This is an excerpt from the print edition of Dirty Linen Magazine #97 (December 2001/January 2002). The magazine is available on newsstands and by subscription.

Music From Wales
by Jim Lee

In the great folk music boom of the late 80s and 90s, when all things "Celtic" led to a rise in popularity (and sales) in music from Ireland, Scotland, and, to a lesser extent, England, one area that was largely overlooked was Wales. Welsh music has a strong cultural identity that reflects both English and Celtic influences. But it was that attempt at defining and enlarging Welsh culture that led to a good deal of its obscurity.

This Welsh nationalism, which over the last 30 years has been trying to resurrect both the language and culture that have fallen into disuse, is very inward-looking. Cultural pride meant that you sang in Welsh, wrote liner notes in Welsh, kept your music close to home, and rejected all things English. While this attitude has helped to solidify the culture, it also, with rare exceptions, insulated it from the larger mainstream musical market.

Thankfully, it's beginning to change, and the best indication of that is found in the latest recording by Welsh nationalist Dafydd Iwan, called Dafydd Iwan A'r Band - Yn Fyw! Cyfrol 1 [Sain SCD2239 (2001)]. Iwan has been a leading political figure since the 60s and was jailed a number of times for his views. He's been the leading singer of Welsh protest songs and helped to form the Sain Record label in 1969 as an outlet for Welsh artists. In 1988, to celebrate his 25 years as a performer, he electrified his sound, adding a rock rhythm section that worked so well that he performed with a band for the next 12 years. In 2000, Iwan decided to retire from live performance and took his band out on the road one last time, and this is the first release of the recording made on that tour. Not surprisingly, most of the songs are political in nature, and, although they are sung in Welsh, the emotion and passion come through loud and strong, with the rock backing only adding to the overall feeling of the songs. But what's different about this recording is that Iwan has added English commentary and song notes to the recording for the first time, tackling this issue of English/Welsh language. He sums it up best when he writes, "...if Welsh culture is to be acknowledged beyond the borders of the language itself, then we must do a better job of explaining what we are about."

There are eight more artists discussed in this column from Dirty Linen #97 (Dec. '01/Jan. '02). Read the full text in the magazine, available via subscription or on newsstands and in bookstores.