Liz Doherty: Quare Imagination

LIZ DOHERTY: QUARE IMAGINATION

Liz Doherty: fiddle

Gerry O'Connor: banjo, fiddle, mandolin

Martin Green: accordion

Daniel Lapp: fiddle, viola, trumpet

Eilidh Shaw: fiddle

John Joe Kelly: bodhran

Manus Lunny: bouzouki. guitar, bodhran, programming

Tony McManus: guitar

Sarah Roberts, guitar

Ryan MacNeil: piano

Matt Foulds: drums

This is the second solo album by this Donegal-born fiddle player, ex-Nomos member and lecturer in music at University College Cork. Doherty is known for her eclectic tastes and plays here tunes from Ireland, Quebec, Scotland and Cape Breton. She is an energetic player with the strong attack associated with her native county's fiddle tradition and an undeniably traditional style of playing. The arrangements on the other hand are sometimes a bit trendy, with trumpet and programming thrown in. It's all very well done--and how could it not with players like Gerry O'Connor (banjo, mandolin, fiddle), Capercaillie's Manus Lunny (bouzouki, guitar, bodhran), Tony McManus (guitar), and John Joe Kelly (bodhran) along for the ride--but a bit noisy for my tastes. Doherty blames the lack of a drop of the "quare stuff" in the studio for all that "quare imagination" that went into making the album. Be that as it may, another very good recording, if modern-sounding, by one of the better fiddle players of the current generation.

Rating: *** 1/2

Price: $18.99