Ceilidh Music, we play and even sometimes write our own ceilidh music. A lot of it is available to download online, in mp3 or or to watch on video such as YouTube. We also have PDF sheet music of some the original compositions from Iron Broo.
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.
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.
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.
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…
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.
I hiv tae say that yer meely moo’ed Hollywood hisna got a look in when it comes tae the Doric Film Festival. It was grand affair indeed.
Hosted by Frieda Morrison, attended by VIPs and distinguished guests…
For your viewing pleasure… Here are the edits of the event held at the Belmont Cinema in Aberdeen on the 2nd of July 2019.
A celebration of our doric culture, music and song. Some great poems and scripts.
Part 1 (schools)
Part 2 ( Individuals & community groups )
Here is our shortlisted entry Directed by Duncan Harley. “Awa we gaed tae Aikey”
Awa we gaed tae Aikey.
You can also buy our Aikey Brae song online. It costs less than a fancy bag o’ tattie crisps. Ye can find a’ the popular download links here… https://ironbroo.scot/cal-records/aikey-brae/
The doric film festival was a great thing to see. There’s something that grabs your heart deep inside and gives it a kick. It’s intimate like a childhood memory of your mother whispering something close to your ear. It reminded me of a distant childhood memory I had forgotten about. What hit me the most was realising that in our everyday lives we never hear our own tongue portrayed on the big screen unless it’s a comedy or derogatory. If it is heard spoken in the news reports of the mainstream media it would also be sub-titled to emphasis how ignorant and uncultured us heathen doric speakers are. Nobody can understand us even when we speak English. To hear your own people speak on screen in the language that we all understand is a breakthrough. Doric is a powerful language and carries more depth and emotion than English can. We can get away with much less words. We also have words where English equivalents don’t really exist. Di yi ken fit hozzlin is? or Knap Darlich? The intonation and the use of cursing is an art form in doric and Scots. Swear words are adjectives, nouns and verbs. From a young age, in Scotland, we were taught not to speak our own words. We were often punished for using them in class, for example. Sometimes enthusiastically by overzealous teachers that felt they were a class above us. Even though they were Scots themselves. If you wanted to get on in life, “dinna spic lik at min” This is why it makes the Doric Film Festival something unique and groundbreaking in my eyes. It was difficult not to be moved by it. I think there is now a recognition in some places that our language is special and should be celebrated. It’s more than just part of our identity and shared history. It is the spirit of the North East of Scotland.
We had great fun making Aikey Brae and are looking forward to the next film festival and are researching our next project for an entry.
Directed and written by Duncan Harley. An Iron Broo film. Music performed by Charlie Abel & Fred Wilkinson. Narrated & edited by Charlie Abel. Doric supervisors Alison Abel (my ma fae Turra) and Grace Banks.
Our Doric Film Festival Entry.
Iron Broo – From ceilidh band to the big screen
It’s the day after the 2nd of July 2019 and today we can release our shortlisted entry to the first-ever Doric Film Festival. The awards and presentations took place yesterday afternoon in the Belmont Cinema, Aberdeen. There were around 240 guests packed in to screen 1 to see the awards and the entries shown on the big screen. There were over 30 entries and there were 3 categories. Schools, individuals and community groups. We were were in the community groups section and were shortlisted to the final 4, only one of which would get the coveted Doric Oscar. The winner of our group was from Torry Community Group. I was curious to find out if any of the participants stayed on OSCAR ROAD 🙂 (that’s an aptly named street in Torry) Their film was an excellent piece on the history of Torry. Every film I saw on the day was a winner so it must have been difficult for the judges to sit through 30+ films and choose a winner. Each film had something very special about it. From the old footage of Aberdeen Harbour and old Torry, to the Fishing Boats of the Bloo Toon with Meethill Primary. There wis family poems and stories with actors, the whole thing was very moving for any doric person. It warms the heart to hear the familiar turn of the doric tongue on the big screen. Communicating sentiment with messages that the english language could never do for us. To my knowledge, It’s the first time our culture has been celebrated in a film festival. This was art.
Onyhoo…
We were fair tricket to be shortlisted into the final 4 in the Community category. The Doric festival was a great success and brought in talent from across the northeast with some fantastic short film entries from schools, individuals and community groups. We thoroughly enjoyed working on our film about Aikey Brae with real northeast doric language and music. When I was at school I remember being told off and even excluded from lessons for speaking doric in class, it happened a few times but now it warms my heart to see so many people celebrate oor mither tongue. A creative and descriptive language reekin o’ history and hard toil.
