Remember Welsh Wednesday? Of course you don't, it was such a long time ago. To recap, each Wednesday featured a track by a Welsh artist. That was it. Clever, yet simple. There were 100 chapters, all of which you can read here, though most of the songs will have disappeared by now. Still, you can easily find them online if you can be arsed.
Anyway, today I'm bringing it back for as long as I can stay interested in it. I'm going to prepare a few in advance so expect some more in coming weeks.
I'm starting off with someone who I could have sworn I'd featured in the original series, but it turns out she didn't. Instead, she got a fleeting mention in an early post I made about Welsh music which actually inspired the series. I speak, of course, of Aberwystwyth's own Georgia Ruth, harpist, bi-lingual singer-singwriter and winner of the 2013 Welsh Music Prize with her debut album. She recently released her third album 'Mai', which marks a real return to form following her disappointing dalliance with electronic beats on her second record.
Welsh and English take turns on 'Mai' and it's rather lovely. The album was largely inspired by the birth of her first child, and the song Madryn is dedicated to him. Madryn was the name of the estate owned by Liberal polititian Sir Love Jones-Parry, who in 1865 sailed with 150 men and women to Patagonia. They founded Porth Madryn at the port where they landed. Now known as Puerto Madryn, it was the earliest Welsh settlement in South America, and along with other towns in the Chubut province, still celebrates St. David's Day every 1st of March.
History lesson over - here's the music.
You have posted Georgia Ruth before Robster
ReplyDeleteI know cos I bought one of her records on the strength of it
Loved the song "Madryn". A sweet sound.
ReplyDeleteReally love this. Very good.
ReplyDelete