17. Gôg - Meic Stevens [1977]

Y caneuon hyn oedd fy ail record hir, a gai ei recordio maes o law yn stiwdios Sain yn Llanrug. Roedd y record yma'n gam mawr ymlaen i mi fel cyfansoddwr caneuon; cafodd groeso brwd, gwerthodd yn dda a ges i lawer o waith ar ei chorn.

Recordiwyd Gog o fewn pum niwrnod.

 - Y Crwydryn a Mi

Practical, self-effacing Meic Mortimer Stevens, wizard and true Welsh star. Melodic nous and unquestionable chops grounded in earthy authenticity. He doesn't put a foot wrong on this astonishingly good amble among Breton idylls, wandering blind boys, and country loving. Contender for best folk-rock album of 70s, in any language. 

 Essential.

Oddi wrth y brawd

[Dros ben llestri in Comments]

Os Mewn Sŵn - Huw M [2010]

Huw M[eredydd Roberts], delivers beyond everything we ever hoped for from solo Euros Childs. Personalised folk-ish paeans to the everyday: kitchen food smells, missing the train, a dripping tap, and er...the sock drawer.


First rate debut.

Buy Os Mewn Sŵn and spiffing new release Gathering Dusk. 

Oddi wrth y brawd

Gwymon - Meic Stevens [1972] re-dug

Clasur gan y cawr o Solfach

Having tried to please Warners with 1970's Outlander (the public wisely ignored the "Welsh Van Morrison" schtick), Meic goes on to please himself. Gwymon is more at ease with itself: rootsy and unforced; mix light-hearted stoned chooglers and weightier, heart-felt meditations on loss and passing. A true classic not to be missed.


New CD release on Sunbeam Records. Buy.




From Galactic Ramble:


"By the middle of 1972 Meic had amassed enough new songs to make another album - this time on his own terms. He still had access to Warner's demo studio in Denmark Street, so went there to tape the songs in the summer. Some were new, some had been written for Welsh TV shows (from topical to children's to religious), while others were older (like the flippant, infectious Carangarw, or 'Kangaroo', which Meic recalls '"was written in a London taxicab while stoned with Gary Farr and Reggie King"). Recorded in a single day after a night's rehearsal with a pair of musicians he'd met in a Soho pub (Paul Martinez and Graham Smith), and sung entirely in Welsh, the result was less mystical and more pop-orientated than Outlander, with a bouncy, uptempo feel (other than the obvious exception of the eerie ‘Galarnad’ - a setting of a passage from the Book of Jeremiah). Meic decided to call it Gwymon (‘seaweed’), and it appeared in September 1972 in an edition of 2500 vinyl copies."

Oddi wrth y brawd

Tir - Cerys Matthews [2010]

Yn cynnwys eitemau gwerin / traddodiadol, caneuon "cenedlaethol" Victoraidd, dau emyn, a'n hanthem genedlaethol. Personol yw'r detholiad, ac felly hefyd y dehongliadau gan Cerys.

01 Sosban Fach

02 Myfanwy
03 Bugeilio’r Gwenith Gwyn
04 Cân Merthyr

05 Cwm Rhondda
06 Ar Hyd Y Nos
07 Migldi Magldi
08 Calon Lân

09 Llwyn Onn
10 A Ei Di’r Deryn Du
11 Dafydd Y Garreg Wen
12 Mil Harddach Wyt Na'r Rhosyn Gwyn
13 Mae Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau
14 Yr Insiwrans Agent
15 Bachgen Bach O Dincar
16 Ar Lan Y Môr
17 A Ei Di’r Deryn Du (reprise)

Oddi wrth y brawd

The Peel Sessions 1987-1993 - Datblygu [2008]

As the late Laird of Peel Acres would have it: "[Datblygu are] the best incentive anyone could have for learning Welsh”.


Uchafbwynt bob dydd o'r wythnos oedd tiwnio i mewn i raglen John Peel ar radio un wrth wneud fy ngwaith cartref. Rwy'n cofio gorwedd ar fy ngwely unig un noson pan chwaraeodd John Peel gang o ferched yn canu, "whisky makes me frisky, gin makes me sin, brandy makes me randy and rum makes me come". Rown i'n ysu am gyfarfod a'r math yna o ferched yn hytrach nag eistedd mewn dosbarthiadau boring yn yr ysgol. A dyna reswm arall pam y ffurfiais i Datblygu. Down i ddim eisiau gwneud lot o arian - yr uchelgais oedd art, rhyw, drygs ac alcohol.

