Battlefield Band were a Scottish

traditional music Folk music is a music genre that includes traditional folk music and the contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be called world music. Traditional folk music has b ...

group. Founded in

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

in 1969, they have released over 30 albums and undergone many changes of lineup. As of 2010, none of the original founders remain in the band. The band is noted for their combination of

bagpipes Bagpipes are a woodwind instrument using enclosed reeds fed from a constant reservoir of air in the form of a bag. The Great Highland bagpipes are well known, but people have played bagpipes for centuries throughout large parts of Europe, No ...

with other non-traditional instruments, such as electronic keyboards, and for its mix of traditional songs and new material. Battlefield Band toured internationally, playing to audiences in Europe, Australia, Asia, the Middle East, and North America. They have collaborated with other musicians including the Scottish harp player and glass sculptor Alison Kinnaird.

History

Career

Battlefield Band was formed in 1969 by five student friends from

Strathclyde University The University of Strathclyde ( gd, Oilthigh Shrath Chluaidh) is a public research university located in Glasgow, Scotland. Founded in 1796 as the Andersonian Institute, it is Glasgow's second-oldest university, having received its royal c ...

(Brian McNeill, Jim Thomson, Alan Reid, Eddie Morgan and Sandra Lang, who became crime fiction author Alex Gray) and took its name from the Glasgow suburb where McNeill was living at the time. After several line-up changes and an album recorded for a minor Breton label, the band was signed to Topic records and released its official self-titled debut in 1977 with the line-up of McNeill (fiddle, vocals), Reid (keyboards, vocals), Jamie McMenemy (bouzouki, vocals), and John Gahagan (whistle). Gahagan left before the recording of the follow-up, ''At the Front'' (1978), and was replaced by Irish singer-guitarist Pat Kilbride. The departure of both Kilbride and McMenemy shortly afterward brought in Jen Clark (vocals, cittern, dulcimer) and Duncan MacGillivray (Highland pipes) for ''Stand Easy'' (1979), thus beginning Battlefield Band's tradition of using bagpipes on their albums. Clark was replaced by Northumbrian singer-guitarist Ged Foley on ''Home is Where the Van Is'' (1980), which marked a switch from Topic records to producer Robin Morton's label Temple. ''Home is Where the Van Is'' also inaugurated the band's practice of placing original songs alongside traditional material. The line-up changes continued, though the group remained based around the core of McNeill and Reid until 1990, when McNeill left to pursue a solo career. Reid finally left the band at the end of 2010, concentrating on his musical duo with guitarist & singer Rob van Sante, the Battlefield Band's sound engineer.

Recent years

On 1 January 2015, Battlefield Band revealed in an e-mail sent to their fanbase that, back from their US tour in October/November 2014, they were working hard in the studio on a new recording project with the working title ''Beg, Borrow & Steal''. The Irish / Scottish album would highlight and explore the cultural cross-fertilisation of the vibrant musical traditions of Scotland & Ireland and the group would collaborate with many other leading traditional musicians and scholars.

Mick Moloney Michael Moloney (15 November 1944 – 27 July 2022) was an Irish-born American musician and scholar. He was the artistic director of several major arts tours and co-founded Green Fields of America. Early life Moloney was born in Limerick, Ire ...

(USA/Ireland),

Nuala Kennedy Nuala Kennedy (born 30 January 1977) is an Irish composer, singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist. Career She grew up in Dundalk, County Louth, Ireland Dundalk where she played piano and flute in a local ceili band Cèilidh and studied c ...

