New York, USA - Grace & Pride (Survival Records/Valley entertainment,
2005) celebrates the 20th anniversary of Britain's leading Celtic band,
Capercaillie (pronounced cap-er-cay-lee). The double CD anthology contains 38
tracks taken from each of the band's 15 albums, including previously unreleased,
ultra-rare and long deleted tracks.
Throughout their career Capercaillie have drawn on two great strengths to inspire them. The first of these is the astonishing musical dexterity of the various fiddle, whistle, flute and pipe players who have performed with them over the years, led by the accordion and keyboards of band founder Donald Shaw.
The other foundation of the band has been the peerless voice of co-founder Karen Matheson, described by Sean Connery as having "a throat that is surely touched by God". Universally recognized as one of the finest Gaelic singers alive today, Karen's exquisite voice has been at the centre of the band's music, whether breathing new life into 400-year old Gaelic songs or bringing her luscious vocals to the band's contemporary compositions.
There have been many milestones for a band who have sold over a million albums world wide. These include three silver and one gold album in the UK, the first Gaelic Top 40 single, writing the music for, and appearing in the Hollywood movie Rob Roy, and performing in over thirty countries including Iraq, Macedonia and the Sudan.
Capercaillie have been credited with being the major force in bringing Celtic music to the world stage, and their unique fusion of Gaelic culture and contemporary sound has always stretched boundaries in their quest to keep the music evolving. On Grace and Pride the track listing follows the band back in time from last year's Choice Language to their debut release in 1984 Cascade, taking in every album they have released along the way. Grace and Pride: Anthology 2004-1984 is a fascinating journey through the creative evolution of one of Scotland's and roots music's most enduring and successful bands.
[Buy Grace & Pride: Anthology 2004 - 1984].
World Music Central
http://www.worldmusiccentral.org/article.php/20050306181754725