Who can say where this song originated! Ronnie Alexander picked up this localised version from sources around Bonhill in Dunbartonshire
WIDELY regarded as a near-permanent institution on the Scottish folk scene, the Clutha, while never maintaining as high a profile as some other Scottish bands of the past four decades, has been an innovative and influential presence during the folk revival.
One of the first Scottish folk groups to include a fiddler, then a piper, within its ranks, while still keeping traditional Scots song – particularly sung solo rather than with harmonies – to the fore, the Clutha emerged as far back as 1964, formed by three young librarians and former colleague, all from Glasgow’s renowned Mitchell Library, the rich collections and archives of which would remain a touchstone for the band. The founders were singer-guitarist Don Martin, the late John “Jack” Eaglesham on vocals and concertina, Erlend Voy on fiddle and later concertina, and singer-guitarist Ronnie Alexander, and they called themselves the Clutha after an ancient name for the River Clyde.
Within a year, the line-up had been increased to six, with the addition of another fiddler, Callum Allan, and Gordeanna McCulloch, who at just 19 was already establishing her reputation as a convincing interpreter of Scots song. In the sleeve notes for the group’s debut album, Scotia, in 1971, Don Martin observed that “from the start the Clutha determined to concentrate largely on their native Scottish songs.
The Clutha we inducted into the Scottish Traditional Music Hall of Fame in 2014.
Artist website: http://projects.handsupfortrad.scot/hall-of-fame/the-clutha/
Single title: The Braes O Bonhill
Album title:On The Braes
Single artist: The Clutha
Single duration: 2:10
Record Label: Clutha
Catalogue No: CLCD001
Writers: Traditional
Publishers: MCPS / PRS
Explicit?: No
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