(Ireland), Aaron Jones (Ireland), Christine Primrose (Scotland), Alison Kinnaird (Scotland) & Barry Gray (Australia) were due to be all on board, with more to follow. The band has been awarded Creative Scotland assistance for this project. If all would have gone well as initially announced and expected, the recordings would have been available on Temple Records by March 2015 – it might even have turned into a tour if all would have gone well and the musicians would have been available. On 22 June 2015, on their Twitter page, Battlefield Band announced a January 2016 (11-date) tour of Germany, Switzerland and Austria due to begin on 14 January in Offenburg, Germany and end on 31 January 2016 in Hamburg, Germany. This would be Battlefield Band's return to the stage for the first time since November 2014 i.e. after more than a year of inactivity as the band had not toured during the whole year 2015... On 14 August 2015, Battlefield Band's label Temple Records finally announced that the (delayed) new album had been re-titled simply as '' Beg & Borrow'' and would be released as a digital download (and on streaming) on 21 August 2015, on CD in the UK on 18 September 2015 and on CD in the United States on 16 October 2015. Battlefield Band later confirmed that they would embark on 14 January 2016 on a 16-date tour of German-speaking countries (Germany, German-speaking Switzerland, Austria) including a radio show and a TV show in Germany, due to end on 31 January 2016. After having performed an ultimate show on Sunday 13 August 2017 (7.30pm) during the Scotland Piping Live! festival at The National Piping Centre in Glasgow, Scotland (as the festival closing concert), the band went dormant with no explanation whatsoever from the official web site.

Accolades

Battlefield Band were winners of "Best Live Act" at the inaugural

Scots Trad Music Awards The Scots Trad Music Awards or Na Trads were founded in 2003 by Simon Thoumire to celebrate Scotland's traditional music in all its forms and create a high profile opportunity to bring the music and music industry into the spotlight of media an ...

in 2003. In 2011, they were winners of "Best Band" at the

2011. Battlefield Band's "Compliments to Buddy McMaster" (a track from its album ''Dookin''' released in 2007) was nominated for the 7th Annual Independent Music Awards for World Traditional Song of the year. They also have been nominated for the 11th Independent Music Awards "World Traditional Song" category for its recording of "A' Bhriogais Uallach" ("The Pompous Trousers"), a track from their album ''Line-up'' released in 2011. On 11 November 2016, Battlefield Band were inducted into Scottish Traditional Music Hall of Fame for "Services to Performance".

Instruments and themes

Every line-up since the ''Stand Easy'' album has had at least one bagpiper. Unusual aspects of the instrumental line-up for a traditional band include the presence of electric keyboards and the absence of

percussion A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a beater including attached or enclosed beaters or rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or struck against another similar instrument. Exc ...

. Every album mixes traditional Scottish songs and tunes with modern (often original) compositions. Themes range from drinking, friendship, and hard times to history, geography and politics. The band's 2006 album, '' The Road of Tears'', deals explicitly with the theme of displacement. Many of the songs deal with emigration, both voluntary and forced. Battlefield Band's 2007 album, ''Dookin′'' (the Scots word for what you do at

hallowe'en Halloween or Hallowe'en (less commonly known as Allhalloween, All Hallows' Eve, or All Saints' Eve) is a celebration observed in many countries on 31 October, the eve of the Western Christian feast of All Saints' Day. It begins the observan ...

– as in "'dookin' for apples") has a lighter feel, after the eloquently somber tone of ''The Road of Tears''. ''Dookin includes instrumentals and a mix of vocals, with lead being shared by Alan Reid and Sean O'Donnell.

Members

Last line-up to date

#Sean O'Donnell 005–2017(vocals, guitar) – #

Alasdair White Alasdair White is a Scottish folk musician born in 1983 on the Isle of Lewis, Outer Hebrides, Scotland. In 2001, when he was only 18 years old, he joined Battlefield Band as a virtuoso fiddle player. Origins White is a Scottish Gaelic speake ...

