Lochaber Gathering/ Tam Bain's Lum

On Springthyme SPRCD 1002
John Watt & Davey Stewart - Shores of the Forth

Two favourite pipe tunes from the band, the first, Lochaber Gathering, is a four part march by George Stewart MacLennan. It is unclear when the Lochaber Gathering originated, but its beginnings go back to the dawn of competion among pipers. It is known however, that as far back as 1816, the event was recorded in the annals of the Highland Society of London. The composer GS MacLennan (or McLennan) was born in Edinburgh in 1883 to a leading and long-standing piping family and died in his prime at age 46 in 1929 with his only book of music just off the press. Those who heard him say his fingers were miraculous. His astonishing technical prowess contributed to an important evolution in Highland pipe technique in the early part of the twentieth century. As a composer, the quality and lasting appeal of his tunes are unequalled. The second tune, Tam Bain's Lum, is a four part pipe hornpipe by Donald Shaw Ramsay. Though it seems tame today, in the days before the modern, finger-twisting, bent-note pipe tunes, this DS Ramsay composition pushed the envelope. The tune was reportedly written about a chimney ('lum') in Laurieston, near Falkirk, in the shape of Abraham Lincoln's hat. It was part of a row of tenament houses and owned by a fellow named Tam Bain. Ramsay was apparently quite taken by the sight and named this tune after it. The tune was probably written in the early 1950s.

The Beggar's Mantle Ceilidh Band:
Jock Ritchie from Inverkeithing on fiddle, Jock Mullen from Kelty on accordion, Robin McKidd from Glenrothes on guitar and bass and Brian Miller from Penicuik on guitar and mandolin.

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