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Music From The Glen
Sunday January 12th, 2020 with Colin Henein
Best of 2019

Condensing the best of a full year of new releases into one program is always a challenge because there is more good music that can be fit into a single broadcast. However, I take this as an exercise and a challenge in looking past the "obvious" albums and artists to focus on what, in my opinion, is the most creative and most interesting traditional music produced in 2019 (with a few interlopers from 2018 that came to my attention last year). Along the way I'll be flagging 5 albums as Gold Star Releases ⭐ and 5 as Honourable Mention 👈 to reflect my absolute top picks, but in my view all the albums below deserve your consideration as the best traditional music of 2019.
Before we get into the best of 2019, I think it's important to mark the passing of Neil Peart of Rush, one of Canada's great lyricists. Although much of Rush's music is not in character for Music from the Glen, I've chosen one song whose lyrics have a traditional feel, and whose arrangement is characteristic of the multi-movement progressive rock tradition that Rush helps to define.
The trees
Rush - Hemispheres - Mercury Canadian
Best albums of 2019
Crossing the water
Thom Ashworth - Head canon 👈 - Self
Rare ones
Bene & Cormac - Wavelength - Self
Give me back my heart again
Bird in the belly - The crowing 👈 - GFM Records
Berkshire tragedy
Joshua Burnell - The road to horn fair ⭐ - Misted Valley
A bhriogais uallach / Highean donn nan gobhar
Brìghde Chaimbeul - The reeling 👈 - River Lea
The capable wife
Còig - Ashlar ⭐ - Self Canadian
Beir Soiridh
Eabhal - This is how the ladies dance 👈 - Self
We out here now
Elephant sessions - What makes you ⭐ - Self
The bunting fund / The ocean child
Flook - Ancora - Flatfish
Seven gypsies
Claire Hastings - Those who roam ⭐ - Luckenbooth
Molly apple pye
Leveret - Diversions - Rootbeat
Ollie's tune
Graham Lindsey - Tradhead - Wavelength Media Canadian
Bold Lovell
Jim Moray - The outlander - NIAG
Hushabye birdie / Hexham lasses
Kathryn Tickell - Hollowbone - Self
Gloria
The trials of Cato - Hide and hair ⭐ - Self
Le pays de samuel
Le vent du nord - Territoires - Borealis Canadian
The island
Ben Walker (ft. Bella Hardy) - Echo 👈 - Folkroom
Interactive CKCU
Gord
Great choices!

1:31 PM, January 12th, 2020
Ed Kingscote (host)
I must pay more attention - didn't realize you had been playing Brìghde Chaimbeul for a while!

9:39 PM, January 12th, 2020
Colin
Thanks gents, twas a good year for sure. Ed, will you be doo g a 2019 show next week?

11:18 PM, January 12th, 2020
Ed Kingscote (host)
Finally managed to catch up on the whole show - great picks Colin! Not sure I'm going to be doing a 2019 show yet...still very much thinking about my options. I have quite a few albums that landed with me quite late on in the year to play, and a brand new 2020 release as well already, as well as a track for my January tradition. :o)

10:07 PM, January 13th, 2020