Iron Broo Ceilidh Band

Category: Ceilidh Video

  • Thanks for Attending our Christmas Ceilidh!

    Thanks for Attending our Christmas Ceilidh!

    A Heartfelt Thank You from Iron Broo Ceilidh Band for Attending our Christmas Ceilidh on December 23rd, 2023!


    Dear friends, dancers, and music lovers, we, the Iron Broo Ceilidh Band, want to extend our deepest gratitude to all of you who joined us at our Christmas Ceilidh on December 23rd, 2023. It was a truly unforgettable night, filled with laughter, dancing, and a shared love for Scottish music. Your presence made this event truly special, and we cannot thank you enough for being a part of it!

    Highlights of the Christmas ceilidh – video clips courtesy of Barbara

    An Evening of Pure Joy:

    Who could have imagined that a humble traditional Scottish Ceilidh band like us could be so fortunate as to have such an incredible gathering of people? Our hearts were warmed by the enthusiastic and lively atmosphere. From the very start, as we struck up our music, we could feel the energy in the room, building up in anticipation for a night of pure joy and merriment.

    The Vibrant Ceilidh Dance Floor:


    Our main aim as a Ceilidh band is to create an inclusive, welcoming space for all to enjoy the traditional Scottish dances. And oh boy, did you all step up to the dancefloor with such enthusiasm and spirit! We were blown away by the energy and commitment each and every one of you brought to learning the steps and joining in the fun. It was an absolute delight to witness the room come alive with laughter and the sound of dancing feet.

    The Magic of the Night:

    We firmly believe that music has the power to bring people together, and that’s exactly what happened that evening. The spirit of Christmas and the warmth of the holiday season filled the venue, creating an atmosphere infused with magic and joy. We were humbled by the sense of camaraderie and connection that blossomed among us all. It reminded us of the true essence of the Christmas season – spreading love and happiness and celebrating the joy of being together

    A Grateful Appreciation:


    We want to extend our heartfelt appreciation to everyone who made this event so special. First and foremost, we thank our incredible band members who poured their hearts into creating beautiful music. Your talent and dedication shone brightly, and it was an honor to share the stage with each of you.

    We’d also like to express our sincere gratitude to the wonderful Beach Ballroom staff who tirelessly worked behind the scenes to ensure the evening ran smoothly. Your commitment and attention to detail did not go unnoticed, and we are truly grateful for your invaluable contribution. The Stovies and Macaroni were a big hit. ‘The best in the toon’.

    Lastly, but certainly not least, a massive thank you goes out to all of you who joined us that night. Your presence, energy, and genuine love for Scottish ceilidh music made this event an absolute joy. Your support and enthusiasm keeps us going and inspire us to continue sharing our passion for Ceilidh music.

    Goodbye to 2023 and a happy 2024 to all


    As we bid farewell to 2023 and embrace the promises of a new year, let’s carry the memories of the Iron Broo Christmas Ceilidh in our hearts. We hope the joy, laughter, and connection we experienced during that magical night will stay with you and bring warmth to your days ahead. Thank you, from the bottom of our hearts, for being a part of our journey and for making the Iron Broo Christmas Ceilidh a truly unforgettable evening. Wishing you all a happy and harmonious holiday season, and we hope to see you again on the dancefloor soon!

    We are already planning our next Christmas ceilidh, and be sure to follow us on Facebook and X.com to find notifications of future ceilidh events. Subscribe to the CharlieAbel YouTube Channel for more music videos and if you click the bell you will get notifications on new uploads.

    If you have any photos or footage of the ceilidh please share with us on social media or leave a comment below.
    A’ the best for 2024.
    Lang may yer lums reek.

  • 11 reasons why Live ceilidh music is good for you

    11 reasons why Live ceilidh music is good for you

    Hi folks, back in 2007 Iron Broo recorded a Live ceilidh band album. We did this on our own at the Moray Ceilidh Club on 21st April 2007. We knew we would get a good audience there as the ceilidh club was full of enthusiastic dancers and we had played there many times. The club held quite a lot of ceilidhs over quite a few years, I think it was once every month, and they used live ceilidh bands from all over Scotland. It was always a great night, and we felt it was an excellent gig to pick for a live ceilidh recording on a shoestring budget. Sadly the Moray Ceilidh Club no longer exists, it’s hard to compete against digital entertainment and home cinemas. However, you can still buy this recording on CD or download it here. Maybe have yourself a wild lockdown ceilidh at the weekend.

    Here’s a track with a set of waltzes from the ceilidh recording using some film of Edinburgh.

    Watch more and subscribe on my YouTube Channel

    The future of live ceilidh music

    I’ll struggle to understand why more people don’t like getting out to a good old fashioned ceilidh, in a hall, bringing your own bottle and snacks. It’s a great atmosphere and not expensive. It should be much more popular. It gets you fit, you meet good people and enjoy yourself, with or without a drink.
    After the Lockdown, I hope people still remember what an absolute treasure of our culture a ceilidh is. I hope the negative lethargy that has set in throughout society since the introduction of streaming television shows and social media is addressed with some balance. The ‘almost a year of lockdown’ restrictions has compounded this issue. We are in danger of becoming a nation of couch potatoes!
    A ceilidh is ace, good for your mind, body, spirit, wellbeing, and your sense of freedom and community.

