Review - Hugh Morrison - Under A Texas Skye
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Artist: Hugh Morrison
CD: Under a Texas Skye
Bonnie declares: I have one word for you today and it’s accordion. No, seriously. Hugh Morrison plays badass Celtic music on the 3-row button accordion, and according to his website he’s been at it since he was eleven years old. Born in Scotland and now living in Texas, Hugh combines traditional Scottish and American tunes on this album, aptly called Under a Texas Skye. Several guest musicians are featured, contributing cello, banjo, drums, guitar, keyboard, and vocal accompaniment.
I’ve never been enthralled by the sound of accordions in general, but I’m fairly sure that if someone managed to play Celtic music by popping bubble wrap with the spines of an irate hedgehog, I’d listen to it, so I sat down to spin the c.d. with a fairly open mind. In general I was pleasantly surprised. Although I remain loyal to the bagpipes as my fetish instrument of choice, thanks to Mr. Morrison (Hugh not Jim) the accordion has moved up a notch or two in my esteem. Hopefully the oboe will never learn of the fickle way I’ve cast it aside.
The first track, Aidan’s/Ali MacGregor’s Jig/Made in Texas, is a ridiculously cheery arrangement where the accordion clearly takes center stage. The bodhran in the background adds complexity and appeal without being at all overpowering.
Come By The Hills is perhaps my top pick from this album. The vocals are lovely and the accordion is smooth and sweet and alluring. I really enjoy the combination and the delivery is just about flawless.
Minor Reels is another winner for bringing a fairly traditional accordion sound and making it almost like straight up Celtic music that you might hear in a pub. Okay, I did say almost.
I have to acknowledge Red River Valley, since I am borderline psychotic in my devotion to that particular song, for no reason that I can remotely explain. This is a quality version.
I prefer the tracks with vocals over the instrumentals, as I think I’m going to need to condition my palate a bit more before I truly embrace the accordion in it’s purest state. By which I mean to say that when I primarily hear the accordion I start having mental images of a parade of guys in lederhosen marching through the streets of an alpine village. Not hugely conducive to the Celtic atmosphere I try to exist in, but I freely admit to that being my failing. I can’t blame the c.d. for my hyperactive and overly literal imagination.
Do have a peep or two at Under a Texas Skye, whether you are actually underneath one or not. It’s a fun album and totally different from anything else I’ve ever listened to. Besides, if one knows that a Celtic accordion album is somewhere out in the world, how could one possibly remain aloof from it? And if you feel obliged to wear lederhosen and suspenders while you play it, I won’t tell if you don’t. (A small monthly fee will secure my silence and the destruction of any incriminating photos.)
Mike muses: Imagine, if you will, a space opera idyllic scene. Bold, inspiring classical music is playing, all sorts of hi-definition lens flares are flashing across the screen as you swoop around alien worlds, taking in vistas so awesome only the great emptiness of space could possibly produce them. You’re closing in on a distant object. Another space ship? A moon? A space station? You draw closer. You can almost…. No! It can’t be?! An elephant in a clown costume dancing a jig on the back of a paper comet with yellow and blue streamers for a tail?
That’s sort of how most according music usually leaves me feeling; like there was amazing, awe-inspiring potential that that for some reason wasn’t quite realized. After listening to this CD, I’m left with very much the same feeling. Don’t get me wrong, there are flashes of brilliance here, but I feel like there could have been a lot more.
The first track, a traditional set, is quite good, and “Minor Reels” really got me tapping, as did the “Rebecca’s Reel/Granny’s Kitchen” set. I like the piano accompaniment on “Irish Waltz” a lot. It seems like an odd choice at first glance, bbut the sounds blend nicely, and the end product is top notch. Like Bonnie, I have a soft spot for “Red River Valley.” As a love song, it’s hard to beat, and is a good inclusion to any CD. I wasn’t as satisfied with this version as she was, though.
Much of the rest of the CD left me wondering exactly what I was listening to. The images most evoked, rather than the pastoral scenes of Ireland, were of the yearly Oktoberfest parade in the quaint little tourist trap of Helen, Georgia. I guess what I’m trying to say is, MORE REELS, less of everything else.
If you want more info about Hugh Morrison, you can find it on his website @ www.hughmorrison.co.uk and if you would like to get your own copy of Under A Texas Skye, you can always 
at CDBaby.
