Barde (1977)

Local music today, from Montreal. Barde means bard, someone like Cacofonix, you know, in Asterix. The band formed in 1973, and today's album from 1977, was their record debut. They were six members in the band, originating from Quebec, Ireland and the US. Accordingly, they sing in Irish, French and English. The music they played was a mixture of Celtic, Scottish and Quebecain folk music. They made three albums, before they went their separate ways in 1983. They toured extensively and apparently their concerts were legendary, an explosion of ecstatic energy, where the use of dual Celtic fiddles was their hallmark.

Personally, I hadn't heard of Barde before I found this album in a record exchange. I bought it thinking it would be fun to expand my collection's number of albums with local music, as Montreal is my new hometown. And they say that you should learn about and embrace the local culture. The fact that the album cost 1-2 dollars made it quite easy.

I've always appreciated folk music from different parts of the world, but the Celtic / Scottish music has never been a special interest of mine, so I'm quite ignorant of the genre (I have some records with Dubliners and Relativity, but beyond that my collection is empty) . It's pretty fast-paced music, lots of violins, and as a former violinist I can find myself daydreaming about how it would have been if I had continued my violin career, and if I had found myself in a group of whiskey-fueled Irishmen. It would probably had been fun. The album offers both instrumental tunes and the ones with song, where the former are a majority. As mentioned, it's sung in three different languages. You'll hear only traditional instruments, without the interference of modern electronic ones (they appeared on the later albums, though). The opening song Jack McCann is written by the band, the other ones are traditional compositions.

An OK album, with a lot of energy and upbeat songs, and it might spin now and then on the turntable, when inspiration strikes. When it comes to this type of folk music, I personally appreciate a band like Fairport Convention more, where the traditional songs are spiced with a more modern sound. However, the lover of Keltish / Scottish / Quebecain music will appreciate this album a lot, no doubt.


Tracklist

Side A
1. Jack McCann 3:02
2. Julia Delaney 2:43
3. L'île Noire 3:35
4. La Queue De L'Hirondelle 3:30
5. Le Violin Accordé Comme Une Viole 2:17
6. Fanny Power 3:33

Side B
1. La Gigue The George Brabazon 1:38
2. Les Trois Hommes Noirs 5:28
3. La Suite Du Cap Breton 3:29
4. Banshee 3:57
5. P Stands For Paddy 4:54