1.Chanting Waves 2.17
2.Over the Waters 7.29
3.Veil of Gossamer 4.56
4.The Seen and the Unseen 2.17
5.The Everlasting Hills (total time 19.47)
(part 1) 5.37
6. (part 2) 2.34
7. (part 3) 3.55
8. (part 4) 2.54
9. (part 5) 4.47
10.Seahouses 3.06
11.Until the Tide Turns 4.30
12.The Homeward Race 5.26
13.Star-Filled Skies (total time 14.49)
(part 1) 3.40
14. (part 2) 2.40
15. (part 3) 3.47
16. (part 4) 4.42
CHANTING WAVES
Mae McKenna - Voice (Gaelic)
Rachel Jones - Voices (wordless)
Joanne Hogg - Voices (wordless and Spanish)
Dave Bainbridge - Keyboards, sound treatments
Peter Fairclough - Cymbal Sculptures / Gongs
Frank van Essen - Rainmaker, Shaker, Bells, Chimes, Celesta
William Schofield - Solo Cello
Nick Beggs - Bass Guitar FX
OVER THE WATERS
Dave Bainbridge - Electric Guitar, Keyboards, Bouzouki, Mandolin, Balafon
Rachel Jones - Voices
Joanne Hogg - Voices
Mae McKenna - Voices
Frank van Essen - Drums / Shaker / Tambourine
Tim Harries - Bass Guitars
Peter Fairclough - Gong
VEIL OF GOSSAMER
Dave Bainbridge - Piano, Electric and Nylon strung Guitars, Keyboards,
15 string harp
Peter Whitfield Strings - Violins / Violas
William Schofield - Solo Cello
Troy Donockley - Tin Whistle
Joanne Hogg - Ethereal Voices
Peter Fairclough - Wind chimes, Gongs and Cymbals
Thus shall they come to know, ...... that there is no death and that
only a
veil divides, thin as gossamer.
Extract from A Veil thin as Gossamer, by George MacLeod
(from The Whole Earth Shall Cry Glory - Wild Goose Publications, Glasgow
1985)
THE SEEN AND THE UNSEEN
Dave Bainbridge - Fylde Oberon Steel strung Acoustic Guitar tuning
DADGAD (accompanying part) CGCGCD - capo 2 (melody part)
THE EVERLASTING HILLS
Dave Bainbridge - Piano, Keyboards, Electric & Acoustic Guitars,
Bouzouki, Mandolin
Mae McKenna - Lead Vocal (Gaelic), Voices
Rachel Jones - Voices, Voice loops, Whispered Voice
Joanne Hogg - Voices, Voice loops
Troy Donockley - Uilleann Pipes, Low Whistle, Tin Whistle, Voice
Frank van Essen - Drums, Violin, Bodhran, Mini Tims, Tom Toms, Bell
Tree,Triangle, Shaker, Tambourine, Chimes and Bells
Peter Fairclough - Stallichimes, Caxixis, Shell Chimes, Cymbal and
Gong textures
Tim Harries - Bass Guitar (middle section)
Nick Beggs - Bass Guitar (end section)
William Schofield - Cello
SEAHOUSES
Dave Bainbridge - Manson Magpie 1 Steel strung Acoustic Guitar (tuning
CGDECD capo 3)
I began writing this piece whilst on holiday in Seahouses, on the north-east coast of England at the end of August 1997, in a memorable week that saw the passing of three icons of the age - Princess Diana, Mother Theresa and the great conductor Sir Georg Solti.
UNTIL THE TIDE TURNS
Joanne Hogg - Lead Vocal, Voices
Dave Bainbridge - Piano, Keyboards, Electric Guitar, Bouzouki, Star
Bells
Troy Donockley - Uilleann Pipes, Low Whistle
Frank van Essen - Drums, Violin
Nick Beggs - Fretless Basses
THE HOMEWARD RACE
Dave Bainbridge - Electric Guitar, Keyboards, Bouzouki
Frank van Essen - Drums
Tim Harries - Bass Guitar
Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. - St Paul
STAR-FILLED SKIES
Mae McKenna - Lead Vocal (Gaelic), Voices
Joanne Hogg - Voices
Rachel Jones - Voices
Chris Hale - Improvised Voice (wordless and Urdu)
Dave Bainbridge - Piano, Keyboards, Electric & Acoustic Guitars,
Bouzouki, Mandolin, Autoharp, 15 string Harp, Bongos, Hand drum, Indian
Tambourine, Struck Tambourine, Shakers, Finger Cymbals
Troy Donockley - Uilleann Pipes, Low Whistles, Tin Whistle, Voice
Frank van Essen - Drums, Bodhran, Violins
Peter Fairclough - Cymbal Sculptures / Gongs, Wind Chime
William Schofield - Solo Cello
Tim Harries - Bass Guitar
Chris Hales improvised vocal towards the end of the piece includes the words Daya Sagar, sung in the Urdu language, which literally means Mercy Ocean or Ocean of Mercy. This is also a name for Christ in the indian context.
