Marilla Homes - Inner Whirl "I have no hesitation in recommending this CD. It showcases a talented performer in a number of genres and would appeal to most listeners" - John Williams, Trad&Now I had been talking about making this CD for over a year, and then suddenly it was the right time to do it! Just like that. My sincere thanks to everyone who has been a part of this journey - family, friends and colleagues. To those who missed out on playing on this CD - stick around! There will always be more music, and another song... Recorded by Martin Wright and Blake Stickland, Mastered by Martin Wright, at Move Records studio, March 2011. Black is the Colour ~ Trad. This song holds so many memories, particularly of the singing sessions at the Dan O’Connell Hotel in Carlton: Diarmuid singing this to his beautiful Meg; Ciara - a dark haired angel who died too young; the St Brigid’s Session 2011; and many, many more... Cold Missouri Waters ~ James Keelaghan ©1996 Tranquilla Music I love the folk process! I learnt this song as ‘Dodge’, not from James Keelaghan but from Mandy Connell - the result is my own version of this very moving song! I was a volunteer firefighter for over 10 years. This song is for all the brave men and women throughout the ages who put their lives on the line to tame the beast... whichever one they battle. Death of Queen Jane ~ Trad. I learnt this song from Marty. If history were taught like this I would have paid more attention :) Factory Girl ~ Trad Introduced to me by Don J at the Dan O’Connell, who loves to give me new music to learn. Such a beautiful melody... Crazy ~ Willie Nelson I first learnt this with Russell for a gig at the Clifton Hill Hotel in Melbourne. It has been evolving on the set list ever since! When I was ~ Mandy Connell 2007 One of my best friends and musical inspirations! This song of Mandy’s I first heard and harmonised with at the Drunken Poet in Melbourne... Ever the Winds ~ Trad. I have silenced a rowdy pub with this song - although it doesn’t always work :) A gorgeous, lilting Irish ballad. Johnny be fine ~ Trad. I learnt this after going on the Musical Pub Crawl in Dublin with my mother when I was 18 - yet I didn’t start to sing it for many years. Now a favourite, this song also won me the Frances Folk Gathering Open Vocal Award 2011 - my first ever folky competition! Nature Boy ~ Eden Ahbez 1947 For Kancho Barry Bradshaw, 10th Dan Grandmaster - teacher, inspiration and friend. Summerfly ~ Cheryl Wheeler 1987 For Trijntje - who from 3 weeks old used to fall asleep in my arms whenever I sang this song! Those were the days. Raglan Road ~ Trad./Patrick Kavanagh For Alice Liu ~ who died far too young, and who will always be my dark haired angel. Black Coffee ~ Sonny Burke & Paul Webster Lesson No. 1 in how to rock the boat: sing jazz in a classical music institution! I first sang this with Peter Draper in Concert Class at the University of Melbourne Conservatorium of Music. The students loved it... ;) Pretty Fair Maid (or The Night Visit) ~ Trad. My folk roots has been through Irish music, and learning to work with session musicians has been an exciting challenge, especially when sung versions differ slightly from the tunes version :) Dimming of the Day ~ Richard Thompson As Russell always says: “That is a killer tune! Wouldn’t you just love to be able to wake up one morning and say, I wrote that tune last night!” A beautiful song, with beautiful memories. Parting Glass ~ Trad A standard end to the old Sunday Singing Sessions at the Dan O’Connell. Many happy memories!