Thanks Duncan Harley – Director
The film was Duncan Harley’s concept, and I would personally like to thank him for inviting myself and Fred to join him in the creation of the film. We learned a lot of tricks in the process and are looking forward to our next project. We hope the Doric Film Festival will continue and become an annual event. It’s sair needed in oor toon.
A big thanks to Frieda Morrison and her team for making the whole thing happen.
Iron Broo ( Charlie (me) & Fred ) played at the Doric Film Festival awards ceremony. We played little ditties as the folk came up for their awards and we performed our version of the song Aikey Brae, used in our film.
Aikey Brae – oor track(s)
We released the music track “Aikey Brae” online. It’s on Amazon, iTunes, Spotify etc. A radio edit and the version of the full verse with the doric monologue as written by the original author G.S. Morris. You can download the tracks for pennies. Less than a bug o tattie crisps. Please dae as we sair need the siller. Here’s a CdBaby link https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/charlieabel3
The standing stones at Aikey Brae, up above where the horse cowpin’ went on, are believed to be around 5000 years old. There are many standing stones around the area and many share similar features. Aikey Brae is one of the most nearly complete ones left. Many stones were moved and were used for building other things over the centuries.
Aikey Brae Stone Circle informationAikey Brae Standing StonesAikey Brae Stone Circle Aikey Brae ( sacrificial stone?)Aikey Brae from on top of the sacrificial stone
The Left-Handed Fiddler is a well-known traditional Scottish tune written by James Scott Skinner, who is an iconic Scottish fiddle player from Banchory. (1843-1927) Skinner rose to fame during his time and left a vast legacy of music with his own compositions and collections that are still played widely to this day. Skinner gave himself the nickname “The Strathspey King”. He was quite a character and there’s a good article on him here for further reading. https://www.folkworld.de/25/e/skinner.html
Skinner’s Tune – for George Taylor.
My neighbour David Cumming had heard that Skinner wrote a tune for a relative of his. It was called “The Left-handed Fiddler”. Because he was not familiar with the tune I learnt it for him and recorded another YouTube video. I was pleased Dave liked it and he sent it to his relatives around the world.
The Left-Handed Fiddler
The next day, a relative of his asked if his name was ever mentioned in music scores, “George Taylor”. So I had a quick Google and discovered quite a few things.
George Taylor was a left-handed fiddler who also had a son called George who was also a left-handed fiddler. The author of the tune, Skinner had a father who was also a left-handed fiddler due to an accident that meant he had to relearn and play left handed. There are some who thought that Skinner wrote this tune for his father, but that has been dismissed by reliable sources on the internet who agree it was for George Taylor.
J. Murdoch Henderson’s tune – George I. Taylor.
The next morning I then also discovered that there is another tune written for George Taylor, though I’m not clear if it is for the same person, It may be that the father is George Taylor of the tune “Left-Handed Fiddler” and George I. Taylor is the son. In either case, it’s quite exciting in my mind to find this extra gem of musical history.
George I. Taylor – Strathspey
The tune “George I. Taylor” was written by J. Murdoch Henderson, from New Deer (1902-1970) and moved into Aberdeen to teach Maths. He loved to play fiddle but had some difficulties in playing as he injured both wrists in a childhood accident. He collected and wrote many tunes and published them. One of Henderson’s books I am aware of is called “The Flowers of Scottish Melodies”. It’s out of print now and I don’t seem to be able to source a copy. It’s the sort of book that will be lying someone’s house, hidden in a piano stool or in a second-hand shop. George I. Taylor is in this book.
The same time I discovered this tune I become aware that there is an online trend I was not aware of, it was #playastrathspeyday. Well, George I. Taylor is a strathspey. David, of course, wants to hear the tune so I drop what I am doing and learn the tune and upload it to the net. The morning after the official play a strathspey day, but, better late than never. 🙂
If you like the videos remember to visit the rest of my website and the clips pages.
You can also subscribe to my YouTube Channel and Facebook Pages. Look for Charlie Abel or Iron Broo.
A special moment from the Bride & The Lonach Pipe Band during a recent wedding ceilidh.