    We will host some public ceilidhs again when the rules allow, and we hope you will support our efforts to revive our ceilidh culture.
    Leave a comment below, and when we do, I’ll let you know.

    11 reasons why Scottish ceilidh dancing is good for you?

    1. Ceilidh Dancing is a great work out

    Ceilidh dancing is a great workout, gets your body moving and heart pumping. Cardio exercise is good for your heart and helps prevent disease and decay. It’s well established regular Scottish dancing can prevent many diseases such as diabetes, heart disease and some cancers. See the Royal Scottish Country Dance Society article.

    2. Ceilidh Dancing will make you feel happy

    The live ceilidh dance will make you feel happy. The brain produces chemicals, an endorphin rush stimulated by the physical exercise of dancing and melodic lines of traditional melodies. The repetitive beats have a hypnotic affect. People can experience extreme euphoria when specific frequencies and tempos combine.

    3. Ceilidh brings friendship

    The social benefits of attending a ceilidh are obvious. We, humans, are social animals. We need to spend time with others. It makes us feel good and expands our thought processes. Meeting new people develops our outlook and introduces us to new things, places and destinies. Who might you meet at a ceilidh? A new love? A new friend?

    Ceilidh promo poster

    4. You won’t forget much or trip up often after a Ceilidh

    A ceilidh dance can improve your memory, coordination and concentration. It’s true. All that extra blood and adrenaline pumping through your brain steps things up a gear. Apart from the endorphin boost, remembering the dance patterns and formations gets your memory and coordination working like never before. Akin to martial arts training, you will become aware of your surroundings, the dance patterns, where your partner is, and the spatial distances between you and the other dances. Like a trained martial arts fighter, you will be aware of your surroundings at all times. You will become a ceilidh Ninja after attending enough ceilidhs. You will think and see in a new dimension.

    5. Ceilidh keeps you younger

    Scottish Country Dancing keeps you younger. A recent university study on ladies aged the 60s and 70s found that age-related decline was non-existent in those who participated in regular ceilidh dancing. Scottish dancing prevented age-related degeneration better than other forms of exercise. See the Scotsman article

    6. Ceilidh keeps your body stronger

    Ceilidh will help make your body muscles more robust. Regular ceilidh improves the strength of the legs, arms, ankles, hips, neck and core. It’s a great total workout.

    7. Ceilidh keeps the calories off.

    Ceilidh dancing will help you lose weight. An hour of ceilidh dancing can burn 400 calories and offers all the benefits of going to a gym, but is a lot more fun! See the newspaper article

    8. Ceilidh dancing makes your bones stronger

    Stronger Bones! Ceilidh dancing exercise improves bone density.

    9. Ceilidh improves your mental health

    Ceilidh dancing promotes positive mental health benefits. As mentioned earlier, the combination of exercise and social benefits are well documented in improving the overall mental health of any ceilidh dancer.

    10. Ceilidh dancing reduces stress

    Stress-free life. Ceilidh dances reduce overall stress levels in participants in everyday life, even off the dance floor.

    11. Ceilidh can lead you on historical adventures

    You can learn about history. Many dances have names that have a historical connection. Researching the names and histories of some dances and tunes could lead you on a whole new adventure. Everything has a story behind it. Start writing yours today by attending the next Iron Broo ceilidh dance.

    We can’t wait to get out playing live ceilidh again!!

    In the meantime it would be much appreciated if you can lend support by:

    Subscribing to my YouTube Because it’s nice if you do.

    Buying me a coffe I like a coffee

    via Patreon A more interactive support medium.

    Buying a CD or download

    Like our Iron Broo Facebook Page

    Like my Facebook page

    We hope you will support our efforts to revive our ceilidh culture.
    Leave a comment below, and when we do, I’ll let you know.

  • Lockdown Ceilidh Blues

    Well folks, time is fair marching on, and we have the ceilidh lockdown blues. The lockdown is starting to drag now. We have not played a ceilidh gig since the 14th March. The fingers are itchy, and the band are getting restless. It may be some time before we are allowed loose on the ceilidh dancers and audience. I know many dancers feel the same way we do too. The only way we can get a tune together is online. We did have a small meet up for my birthday but with numbers restricted to five households. Now it’s only two households and a maximum of six people. No use for a session. Even as a ceilidh duo, how can you play the ceilidh lockdown blues without dancers?

    Ceilidh Dancing
    A ceilidh warm up pre Lockdown.

    What have we been up to?


