Rain on the Roof (album)
album by Andy Irvine
Rain on the Roof is Andy Irvine's third solo album and also the first released on his own label, Andy Irvine, under product number "AK-1".
Recording
Recorded in June, July and August 1996, it is the closest the listener could get to the experience of attending one of his live performances.
Most of the recordings on this CD were done as if live. That is to say I sat in front of microphones with my bouzouki or mandolin in my lap, my harmonica in its holder round my neck, and my drone volume pedal on the floor, under my foot, and played and sang all in one go.
Other instruments were added (on four of the eleven tracks) by Rens van der Zalm (fiddle and mandolin), Stephen Cooney (didgeridoo, Kpanlogo drum), Declan Masterson (low whistle) and Irvine himself, who played a second mandolin on two of the tracks.
The album opens with "Prince Among Men", a song about the hazards and dangers of working underground in a mine–which Irvine wrote from the perspective of a man whose late father, James Doyle, had been a miner.
"Băneasă's Green Glade" is a re-worked version of the song he had first recorded with Planxty, followed this time around by "Rumen Sirakov's Daichevo", Irvine's solo adaptation of "Didinata", a dance tune in 98 time (3–2–2–2) composed by Bulgarian tambura player Rumen Sirakov.
"Rain on the Roof/The Blue Mountains of New South Wales" is a self-penned set of jigs.
"My Heart's Tonight in Ireland" is Irvine's nostalgic recollection of the times he spent touring in County Clare with Sweeney's Men.
"Forgotten Hero" is a passionate song reminiscing about the life and struggle of Michael Davitt, the founder of the Irish National Land League.
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Reception evidence should be dated and situated: later canonical status may differ sharply from the work’s initial circulation. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 9, 2023. The linked authority identifier is Q19895357. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1996.
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This entry incorporates text from “Rain on the Roof (album)” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.