Ever heard a rendition of Mick Jagger’s Ruby Tuesday from internationally acclaimed group Rua with the Caledonian Society’s Pipe Band and the Kilmarnock Edition? You haven’t? Well, those at the Scottish Extravaganza did, and boy did you miss out! It was a stunning finale to an outstanding evening.
What a coup in securing Rua for the evening. They captivated the audience with their lively sounds. A bonus was a musical duet between Rua’s front man, Jimmy Young, and piper David Wilmott. Stunning stuff.” Gerald Campbell, The Press August 13th 2001
RUA LIGHTS BONFIRE NIGHT AT THE CATHEDRAL
Rua, Ten Years After- Live Again in the Cathedral, with guests, The Canterbury Caledonian Society Pipe Band and Mike Considine, 8-10.30pm. Reviewed by John Reid
This was a tremendous concert.
It was a hugely popular show, reputed to be a thousand people crowded in against the walls. It was also a live recording for a new CD. The band was on it’s mettle and so were the listeners.
After a short introduction the band came onto stage.
The moody lighting gave a wash of red with tendrils of smoke drifting through the glow. It was definitely a bonfire night.
The songs were all of their best, straight instrumentals and ensemble numbers. In all of them there was a good balance as a group.
Each of the performers was clearly placed in the soundscape of the stage, audible and clean.
They gave a purposeful sense of authenticity to their programme, addressing a respect for the materials and for the history.
They were expressing themselves as truthfully as possible to make the very most of their music and lyrics.
Each of the six had their perfect moment in the spotlight, showing their talents and focus.
They gave us ballads and dances, much of it about love, mixed in with a good dose of hope.
The entry and performance of the Caledonian Pipe Band added another huge boost to the night.
There was a powerful sense of community created amongst the audience that welled up and joined with the music of the Celtic spirit being conjured on this night that was Rua’s.
John Reid, The Christchurch Press
27 July 2001.
“ A HIGHLIGHT OF THE FESTIVAL.” The Press, Christchurch.
Rua
Ao-Tea-Roa
Greentrax CDTRAX 103 (1995)
This second album from the New Zealand based Celtic band Rua provides a taste for what their fine live shows are like. Sporting a completely new set of songs, the album mixes equal parts of traditional music, original compositions and imaginative cover versions of tunes from Mary Chapin Carpenter to the Beatles. Much of Rua’s sound is colored by Jimmy Young’s choice Northumbrian piping and James Wilkinson’s superb fretless bass playing. These two can achieve a fine synchronicity when paired with drummer Matthew Lawrence and guitarist Jon Hooker, on such instrumentals as “Jeltic Music” (which incorporates both “The Plain Tree” and “Breton Air”) in addition to their fine coupling of “Sir William Hardie’s Waltzurka” and “The Warrior Jig.” Vocally, the band has not one but two aces up their collective sleeves. James Wilkinson’s powerful, Clive Gregson-like voice that can muster the force needed to sing the furious song “Raider” or the calm of “Eleanor Rigby.” Denny Stanway has a lovely, expressive voice that lies somewhere between Niamh Parsons’ range and Mary Black’s depth. Though both her songs on this album are covers, she is able to draw from such blatantly non-Celtic writers as Mary Chapin Carpenter (“The Moon & Saint Christopher”) and Eddi Reader (“The First of a Million Kisses”) and evoke an almost traditional feel to their material. Her playing of African, Latin and Celtic percussion gives further depth and nuance to the band.
— Lahri Bond Dirty Linen, Canada
Rua
Homeland
Greentrax TRAX 061 CD (1993)
Rua is a Celtic band which hails from, of all places, New Zealand. During their time there they have recorded two albums on Ode Records. Homeland: The Rua Collection combines selections from those two albums as well as three new instrumental tracks recorded in Scotland and all released on Greentrax.
"The Commonwealth Suite" was a specially commissioned work to celebrate New Zealand's 150th anniversary and also pays tribute to all Celtic peoples who settled in the many parts of "The New World." The first two tracks on Homeland represent this work and introduces the band's two founding members: Jimmy Young, a master of the Northumbrian Pipes as well as various other blown and strummed instruments, and Davy Stuart on synths, viola, and guitars. The two tracks are both instrumentals and represent the migrating Celts journey and eventual settlement in New Zealand. The title track combines three traditional tunes: "The Parting Glass," "Setting Sail" and "The Storm" while the second track takes a distinctly Celtic approach to a traditional New Zealand, Maori canoe song.
The majority of the rest of Homeland is taken from a concert recorded in Christ Church Cathedral in New Zealand and previously released as Live in the Cathedral (1991). These tracks feature a more full band line up, which at times sound similar to the Pan-Celtic sound of both Figgy Duff or Malicorne. The band is filled out by Mick Considine on vocals and bouzouki, James Wilkinson's melodic and sensitive fretless electric bass and the superb vocals of Denny Stanway. Celtic music is once more blessed with another stunning female vocalist whose vocal range lies somewhere between Mary Black and the deeper resonance of Niamh Parsons. She can sing a rousing version of Jack O'Hazeldean or give a sober reading of "The Diamontina Rover" (first heard to these ears by both Redgum and The House Band).
Other favorites include a beautifully arranged version of James Taylor's "Millworker," a stripped down and stark version of Richard Thompson's "How Will I ever Be Simple Again," and with a northumbrian pipe coda and a nothing less than stunning version of Ewan MacColl's beautiful "The First Time Ever (I Saw Your Face)." This last tune is not the dry rendition of the original as the sappy muzac of the 1970s hit, but an impassioned and sensual reading which allows Denny Stanway's full and expressive voice to really enliven the lyrics. The instrumental tracks are all masterfully played, mainly acoustic arrangements that combine Celtic pyro-technics and New Zealand enthusiasm to form a truly unique hybrid.
Lahri Bond (Hadley, MA)Dirty Linen Canada
“Rua could have got away with murder!” Glasgow Herald, Scotland.
“Quantity and quality in equal measure.” Folk Roots, UK.
“A journey of sound and emotion.” Timaru Herald, New Zealand.
“Very jazzy and a lovely interpretation of Celtic Music.” Le Telegramme, Britony
“ Melodic Magic!” The Living Tradition, Scotland.
Rua were named in the top ten acts of New Zealand in the Millennium Book of NZ.