Colin Grant, Jason MacDonald, and Adam Young at the Skye Theatre (South Carthage)

Event Summary

Date: 2009 May 3 (Sunday)
Time: 19h
Venue: The Skye Theatre Performing Arts Center, 2 Highland Drive, South Carthage, Maine
Description: Cape Breton fiddler Colin Grant, Jason MacDonald, and Adam Young in concert at the Skye Theatre.
Admission: $10.00 by advance reservation only.

Review for the Cape Breton Music List
(Posted 2009 May 9)^[1]

Since I was already in Boston for the 13^th annual Healing Garden Music Fest on Saturday, I decided to drive on to Western Maine on Sunday to catch the concert at the Skye Theatre in South Carthage featuring Colin Grant, Jason MacDonald, and Adam Young, three fine young Cape Breton musicians.

The Skye Theatre has greatly changed since I was there last year. Due to a revision in the applicable fire code, the fine performance space that Phill and Jan McIntyre had created on the second floor had to be relocated to the ground floor, an unfortunate contretemps that would have led those of lesser passion to just abandoning their enterprise altogether. For a number of years now, Phill and Jan have attended many of the great Celtic music festivals at which they have made contacts with an incredible number of the world-class artists whom they have met there and convinced them to come to the Skye Theatre, not just once but again and again—it has become one of the artists’ favourite stops on their tours. Their indomitable spirit and passion for the music made them completely unwilling to give up the great progress that they had made, both with the artists and the audiences, since the Skye Theatre first opened in May, 2006 (with a concert by Prince Edward Island’s Cynthia MacLeod and Gordon Belsher)^[2], the first of an amazing stream of top-notch Celtic musicians they have enticed to their corner of rural Maine from Scotland, Ireland, the Maritimes, Québec, and the U.S., putting on multiple concerts many weeks and usually filling the house each night. They therefore accepted the inevitable, sought and received permission to continue running shows whilst the transition was underway, and set out to create an even bigger and better performance space on the ground floor. This was no small undertaking, but they immediately started work, fund-raising as they went, and aided by the small army of volunteers they had attracted to the endeavour through their passion and persistence, they soon began laying the foundations for the new theatre. That is the state I found when I was last there last, on 25 June, when I heard Mary Jane Lamond, Wendy MacIsaac, and Clarence Deveau on my way back from Cape Breton.

It is simply incredible how much progress has been made since then! The first thing that struck my eye as I arrived was the new parking lot, much more capacious than the old, and the removal of the trees that used to impede the great views of the Appalachian Mountains from the hilltop on which the Skye Theatre is located (its address is the very appropriate 2 Highland Drive)—picnic tables and even a camping area for those coming from away are planned for the future. Then I noticed that, while the siding is still missing, the entire space where only the newly-laid foundations were to be seen last year is now an enclosed building with windows and doors. Even more amazing is the amount of work which has been done on the inside. The stage is lovely, dominated by a simple Celtic cross that extends from top to bottom (the space is two stories high) and from left to right across the back of the stage, but with an equally distinctive stone wall behind a wood stove, inspired by stonework of the kind seen at Skara Brae in the Orkneys, surmounted by an original arch whose stones radiate outwards like the rays of the sun—or the joys of Celtic music—topped off by a keystone from Mabou Coal Mines. On the other side of the stage, a “piper’s nest” and a step-dancing space catch one’s attention. Beautiful wood beams draw the eye as it travels around the theatre and to the alcove set aside for the jam sessions that usually take place before each show. And there is room in the theatre for many more people than the old space was able to hold. The new, even if unfinished, Skye opened for its first show on 22 April with a concert by the Sons of Maxwell. Although clearly much work yet remains to be done, how much has already been accomplished is truly a tribute to the volunteers who have given so freely of their time, money, and talents as well as to Phill and Jan who have kept the project moving forward. The acoustics are excellent, even though some of the upper areas are not yet enclosed, and the performance space is ideal for its intended use, with a well-thought-out design and, once they are completed, amenities. I am sure that this new theatre will be even more attractive than the old one was and I offer my congratulations all around to those who have helped bring Phill and Jan’s dream this far along. This is truly a community theatre!

As is the custom at the Skye, a dedicated group of local musicians arrived early and took up their places in the alcove, serenading the members of the audience as they arrived with fine traditional Scottish music. Unbeknownst to me, as I had my back turned to them, Colin joined the group to jam with them; I regret that I did not get any photos while he was playing them, though I do have some which I took before he sat down with them.

The show started promptly at 19h as Phil welcomed the three Cape Bretoners to the stage: Colin Grant on fiddle, Jason MacDonald on guitar, and Adam Young on keyboards. Colin’s CD, COLINGRANT^[3], was released in 2006 and is well-known among Cape Breton music aficionados for its fine fiddle playing and its wide variety of music, from traditional Scottish to Acadian, including several of Colin’s own compositions. In the summer, he can often be heard playing at dances and cèilidhs, often dropping in as a “guest” musician for a set or two at venues all over Cape Breton. Adam, who plays piano on Colin’s CD on many of the tracks and often accompanies him at dances, is a fine piano accompanist; both he and Colin were mainstays of the Lyrics and Laughter “revue” that ran most week-day evenings during the summer at the Louisbourg Playhouse from 2002-2007 and Adam has very recently spent five weeks in Tennessee where he played at the Festival of Nations in Dollywood, accompanying Cape Breton fiddler Jennifer Roland and her band. I have not followed Jason MacDonald’s career very closely, as he is a singer/songwriter and I much prefer instrumental to vocal music, and I had not previously heard him perform. I learnt that he has two CD’s to his credit, Leave My Mark (2002) and The Day (2005) and it turns out that he is a fine guitar accompanist for traditional Scottish music as well as a singer/songwriter.

