HAPPY TO MEET, SORRY TO PART

3.75 stars really!! Horslips 's debut is exactly what I expected, except for four surprises. The title of their debut is taken from the two short numbers that book ends the album.

First my expectations: sound Celtic-Folk music including jigs and other traditional songs that make up the Irish traditions. Horslips manages those tunes in a much more meticulous manner than say Amazing Blondel and Steeleye Span and reach for the Malicorne way of rpresenting an old tune in a truthful but actualized rendition.

Now for the surprises: Squished in betweenall these Celtic-folk tunes are four superb progressive tracks that although much different in the instrumentation do not stick out (or stay out of line) of the album. Hall of Mirrors , Furniture , Clergy's Lamentations and Musical Priests are actually such folk-tinged prog masterpieces , that most of us would have liked to have an albumful of those kind. For the album's sake , those particular tracks appear maybe too early (second and third )and too late (second last) in the the sequence of tracks , that small deceptions are around the bend during the next two or three tracks because one is disappointed not to have this kind of stuff anymore. This however should blind from listening to the whole album because it is quite worth it.

Horslips’ first studio album is said to also be the first true ‘Celtic rock’ album, although I suspect Christy Moore might argue that point. It is in fact quite Celtic in nature, full of jig arrangements on both ends of the record; and with instrumentation that included Uillean pipes, mandolin, flute, fiddle, harpsichord, celeste, banjo, acoustic guitar and tin whistles the album has all the right credentials for a Celtic folk recording.

While the album opens and closes with distinctly Irish jig ditties, many of the tracks in between are unmistakable progressive folk compositions with beautiful piano arrangements, pleasant and unusual tempos, and fanciful imagery. “Hall of Mirrors” may be the finest progressive folk song on the album, with a keyboard track and vocals that evoke some of the same emotions as Genesis’ ‘Wind and Wuthering’ that would come some years later. “The Clergy's Lamentation” is similar but not quite as distinctive.

But the band cannot stray from their roots too long, as the romping jig titled “An Bratach Bán” demonstrates. This is followed by the slower number “The Shamrock Shore” which sounds like it’s going to be an instrumental until nearly halfway through when Barry Devlin and John Fea break in with a soft, folksy duet accompanied mostly by pipes and acoustic guitar; followed by a very similar tune (“Flower Amang Them All”) that actually is an instrumental, and in which I believe a flute, Uillean pipes and a smallpipe are the main instruments.

“Bím Istigh Ag Ól” is another jig-like number but with some fairly heavy electric guitar and weird keyboards, while “Furniture” is about as close to a normal soft rock tune as the band would ever approach.

Jim Lockhart takes center stage on harpsichord for “Ace and Deuce”, a rather short instrumental that is understated and consists primarily of the harpsichord and acoustic guitar with a bit of violin coming in at the end. This is a prototypical Celtic folk number that previews the type of sound the band would become well known for throughout the early and mid seventies.

The rest of the album is largely heavy Celtic jigging music, although “The Musical Priest” shows a bit of a progressive bent in the guitar and violin tracks. For the most part though the last ten minutes or so will only appeal to big fans of strongly Celtic sounds.

I was never a big Horslips fan back in the seventies, although some of their music has grown on me over the years. Their epic rendition of ‘The Tain’ remains one of the finest Celtic folk albums ever recorded in my opinion. This one is a bit more uneven, to be expected of a band just starting out and considering the music here was collected from the band’s first couple years of existence and recorded rather unconventionally in an old mansion reputed to be haunted and in which the band employed hay bales and stage curtains for baffles and sound management. As a seminal Celtic rock album ‘Happy to Meet…Sorry to Part’ deserves a place on the shelf of just about any serious collector of progressive folk, and probably most fans of world music as well. I wouldn’t call this a masterpiece or anything, but it is quite decent and is worth listening to a few times if you get a chance. Three stars a mildly recommended.

peace

Entry into the exclusive club of "professional musicians" is often a gradual and painful process. Based on recorded documents, such was not the case with Horslips, who came to the game fully formed and ready to rock n reel. I'm sure they paid their dues in a live setting for years, even if that included weddings, funerals, and christenings, as off the cuff performing is often part and parcel of Irish culture. Whatever the case, "Happy to Meet...Sorry to Part" is a landmark celtic rock recording and a stunning debut, and this applies whether you are a celtic music fan, a progressive fan, a rocker, or any combination thereof.

Firstly, for celtophiles we have a number of spirited songs and instrumentals that transcend the sameness of a lot of traditional interpretation, and do not require visuals to work. The opening and closing title tunes herald and wrap up the effort, while "An Bratach Bán", "Flower Amang Them All", and "Ace and Deuce" all hold up that end of the bargain nicely. "Hall of Mirrors" and "Furniture" are full on progressive songs utilizing inventive drumming, organs and jammy lead guitars along with strong vocals. Then we have a host of tunes that blends the two styles, largely through the use of proggy time changes and instrumentation resting upon traditional structures, such as "The Clergy's Lamentation", "Bim Istigh Ag Ol", and "The Musical Priest".

