Diarmuid O'Brien: Cairde Cairdin

DIARMUID O'BRIEN: CAIRDE CAIRDIN

Diarmuid O'Brien: fiddle

Derek Hickey, Donal Murphy, Dan Brouder, Mick Mulcahy, Donie Nolan, Pa Foley, Gerald Culhane, Domhnall De Barra, Willie Larkin: accordions

Jerry McNamara: guitar, bouzouki

Brian McGrath: piano

A young fiddle player from the parish of Glin, in West Limerick, Diarmuid O'Brien is a distant cousin of the great Brendan Mulvihill and acknowledges the influence of Mulvihill's playing on his own. Like Mulvihill, O'Brien has a fairly straightforward approach to the music, characterized by precision and clarity in the melodic line, moderation in the use of ornamentation, and a rock-solid groove. Unlike Mulvihill, whose melodic extrapolations are the stuff of legend, O'Brien chooses to stay closer to the basic tune and introduce only the most subtle of variations. This by no means diminishes the performances, as O'Brien's formidable drive and lift grab the listener and refuse to let go. While O'Brien's solo playing is remarkable in its own right, another important feature of this album is that he chose to record a significant number of tracks in duet with nine different accordion players. All are great talents, and the performances are all equally terrific. Because West Limerick is so close to Kerry, the repertoire includes some lovely polkas and slides which are more commonly associated with the latter county. O'Brien also chose to record a number of compositions by Brendan Mulvihill's father Martin, and the resulting performances cannot but make those lovely tunes much better known. Throughout, the accompaniments are a perfect complement for the lead playing. A terrific debut album. (August 2007)

Rating: **** 1/2

Price: $19.99