Booking a Scottish ceilidh band for your wedding dance? Could be the best wedding entertainment idea you ever have!
First, you have come to the right place. Here in Scotland, we know how to enjoy ourselves. It’s no secret and our wedding ceilidh band tradition is legendary. We have a deep history of fun. We have been forced into it by long years of crappy weather and a lack of sunlight perhaps. When the weather is right in our country, we all appreciate it immensely. As soon as the mercury hits double digits, we start to sweat and tell ourselves ‘taps aff.’
We Scots invented many things. Our past inventions made an incredible contribution to the development of the human race. I could list hundreds of our significant contributions to our fellow man. Here are a few, for example, Malt Whisky, penicillin, the telephone, the television, deep-fried mars bars, and Irn Bru…we invented so many great things.
Modern traditions live on
In the modern world it pays to be creative and we Scots have been great at it. But there’s also a love of tradition and a passion for what may be familiar to us Scots. A respect for tradition that binds us to our past and our future. It warms our souls and frees our spirits. Makes us laugh with rosier smiles. Like the satisfaction of cooking on an open fire with your friends. Imagine sharing a dram of good malt, in good company, or a Burns supper with your favourite friends, or walking through the magnificent countryside or wild camping.
It’s a shame that the modern world is in danger of stealing many of our traditions for a quick fix answer. A sometimes lazier or cheaper alternative. Luckily because we notice that trend, some of us will go out of our way to help preserve what is right and join the dots from the past as we move forward through the present.
Future traditions
Some things change with the times and improve but others, though they may change will keep us tied to our ancestors through the tradition of the act. Such as the making of Malt Whisky, smoked salmon, fishing, many of the farming and food traditions still pride themselves in the traditional artisan production methods, even though utilising modern techniques to fine-tune their production. Common sense is working with tradition. People value tradition. A bottle of 18 years Highland Single Malt Whisky is going to be of higher perceived value than a bottle of a generic mass-produced young whiskey, and so it will command a higher price. (note that the ‘e’ in whisky means it’s not from here, there is no ‘e’ in Scottish Whisky. Good to know if you are abroad and spot counterfeit bottles)
It’s easy to get caught up in crazy ideas that might seem trendy or in vogue at the time. In recollection when I was younger, American Kentucky Whiskey brands were what everyone trendy was opting for instead of our home-grown amber gold from the gods. Shocking! At least that didn’t last long. Providence prevailed, most people saw the light pretty quickly. It’s akin to the Italians eating a German pizza because of a nice advert on TV.
When you are looking at your wedding entertainment choices it would be a great pity if you were to follow in a similar direction, wouldn’t it?
Traditions are successful for good reason.
Most of us only get married once and want it to be unique. So it’s understandable and perhaps forgivable why some people might go off in a different direction and try something unheard of. I think few people manage to pull that off on a big scale. It could be expensive and could blow up in your face. We’ve all seen plenty of social media clips of people trying to outdo others and get ‘likes’ for their original wedding ideas. I think a wedding is very personal and of course, we don’t all like the same things.
As a musician, playing ceilidh and other music, I have performed at over 1500 weddings over the last twenty years. That gives me a lot of experience in Scottish wedding entertainment and running a ceilidh band as a profession. Few people can admit to having as much experience in professional entertaining at weddings and social ceilidh than myself and my fellow musicians. By now we must be up in the top tier of our country’s imaginary ‘Ceilidh Masters Hall of fame.’ I know we are not alone, but we few, in this imaginary hall of fame are a small crew of dedicated individuals who can survive and make a living in this niche circuit. I take my hat off to the small number of competitors and friends who help carry forward the Scottish wedding ceilidh tradition. We are the tradition bearers of Scottish ceilidh music.
Live Gay Gordons Clip
How to choose your wedding ceilidh band
So, when you decide on your Scottish wedding entertainment make sure you consider booking a good ceilidh band. Please also bear in mind that ceilidh bands are not all the same. A good group is not likely going to be the cheapest band you can find. Playing music is an art form and a profession that should be appreciated for the skills involved. Listen to them playing. Booking a group is not a comparable generic product. Usually, you get what you pay for so be warned. You wouldn’t book the cheapest food, wedding dress or venue for your wedding, so don’t try to skimp on the band as the same rules apply. Even if you know nothing of music, musical entertainment is most definitely one of the most critical aspects of your wedding reception.
