The Boys of the Lough is a Scottish-Irish

Celtic music Celtic music is a broad grouping of music genres that evolved out of the folk music traditions of the Celtic people of Northwestern Europe. It refers to both orally-transmitted traditional music and recorded music and the styles vary considerab ...

band active since the 1970s.

Early years

Their first album, called ''Boys of the Lough'' (1972) consisted of

Aly Bain Aly Bain MBE (born 15 May 1946) is a Scottish fiddler who learned his instrument from the old-time master Tom Anderson. The former First Minister of Scotland Jack McConnell called Bain a "Scottish icon." Career Bain was born in the town of Le ...

(

fiddle A fiddle is a bowed string musical instrument, most often a violin. It is a colloquial term for the violin, used by players in all genres, including classical music. Although in many cases violins and fiddles are essentially synonymous, th ...

), Cathal McConnell (

flute The flute is a family of classical music instrument in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, meaning they make sound by vibrating a column of air. However, unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is a reedless ...

Dick Gaughan Richard Peter Gaughan (born 17 May 1948) is a Scottish musician, singer and songwriter, particularly of folk and social protest songs. He is regarded as one of Scotland's leading singer-songwriters. Early years Gaughan was born in Glasgow's Roy ...

(vocals and guitar) and Robin Morton ( bodhran and vocals). Since the 1960s, the Forrest Hill Bar in Edinburgh had been a centre for folk singers and instrumentalists. In the pub, always nicknamed "Sandy Bell's" and now formally called that, fiddler

played along with singer/guitarists Mike Whellans and

in sessions. Aly Bain was from the

Shetland Islands Shetland, also called the Shetland Islands and formerly Zetland, is a subarctic archipelago in Scotland lying between Orkney, the Faroe Islands and Norway. It is the northernmost region of the United Kingdom. The islands lie about to the no ...

, and steeped in the Shetland style of playing. Meanwhile in Ireland,

Cathal McConnell Cathal McConnell (born 1944) is a musician and singer best known as the mainstay of traditional band The Boys of the Lough, of which he was a founder member. His main instruments are the Irish flute and the tin whistle. Early life McConnell came ...

was an All-Ireland champion in both flute and whistle. He was from a family of flute players in County Fermanagh in Ireland. Cathal's musical collaborators were Tommy Gunn and Robin Morton. The two halves met at

Falkirk Falkirk ( gd, An Eaglais Bhreac, sco, Fawkirk) is a large town in the Central Lowlands of Scotland, historically within the county of Stirlingshire. It lies in the Forth Valley, northwest of Edinburgh and northeast of Glasgow. Falkirk had a ...

folk festival in Scotland, and formed Boys of the Lough. In 1973, Gaughan left to pursue a solo career and the Northumberland musician Dave Richardson ( concertina,

mandolin A mandolin ( it, mandolino ; literally "small mandola") is a stringed musical instrument in the lute family and is generally plucked with a pick. It most commonly has four courses of doubled strings tuned in unison, thus giving a total of 8 ...

, cittern) joined. This line-up was constant for the next six albums. Richardson was also a writer of new material. They played ensemble instrumentals and the occasional song, equally divided between traditional sources from Ireland and Scotland.

''Regrouped''

The Boys of the Lough 1978/79 tour was billed as their final tour. However they returned a year later with ''Regrouped'' (1980). Robin Morton had left to found a Scottish folk music label called Temple Records (featuring such groups as the

Battlefield Band Battlefield Band were a Scottish traditional music group. Founded in Glasgow 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 t ...

). The "Regrouped" line-up had two new members, and eventually fiddler John Coakley was added, who remained with the group for the next 12 years. Their 1980s sound also included

Christy O'Leary Christy may refer to: * Christy (given name) * Christy (surname) * ''Christy'' (novel), by Catherine Marshall * Christy (towel manufacturer), a UK textile firm established in 1850 * ''Christy'' (TV series) * '' Christy: Return to Cutter Gap'', ...

from

County Kerry County Kerry ( gle, Contae Chiarraí) is a county in Ireland. It is located in the South-West Region and forms part of the province of Munster. It is named after the Ciarraige who lived in part of the present county. The population of the co ...

