While the youth of America are banging their heads to alternative, grunge, gothic or whatever is the current musical fad, a small "alternative" movement is being nurtured among the youth of Britain. Recently, growing numbers of young people are turning back to, and learning to play the traditional music of, their Celtic heritage. Participation in the BBC Radio 2 Young Tradition Award competitions has not only dramatically increased, but the players entering are at a skill level equal to, or higher than, that of their elder mentors. Somewhat surprisingly, this new wave of folk musicians is not adding rock influences to the music. Instead they are returning to the original source material that inspired their parents and grandparents. Martin Carthy, one of the seminal figures in the original British "folk revival" in the 60s, made the following observations in the liner notes to the Evolving Tradition compilation: "Just when some of us had even stopped moaning about the lack of young people playing and singing traditional music, and we were tacitly preparing to tick each other's names off in the queue for the funeral parlor, came a raft of singers and players who fell upon the repertoire with real relish, and reminded one that the possibilities are indeed endless."

While new CDs of these young traditionalists are being released at an almost weekly pace in the U.K., the following artists represent the pillars of the movement:

Various Artists
Evolving Tradition
Mrs. Casey MCRCD5991 (1995)

Some of the brightest new players and singers are presented on this collection of twentyone cuts. Several of the artists currently have their own releases out, including Eliza Carthy, Nancy Kerr, The Lakeman Brothers, Óige, Kate Rusby and Kathryn Roberts. Among the highlights of the album is the plaintive, graceful Celtic harp of the 1990 Radio 2 Young Tradition Award winner, Ingrid Henderson, accompanied by her brother Allan on fiddle. The duo plays a lively version of "Tom Clarke's Trip to Russia," which can also be found on their Lochshore release, The Perpetual Horseshoe. The Luke Daniels Trio features the 1992 Young Tradition Award winner Daniels on accordion, fiddler Teresa Heanue and session giant Ian Carr on guitar. Their version of "Johnny 'Watt' Henry's" and "Aly Bain's" owes much to the work of Aly Bain and Phil Cunningham. Brother and sister Rajan & Rakhi Sood represent England's large Indian community with their sitar and tabla improvisation called "Raag Kirvani/Tantaal." A group of young Shetland fiddlers, brought together by the late Dr. Tom Anderson, play as Shetland's Young Heritage, while Martin and Aine Furey, part of the famed Finbar Furey's brood, join with some friends as Bohinta. Both Fureys have excellent voices; Martin has shadings of Danny Carnahan, while Aine is reminiscent of Dolores Keane as they sing the selfpenned "Lord Gresham." Benji Kirkpatrick - son of accordionist John Kirkpatrick - has a wonderful and distinctive voice and has joined with friends in the Shropshire outfit called The Hedgerows. Young Traditional winners abound, both with the fiery fiddle of Carlene Anglim (Winner, 1993) joined by guitarist Simon Howarth and the superb duo of Shetland fiddler Catriona MacDonald (Winner, 1991) and Borders accordionist Ian Lowthian.

Kate Rusby &Kathryn Roberts
Kate Rusby &Kathryn Roberts
Pure PRCD01 (1995)

Rarely has a debut album reached this level of near perfection. Kathryn Roberts won the 1994 Radio 2 Young Tradition Award for her exceptional fiddle playing and she and Kate Rusby have been touring extensively as a duo since 1993. Not only are they both outstanding vocalists, they also play a variety of instruments, with Rusby being equally dexterous on piano and guitar and Roberts adding piano, flute, clarinet and soprano sax to her fine fiddle playing. Still, it is the blend of the women's voices that is truly remarkable. The set is made up of mostly traditional songs, and the album opens with a gorgeous version of "The Recruited Collier." The album follows along a central theme of the loss of life (young men in particular) in the horrors of war. Each song was written from the viewpoint of the women left behind. The fact that, in real life, most of the women were Rusby's and Roberts' age makes their telling of these tales all the more affecting. The vocal leads - Roberts on "The Plains of Waterloo" and "The Constant Lovers," and Rusby on "The Lorry Ride" and "Dark Eyed Sailor" - are sung with conviction. Even on Suzanne Vega's contemporary "Queen & the Soldier," Roberts' and Rusby's voices mix seamlessly. It's not all doom and gloom either; "Ned on the Hill" and the "Hunting of the Hare" are both hopeful and joyous, recalling the lighter moments of the first Silly Sisters album, and the disc closes with a Rusbyled version of Steve Knightley's stark and lovely "Exile." The album maintains an overall excellent production quality, thanks to John McCusker (who also plays fiddle and cittern). Allison Kinnard contributes cello, and Robin Morton adds bodhrán.