    We in the band have done everything we could to stay safe and help the Lockdown pass quickly. Unfortunately, all our hard effort is in vain due to inadequate government and irresponsible behaviour. Now we face the prospects of an even harder future and no help forthcoming from the broad shoulders of the UK. Musicians appear to be among the last people allowed to work and are getting no adequate help to survive in the meantime. While it seems okay to open bars and large nightclubs, having a Scottish wedding with more than twenty people from 2 families is still a no-no. The mind boggles to understand why. It seems there is no justice or scientific basis for these rules to be so strict on Scottish weddings while people live it up on the streets of our cities, for example. The second wave seems well on the way.

    Instead of dancing I find that Karate helps me get rid of my frustrations and clear my mind.


    Keep Calm and ceilidh on

    On the brighter side, we did experiment with some video and technology to distract from the negativity of the news.
    I hope it sparks joy in your hearts amid the darkness of what has become of 2020.

    The Duke of Fife’s Welcome to Deeside, like you’ve never seen before.

    The duke of Fife’s Welcome to Deeside

    The Festival Waltz. A beautiful tune with accordion, mandolin and piano.

    The Festival Waltz

    Check out our other pages for more video and music clips.

    Now would be a good time to buy a CD 😇, Subscribe my YouTube or help fund our activities by giving support on Patreon, a new way to crowd fund artistic activity and be a part of the journey.

  • Making some music

    Making some music

    The “March o’ the Scottish Samurai” is a new tune I have written and dedicated to Ronnie Watt. Who is a famous Aberdonian karate master. He is a living legend in our city. I already wrote a tune for Ronnie in 2015 and that first one I called Ronnie Watt’s 9th Dan. During the last 3 months of Lockdown Ronnie has continued his karate classes for his students using Zoom online video conferencing software. He has offered this to his students for free to replace the regular classes that he has taught for 50 years. Since lockdown, 3 times a week many karate students take part in his 3-hour sessions, at no cost to themselves. Children and adults can train karate and have some communication outside of the confines of their own lockdown environment. Keeping active and engaged without having to worry about the cost. I think it is inspiring to see such a well respected and gifted person share his hard-earned knowledge and experience for free. Ronnie’s 50 years of karate training bring priceless experience to the students.

    Scottish Samurai


    Ronnie also founded the Scottish Samurai awards more than twenty years ago. The awards started small in Aberdeen and have grown into an international network of people from different walks of life. None of the awardees pays for their awards, Ronnie and his usual karate activities helps fund it, along with some generous donations from like-minded people. I wanted to write another tune for Ronnie to help highlight the good he does in Aberdeen and chose the title of the tune “March o’ the Scottish Samurai” because of his Scottish Samurai awards, and because to me, Ronnie is like a Samurai marching against the wind. Full of the warrior spirit, marching to protect his students and make them better people. Sharing an ancient way of life that the modern world has lost and is sorely missing.
    Read more about Ronnie at Karate.scot and Samurai.scot

    Ronnie Watt Karate Zoom
    Ronnie Watt Karate Zoom
    Ronnie Watt Karate Zoom
    Ronnie Watt Karate Zoom

    The Road to Wisdom

    A new tune for Maria Rosaria, I’ve called it “The Road to Widom“. Maria Rosaria is my Italian mother in law who lives in Rome. It was her 70th Birthday and the tune just came to me while I was helping my wife make her a birthday video. She has many friends from all over the world who wanted to take part in the video. Maria Rosaria was born in Italy, studied in Italy, studied in Berkley California for a few years, moved back to Italy, Moved to Chile, during the dictatorship she moved back to Italy. She has written books on Latin-American history and is regarded as an authority on the subject, making many television appearances on political programmes. Maria Rosaria was also recognised by the Chilean Government with the title “Commendatore”. She is currently a professor in Rome.
    The Road to Wisdom is a fitting title for a special lady. Though she claims she has not much wisdom at all, I think it’s it is the wise who constantly question themselves.

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  • Sarah, A Scottish Waltz for Accordion

    Sarah, A Scottish Waltz for Accordion

    A favourite tune

    Sarah, is a Scottish Waltz tune written by the famous Scottish accordion player, Max Houliston. Max founded the very first Accordion and Fiddle Club in Scotland. In 1965 he opened one in his own licensed premises, The hole in the wa’, in Dumfries.

    I first heard this tune played about twenty years ago in the Dee Motel in Aberdeen. It was where the Aberdeen Accordion and Fiddle Club used to meet. Over the years I have noticed that the tune Sarah is a favourite of many accordion players and listeners. We used to play as a waltz at many ceilidh dances years ago.

    Lighthearted lockdown ceilidh frustrations

    I hope the Lockdown is being good to you and look forward to getting out to play again. We had 40 weddings booked during this Lockdown period. As a result of Corona, all been postponed and a few, unfortunately, cancelled. To make things worse we can’t even get to the Blue Lamp on a Monday night for good traditional music session to clear our heads. We can’t even go busking in the streets to earn a crust.