002–2017(fiddle,

whistles Whistling without the use of an artificial whistle is achieved by creating a small opening with one's lips, usually after applying moisture (licking one's lips or placing water upon them) and then blowing or sucking air through the space. The a ...

banjo The banjo is a stringed instrument with a thin membrane stretched over a frame or cavity to form a resonator. The membrane is typically circular, and usually made of plastic, or occasionally animal skin. Early forms of the instrument were fashi ...

bouzouki The bouzouki (, also ; el, μπουζούκι ; alt. pl. ''bouzoukia'', from Greek ), also spelled buzuki or buzuci, is a musical instrument popular in Greece. It is a member of the long-necked lute family, with a round body with a flat top and ...

, Highland bagpipes, small pipes,

bodhrán The bodhrán (, ; plural ''bodhráin'' or ''bodhráns'') is a frame drum used in Irish music ranging from in diameter, with most drums measuring . The sides of the drum are deep. A goatskin head is tacked to one side (synthetic heads or oth ...

, cittern, mandolin) #Mike Katz 998–2017(Highland pipes, small pipes, various whistles,

bass guitar The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitched member of the string family. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or an acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck and ...

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...

, bouzouki)

Past members

# Alan Reid 969–2010(founding member;

keyboards Keyboard may refer to: Text input * Keyboard, part of a typewriter * Computer keyboard ** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping ** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware Music * Musi ...

vocals Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or without ...

accordion Accordions (from 19th-century German ''Akkordeon'', from ''Akkord''—"musical chord, concord of sounds") are a family of box-shaped musical instruments of the bellows-driven free-reed aerophone type (producing sound as air flows past a reed ...

melodica The melodica is a handheld free-reed instrument similar to a pump organ or harmonica. It features a musical keyboard on top, and is played by blowing air through a mouthpiece that fits into a hole in the side of the instrument. The keyboard usual ...

Hammond organ The Hammond organ is an electric organ invented by Laurens Hammond and John M. Hanert and first manufactured in 1935. Multiple models have been produced, most of which use sliding drawbars to vary sounds. Until 1975, Hammond organs generated s ...

, writing) – #

Brian McNeill Brian McNeill (born 6 April 1950, Falkirk, Scotland) is a Scottish folk multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, record producer and musical director. He was a founding member of Battlefield Band which combined traditional Celtic melodies and new m ...

.html" ;"title="969–1990">969–1990(founding member; fiddle, writing) – Brian has published two detective novels. In 2001, he took up the post of Head of Scottish Music at the

Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland ( gd, Conservatoire Rìoghail na h-Alba), formerly the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama ( gd, Acadamaidh Rìoghail Ciùil is Dràma na h-Alba) is a conservatoire of dance, drama, music, production, and ...

in Glasgow, which he has since relinquished. #Jim Thomson 969-1973(founding member, guitar, mandolin, tenor banjo, 5-string banjo, harmonica, tin whistle, vocals). #Eddie Morgan 969-1973(founding member, guitar). #

Sandra Lang Sandra Lang (, born ) is a former Chinese Cantopop singer who was active in the 1970s and actress in Hong Kong. Lang is credited with over 25 films. Early life In 1953, Lang was born in the United States. Career During the late 1960s, Lang ...

969 Year 969 ( CMLXIX) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar, the 969th year of the Common Era (CE) and ''Anno Domini'' (AD) designations, the 969th year of the 1st millennium, the 69th ...

(founding member). #Ricky Starrs 973?–1976 (guitar, mandolin, whistles) – #Jamie McMenemy 977–1978(vocals, mandolin, banjo, fiddle,

Irish flute The Irish flute is a conical-bore, simple-system wooden flute of the type favoured by classical flautists of the early 19th century, or to a flute of modern manufacture derived from this design (often with modifications to optimize its use in Ir ...

) – #John Gahagan 977–1978(fiddle, whistle) – #Pat Kilbride 978; 2002–2005(vocals, guitar, cittern, bouzouki) – #Jen Clark

979 Year 979 ( CMLXXIX) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Byzantine Empire * March 24 – Second Battle of Pankaleia: An Ibero-Byzantine expeditionary ...