Think about the value
I like to use the comparison with tradesmen. Imagine asking a plumber, an electrician, a joiner and a plasterer. “Come to my party and work for 5 hours on a Saturday night, in a hotel 100 miles away. Please set up your tools in the afternoon so my guests don’t have to see you working, we don’t have a budget for a hotel room for the band so you’ll have to drive the 100 miles home after you pack up after your finish time of 1 am and load the tools into your van at 2 am. You’ll be back at about 4.30 am, but it’s good exposure for you.”
I think you’ll find the tradesmen would be much more expensive. It’s hard to understand why some people don’t value or respect professional musicians in the same way they would tradespeople. Are we not skilled? Do we not need to eat? Have we no bills to pay or mouths to feed?
The best wedding idea ever?
Booking a terrific ceilidh band for your wedding could be the best wedding ideas you have. The advantages of a ceilidh over other music are that ceilidh can work across the generations and break the ice among the guests unlike other forms of musical entertainment. It is a very social way to entertain. In that, the people themselves take part in the wedding entertainment. The Ceilidh will bridge the gap between the generations and bring both family groups together. The right band will involve the guests and create memories of happiness that will last forever. Ceilidh will bring an amazingly positive atmosphere to your special day, and your Ceilidh will create fond memories to reflect on for years to come.
Less stress an added value
Planning a wedding can also be incredibly stressful. Wouldn’t it be great if you had some of that stress taken off? A good wedding ceilidh band will make the wedding flow with ease. They will communicate with the venue, and you will be free to enjoy the wedding reception. No reason for Bridezilla to make an appearance. You’ll be too busy smiling.
Dancing together is fun, it links us with our past. There is something tribal and euphoric about it, reminding us of our ancestral roots as human beings on a spinning rock orbiting the sun.
Think of a ceilidh as being like the mature Scottish malt. It can be addictive… But it won’t give you a hangover.
You really can’t put a value on what a great ceilidh can deliver.
I reckon I know Aberdeen pretty well. I was born here, I grew up here. I was a taxi driver for 10 years working for my Dad. I knew all streets, places of interest and hotels as part of being a taxi driver. I passed a rigorous test on the subject by Inspector Brown of the Hackney Police. And growing up after leaving school I saught oot the wee bars that had traditional music sessions and I would frequent most of them.
I spent ten years living in Edinburgh from 2001 to 2011. I liked Edinburgh but I never felt I belonged there. I’ve always been an Aberdonian and I had no intention of brushing up my mither tongue to be accepted in posh Edinburgher..eh?
My accent caused me a few problems in Edinburgh. One main thing, the cultural difference between the 2 cities can be highlighted when buying a Fish Supper…
In Edinburgh they don’t add salt and vinegar to fish… it’s salt and sauce. Not red sauce or ketchup. It’s a watery kind of cheap HP sauce that they splay carelessly all over yer chips and fish. Whereas here in Aberdeen we use Salt, vinegar, maybe ketchup or mayo, and in the good places a slice of lemon. As a golden rule, brown sauce does NOT go with fish.
Also here in Aberdeen, we often have different types of fish as we have a little knowledge on the subject being steeped in fishing industry history. I personally love the Haddock. It’s my favourite white fish after Halibut. In Edinburgh, it’s just fish… I know as I had often asked what kind of fish was used in the fish supper was and was told ‘just fish’.
They don’t know the Cod from the Haddie.
On one fatal trip to the local chippie for the family treat I was distraught when I returned home to discover my Haddock supper (I had asked for) had been replaced by a Haggis supper. To an Edinburgh ear Haddock seems to be picked up as Haggis. The deep-fried phallic sausage in brown sauce was not an appetising sight for my eyes… The disappointment came at no extra charge. I complained and was met with a cold and hostile stare. No humour or customer service in that establishment.
Anyway. As much as I thought I knew Aberdeen back then, I realised when I returned after 10 years much had changed. Many of the places I knew were gone. Even streets were added, and buildings destroyed. Some for the better, some for the worse.
As a person ages we begin to realise the folly of our youthful thinking. I thought I was pretty clever and street wise. Thought I knew a lot. Now I’m shocked to think of myself as middle aged. (43) I feel younger but not clever. Some might think me to be, but I know different. I have some strengths and many areas where I thirst for knowledge. I get tired and run out of time to do what I would like to do. I want to improve myself and others around me. I want to make the world a happier place. Who doesn’t?