    Without an audience and with the current social distancing laws in place all we can do is stay in, stay safe, and play with ourselves. 😜

    I know many of you may have been spending the time jigging away furiously in your living rooms, with the curtains drawn, desperate for the lockdown to end. Itching for a Dashing White Sargeant or a Gay Gordons. I’ve seen you on the internet, strutting your stuff. 😂

    Social distancing is difficult as it is against our human instincts. Unfortunately, for the time being, we must put up with it and try to remain positive that better days lie ahead. I am spending my time with family, mastering the art of sourdough bread, putting an internal window to my dark office space, making music and planning our next album. During the Easter holidays, we camped out in the garden, which meant we could we have a campfire and marshmallows! The campfire is the best part about camping in my opinion. It connects us with our ancestral past. I like to watch things burn. 🔥

    How you can help musicians with very little effort.

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    https://www.patreon.com/CharlieAbel

    If you don’t want to become a Patron for now don’t worry. I will survive. You can also subscribe to my YouTube channel for free and please do so now if you haven’t already. Watch as many videos as you can from start to finish so I can qualify for a share of the ad revenue and my own performance royalties after I reach the 4000 hours annual watch time. I’m about 3400 hours at the moment and I have 1.1K subscribers. A wee push here and there with some extra viewings will make a difference.

    www.youtube.com/c/CharlieAbelwww.youtube.com/c/CharlieAbel

    All the best folks, stay safe. See you after the Lockdown for an almighty ceilidh.

    Oh aye, and now would be a great time to buy a CD…

    Charlie Abel - A Celtic Voice (CD)

    Charlie Abel – A Celtic Voice (CD)

    Released on St. Andrews Day 2018.

    16 tracks, 66 minutes of music including 7 original pieces.  A new take on old traditions.

    Vocals and accordion led, moving forward in the folk traditions of Scotland with a hint of Irish and other Celtic flavours.

     

    £11.00
    Shop now

    or download any of our tracks from the internet. See our Cal Records page for CD’s and available downloads.

  • French Accordion Music for a Lockdown fantasy

    French Accordion Music for a Lockdown fantasy

    #Lockdownfantasy

    Aye, we are still in lockdown, and the summer holidays are likely to be cancelled for all of us. But that doesn’t mean we canna dream.

    Sit yourself down and get comfortable. Pour yer favourite tipple, close your eyes and pretend that you’re in Paris, or in the sunny south of France vineyard under a parasol, soaking in a golden evening. Enjoying your holidays. Not a care in the world.

    Music for the afternoon drinks reception at a wedding

    This is not strictly ceilidh music. But it’s great music on an accordion. Would be nice at an afternoon wedding reception. Gives things a bit of class does French accordion music. Goes well with fine food, coffee and vintage wines. It’s sophisticated and classy. It’s sexy but not in your face. It’s refined elegance from a humble country background. Organic and pure like the best Bordeaux wine. It’s red velvet on white lace. Ideal for your wedding drinks reception.

    The tune is called Réveil Musette and was written by André Lavignac and André Cior. I have it in a book published in 1952 but it may be much older.

    I think the translation of the tune title means Awakening Musette, or if you see Google translate it might be Alarm Clock Musette.

    Musette or Bal-Musette is thought of as sub-genre of Gyspsy Jazz music. It was common in different forms in France from the 1880’s. Originally it was played on a type of bagpipe ( a Cabrette) known locally as a Musette. Italians began to travel to France and brought with them the newly invented accordions Italy was so famous for. The music was almost always instrumentals for dancing and typically waltzes, tango and jazz. In the 1930’s Swing music or Gypsy Jazz came from the mixture of the Musette background with musicians like Django Rhineheart, Gus Viseur and Emile Vacher and many more.

    This music was famous throughout France until the 1950s. It was usually played by downtrodden musicians and was celebrated by the upper-classes. Bohemian things were very trendy among the elites when they were looking for excitement. The whore houses of Paris, like the ones of Buenos Aires did a lot for tango, musette, jazz music, and accordions. The best music sometimes comes out of the darkest places. A bit like ceilidh.

    You can find the music for this tune on page 182 of this book. You can find the book online or in some specialist music stores. Great to have if you like to play the accordion.

    3 Musette Recueil de 110 succés Book
    3 Musette Recueil de 110 succés Book
  • Music Lyric Video of Up the Noran Water.

    Music Lyric Video of Up the Noran Water.

    ‘Up the Noran Water’, it’s a song I heard first from the late Jim Reid. He had put the melody to the words of a poem written many years earlier by Helen Cruickshank (1886-1975). The poem was called ‘Shy Geordie’ and features a young Angus mother who is pregnant out of wedlock. It was first published in her collection of poems called “Up the Noran Water” in 1934.

    Helen Cruickshank was a Scottish poet though not a very well-known one. She was a suffragette and was best known for her Scottish resistance and political activism. She was also a Scottish Nationalist. Born at Hillside, near Montrose she grew up in Angus and later moved to London for work, 1903-1912 and then she returned to Edinburgh where she spent the remainder of her days until she passed in 1975.

