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Roots, folk, Newfoundland. Think Planxty.......

Gone Jiggin’ is the fifth full-length album release from Newfoundland 5-piece roots outfit, Rum Ragged, and I can’t, for the life of me, understand how I managed to miss the previous four.  Gone Jiggin’ is the kind of joy-filled, perfectly-performed album, packed with an inspirational selection of material (in this case, an irresistible blend of breathless jigs, lilting ballads and happy-go-lucky folk tales) that only comes around once in a while but never leaves the turntable whenever it does.  Rum Ragged is a name that I’ll definitely be watching out for.

They’re not a new name to those who are better informed that I, though.  Rum Ragged’s previous album, 2020’s The Thing About Fish won the band a JUNO nomination (the Canadian equivalent of a Grammy) and they’ve built a solid reputation for themselves as a live act on the global club and festival circuit.

Formed in 2016 by vocalist/guitarist Mark Manning and multi-instrumentalist Aaron Collins, the current lineup of Rum Ragged is completed by Colin Grant (fiddle and step dancing), Zack Nash (tenor banjo) and Billy Sutton (vocals, bodhran, percussion, bass, guitar and bouzouki).  Together, they make a glorious sound.

For Gone Jiggin’ Rum ragged pick up where they left off with The Thing About Fish, by taking songs and tunes, both traditional and contemporary, from their Newfoundland roots and twisting them into something very special indeed.  The traditional tunes are supplemented by an exemplary selection of songs from local performers and songwriters; the embedded traditions of Scotland and, particularly, Ireland pervade this material and the end result, once the songs have been given the special Rum Ragged treatment, is an album that stands comparison with the best of acoustic Celtic music.  Think Planxty, and you won’t be too far off the mark.

Newfoundland’s Irish heritage is evident right from the outset, in opening track, The Road to Lushes Bight (Island Stock).  Written by Newfoundland celebrity Kevin Blackmore, the song is a celebration of Newfoundland’s island culture; it opens with a passage of bright, immediate, harmony vocalizing, before the band kick in, and provide a solid clue as to the instrumental pleasures in store.  “Every little inlet, every little cove and every rock is the stuff that you made of – you are island stock” is the song’s message.  The title is (deliberately) misleading though…  the hamlet of Rushes Bight has no road access and can only be accessed by water.

The Irish heritage in Newfoundland’s music is emphasized by Aaron’s whistles in the tradition Paddy Hyde, a dark, minor key ballad that tells the story of a fisherman’s ordeal, before we move on to the first set of jigs that give this album its utterly appropriate title.  Ray Head’s/ Harry Eveleigh’s/ Mrs Belle’s is a compulsive foot-tapper, especially when the beautiful sound of the band in full-flow is underpinned by Billy Sutton’s bodhran.  It’s true: Gone Jiggin’ does exactly what it says on the tin.

Rum Ragged’s interpretation of the Child Ballad, The Dewy Dells Of Yarrow is, quite simply, sublime.  Exquisitely delivered, with clear, sympathetic, vocals and instrumentation – led by mandola and fiddle – that is (relatively) discrete, it’s a song that reminds me so much of Planxty; a true highlight of an excellent album.  And the light-hearted aspect of Gone Jiggin, is perhaps best personified by the charmingly jaunty Thomas Trim, a slice of gentle comedy that relates the self-satisfied musings of a sharp-dressing ladies’ man, that Rum Ragged learned from their local friend, Gerald Campbell.  It’s another song with strong Irish leanings, and it’s great fun.

And that proud Irish heritage is even more pronounced as the band tackle the traditional Kelly and the Ghost.  Aaron’s accordion is almost all that’s needed to fill the gaps as the strong, confident vocals carry the tune almost unaided.  The ’ghost’ of the song’s title is, of course, Kelly’s wife, who takes due reprisal each time her husband returns home from the pub drunk, until he finally learns his lesson…

Keening, wistful, fiddle from Colin provides the intro to the bright, bouncy, Riley, another of the album’s more light-hearted songs and another that Rum Ragged picked up from local sources – this time, singers Johnny Burke and Mikey Nash.  The lyrics tell of how the song’s narrator and his friend, Riley, always share whatever comes their way, with Riley invariably getting the worst of the deal.  The arrangement even extends to the pair sharing the narrator’s wife, who’s handed over to Riley once her charms are considered to have faded.

rollicking tunes
If I was to pick a track from Gone Jiggin’ that epitomizes the album and, for that matter, Rum Ragged, it would be Joe Young’s/ Red Rock Brook/ Earl of Hyndford, a rollicking set of Scottish tunes that are immaculately played and in which every single member of the band enjoys a place in the spotlight.  It’s life-affirming!  And the sensitive aspect Rum Ragged is displayed at its very best with their treatment of the traditional ballad, The Green Shores of Fogo.  The song probably originated in Ireland but it’s now a firmly-established element of Newfoundland folk culture.  The lyrics tell the familiar story of departure from a much-loved home to seek fortune far away, and Rum Ragged perform it beautifully.

Perhaps the ‘poppiest’ moment on Gone Jiggin’ comes with the dreamy, contemplative Lazy Afternoon.  There’s lots to pick out from the instrumentation, and I was particularly impressed by Zack’s tasteful banjo and Aaron’s cozy harmonica.

Two names that loom particularly large in the legends of Newfoundland folk music are Minnie White – often referred to as the ‘First Lady of the Accordion” – and Franco-Newfoundland fiddler, Émile Benoît, and Rum Ragged provide yet another solid-gold performance when they tackle that pair’s composition, The Viking Jig/ West Bay Centre.  Accordion, fiddle, banjo, acoustic guitar and bodhran all feature prominently in a pair of tunes that, once again, give full justification to the album’s chosen title.

Rum Ragged have chosen a wonderfully carefree way in which to bring Gone Jiggin’ to a close.  Written by Glenwood singer, Roger John, The Apple Tree shrugs away the cares of the world with lines like: “I don’t care what happens to me, I’ll just sit in the apple tree that my grandmother gave to me,” it’s a wonderful piece of escapism, absolutely appropriate to end an album that, itself, allows the listener to revel in the sheer joy that music can bring.

I’ve been missing out on Rum Ragged.  I’m about to correct that oversight.  I suggest that you do the same.

Tracks:
01 - The Road to Lushes Bight (Island Stock)
02 - Paddy Hyde
03 - Ray Head's / Harry Eveleigh's / Mrs. Belle's
04 - The Dewy Dells of Yarrow
05 - Thomas Trim
06 - Kelly and the Ghost
07 - Riley
08 - Joe Young's / Red Rock Brook / The Earl of Hyndforth's
09 - The Green Shores of Fogo
10 - Lazy Afternoon
11 - The Viking Jig / West Bay Centre
12 - The Apple Tree

Staat er compleet op, 10% pars mee gepost. Met zeer veel dank aan de originele poster. Laat af en toe eens weten wat je van het album vindt. Altijd leuk, de mening van anderen. Oh ja, MP3 doe ik niet aan.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eo_mI6dW-WU