Print

Email story

Comment

Email editor

Music

Scottish eyes are crying

By JOHN FLEMING
Published March 16, 2006

Musically speaking, Scotland has something of an inferiority complex. Ireland has the world-famous Chieftains to popularize its music, and there's always Riverdance to advance the cause as well. But for one reason or another, Scotland lacks such iconic musical representation, unless you consider the Black Watch a musical and not a military group.

For a more interesting slice of Scottish musical culture, there's the Battlefield Band, some 35 years old and still going strong, even boasting one of its founding members still in the group, keyboard virtuoso, guitarist and singer Alan Reid. Reid wrote many of the songs on the band's latest CD, The Road of Tears, which has new and traditional music on a theme of emigrants and emigration. Instrumentation includes synthesizers, fiddles, guitars, cittern, bass, whistles, bouzouki and, of course, bagpipes. Group members, from left, are Reid, Mike Katz, Sean O'Donnell and Alasdair White. They perform at 7:30 p.m. Sunday at Tarpon Springs Performing Arts Center, 324 E Pine St. $16, $18. (727) 942-5605.

[Last modified March 16, 2006, 10:43:06]