    Jim Reid (1934-2009) was one of my favourite Scottish singers and I was glad to have had the privilege of his company on a few occasions. Even sharing the bill on stage with him at a concert on a few of the occasions. He was a well-kent face in Scottish traditional music. As well as being well known for his ceilidh work with the Foundry Bar Band he was eventually awarded Scottish Singer of the year in 2005 in recognition of his talents and contribution to Scottish traditional music.

    Herald article on Jim Reid

    Independent Article https://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/jim-reid-folk-singer-who-celebrated-the-culture-of-northeast-scotland-1755610.html

    A Virtual Recitation by Helen Cruickshank

    I came across this fantastic video on Youtube by Jim Clark.

    All rights reserved on this video recording copyright Jim Clark 2012

    There’s a lot of details on Helen Cruickshank in the following YouTube video’s description if you want to learn more about Helen.

    Up the Noran Water
    In by Inglismaddy,
    Annie’s got a bairnie
    That hisna got a daddy.
    Some say it’s Tammas’s
    An ithers say it’s Chay’s
    An naebody expectit it,
    Wi Annie’s quiet ways

    Up the Noran Water
    The bonnie little mannie
    Is dandlit an cuddled close
    By Inglismaddy’s Annie.
    Wha the bairnie’s faither is
    The lassie never says
    But some think it’s Tammas’s
    An ithers think it’s Chay’s

    Up the Noran Water
    The country folk are kind
    An wha the bairnie’s faither is
    They dinna muckle mind.
    But oh! The bairn at Annie’s breist,
    The love in Annie’s ee –
    Wid mak me wish wi a’ my micht
    The lucky lad was me!

    But oh! The bairn at Annie’s breist,
    The love in Annie’s ee –
    Wid mak me wish wi a’ my micht
    The lucky lad was me!

  • Burns Supper Ceilidh Night

    Burns Supper Ceilidh Night

    Burns Supper Ceilidh Night

    Celebrate Burns night in style on Saturday the 25th of January 2020 at the Knowes Hotel in Macduff with a traditional Burns Supper ceilidh.
    Since new owners Wayne and Linda took over the Knowes and reimagined the building and services on offer, this family-run hotel has developed an excellent reputation. With great reviews, fantastic sea views, attention to detail with an emphasis on local produce, a Burns ceilidh here with Iron Broo is sure to be a great Burns supper recipe.
    Enjoy a fabulous 2 course Burns supper, a piper, a free Dram for the toast and a fantastic Burns ceilidh with the Iron Broo Duo.

    If you are new to ceilidh and have no idea what you are doing, don’t worry. We will entertain and call the dances quickly so you can take part without any experience needed.
    Tickets are available from the Knowes Hotel. £25pp
    Special rates available for rooms if you choose to stay over.
    Ask the hotel for details.

    Musical Nostalgia Notes

    Playing in the Knowes has a bit of family history for me.
    My Grandpa was a regular visitor there. He stayed not far from it and was a regular in the bar for many years. When I was younger, I used to visit the Macduff accordion and fiddle club with my Grandparents, which was held there in the hall. The place has changed so much since then it’s unrecognisable. It’s changed for the better in this case, that’s for sure.

    My family history also comes from the same street. Market street in Macduff. My Grandpa’s side of the family lived on Market Street, for 3 or 4 generations I discovered while researching the family tree. They were pretty poor and were a large family sharing a two-room flat.

    I always enjoy returning to the Knowes and look forward to the Burns Night ceilidh on Saturday the 25th of January.

    See you there!

    If you are interested in Booking Iron Broo Ceilidh Band for your wedding or event please get in touch through our contact page.

    Burns Supper poster

  • An old Scottish Traditional Song

    An old Scottish Traditional Song

    The Garlogie Ceilidh with the Bothy Ballad King.

    The Garlogie Ceilidhs were on Sunday afternoons at the Garlogie Village Hall and were well attended by people from far and wide. The hall was full of tables and there was no space left for dancing. It was more an open mic ceilidh where local personalities got up and did their party pieces. Mostly singers, musicians and storytellers. Because there wasn’t a public bar people were encouraged to bring their own food and drinks and the atmosphere was fantastic. Old and young all together in celebration of a shared culture, humour and identity.

    Dae yi mind on lang lang syne?

    Many moons ago I first heard this old Scottish Traditional song from Tam Reid, in the early nineties at the Garlogie Ceilidhs. Tam was well known for his Bothy Ballads and I always liked Tam. Everyone did. He was the kind of gent that personified all that was teuchter and Aberdeenshire farming. Tam’s eyes glinted almost as if he’d been born with a dram in his veins, though I can say I never saw him too drunk. I remember his white hair and dark eyebrows. He was a thick-set strong man with a gentle smile, big hands and a weather-worn red face. 

     Tam Reid was known as ‘The Bothy Ballad King’.