( uilleann pipes), who had previously toured with

De Dannan De Dannan (originally ''Dé Danann'') is an Irish folk music group. It was formed 1975 by Frankie Gavin ( fiddle), Alec Finn (guitar, bouzouki), Johnny "Ringo" McDonagh (bodhrán) and Charlie Piggott ( banjo) as a result of sessions in Hughe ...

. Tich Richardson (guitar, bass) died in a car accident in Scotland in September 1984. In 1992, Boys of the Lough played at

Carnegie Hall Carnegie Hall ( ) is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City. It is at 881 Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh Avenue, occupying the east side of Seventh Avenue between West 56th Street (Manhattan), 56th and 57th Street (Manhatta ...

1990s

In 1994, the band released ''The Day Dawn''. John Coakley left the band.

2000s

In 2002, the band released ''Lonesome Blues and Dancing Shoes''. They invited guests to appear for a single album. Chris Newman (guitar) and

Kathryn Tickell Kathryn Tickell, OBE, DL (born 8 June 1967) is an English musician, noted for playing the Northumbrian smallpipes and fiddle. Music career Early life Kathryn Tickell was born in Walsall, then in Staffordshire, to parents who originated from N ...

(Northumbrian pipes) sat in with them on tours and albums. After 32 years,

left to play with other musicians, most notably Phil Cunningham (

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 ...

), and was replaced in 2002 by fellow Shetland fiddler Kevin Henderson of

Fiddlers' Bid Fiddlers' Bid are a Shetland based instrumental group known for playing contemporary arrangements of traditional Shetland fiddle tunes. The seven piece line-up consists of four fiddles, acoustic guitar, bass guitar and piano/Clàrsach. The band ...

. In 2006, Boys of the Lough participated in TG4's ''

Geantraí ''Geantraí'' () is an Irish television programme, presenting Irish traditional music. The name derives from ''Geantraí'', one of the three types of Irish music enumerated in the "three noble strains"; ''geantraí'' (joy music), ''suantraí'' ...

''. An album of the same name was issued in 2007, with contributions from Boys of the Lough, Gerry O'Connor, Joe Burke, Noel Hill, Mairtín O'Connor and others. In 2009, "Paidraig O'Keefe's/Con Cassidy's" from ''In The Tradition'' was included in Topic Records 70 year anniversary boxed set '' Three Score and Ten'', as track fourteen on the third CD.

Discography

;Albums *'' The Boys of the Lough'' (1973) *''Second Album'' (1973) *''The Boys of the Lough III (Live at Passim)'' (1974) *''Lochaber No More'' (1976) *''The Piper's Broken Finger'' (1976) *''Good Friends ... Good Music'' (1977) *''Wish You Were Here'' (1978) *''Regrouped'' (1980) *''In the Tradition'' (1981) *''Open Road'' (1983) *''To Welcome Paddy Home'' (1985) *''Far From Home - Live'' (1986) *''

Farewell and Remember Me ''Farewell and Remember Me'' is an album by The Boys of the Lough, released in 1987. There are 4 songs and 6 instrumental tracks on the album which is unusual in giving so much prominence to the uilleann bagpipes. It is sometimes considered to b ...

'' (1987) *''Sweet Rural Shade'' (1988) *''The Session'' (1991) - a compilation from the albums ''In the Tradition'', ''Regrouped'', and ''Open Road'' *''Live at Carnegie Hall'' (1992) *''The Fair Hills of Ireland'' (1992) *''The Day Dawn'' (1994) *''Midwinter Night's Dream'' (1996) *''The West of Ireland'' (1999) *''Lonesome Blues and Dancing Shoes'' (2002) *''Twenty'' (2005) *''Midwinter Live'' (2007) *''

Rising Fawn Gathering ''Rising Fawn Gathering'' is an album by Americana and folk musicians Norman Blake, Nancy Blake, James and Rachel Bryan and the Celtic music group Boys of the Lough, released in 2009. Allmusic entry for ''Rising Fawn Gathering''/ref> Track list ...

'' with Norman Blake (2009) *''The New Line'' (2014) ;Contributing artists *'' The Rough Guide to Scottish Music'' (1996)

References

External links

Boys of the Lough
official site * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Boys of the Lough Irish folk musical groups Scottish folk music groups Shetland music Transatlantic Records artists Topic Records artists