(vocals, guitar, cittern and dulcimer) – #Duncan MacGillivray 979–1983(bagpipes) – #Sylvia Barnes .html" ;"title="980">980(vocals, dulcimer, guitar, bodhrán) – Sylvia came to Battlefield Band via Scottish folk group Kentigern (formed in 1978). #Jim Barnes .html" ;"title="980">980(cittern, guitar, vocals) – Jim came to Battlefield Band via Scottish folk group Kentigern. He died in 2004. #Ged Foley 980–1983(guitar, vocal, Northumbrian pipes) – #Dougie Pincock 984–1990(bagpipes) – #Alistair Russell 984–1997(guitar, vocal) – #

John McCusker John McCusker (born 15 May 1973) is a Scottish folk musician, record producer, and composer. An accomplished fiddle player, he had a long association as a member of the Battlefield Band beginning in the 1990s and was later a band member and p ...

990–2001(fiddle, whistle, accordion, cittern) – # Iain MacDonald 991–1997(bagpipes) – #

Davy Steele Davy Steele (10 December 1948 – 11 April 2001) was a Scottish folk musician and songwriter. He sang with Drinkers Drouth, Ceolbeg, and was a founding member of the Scottish folk supergroup Clan Alba. In 1998, Steele joined the Battlefield Band ...

(1948–2001) 998-2000(lead vocals, guitar, bouzouki, bodhrán, writing) – #

Karine Polwart Karine Polwart ( ) (born 23 December 1970) is a Scottish singer-songwriter. She writes and performs music with a strong folk and roots feel, her songs dealing with a variety of issues from alcoholism to genocide. She has been most recognised fo ...

001-2002(lead vocals, guitar) # Ewen Henderson 011–2014(fiddle, Highland pipes, whistles, piano, vocals) –

Guests on album

# Alison Kinnaird 985; 1995–1996; 2001; 2015(cello, Scottish harp) #James MacKintosh

995 Year 995 ( CMXCV) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Japan * 17 May - Fujiwara no Michitaka (imperial regent) dies. * 3 June: Fujiwara no Michikane gain ...

(percussion) #Quee MacArthur

(bass) #

Kate Rusby Kate Anna Rusby (born 4 December 1973) is an English English folk music, folk singer-songwriter from Penistone, West Riding of Yorkshire, England. Sometimes called the "Barnsley Nightingale", she has headlined various British folk festivals, an ...

996 Year 996 ( CMXCVI) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Japan * February - Chotoku Incident: Fujiwara no Korechika and Takaie shoot an arrow at Retired Em ...

(guitar, vocals) # Seamus Tansey

(

) #

Eric Rigler Eric Rigler is an American player of the Uilleann pipes, Great Highland Bagpipes, and tin whistle. He performs as a solo artist and with the band Bad Haggis, and has been featured on a number of movie soundtracks. He has been described as "th ...

(

Uilleann The uilleann pipes ( or , ) are the characteristic national bagpipe of Ireland. Earlier known in English as "union pipes", their current name is a partial translation of the Irish language terms (literally, "pipes of the elbow"), from their ...

pipes) #The Radio Sweethearts

#Donald Hay 999; 2001(percussion) #Kris Drever 001(upright bass) #Simon Thoumire 001(concertina) #Mike Whellans 007; 2011; 2013; 2015(harmonica, moothie) #Mitch Greenhill 007(guitar) #Allan MacDonald

009 009 may refer to: * OO9, gauge model railways * O09, FAA identifier for Round Valley Airport * 0O9, FAA identifier for Ward Field, see List of airports in California * British secret agent 009, see 00 Agent * BA 009, see British Airways Flight 9 * ...

