Ossian are 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, formed in 1976. The initial line-up brought together Billy Ross and former members of the group Contraband, Billy Jackson, John Martin, and George Jackson. One of their earliest gigs was at the 1976

Kinross Kinross (, gd, Ceann Rois) is a burgh in Perth and Kinross, Scotland, around south of Perth and around northwest of Edinburgh. It is the traditional county town of the historic county of Kinross-shire. History Kinross's origins are connect ...

Folk Festival. Each of the members was a multi-instrumentalist and singer. Their arrangements of songs, slow airs and dance tunes were meticulous, almost a chamber music approach to Scottish music. They sang in

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

, Scots, and

Gaelic Gaelic is an adjective that means "pertaining to the Gaels". As a noun it refers to the group of languages spoken by the Gaels, or to any one of the languages individually. Gaelic languages are spoken in Ireland, Scotland, the Isle of Man, and Ca ...

. Billy Jackson's wire-strung harp, the

clàrsach The Celtic harp is a triangular frame harp traditional to the Celtic nations of northwest Europe. It is known as in Irish language, Irish, in Scottish Gaelic, in Breton language, Breton and in Welsh language, Welsh. In Ireland and Scotland, ...

, featured in most pieces, but he also played

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 ...

(Irish) pipes and whistles. John Martin, who played fiddle and cello, went on to become a member of

The Tannahill Weavers The Tannahill Weavers are a band which performs traditional Scottish music. Releasing their first album in 1976, they became notable for being one of the first popular bands to incorporate the sound of the Great Highland Bagpipe in an ensemble ...

. George Jackson (brother of Billy) played guitar,

cittern The cittern or cithren ( Fr. ''cistre'', It. ''cetra'', Ger. ''Cister,'' Sp. ''cistro, cedra, cítola'') is a stringed instrument dating from the Renaissance. Modern scholars debate its exact history, but it is generally accepted that it is d ...

, mandolin, fiddle, whistle and flute. Billy Ross was the main singer who played guitar, dulcimer and whistle. Their first two LPs were ''Ossian'' (1977) and ''

St. Kilda Wedding ''St Kilda Wedding'' is a folk album by Scottish traditional music group Ossian recorded and released in 1978. The original LP release was on Iona Records (catalogue number IONA IR001), with at least one rerelease on CD currently unavailable. Th ...

'' (1978). Billy Ross left the band in 1980, and was replaced by Tony Cuffe as lead vocalist, also playing guitar and whistle. In 1981, Iain MacDonald joined, playing highland pipes, flute, and whistle. They broke up in 1989 when Tony Cuffe and William Jackson moved to the U.S. In 1997, Billy Jackson reformed the band with the original singer, Billy Ross, and the group made a CD and performed some gigs for a time.

Discography

*''Ossian'' - Springthyme Records SPR 1004 (1977) *''

'' - Iona Records IR001 (1978) *''

Seal Song ''Seal Song'' is a folk album by Ossian, released in 1981. The original LP release was on Iona Records (catalogue number IONA IR0002), with at least one re-release on CD. The album was recorded at Castle Sound Studios, The Old School, Pencaitl ...

'' - Iona Records IR002 (1981) *'' Dove Across the Water'' - Iona Records IR004 (1982) *''Borders - Iona Records'' IR007 (1984) *''Light On a Distant Shore'' - Iona Records IR009 (1986) *''The Carrying Stream'' -

Greentrax Greentrax Recordings are a Scottish record label that specialises in Scottish traditional music. History The label was founded in 1986 by former police inspector Ian Green, who played the bagpipes and was responsible for arranging folk music ...

CDTRAX 127 (1997)

References

Scottish folk music groups {{Scotland-band-stub

Discography

See also

References