The Equation
In Session
Crapstone CRMCD11 (1995)

In early 1995 Rusby and Roberts joined up with the young Dartmoor trio, The Lakeman Brothers, to form a new group called The Equation. Initially created to showcase the two groups' individual talents, the public response has been overwhelmingly favorable. The quintet recorded this threesong EP in February of 1995. The set includes a captivating, Rusbyled cover of Tim Wood's "Seven Wonders," and an enthusiastic, Robertssung version of the traditional, "Lovely Willie." The EP concludes with a set of jigs played by Sean Lakeman on guitar, Sam Lakeman on keyboards and Seth Lakeman on violin.

Eliza Carthy &Nancy Kerr
Shape of Scrape
Mrs. Casey MCRCD5992 (1995)

This is the second album by the fiddle and vocals duo of Nancy Kerr and Eliza Carthy (photo). Both women possess much skill on their instruments and the album's many instrumentals, such as "Edward Corcoran/Black Joke" and "Low Down in the Broom/The Sukebind," and the graceful flourishes of their "Gypsy Hornpipe/The Hawk/Indian Queen" medley, prove the point. Their fiddle styles tend toward more roughly bowed, "scraped" sounds, hence the album's title. Carthy has turned into a marvelous vocalist, who has drawn equally from the craft and the idiosyncrasies of both her parents' distinctive styles. Her unaccompanied singing on "I Know My Love," and her duo singing with Kerr on "Bonny Light Horseman," recall the heydays of the Watersons. Kerr's voice, while more shrill and not as professional as Carthy's, is still pleasant and very effective. When paired in harmony with Carthy on "The Poor and Young Single Sailor," the effect is very pleasing. The duo are joined on the album by the aforementioned Ian Carr on guitar and Saul Rose on melodeon.

Óige
Live
Klub/Lochshore CDLDL 1225 (1994)

Óige (pronounced oyga) hail from Co. Derry in Ireland and feature guitarist Paul McLaughlin, brothers Ruadhrai and Marrough O'Kane on fiddle and bodhrán, flutes and whistles and Cara Dillon on fiddle and vocals. This is their second album and was recorded live in both Glasgow and Perthshire in 1994. Their skill and dexterity on what is considered by most to be some of Celtic music's more difficult reels, such as "The Clumsy Lover," "The Mountain Road," "Liz Carroll's Reel," or the shear breakneck speed of "Ashplant/Red Haired Lass" (grouped under the title "Girls Put the Fags Out"), is astounding. They have the energy and drive of both early Capercaille and Silly Wizard, while sounding fundamentally Irish. At the center of the band is Cara Dillon's exquisitely sweet voice. The fact that together with Ruadhrai O'Kane, she is half of the band's twin fiddle drive, is icing on the cake.

Deighton, Deighton, Matthews, Roberts, Rusby & Shaw
Intuition
Fat Cat FATCD002 (1993)

Perhaps one of the most influential albums of the new traditionalist movement, this recording brought together older folk divas Julie Matthews and Pat Shaw, sisters Kathleen and Rosalie Deighton of Britain's famed Deighton Family Singers, and the first recorded pairing of Kate Rusby and Kathryn Roberts. The group, founded in 1993 in South Yorkshire, toured considerably during that time and recorded this excellent collection of 14 songs. Julie Matthews and Pat Shaw contribute some very fine tracks (all written by Matthews) including, "I Am the One," "The Willow," and "Letters Home to England," which features Clive Gregson on guitar. Rosalie Deighton has a strong, expressive voice which can be heard on two Matthewspenned numbers; "Blue Old Saturday Night," and "Road to Eden." She is also an excellent percussionist and guitar player, and plays both with sister Kathleen's sweeping fiddle on the album's instrumental cuts. The real stars of the album are Kate Rusby and Kathryn Roberts. Rusby has a high, extremely expressive voice, while Roberts has a deeper, soulful voice. Roberts sings solo on two traditional tracks: "Sally Garden," "Barbara Allen," and the unaccompanied "Polly Parker." Rusby can be heard on a gorgeous pianobacked version of "Bonnie Light Horseman," with Roberts adding flute and harmony vocals. She also pays tribute to her nontraditional influences in Mary Chapin Carpenter's "The Moon and St. Christopher," and on Nanci Griffith's "Gulf Coast Highway."

*****

Eliza Carthy is about to release her first solo album, called Heat Light & Sound [Topic], featuring a semielectric band. The Wrigley Sisters are now part of a new band called Seelyhoo, and their first album is The First Caul [Greentrax]. Kate Rusby has left the Equation and after finishing up some tour commitments with Roberts, will join The Poozies as Sally Barker's replacement. Meanwhile, Roberts and the Lakemans have signed a longterm recording contract with Warner Brothers Records (U.K.) as The Equation. They have just added Óige's Cara Dillon as Rusby's replacement and will be recording and touring much of this year. Finally, Mrs. Casey Records will release Evolving Tradition II, featuring the latest group of young players.