capercaillie (yes, this is high praise). MacMaster’s fiddle isn’t as prominent
on this song (the tune is mostly carried by piano) but when she does kick
in, the contemporary folk arrangement shows a different side of her playing
which is more soulful and relaxed.
The same can be said for the album’s highlight, the
cover of the traditional Scottish marching song “Blue Bonnets Over the Border.” This piece is exquisite in MacMaster’s
hands as she slowly progresses one of the great fiddle melodies of all time,
each time around more inspiring than the last. When you hear this song your
heart is filled up and you can’t help but feel anything is possible. No wonder it
has traditionally marched troops into battle – it would be one hell of a morale builder (at least until the cannons started firing).
I found the infusion of Spanish dance rhythms in “Flamenco Fling” annoying and out of
place. Ditto for the ‘space age’ cosmic flourishes in “Space Ceilidh” which would be a standout on the album if it weren’t
for the questionable bits of “spacey” synthesizer sounds.
Fortunately, most of the rest of “In My Hands” are traditional
fiddle treatments you would expect from MacMaster, each one expertly handled. “Welcome to the Trossachs” is seven
minutes of Natalie taking you to school on all the different ways she can play the
fiddle to make your heart sing. “Moxham
Castle” is fiddle perfection, as MacMaster plays with a depth of skill
rarely heard. Father Buddy taught her well.
At 14 songs and 61 minutes, “In My Hands” feels
slightly too long, and I would probably cut two or three songs and get it down
into the 45-50 minute range.
“In My Hands” takes risks with a traditional
audience, borrowing from pop, contemporary and world rhythms. It doesn’t always
work, but it works a lot, and I admire MacMaster’s efforts to expand her own
sound and see just what she can do to show new facets of her enormous talent.
Best
tracks: Welcome to the Trossachs, Blue Bonnets Over
the Border, Get Me Through December, Moxham Castle, Flora MacDonald
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