Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...

-based

Gaelic Gaelic (pronounced for Irish Gaelic and for Scots Gaelic) is an adjective that means "pertaining to the Gaels". It may refer to: Languages * Gaelic languages or Goidelic languages, a linguistic group that is one of the two branches of the Insul ...

folk group Na h-Òganaich (Scottish Gaelic for 'the young ones' though often translated as 'young blood' ) formed early in 1971, following a concert in

Dunoon Dunoon (; ) is the main town on the Cowal peninsula in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It is located on the western shore of the upper Firth of Clyde, to the south of the Holy Loch and to the north of Innellan. As well as forming part of the cou ...

where Mod Gold Medallist singer Margaret MacLeod first met guitarist Noel Eadie. Margaret casually mentioned that her brother Donnie was learning guitar, so a decision was made to form a trio to enter the Folk Group competition at the

Royal National Mòd The Royal National Mòd () is an Eisteddfod-inspired international Celtic festival focusing upon Scottish Gaelic literature, traditional music, and culture which is held annually in Scotland. It is the largest of several major Scottish Mòd ...

. A friend from the

Isle of Lewis The Isle of Lewis () or simply Lewis () is the northern part of Lewis and Harris, the largest island of the Western Isles or Outer Hebrides archipelago in Scotland. The two parts are frequently referred to as if they were separate islands. The t ...

, Donnie MacLean, was working with the

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and introduced them to recordings of the little-known Melbost Bard,

Murdo Macfarlane Murdo Macfarlane (15 February 1901—7 November 1982; ) known as ''Bàrd Mhealboist'' ("the Melbost Bard") was a published poet, songwriter and campaigner for Scottish Gaelic, especially during the 1970s, when the '' Ceartas'' movement was gaining ...

. Recognising the originality and

catchiness Catchiness is how easy it is for a song, tune, or phrase to be recalled. It is often taken into account when writing songs, catchphrases, advertising slogans, jingles etc. Alternatively, it can be defined as how difficult it is for one to forget i ...

of Murdo's songs, the trio took two of them to the Royal National Mòd in Stirling in October 1971, where they won the Folk group competition and created an immediate stir with their professional performance and novel songs. The following year they performed another of Murdo's songs (Mi le m' Uillinn) and won the New Song competition at the Pan-Celtic Festival in

Killarney Killarney ( ; , meaning 'church of sloes') is a town in County Kerry, southwestern Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The town is on the northeastern shore of Lough Leane, part of Killarney National Park, and is home to St Mary's Cathedral, Killar ...

, Ireland, introducing themselves on to the international stage. This led to engagements throughout the Celtic Language speaking world: in England, Canada, Wales and Brittany. The group recorded three albums for the Beltona Sword label, a branch of

Decca Records Decca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis (Decca), Edward Lewis after his acquisition of a gramophone manufacturer, The Decca Gramophone Company. It set up an American subsidiary under the Decca name, which bec ...

- ''The Great Gaelic Sound of Na h-Òganaich'' (1972), ''Gael Force Three'' (1973) and ''Scot-Free'' (1975). In 1976 Na h-Òganaich were invited to participate in an extended tour of the US. At that time Noel was working as a college lecturer and unable to take part, so Margaret and Donnie proceeded to tour, and later perform back in the UK, as a duo with backing musicians. The original group has reformed on several occasions since then on a one-off basis, notably at Fèis nan Còisir in

Stornoway Stornoway (; ) is the main town, and by far the largest, of the Outer Hebrides (or Western Isles), and the capital of Lewis and Harris in Scotland. The town's population is around 6,953, making it the third-largest island town in Scotlan ...

and at

Celtic Connections The Celtic Connections festival started in 1994 in Glasgow, Scotland, and has since been held every January. Featuring over 300 concerts, ceilidhs, talks, free events, late night sessions and workshops, the festival focuses on the roots of trad ...

in Glasgow (2007). Margaret has continued to sing professionally with accordionist Billy Anderson, while Donnie in the 1980s became a popular TV performer and presenter with the children's Gaelic TV programme '' Dotaman'' on

BBC Scotland BBC Scotland is a division of the BBC and the main public broadcaster in Scotland. Its headquarters are in Glasgow, employing approximately 1,250 staff as of 2017, to produce 15,000 hours of television and radio programming per year. BBC Scotla ...

. Noel has been living and working in education on the Isle of Lewis since 1978.

External links

"Na h-Òganaich: a Gael Force for good." ''West Highland Free Press.''

{{DEFAULTSORT:Na h-Oganaich Scottish folk music groups Scottish Gaelic bands