 - David R. Edwards

We sang in Welsh with all the US/English influences because it had to be done. I didn't like the fact that Welsh music was seen to be male voice choirs, folk music and all the clichés. I suppose that I wanted to modernise Welsh language culture. Welsh is a language with unlimited potential but I didn't appreciate a lot that was being manifested in it. I tried to change things. Hundreds of people saw the point so I'm glad I bothered.

 – more David R Edwards

Hundreds..... 

Oddi wrth y brawd

trio

buyo

Dolig (sa'm amser gwaeth i farw) - Mr Huw

http://mrhuw.com/

'Dolig Llawen!

Oddi wrth y brawd

Yn ddistaw ddistaw bach - Huw M [2010]

Welsh Christmas the third. 

Check Huw M at bandcamp.

Oddi wrth y brawd

full download

"Cymru, Lloegr a Llanhari" - Ddy Bobs

Like some thoughtful Euros Childs inviting Sufjan Stevens in for a cuppa and semi-serious ontological chat. Ddy Bobs has got summat to say and he's not giving up. Acoustic taste 'o tasty growers. Get this fellah's stuff at Welsh music specialists Sadwrn.

Pencampwr... Dal ati Pritch!


Oddi wrth y brawd
o hyfryd fyd

Y Gore a'r Gwaetha o'r Tebot Piws - Y Tebot Piws

Llythyr i'r wasg:
    Yn ddiweddar bûm mewn Cabaret lle'r oedd y Tebot i fod i gymryd rhan, a gallaf eich sicrhau
    imi glywed un o'r perfformiadau mwyaf gwael a diymdrech gan unrhyw grŵp pop Cymraeg 
    erioed. Ni chredaf eu bod  wedi cyrraedd terfyn unrhyw un o'r caneuon oherwydd y gwamalu 
    a'r lol. Roeddwn yn teimlo dros y rhai a weithiodd yn galed i geisio gwneud noson 
    lwyddiannus, a'r gynulleidfa yn gorfod dioddef y fath sothach.

Y Cymro 22 Rhagfyr 1971

Ha! Arloeswyr Be Bop a Lula'r Delyn Aur...


Anarchic pioneers Welsh language folk-rock-pop scene 1969-1972.


Bonus documentary: Gwreiddiau Roc - Y Tebot Piws [w/subs]. As bois Sbardun, Pws, Ems & Stan move on to other  groups of era - Mynediad am Ddim, Edward H Dafis, Ac Eraill - expect potted overview of era.

Oddi wrth y brawd
ie ie 'na fe

Hud A Llefrith - Mr Huw [2009]

Mr Huw, y dyn, y chwedl. Dal i wenu a casau pob un? Blydi Holly'n jeifio i'r indie stomp llachar. Losing ei head over suicide, dead best friends and cannibals n' sex combos. Drinking poison wid butter fingers, he got bones to pick. Swimming in da bloodily morose, feeling dirty, fearing da fear. Ffycin grêt. (Dim ots, mae pawb yn dal i wenu).

Mordant, jocular and fucking great. When dis boi gets serious, look out!

Check out new fideo creaduriaid  byw at http://mrhuw.com/

Buy Mr Huw at http://www.sadwrn.com/

Oddi wrth y brawd
rhywbeth mewn cyffredin sydd yn cadw ni'n un

Mwng & Mwng Bach - Super Furry Animals [2000]

Smart, super melodic sunshine psych full of unexpected twists and turns. Plenty surprises under the surface. Top hole version of Datblygu's Y Teimlad.

Includes US released addendum: Mwng Bach. In line with title, three tracks check children characters Calimero, Mr Urdd and Sali Mali. Keyboard refrain in latter renders 80s kids TV a treat.

Oddi wrth y brawd

jac do

mr huw i agor Gwyl y Dyn Gwyrdd - Vote mr huw

Vote for mr huw to open this year's Green Man festival
http://apps.facebook.com/greenpoll/index/band/id/125


Pleidleisio drost mr huw i agor Gwyl y Dyn Gwyrdd
http://apps.facebook.com/greenpoll/index/band/id/125

mr huw is without doubt within a hair's breadth of genius and must be heard.


More at mrhuw.com 

Bore Da - Euros Childs [2007]

No one does eternal sunshine sandals in the childhood summertime pastoral quite like Euros. Like a big huge splurgy primary colour kid's painting, Euros smacks you round the chops with effervescing feeling laid bare. Jaunt, ditty, quirk and low key angst. Sung in Welsh but belay your geiriadur mawr mates and let the psych tinged melody work its magic. Super.

Oddi wrth y brawd
dewch i dawnsio dan y lleuad

Gôg - Meic Stevens [1977]

(Huge thanks to spell-binding: http://ifioridelsole.blogspot.com/ for this and earlier Gwydion post. Swing by for more iridescent wyrdness.)