The initial set was the first track from Colin’s CD, Drive ’Er Like Ya Stole ’Er , consisting of the tunes Alex MacEachern’s (a strathspey by Dan Hughie MacEachern), Prince of Wales (a reel Donald MacPhedran), Christy Campbell’s, Michael Rankin’s (a reel by John Morris Rankin), and Edinburgh Rock (a reel by David Lim). As the set title implies, this is rollicking good music and the three sounded great playing together. Colin’s second set was the fifth track from his CD: Jerry Jigs, consisting of a traditional jig, Jerry Holland’s Jig (by Howie MacDonald), and Jerry’s Pipe Jig (by Jerry Holland). Jason then took the lead, singing Mrs. Green Thumb, a song he wrote in honour of a lady at the Canso festival who had invited him in for tea; during this song and the others throughout the evening, Jason accompanied himself on guitar, while Colin played backing fiddle and Adam added a keyboard accompaniment. Colin then played Ode à Andrea et Phil, written for two Acadian friends who were recently married on a beach in Cuba, a waltz with a somewhat wistful melody, beautifully enhanced by Adam’s fine accompaniment. Jason then sang a song (whose title I do not have) written for his uncle who first took Jason lobster fishing when he was 15 and his uncle a helper on another’s boat; his uncle has since acquired his own boat and Jason will be joining him as his helper this fishing season. Jason continued with Go for a Ride, a song he wrote for his grandfather and one I enjoyed a lot, with superb piano and fiddle accompaniments; without pausing, the musicians continued on into several traditional tunes, all familiar to me, though I don’t know their names. Jason then gave us another song (whose title I again do not have) about walking on the beach at Gabarus Lake and leaving footprints in the sand. Colin then played a set to be recorded on his forthcoming CD, to be released in August or September, including the “more modern-sounding tune” he wrote named Superlative Third. The final set of the first half was a march-strathspey-reel set, during which Colin put down his fiddle and demonstrated his step-dancing technique on the new step-dancing floor.

After intermission, during which many went outside to admire the beautiful sunset and partook of the delicious refreshments, the concert resumed with Jason singing the Stan Rogers song Giant; Adam was missing from the stage for this number, which Colin accompanied with a wailing fiddle, a sound very appropriate to the lyrics and the song. With Adam back on keyboards, Colin then played the Trolley’s Reel set from track six of his CD, featuring Trolley’s Reel (a tune Colin composed for Troy MacGillivray), Balmoral Castle (a reel by Alexander Walker), and Ruidhlidh Na Colich Dhubha^[4] (a traditional reel from the Shetlands). Jason then sang Overdue, a song he composed while waiting for his daughter’s birth, now 18 months old, when she failed to arrive when expected; this is a fine song which I enjoyed a lot. Colin then played a set that is to appear on his forthcoming CD, including Beoga’s Mischief, written for the Irish band Beoga, and The Porcelain Surprise, co-written with a member of the Scottish group Lau to commemorate a practical joke played during a Celtic Colours tune-writing project. Next, Jason sang Loch Lomond. Colin followed with Les tounes bretonnes, a set of Breton tunes he had picked up on a trip to Brittany. Jason then sang a song he co-wrote with another songwriter, whose title I did not get, but which contains the verse “I hate to leave you all alone—I just need some time of my own”. Colin then led the group in some standard strathspeys, beginning with the King George IV strathspey, and ending with some reels. The final set was a great blast of tunes, with lots of key changes ratcheting up the intensity as the set progressed. Greeted with cheers, whistles, and a standing ovation, the musicians finished off with track four of Colin’s CD, Les tounes acadiennes: La Reel de la Baie Sainte-Marie (by Augustin Robichaud), La Reel à Dan (by Daniel LeBlanc), and Big John MacNeil (by Peter Milne). During this final number, Phill took a seat in the step-dancing space and did a sitting step-dance à l’acadienne, such as one sees in Prince Edward Island and elsewhere in the Maritimes.

This was a great show, with lots of variety and plenty of good, solid traditional music, played with élan and verve and fire, leavened with Jason’s songs, most of which I quite enjoyed, so I was very pleased I had made the trip. If you are heading for or returning from Cape Breton—it’s only a half hour out of your way—or if you ever otherwise find yourself within driving distance of the Skye Theatre, you owe it to yourself to check out the music there—you’ll have a treat for sure!

^[1] The review has been corrected from the originally posted version to incorporate information since received from Adam Young.↩

^[2] Phill tells me:

Our first show in what we now call Skye Theatre (the upper room) was in May of 06 with Cynthia MacLeod and Gordon Belcher. We had exactly 24 people out to that concert. My first concerts were in 04 and 05 with Beolach and then Dave Gunning.

Back in the late 90"s we were doing afternoon concerts on our front lawn. We had over 300 to one of those. I really didn't get infected with the Celtic virus until about 01 when we started going to Celtic Colours. Then everything went hay wire in my brain and the rest "as they say" is history (yet to be written).

↩

^[3] It is so spelled on both the cover and CD label, i.e., in all caps and with no space between the first and last name.↩

^[4] This is the spelling in Colin’s liner notes; the Fiddler’s Companion gives it as Ruidhleadh nan Coileach Dubha.↩