While Horslips reached several career pinnacles after this debut, it is curious that they never really followed the formula proposed herein, which had perhaps only been so effectively implemented by early Alan Stivell albums. "Happy to Meet...Sorry to Part" simply glows with ethnic authenticity and a progressive sheen from a band happily occupying several musical worlds, whom you should meet and from whom you might never part. 4.5 stars.

This band was recommended to me, and this album given to me, back in the seventies by an Irish friend of mine, who understood my love of prog rock. Back then, the album didn't capture my interest. But perhaps the years have mellowed my tastes. Now I appreciate the album much more. I'm still not much of a fan of celtic music, but I appreciate it's value.

The album is primarily Celtic folk rock, with a bit of prog thrown in. The band is certainly technically adept, and able to blend the styles well. The best prog tracks to my ears are Hall Of Mirrors and Furniture. And I also like the rock jig, The Musical Priest.

I'm still not sure if I'm ever going to pursue more from Horslips, but I'm glad I own this album.

The Celtic peoples of Ireland seem to have been the most resistant to contaminating their cultural traditions with the modernities of the 20th century which is why during the 60s the traditional Irish musical forms didn't find themselves merging with the world of beat, pop or psychedelia as much as the rest of Europe but by the time the 1970s came around it seems that even this proud nation had succumbed to the hybridization of art forms. The Dublin based HORSLIPS is credited as being the pioneer of Celtic rock and right off the bat didn't just create a cheesy standard rock style with Irish jigs and reels but dove right into the more complex world of progressive rock to create some of the most distinct progressive folk rock sounds of the entire 1970s.

When i first encountered the name HORSLIPS i couldn't decide if this was a play on words meaning "horse lips" or "whore slips" but as it turns out it was neither and rather a spoonerism on "The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse" which adopted the last word when changed to "The Four Poxmen of the Horslypse." Remember that for your prog music trivia night! HORSLIPS got its start as far back as 1970 in Dublin when Barry Devlin (bass, vocals), Eamon Carr (drums, percussion) and Charles O'Connor (fiddle, mandolin, vocals) met while working at a local adverting agency. The entire project began as a joke as the three wanted to create a parody band that supposedly represented the Harp lager brand of Irish beer but somehow became a serious project found other members and two years later HORSLIPS released its debut album HAPPY TO MEET - SORRY TO PART.

While HORSLIPS would develop its own unique mix of progressive rock, folk music and Irish jigs, on HAPPY TO MEET - SORRY TO PART the songs are primarily based on traditional Irish melodies that incorporate more complex song structures which include elements of prog rock. The album is considered to be the very first Celtic rock album ever released however is fairly unrepresentative of the more unique compositions that the band would evolve into throughout the 1970s. The album basically opened the floodgates for traditional Irish folk musicians to experiment and dabble with other musical genres and set Ireland on course to join the burgeoning world of prog rock and folk that had been gestating in neighboring England for several years at this point. Before then such things were considered sacrilegious and highly frowned upon even by the younger crowds.

Despite the plethora of Celtic instrumentation such as the concert flute, tin whistles, uilleann pipes and bodhán accompanied by more traditional rock and folk sounds from guitar, banjo, fiddle, mandolin, concertina and rock bass and drums, the music on HAPPY TO MEET - SORRY TO PART is mostly on the mellow side with only a few upbeat tracks such as "Bím Istigh Ag Ól" delivering the energetic jig and reel ferocity that one would expect from festive Irish musical performances. The majority of the album is more on the dreamy contemplative side of the equation with lush Genesis styled pastoral tenderness favored over more raucous performances however the music is beautifully constructed and delivers a compelling fusion style that seems very common in the 21st century when Celtic sounds seem to have entered every nook and cranny of every musical genre.

This debut seems to get overlooked in favor of the band's more accomplished albums that follow but all in all HAPPY TO MEET - SORRY TO PART is a beautifully diverse album that delivers in content although sounding a bit inconsistent and unfocused perhaps but that works for my tastes. The band delivers as many highly complex prog tracks such as "Furniture" and "Ace And Deuce" as it does more traditional sounding jig oriented numbers like "Dance To Yer Daddy" or "The Shamrock Shore" which is closer to The Chieftains or Clannad. Irish music is utterly irresistible to my ears (having Irish blood in my veins) so i can't help but be mesmerized by this lucky charm that will give me shamrock dreams and Blarney Stone fortunes. Although HORSLIPS didn't really find popularity in its early days, the band has found a much larger and more loyal audience since the prog revival of the 1990s. While different than the albums that came later, this debut with more focus on traditional jigs and reels is well worth checking out.