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Sleeve Notes
Since 1991 and La Ballade Nord-Idandaise, Renaud had been dreaming of dedicating an entire album to Ireland. It was obvious that the artist had fallen in love with a people of insurgents, rebels, who heal the wounds of history by singing in pubs on Friday nights. The themes of these songs have always been dear to the artist: the disgust of war, the love of freedom, the land and the ocean and, above all, the friendship sealed by music and laughter over a pint of beer.
In 1997, Renaud organized a confidential tour of Ireland for fun. With a handful of musicians and a technician, he went to sing, without any promotion, in the pubs of Dublin, Derry, Belfast, Cork, Galway, Limerick … The French who — often by chance — had the chance to attend these unusual concerts have unforgettable memories of them. Renaud, for his part, will not forget the poster put up by the owner of the Limerick pub on his window, announcing the evening concert: "Tonight: Renaud, French gipsy political troubadour".
After sixteen years of gestation, in October 2007, Renaud decided to make this old dream come true. He set about adapting, sometimes freely, sometimes faithfully, thirteen classics sung since the dawn of time in Irish pubs or on stage by groups such as the Chieftains, the Dubliners or the Fureys … In April 2009, his lyrics in hand, he went to record in Dublin at Windmill Lane studio. Irishman Pete Briquette, former bassist for Boomtown Rats, producer of Bob Geldof and also of the album Marchand de cailloux, and Scottishman Thomas Davidson Noton, musician, producer and long-time accomplice, are in charge of production. The musical formation is also local: Geoffrey Richardson, the most Irish of Englishmen who has already collaborated with Renaud, but also with Caravan, Bob Geldof, Murray Head and Chris de Burgh), Terry Woods guitarist for the Pogues), Paul Harrigan virtuoso of the "Uilleann pipes", the Irish bagpipes), Emer Mayock violinist and flautist who has accompanied many Irish and French artists such as Alan Stivell), and finally Robbie Harris percussionist for Riverdance).
In the end, these thirteen tracks are not only a tribute to a land and a people that Renaud loves. They form an album in their own right, an original album. With each new song, we end up wondering if this Huguenot from the fourteenth arrondissement didn’t hide from us that he had a bit of Irish blood. It’s probably because love and insurrection have no homeland …
Henri Lœvenbruck
Original French translated via Google Translate.