And so to Meic Mortimer Stevens, wizard and true Welsh star. Melodic nous and unquestionable earthy authenticity. He doesn't put a foot wrong on this astonishingly good outing. Sure, Dylanisms abound, particularly phrasing and breath control but Meic is his own man -  through and through. Take in Breton idylls, wandering blind boys, and country loving.

Essential.

Oddi wrth y brawd

clywed y gôg

Ca' Nôs - Fernhill [1996]

Fernhill arrive fully formed with grown up 90s debut. Julie Murphy, vocals; Andy Cutting, button accordionist extraordinaire; Ceri Rhys Matthews, plays cittern, lute, clarinet, and Pastoral oboe; Jonathan Shorland, Welsh flautist not unacquainted with music and musicians of Brittany. More mainstream, less compelling fare would follow but Ca' Nôs gets the balance right between musicianship and rough around the edges energy. A mix of Welsh, Breton, and English, ranging from romantic ballads to dance songs. Hypnotically pentangléd version of Banks of the Nile a stand out.

oddi wrth y brawd

flashing into the dark

Dirty North Walians / Gogleddwyr Budur - Mr Huw [2010]



Mordantly whacky sunshine guitar pop to slit your wrists by. Check titles: Departure Track; Desperate and Bored; Mid-Album Crisis. Check lyrics on ultimate loser anthem Everything We Do:
The devil's got me by the hand, to guide me home and watch me die.
The cravings that we tend to feel, I think that most of mine are real.
It's all the hate that gets us through.
We'll celebrate just when we lose.
I don't know why but when we choose,
We'll fuck up everything we do.

Played with pumped up panache it is, unbelievably, enormous fun.  Wounded Lion with undumb words. Mr Huw is without doubt within a hair's breadth of genius and must be heard.

Whole album available as free download at  Mr Huw's place.

Buy Welsh music at Sadwrn.



Oddi wrth y brawd
diolch, Mr Huw

Chops - Euros Childs [2006]

Euros's first post-GZM full-length release and a little cracker it is. No new departures thematically - turning of the seasons, growing up in rural Wales, love found and lost - nor musically - skew-whiff pop, gorgeous harmonies, quirky psych flourishes, lo-fi folky diversions.

A shame that only three of the songs are in Welsh as these are the strongest tracks, not least because Euros lets his hair down and lets rip. 

If squelchy pastoral pop's your thing  - and why the heck not - then tuck in.

Oddi wrth y brawd
dawnsio dros y mor

 

Gwymon - Meic Stevens [1972]

"Clasur gan y cawr o Solfach" - Llinos A.

Y brawd agrees: classic from mighty Meic Stevens.

Having tried to please label Warners with 1970's Outlander (the public, wisely, ignored the "Welsh Van Morrison" shtick), Meic goes on to please himself with quietly stunning results on Gwymon. More laid-back, rootsy and unforced, the quality of the songs and performances shines through. A mix of light-hearted stoned chooglers - Shw' Mae, Shw' Mae [How's it going?]; Mae’r Eliffant Yn Cofio Popeth [Elephants remember everything];  Mynd I Weld Y Byd [Off to see the world] - and more weighyy, heart-felt meditations on loss - Traeth Anobaith [Beach of despair]; Daeth Neb Yn Ol’ [Nobody returned]; O Mor Lan Yr Oedd Y Dwr [How clear was the water].

The loose watery theme explains the title: Gwymon = Seaweed.

Welsh language desirable but not essential. Do yourself a favour, dive right in. 

Oddi wrth y brawd
shw' mae shw' mae

buy Meic

Deugain Sain [40 years of Sain] - Various

Y brawd's own selection from Sain's 3 disc bonanza of 40 years' Welsh music in the popular vernacular.

Many will already be familiar with Andy Votel's Welsh Rarebeat primers.....meeah,  "look at these quaint people singing in Welsh in the 70s...who'd have thunk it?" 

Better start here with Sain's collection for a representative overview that strays outside Votel's acid-folk obsessions to take in 70s/80s new wave (Trwynau Coch, Geraint Jarman), 70s Mott / Lizzy melodic rock (Edward H. Dafis  - who bestrode Cambria like denim clad colossi), 90s indie (Catatonia), 00s sunshine psych (Mim Twm Llai) and varied points in-between.

Ever wondered what John Cale would sound like singing in his native tongue (and exactly why hasn't the grand experimenter who spoke only Welsh until the age of eight ever recorded in the language?), then Geraint Lovgreen's yer man. Looking for songwriting spirit of Bill Fay? Check out Daniel Lloyd a Mr Pinc.