    When I first heard the song “Dae yi mind in lang lang syne?“, I had assumed it was a northeast bothy ballad song, but I was wrong. Its origins go back to Ayrshire or Edinburgh around 1800.

    I made a YouTube video of the song using family pictures from my mum’s side.

    Dae yi mind in lang lang syne?

    History of the song.

    The original author of this Scottish traditional song is Rev George S. Lawrie.

    George was the son of a Kirkmicheal minister and studied at Edinburgh University and had been ordained in 1763 at Galston, Ayrshire. (He was to remain there for the rest of his days.) The following year in 1764, he married Mary Campbell, the daughter of a divinity Professor from St. Andrews University. – Archibald Cameron. Then, they went on to have two children and the oldest daughter was also a talented musician.

    George S. Lawrie meets Robert Burns

    In 1786 George had read the Kilmarnock Edition, by Robert Burns. At the same time, a young Burns was having problems in his career and as a result was thinking about giving up writing poetry altogether, fearing his words were falling on deaf ears and therefore he was considering leaving Scotland forever.

    George was so impressed by the Poetry and songs from Burns he sent a copy of the works to Edinburgh to a Dr Blacklock who was known to George as an influential member of high society in Edinburgh. As a consequence, Blacklock immediately wrote back to George enthusiastically with a great passion for Burns’ works. George showed this letter to a friend Gavin, who showed it to Burns.

    Sometime later, in an autobiographical letter from Burns to a Dr Moore, Burns comments about Lawrie and Blacklock.

    ‘I had taken the last farewell of my friends; my chest was on the road to Greenock; I had composed my last song I should ever measure in Caledonia, “The gloomy night is gathering fast” when a letter from Dr Blacklock to a friend of mine overthrew all my schemes by rousing my poetic ambition.’

    Burns and Lawrie remained friends, and Burns would frequently visit the manse and stay over. Their contribution to Scottish Traditional Music, poetry and song was immense.

    Without the help of Lawrie, Robert Burns may have quit his craft and Scotland would have been a more impoverished culture for it. Can you imagine Scotland with no Burns?

    Nae Auld Lang Syne? No Red Red Rose? Without sleekit’ cowering beasties? Missing parcel o rogues? Oh wait, that would probably be good! 😉

    Traditional Nostalgia

    Generally speaking, in this song “Di yi mind in lang lang syne” I feel there is a depth of nostalgia leading to an acceptance of what is finally to come. I can imagine an old George S. Lawrie. Sitting in the manse in front of his fire, sipping a malt. Thinking back on his childhood, all the landscapes of places he played as a young boy in Perthshire, all the friends he misses who have passed on, all the hard-working farm folk who ‘rose wi the lark in the morning’.

    I remember my own experiences with my family and friends and draw my comparisons. Ultimately there are people I miss, people I have lost, and as a result, I see all the same places in my memory where we once played. My generation had great fun as children. It all seems golden in my mind. In essence, it also makes me sad, because I know it will never happen again for me given I am 44, and I would get arrested for guddling in a burn now.

    I fear my kids will never have such a good childhood as I enjoyed. iPads and technology seem to be strangling childhood.

    More Scottish Traditional Music

    Although there are some slightly different lyrics to the song on-line, I learned these from a Tam Reid recording. Visit the Iron Broo video library and see the song lyrics. This song is included on the album “A Celtic Voice”. Which is available online for download and on CD here along with other Scottish Traditional music from the past and present. Including some original tunes and songs where the PDF music of which will eventually all be available to download for free in our sheet music library.

    Iron Broo recorded a Northeast Bothy Ballad Aikey Brae which featured in their Doric Film Festival entry, “Awa we gaed tae Aikey”

    Cousins
    Cousins

    Above: My two brothers and I with my cousins at Ardin Farm, Turriff. Many moons ago.

    No much wonder we grew up with drink problems.  :-0

    Abel brothers lang lang syne
    Abel brothers lang lang syne

    My brother Stuart and I. We are dressed up as the Flower Pot Men, ready to explore the world.

  • Free Sheet Music Library

    Free Sheet Music Library

    I have been told a few times recently that I’m not good at selling myself. The truth is it’s because generally, I don’t like people who are good at selling themselves. It’s something ingrained in the northeast of Scotland psyche. Naebody likes a big heid. I’ve always been conscious of this.

    I really enjoy creating music. Here I am giving away free sheet music.

    I have started a small free sheet music library on IronBroo.scot and as I create new tunes I will build it up. You can download the PDFs for sheet music for free if you want to learn any of my tunes. I would love to hear them being played or recorded by other people.

    I really enjoy doing what I do with music. Here’s one I made earlier…

    The free sheet music library is on the Iron Broo website https://ironbroo.scot/sheet-music-library/

    It’s a pretty modest library at the moment ( more of a shelf ) but it takes a long time for me to write out and record the tunes and make the videos. If you want updates you can follow this blog or find us on Facebook, subscribe on YouTube and visiting ironbroo.scot. Leaving positive comments is encouraging. 🙂

    Scottish Music Videos

    The tune in the video above is one of my own compositions and the pictures and video are all my own, taken on Lochnagar in Aberdeenshire. I used an iPhone and a Canon Camera. Scotland is such a stunningly beautiful place with such a variety of scenery, it is a source of endless inspiration.