Gaelic lyrics used on Chanting Waves, The Everlasting Hills and Star-Filled
Skies - traditional, from the Carmina Gadelica, a compendium of prayers,
poems and incantations from the Western Isles, collected together in
the 19th century by Alexander Carmichael. (Used by permission of Floris
Books, p. 1992 Floris Books)
The Homeward Race by Bainbridge / Van Essen (this track was written around Franks great drum rhythm)
Recorded at Open Sky Studio, Lincolnshire, England between November 2002 and February 2004 except;
Frank's drums, violins & percussion recorded at Studio Frank van
Essen - Dalfsen, Holland
Nick's basses & Peter's Strings recorded in their respective home
studios in the UK
Chris Hale's voice recorded by Keiran Kelly at The Buddy Project, NYC,
USA
Additional recording by Dave on location in various places around Wales, Ireland, Scotland and England during 2003 and 2004
Mixed at Carlekemp Studio, Scotland by Calum Malcom with Dave -
February / March 2004, except tracks 1, 3 and part of 5 mixed at Open Sky
Studio,
Lincolnshire by Dave
Mastered by Calum Malcolm at Carlekemp Studio, Scotland
Cover Artwork features photos of the following textile works by Alice
Kettle; Niagra' 1995
'Chagall Column' 2001 commissioned by Professor Paul Foster
of the University of Chichester
Photos of Dave, design & layout by Chris Sands, Indigo Design
c & p Open Sky Records 2004
p SGO Music Publishing Ltd 2004
Special Thanks to;
Debbie, Luca and Evie, my wonderful family
My Mam for the genes and belief in me
Paul Smith for unstinting help, support and encouragement,
Jo, Mae, Rachel, Troy, Frank, Nick, Pete, Peter, William, Tim and Chris
for
your outstanding contributions to this music
Jo for the use of her fabulous piano and microphone
David Adam for inspiration
Ray Simpson for practical help
Alice Kettle and Chris Sands for their striking artwork
Pete for the loan of his Les Paul and for track suggestions
Roger Bucknell at Fylde Guitars for his superb instruments
(www.fyldeguitars.com)
Nigel for invaluable technical advice
Marion for the loan of the Autoharp and Balafon
Angela for dealing with all the orders
Rob Ayling from Voiceprint, Yoko Nozaki from The Music Plant and those
of
you who pre-ordered copies (and waited patiently for this album to
finally
arrive!) - your faith in me made this release possible.
To the memory of my dad and sister - whose inspiration still lingers.
Dave uses a customised Fernandes Dragonfly Elite Electric Guitar, Fylde and Manson Acoustic guitars, Fylde Bouzouki and Mandolin
Peter Fairclough's cymbals, gongs and stallichimes hand made by Steve Hubbock
Much of this album, in particular the track ﾔStar-Filled Skies, was conceived with an account in the back of my mind of a strange incident that is said to have occured one dark night on the high hills of Northumbria way back in the 7th century.
Tending a fire on these hills, a 16 year old shepherd saw a strange
sight in the sky far off towards Bamburgh and the Holy Island of Lindisfarne.
As the flames and sparks of his fire rose into the night, the boy noticed
something that looked like lights descending and ascending from the heavens.
It was not the Northern Lights, for this was the wrong direction. He even
wondered whether these were angels coming down to accompany a particularly
beloved soul to heaven..... The next day he learned of the death, at Bamburgh,
of St Aidan - the much loved founding father of the monastery on Lindisfarne
- at
exactly that time. The boy shepherd was Cuthbert, who went on to become
Aidans succesor as the spiritual father of his generation. This account
was
just one of many miraculous events in the life of St Cuthbert, which
blurred the boundaries between our earthly realm, and that of Heaven.
As I was recording ﾔStar-Filled Skiesﾕ, I received several slides of amazing wall hangings by the textile artist Alice Kettle for consideration for the album's cover artwork. Included in them was an amazing one of with angels descending and ascending from the heavens playing musical instruments. Below them is what looks like a fire and sparks rising up! Alice knew nothing of the story I was attempting to put into music.
Dave Bainbridge
For further reading; Fire of the North (The illustrated life of St Cuthbert) by David Adam (p.1993 SPCK)
CHANTING WAVES,
sing OVER THE WATERS,
a VEIL OF GOSSAMER,
weaving together THE SEEN AND THE UNSEEN,
THE EVERLASTING HILLS behind.
Over SEAHOUSES,
Onwards, UNTIL THE TIDE TURNS, Upwards,
upon THE HOMEWARD RACE, joyous,
the ascent into
STAR-FILLED SKIES
Aidan's Ascent - by Dave Bainbridge, 2003