An embarrassment of riches for all and for a few, memories of gigs past. (Sometime around 1979, Peel faves Trwynau Coch played the assembly hall at y brawd's school. It was bloody great. Ms. Cadifor, ble'r wyt ti nawr?)

Buy the album.

Artists:
01 Meic Stevens
02 Sibrydion
03 Edward H. Dafis
04 Daniel Lloyd a Mr Pinc
05 Trwynau Coch
06 Geraint Jarman
07 Y Cyrff
08 Mim Twm Llai
09 Gwibdaith Hen Fran
10 Catatonia
11 Bob Delyn
12 Sian James
13 Plethyn
14 Fflur Dafydd
15 Steve Eaves
16 Mynediad Am Ddim
17 Maharishi
18 Tebot Piws
19 Mairi McGuinness a Cor Meibion Llangwm
20 Geraint Lovgreen a'r Enw Da
21 Sidan

Oddi wrth y brawd
Cymru, Lloegr a Llanrwst

Ail Ddechrau - Brân

Guest post by Pastaman Vibration (ye-ah!) -  positive?

The Welsh comedian Rhod Gilbert sees actress Keeley Hawes, star of time travelling crime series Ashes to Ashes in the audience at one of his gigs and quips “you didn’t have to get shot to go back to the 80s, love, come back with me to Cardiff tonight”. It’s a funny -  if in this 24/7 era  -  slightly outmoded stereotypical view of the Celtic backwater.

In the 1970s though, Gilbert’s observation would, quite painfully, have been bang on the money, and nowhere more so than with reference to the Welsh language rock and pop scene. Back in 1975 there was only one band with any real claim to rock credentials (Edward H Dafis). Otherwise it was the earnest if occasionally rousing protest songs of Dafydd Iwan, the rasping Dylanisms of Meic Stephens and an abundance of twee folk pops sung by girls in Laura Ashley prints with pretty voices to the strum of acoustic guitars.

In this none too promising environment the first incarnation of Brân (the roof over the “a” extends the vowel sound to something similar to barn), or in Welsh “Crow”, released the first and most intriguing of their three albums, each recorded with a different line-up (John Gwyn guitarist/bassist/vocalist being the only constant). Ail Ddechrau (“Restart” or “Resume”) is at times an awkward cut and shunt (I hope I type that one right) of progressive and folk influences which just about wins the day courtesy of a clutch decently written songs and the wonderful, near-operatic voice of the divine Nest Howells. Those of you who get off on Lavinia Blackwall’s singing with Trembling Bells and Cathy LeSurf-era Albion Band are in for a treat. The result is not too dissimilar to the likes of Mellow Candle and Fuchsia. Bearing in mind that these bands were around several years previous to Ail Ddechrau, and were even then almost forgotten and you’ll see what I mean about the time warp.

Skip the opening number Y Ddor Ddig, it’s awful. Go instead to F’annwyl un (“My Dear One”), Y Gwylwyr (“The Watchers” – a definite highlight) and Wrth Y Ffynnon (“By The Well”) which set the template for the rest of the album – fairly simple rhythms, competent bass work, neat guitar breaks and Nest’s stonkingly striking pipes.

Following this engaging triptych, though, what we are left with is very much of a mixed bag. Myfyrdod (“Meditation”) is clunky three chord rock vying for supremacy with Ms Howell’s pure, expressive voice, and comes across a bit like a proto Heath Robinson Evanescence. The results don’t quite hit the mark and can in aviation terms (geddit? Flying? Crow/Brân? Never mind) be classed a “near miss”, while Mor Braf ("So Fine”) and Blodyn (“Flower”) featuring Gwyn on vocals, are simply embarrassing. In contrast the so-so ballad Caledfwlch (“Hard Gap”) and the superior Y Crewr (“The Creator”) each provide something of an antidote to more ham-fisted proceedings. Matters are brought to a close by the melodic instrumental number Breuddwyd (“Dream”) showcasing Howells’ classically trained piano skills. A bit too Richard Clayderman for my tastes it must be said.

 That, as they say, is that, except to mention the haunted house cover which is very “proggy” and definitely of its time, but oddly appealing nonetheless.

After this Howells and Gwyn recruited a new guitarist, Dafydd Pierce on the occasionally inspired and more commercially slanted Hedfan (“Flying”) and which introduced a light funk into what is actually a more effective marriage of rock and folk. Then Howells and Pierce left and Gwyn steered the band into dry dock with the rocking but less interesting Gwrach Y Nos. By way of a footnote, Nest Howells’ subsequent claim to fame is that she is the mother of Welsh folk music uberbabe Elin Fflur, for which we should all be grateful.


Oddi wrth PV-Y!
y poeths