    Buy me a coffeeBuy me a coffee

    You can also buy me a coffee, that would help inspire more activity and improve my inventory for music creation!

Richard Minton
2 weeks ago
Had a great nights entertainment with Iron Broo, great ceilidh and then some floor fillers with the disco.
Response from the owner:Thanks Richard, we had a great time, hope to see you both again sometime
Ellen Caiger-Cummins
4 months ago
We had the honour of the Iron Broo ceilidh band perform at our wedding on 16th May, they were outstanding. Talented, organised and such a lovely bunch of guys
Response from the owner:Thanks Ellen, we really enjoyed playing for you. Such a lovely evening. And thanks for your kind hospitality. All the best 👍
Andrew Turner
11 months ago
We hired Iron Broo to play our ceilidh at a party to celebrate our recent marriage. The band were great, played a good variety of ceilidh tunes, called the dances and incorporated some impressive rhythmic vocals alongside playing. All the guest had a great time and enjoyed the ceilidh - thanks a lot!
Adam Barrie
1 year ago
We booked Iron Broo Ceilidh Band for our wedding in July 2025 and had a fantastic evening with them. The band were highly experienced and helped everyone get involved in the dancing. I would highly recommend them for any Ceilidh event.
Aylwin Pillai
1 year ago
Iron Broo played for our very first wedding at Kinclune House & Estate in our brand new wedding barn. Iron Broo were absolutely brilliant! The wedding party were up and dancing all night. Half of them were not Scottish, so Charlie did a great job of calling so that everyone could join in. I can't recommend Iron Broo highly enough if you're planning a wedding or special celebration!
Response from the owner:Thanks Aylwin, it was an honour to be your first band! We look forward to the next time, the new venue is amazing and the staff were so kind and attentive. Everyone was raving about the place. I'm sure you are going to be busy! All the best, Charlie
Jac Balden
2 years ago
Iron Broo recently played a ceilidh and disco for our wedding. Charlie was easy to deal and answered all our questions very quickly. Both the ceilidh and the disco were very well received with the guests of our wedding complementing the band and the music.
Amy Abel
2 years ago
We booked Iron Broo for our wedding at Mar Lodge in Braemar in July and they were fantastic! We had a very international group with about half the guests having travelled from New Zealand and Charlie was great at calling the dances and everyone had a a lot of fun, even the teenagers loved it! Thanks Iron Broo!
Response from the owner:Thanks Amy. Great fun playing for you and really nice to meet more of the Abel clan 👍
Jenna
3 years ago
We hired the Iron Broo duo for a charity ceilidh in February 2024 and they had everyone up on their feet until the very end! Thank you so much for a fantastic evening with your band - lots of classics and few special twists which made for a super fun evening. Would definitely recommend Iron Broo and hire again in the future!
Response from the owner:Thanks very much Jenna, it was great fun to play for you! All the best, Charlie
Keri Bailie
3 years ago
Iron Broo played at our wedding ceilidh, playing an array of instruments and gave instructions for each dance. Excellent band who were very flexible, cheerful and skilled. Highly recommended.
Response from the owner:Thanks Keri, much appreciated. We had a great time and enjoyed every minute, it was a pleasure to be a part of your special day.
alex bruce
3 years ago
The Iron Broo Duo threw us a fantastic party to celebrate our wedding in September. They happily accommodated some very last minute changes and executed a little surprise absolutely perfectly! They had a great sense of humour when some of the dances didn't go to plan (no fault of the band, entirely the fault of the beer!) and soon had us back on track. A brilliant band to hire if you want to have lots and lots of fun!
Peter Lancaster
3 years ago
From the moment we started to plan our wedding, we knew we wanted Iron Broo! With my wife having attended a few of their ceilidhs in the past, she told me that Iron Broo were the best ceilidh band she'd ever seen. Of course at first, with our wedding being my first ceilidh, I was a little bit nervous but I trusted her with this and I can say I am truly glad that I did. We couldn't have asked for anything more, the music and dancing was incredible (as per usual). Many of our guests had also never attended a ceilidh before, but they made the process of learning all the steps easy and everyone ended up having an amazing time (myself included. ) They were also extremely accommodating, able to play a requested song for our first dance with less than a weeks notice! Thank you so much Iron Broo! It was a pleasure to have you at our wedding and we will be sure to catch you at future events.
Response from the owner:Thanks Peter, it was a pleasure to play for your special day. We had a great time and everyone was wonderful. See you soon, Charlie 👍
Paul Mckee
3 years ago
They recently played at our wedding on 4th November 23 and were fantastic! A lot of guests had never been to a ceilidh before and they all really enjoyed it, especially the kids! We highly recommend Iron Broo!
Jenna Forrest
3 years ago
