Music to Button a Cardigan By - Oh, Noble Youth Who Has Left Me

Mar a Tha Mo Chridhe

If you're wondering about the title, it's in Gaelic. Can't speak a ruddy word of it? I can assure you that it won't get in the way of your enjoyment of the beautiful music of Julie Fowlis.

Julie was born on the Hebridean island of North Uist, a Gaelic-speaking part of the British Isles. Gaelic is a lyrical language, as is Welsh. If Anglo Saxon, then English, hadn't become the predominant language of these islands, how might the Anglosphere be different? President Obama addressing his nation in Gaelic. There's a thought.

Hand-Made Music from Harris Tweed Country 

I first heard Julie singing at the Cambridge folk Festival in 2007. Or was it 2006? I'll go for 2007. No matter, her performance was terribly good. Mesmeric even. Like a bewitched seal, as soon as her performance ended I clapped with hands and feet for more. When no more came, this seal shuffled over to the trestle table where they were selling her recordings and bought Julie's debut album, Mar a Tha Mo Chridhe (As My Heart Is) [Amazon].

Music to Button a Lambswool Argyle Cardigan By (If You Can Find One)

It's been an embarrassingly long time since we added to our Music to Button a Cardigan By series. An Argyle cardigan probably works best with Julie. Sadly, it's hard to locate a classic Argyle-patterned cardigan right now. Let me know if you spot a belter.

Let's assume the cardigan situation is resolved and don our tweed breeks, pour ourselves a scotch, and sit back to hear Julie sing the wonderful Oganaich Uir a Rinn M'Fhagail or Oh, Noble Youth Who Has Left Me in sassenach. The title suggests a sad theme to the song, but it all sounds rather joyful to my monolingual ears.