July 09, 2004
A day at the games
Today was the annual pilgrimage to MacRae Meadows for the Grandfather Mountain Highland Games. We had our friend Meredith come along and help us manage Meg, which was made the day absolutely a joy. Meg loved the music, loved the attention (and there was a lot of it!), and generally had it made. The adults enjoyed the music too, as well as the congenial company. Details and pictures inside.
We got there early so we could park on the Meadow, and got a great spot. The morning was bright and sunny and the weather cooperated wonderfully. (Unlike last year, which was sopping wet, and the year before, which was freezing.) We played around in the merchant's tents for a bit and then wandered in to the Games themselves. We're music geeks, so we intended to spend most of the day hanging in the Groves, which are where the stages for the musicians are. We slipped by Grove 1 to see if Scooter, who was there with Henri's Notions, but who we know from Full Moon Ensemble, was hanging around. He was on stage doing sound check, so we didn't catch him then. We looked around for Allison King, also from FME, since she showed up and sang with Henri's Notions last year. We found out later she wasn't planning to come at all. Bummer. We did get her contact info from Scooter later on though. Scooter came by Grove 2 later on and met Meg, and we found out that FME is getting back together for a few gigs, including a trip to Scotland. Keen.
Grove 2 started out with some power issues. The power to the Grove had been out, and they weren't sure they'd have anything at all, which wouldn't have harmed The Rogues, who are loud enough without a PA system, but would have (and did) really put a crimp in Rathkeltair's day. The power kept crapping out during Rathkeltair's first set, and they cut it short, which was disappointing. I had been very interested to hear a lot of them, since I've been fans of other bands that their members were parts of: Celtic Soul and Seven Nations, and they're fronted by the indefatigable Neil Anderson. Most of their songs were things I'd either heard from Celtic Soul or from the Neil Anderson and Friends performances. I picked up their new live CD. It is well worth the money, having three of my favorite NA&F songs and schticks on it: Jerusalem Rap, In Each I Know, and the (infamous) Crab Song. I prevailed upon Trevor to sneak back to their truck so I could get a copy of an older Celtic Soul album with the Rathkeltair album.
EJ and The Rogues put on two great sets. Last year was The Rogues first appearance at GMHG and they were billed as "The Rogues, featuring EJ Jones." EJ had joined The Rogues full time since then, so he didn't get name billing. I forgot to ask him if he was competing in the pipe competitions this year. EJ continues to be one of the pipers I most enjoy hearing and his musical flexibility, his talent for composing music, and his raw skill with not only the Highland pipes, but the smallpipes and flutes as well, makes him a joy to see on stage. (Shameless plug: EJ makes pipes as well. If you want a great set of smallpipes, check out his website.)
The other bands sharing the stage at Grove 2 were not really interesting for me. Off Kilter plays a goofy mix of "rock and reel" and stage comedy. Unsurprisingly, they have a standing gig at the Canadian pavilion at Epcot Center. Their piper is pretty good and their fiddler has a son about Meg's age and is a neat fellow. I just found them a bit loud. Meg didn't really care for them much either. She slept through the part of their set that we were in the Grove for. The band sharing the stage with Off Kilter was Gael Warning. They sort of played a Celtic smooth jazz sound. Not my taste. Their piper also played an electronic bagpipe for their first set. I thought that was kind of lame and pretty silly considering that the Grove was still having power issues at that point. Sarah, Meredith and I grabbed lunch and fiddled around the merchant's area during their sets. We also snuck back down to Grove 1 to hear Henri's Notions play with one of my favorite Scottish folk singers, Ed Miller.
By the end of the day, we were pretty exhausted. The picture on the right is Meredith after all day helping us keep up with the Meglet. She looks a lot less sunburnt that I do, I will note. After the last set in Grove 2, we chatted with EJ and Holly at The Rogue's tent a little and then snuck out. We passed Clann an Drumma on their stage. Clann an Drumma is possessed of a marginal amount of musical talent, but a wealth of marketing skills and a costume design philosophy of "leather and skins." If you're into music, take a pass on them. If you like seeing guys (and one gal) in leather kilts pounding on drums, then Clann an Drumma is for you. Judging from the number of breathless lasses in Ren Faire garb that were watching them, I expect they did pretty well today.
After we left the Meadows, Meredith and her mother, Brucie, had invited us over for dinner. Brucie had made a lovely beef stew and salad, which we followed up with ice cream and strawberries. She really knew how to set a spread, for sure. It would have been nice to spend more time chatting and enjoying their hospitality; however, we were starting to get delirious with exhaustion at that point, and Meg had completely melted down, so we regretfully hoofed it back home.
Sarah and Meg getting a better view
The Rogues (L to R: Nelson, Randy, Lars, Jimmy, EJ)
Rathkeltair (L to R: Trevor, Neil, Nick, Collier)
A view of the mountain