(vocals, small pipes) #Christine Primrose 015(Gaelic song) #Jim Kilpatrick 015(snare, bass drums) #John Martin 015(fiddle) #Nuala Kennedy 015(Gaelic song, flute) #Leo McCann 015(melodeon) #Aaron Jones 015(vocals, bouzouki) #Barry Gray 015(Highland bagpipe) #Robin Morton 015(vocals,

) #Don Meade 015(harmonica) #Tony DeMarco 015(fiddle)

Guests on stage

# Kieran Munnelly (bodhrán, flute, vocals) – # Skip Healy (flute, piccolo) –

Discography

Studio albums

*''

Farewell to Nova Scotia "Farewell to Nova Scotia" is a popular folk song from Nova Scotia, Canada. It was adapted from the Scottish lament "The Soldier's Adieu" written by Robert Tannahill. It was written sometime before or during World War I and popularized in 1964 wh ...

'' (1976) ) *''Battlefield Band'' (1977) *'' Wae's me for Prince Charlie'' (1978) *''At the Front'' (1978) *''Stand Easy'' (1979) *'' Home Is Where the Van Is'' (1980) *''There's a Buzz'' (1982) *''Anthem for the Common Man'' (1984) *''On the Rise'' (1986) *''Celtic Hotel'' (1987) *''New Spring'' (1991) *'' Quiet Days'' (1992) *'' Threads'' (1995) *''

Rain, Hail or Shine ''Rain, Hail or Shine'', an album by The Battlefield Band, was released in 1998 on the Temple Records label. The total running time is 45:38. Track listing # "Bodachan a Gharaidh/General Macdonal/Craig an Fhithich" – 3:47 # "Heave Ya Ho" – ...

'' (1998) *'' Leaving Friday Harbor'' (1999) *'' Happy Daze'' (2001) *'' Time and Tide'' (2002) *''

Out for the Night ''Out for the Night'', an album by The Battlefield Band, was released in 2004 on the Temple Records label. Track listing # "Ms. Dynamite of Benbecula/The Alewife T/Little Cascade/Culder's Rant"Culder's Rant" is also called "Sud a'mhisg air fea ...

'' (2004) *'' The Road of Tears'' (2006) *Dookin'' (2007) *''Zama Zama... Try Your Luck'' (2009) *''Line-up'' (2011) *'' Room Enough For All'' (2013) *'' Beg & Borrow'' (2015)

Live albums

*''Home Ground – Live From Scotland'' (1989) *'' Across the Borders'' (1997) *''

Live Celtic Folk Music ''Live Celtic Folk Music'' is a live album by Battlefield Band, released in 1998 on the Munich Records label. It was recorded in 1980 at the Winterfolkfestival, held in Dordrecht, The Netherlands. Track listing # "Lord Huntly's Cave/The Lady in ...

'' (1998)

Soundtracks

*''Music in Trust Vol 1'' (1986) *''Music in Trust Vol 2'' (1988)

Compilations

* ''The Story So Far 1977–1980'' (1982) *'' After Hours: Forward to Scotland's Past'' (1987) * ''Opening Moves: Best Of 1977–79'' (1993) * ''Scottish Folk: The Rough Guide to Scottish Folk'' – (2002) *''The Best of Battlefield Band: A 25 Year Legacy 1977-2001 '' (2003) *''

Three Score and Ten ''Three Score and Ten: A Voice to the People'' is a multi-CD box set album issued by Topic Records in 2009 to celebrate 70 years as an independent British record label. The album consists of a hardback book containing the seven CDs and a paper ...

'' (2009) *''The Producer's Choice'' (2016)

Videography

*In Concert (At the

Brunton Theatre The Brunton Theatre is a mid-scale performing arts venue in Musselburgh, East Lothian, Scotland. It is part of a wider complex, incorporating council offices, and called Brunton Memorial Hall. The building is textured concrete and glass, and ...

, Musselburgh) (DVD) (2008)

Notes

References

External links

*
Temple Records (1978 UK label) Official website

Scottish Culture On-line / Scots Trad Music Awards
* {{Authority control Celtic music groups Scottish folk music groups Topic Records artists