Every day you can learn something new.
Last November Fred and I were playing in an Aberdeen venue for a small birthday party in a venue I had never heard of. Perhaps it had not been used as an event space for a ceilidh often or before so I think I can be forgiven. In my work I often mix with all levels of society but generally I am not involved with the legal profession (I’m a good guy, honest) on a social basis.
The Society of Advocates Library, off Broad Street at the bottom of Concert Court was a fascinating venue. https://www.socofadvocates.com
Society of Advocates Library in Aberdeen
The Society has it’s origins in the 16th century and the building itself is a fair age. Not knowing the venue when inside I felt I was in Edinburgh as there are many similarities with the buildings I knew when I lived there. It has an old grandeur to it with a massive staircase and wide corridors. The staircase is quite a feature. A pity we had a sound system to carry up it! The library itself it something very special. It has to be seen to be appreciated.
We were lucky enough to be invited to eat by the family who booked us for their birthday ceilidh bash. The catering was by Perfection Catering ( http://www.perfectioncatering.co.uk/) and the food was top notch. Friendly staff and great food are the 2 main ingredients for a catering company and they had more than that for sure.
One of the staff took a quick video of us on his phone and put it on the Facebook, I have copied it and YouTube’d it for ye.
Fred loves stairs
I’ll add some of my own photos and leave you with an idea for a great small venue for an intimate dining and ceilidh experience in a unique, lesser known, historic Aberdeen Venue that is sure to be on people’s mind for future events. I will warmly look forward to climbing those stairs to play again in this lovely venue.
I’m excited to announce a new album release today. Available on CD from CharlieAbel.scot or download on the usual platforms. iTunes, CdBaby, Amazon etc.
The album contains 16 tracks of Celtic music and songs. Some of my own original pieces.
Please give it a listen and if you like it I hope you will buy the CD from my website or online or download from any of the available outlets.
The next Iron Broo CD is in the pipeline and will be coming soon…
Largest Strip the Willow – World Record Attempt
(taken from the NTS event page)
Do you want to be a Guinness World Record Breaker? On Saturday 9th of September we will be attempting the Largest Strip the Willow at Castle Fraser and we need YOU.
In the year 2000 Edinburgh broke the record with 1,914 people during their Hogmany. We are ready to bring the record to Aberdeenshire.
The event would not be possible without the hard work and contribution of the following people;
– Iron Broo; who are performing the lovely ceilidh music that will help us strip that willow
– STV’s Andrea Brymer; who will be hosting the event
– Deeside Caledonia will be performing before we kick off the attempt
– Gordon School of Dancing will be showing us all how it’s done before the attempt
– A-line will be providing all AV and Tech support to make this event possible
– Mike Gall Transport for providing the staging required
– Fennel Media who will be filming the amazing attempt
So save the date and get your dancing shoes at the ready!
By signing up for a ticket you are signing to take part in our attempt. You will still have to register on the day to collect your band. Tickets are free to attend however, there is a £2 parking fee.
Due to the nature of this record attempt participants must be 10 years and over.
If you are a business or group and would like to register a team to take part please get in contact withcastlefraser@nts.org.uk.
Registration: Opens at 12:00pm and closes at 1:30pm for a 2:00pm record breaking kick off.
There will be catering vans and activities to help you to warm up and stay limber. Please keep in mind that we do live in Scotland so dress for the weather. We will be going ahead with our attempt regardless of the weather, so please bring suitable clothing and footwear as you will be dancing on grass. Ponchos will be available to buy on the day if you do require one.
Tickets are limited, booking essential. Let’s do this Aberdeenshire!
Organiser Paula Swan said: “I can’t wait to see it. It was a little idea we had last year and only last week we got confirmation from Guinness World Records to say we could do it.
“Now it’s a reality and we’re really excited about pulling it together, and the responses we’ve had so far have been fantastic.”
She added: “The great thing about Castle Fraser is you can stand on the tower, so we’re planning on filming it.
“We’re also going to fly drones across the field to really capture all the people having fun.”
Sat 09-09-17 @ 12:00 https://www.facebook.com/events/108693186471815/
