"An Ubhal as Àirde (The Highest Apple)" is a 1995 single released by Scottish

celtic rock Celtic rock is a genre of folk rock, as well as a form of Celtic fusion which incorporates Celtic music, instrumentation and themes into a rock music context. It has been prolific since the early 1970s and can be seen as a key foundation of the ...

band

Runrig Runrig were a Scottish Celtic rock band formed on the Isle of Skye in 1973. From its inception, the band's line-up included brothers and songwriters Rory MacDonald (musician), Rory MacDonald (bass, vocals) and Calum MacDonald (musician), Calum ...

, which first appeared on their album '' The Cutter and the Clan'' (1987). The song was released as a single in 1995, eight years following the release of its accompanying album, following its popularity after being used in television advertisement for

Carlsberg Carlsberg may refer to: Places * Carlsberg (district), a district in Copenhagen, Denmark ** Carlsberg station, its train station * Carlsberg, Germany, a municipality in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany * Carlsberg Fjord, Greenland Other uses * Carlsbe ...

. The song gave Runrig their highest placing to date on the UK Singles Charts, becoming their first UK Top 20, debuting at number eighteen in May 1995. The song made history when it came the first song to be sung in

Scottish Gaelic Scottish Gaelic (, ; Endonym and exonym, endonym: ), also known as Scots Gaelic or simply Gaelic, is a Celtic language native to the Gaels of Scotland. As a member of the Goidelic language, Goidelic branch of Celtic, Scottish Gaelic, alongs ...

to chart on the UK Singles Chart.

Release and performance

The song was released in 1995, and marked the second stand alone single to be released by the band. Upon its release, ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'' claimed that the song was aiming for "major chart success" in the United Kingdom, primarily as a result of its use in a television advert for

lagger. During the period of promotion for the song, Runrig were the special guests at a concert held by singer

Rod Stewart Sir Roderick David Stewart (born 10 January 1945) is a British singer and songwriter. Known for his distinctive raspy singing voice, Stewart is among the List of best-selling music artists, best-selling music artists of all time, having sold ...

at the

Pittodrie Stadium Pittodrie Stadium, commonly referred to as Pittodrie, from which the surrounding residential area has taken its name, is an all-seater stadium in Aberdeen, Scotland. Used primarily for Association football, football, it has been the home ground o ...

on 8 June 1995. During this period, ''Billboard'' described Runrig as one of the "most celebrated" Gaelic language bands in Scotland. It debuted at number eighteen on the UK Singles Charts, the bands highest performance on the UK Singles Charts and would remain so until the re–release of "

Loch Lomond Loch Lomond (; ) is a freshwater Scottish loch which crosses the Highland Boundary Fault (HBF), often considered the boundary between the lowlands of Central Scotland and the Highlands.Tom Weir. ''The Scottish Lochs''. pp. 33-43. Published by ...

" in 2007 with the

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, known as "Loch Lomond (Hampden Remix)" debuted at number nine on the UK Singles Charts. "An Ubhal as Àirde (The Highest Apple)" remained at number eighteen in the United Kingdom in its second week, before falling to number thirty in its third week. By the fourth week of its appearance on the UK Singles Charts, it had fallen out the UK Top 40 to number forty-nine, before slipping to number seventy-four in its fifth and final week. In their native Scotland, its performance fared better, following its debut at number three on the Scottish Singles Charts in May 1995. In its second and third week, it remained in the Scottish Top 10 Singles Charts, dropping to number five and then number nine respectively. By its fourth week, it had dropped to number twenty-four, before falling into the Top 30 of the Scottish Singles Charts in its fifth week.

Promotion

Runrig performed the song on ''

Top of the Pops ''Top of the Pops'' (''TOTP'') is a British record chart television programme, made by the BBC and broadcast weekly between 1January 1964 and 30 July 2006. The programme was the world's longest-running weekly music show. For most of its histo ...

'', broadcast by the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

on 4 May 1995.

Track listing

CD single (UK)

# "An Ubhal As Airde (The Highest Apple)" (Engineer – Beeg Al, Keith Mitchell) # "Abhainn An T-Sluaigh" (Mixed by Calum Malcolm, Chris Harley) # " The Greatest Flame" (Engineer – Calum Malcolm) # " Flower of the West" (Mixed by Calum Malcolm)

Cassette (UK)

# "An Ubhal As Airde (The Highest Apple)" # "Abhainn An T - Sluaigh" # "The Greatest Flame"

Chart performance

References

{{Runrig 1995 songs 1995 singles Runrig songs Chrysalis Records singles