We hired the Iron Broo duo for a corporate ceilidh and they had everyone up on their feet until the very end! Thank you so much Charlie for performing for us - everyone had a fantastic evening with your band. Would definitely recommend Iron Broo and hire again in the future!
Response from the owner:Thanks Jenna, for a lovely review and we had great fun playing for you. Hope to see you again soon 👍
Helen Shiach
3 years ago
Iron Broo are well worth hiring for a special celebration. Great musicians who know how to get everyone involved. Caller ensured everyone knew what to do and they were happy to keep it fast & furious when no one knew how to waltz! If you are thinking of having a ceilidh I would highly recommend hiring them.
Response from the owner:Thanks Helen, much appreciated. We had a great time playing for you 😄 All the best 👍
Ian & Kathy Davy
3 years ago
Iron Broo played at our family and friends ceilidh in July. It was a two piece band - talented musicians who played in varying styles. Iron Broo chose the dances - a mix of traditional and new ceilidh dances. The explanations of the dances were very clear. Many of our guests commented on how good Iron Broo were. We would definitely recommend them.
Response from the owner:Thanks Ian & Kathy, we loved playing for you! It was a pleasure, your family and friends were great fun. All the best 🪗😊
Cathy Davidson
3 years ago
Iron Broo made a perfect day even better, they had everyone up dancing and mixing, from 3 year olds upwards. Guests who had never been to a ceilidh before had the best time and plenty of laughs trying to get the moves right. We highly recommend them to get the party started
Response from the owner:Thanks Cathy 👍 we had a great time. Much appreciated
Robin Johnson
3 years ago
Hired for ceilidh at Wedding, very accomodating and friendly. Played a requested tune for our first dance. Called/instructed on the dances which was very necessary and useful for people unfamiliar. Flexible on day when time for break and end called. Hired 4 players including a fiddle and sounded great! Had heard play before, and look forward to hearing again.
Response from the owner:Thanks Robin and Chen, it was ace fun playing for you both 👍 all the best ❤️
Chantal Gluting
4 years ago
They came all the way to Luxembourg to do a ceilidh with our Year 8 students and it was simply fantastic! They really motivated our students to take part in the dancing and the students ended up loving it! Thank you so much again! It was a great event!
David Márquez
4 years ago
They are very very good musicians who are masters of their style, but please understand they are not a versatile band and I am sure that is why they are the cream of the cream of ceilidh, however Charlie really takes advantage of his disco choice to make the night round. He adapted to my needs and I am happy to have decided to hire his services.
Response from the owner:Thanks David, it was great to play for you and I really enjoyed the Venezuelan music “crazy hour” 👍🎶
Juliet Buchan
4 years ago
The best Ceilidh band ever, our whole wedding was jumping from start to finish. My English relatives couldn't get enough of the dancing and were guided so well. Thoroughly recommend Charlie Abel and all of his brilliant 5 piece band.
Response from the owner:Thanks Juliet, it was a pleasure to be a part of your special day. It was great fun with excellent company. 🎶🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿👍🥰
Alistair Moore
4 years ago
Great set and game for a fantastic scout ceilidh
Annette McArthur
4 years ago
The band (two piece) were absolutely brilliant. They were all set up in good time and the music was fantastic. Charlie called the dances where needed - everyone had an absolute ball! Thanks a million.
Response from the owner:Thanks Annette, it was great fun. A super audience to play for. I hope we can play for you again sometime, any excuse for a Ceilidh 🎶👍🪗🎶🙏🏼
Kaitlyn Williamson
4 years ago
Amazing wedding band!! Played both a ceilidh set and disco afterparty. Listened to all my crazy plans and created an awesome evening for all my guests. Super value for money and really easy to communicate with.
Response from the owner:Thanks Kaitlyn! We had a great time, your guests were ace fun to play for! All the best, Charlie
Sarah Sophie
4 years ago
absolutely amazing!! the dances and the music of the duo was the best and we loved every minute of the time we had! They were also the nicest people ever
Response from the owner:Thanks 😊 so glad you enjoyed it, thanks for a lovely review 👍🤩
Chrissie Grant
4 years ago
We were lucky enough to have Iron Broo play for us at our wedding, where half the guests were Scottish and experienced ceilidh and reeling dancers and the other half were German and had no idea what was going on! The fact that Iron Broo got EVERYONE on the dance floor and partaking enthusiastically in both Scottish and German dances is a testament to their legendary music and DJ'ing! The evening simply wouldn't have been the same without them. Thank you so much Iron Broo for making our multi-national wedding such a cracking party!
Response from the owner:Thanks Chrissie, it was a pleasure to play for you, everybody was so keen to dance. The German Knoten disco was also such fun. Please let us know if we can help you again. We have played in Germany before, quite a few times for weddings. If you can find another excuse for a ceilidh.... :-)