Transatlantic Sessions, South Bank Centre

Transatlantic Sessions live last night in London

Mixing bluegrass with Irish emigration tunes, Cajun music with Gaelic folk and gospel songs with Celtic pipes could be a recipe for screeching, wailing and warbling. But in the hands of the fifteen pre-eminent musicians at last night’s Transatlantic Sessions in London, the result was a dense tapestry of sound, sentiment and roots.

A shining jewel in the crown of Scotland’s Celtic Connections festival, it was only the second Transatlantic Sessions gig to be taken to London. Bringing together the best traditional musicians from Scotland, Ireland and America and putting them on a huge stage to collaborate on tunes of diverse provenance, it was truly a rare and wonderful treat. Winners of last year’s Good Tradition title at the Radio 2 Folk Awards, and subject of an acclaimed BBC 4 television series, it’s not hard to see why the capacious Royal Festival Hall was teeming with supporters on a chilly Monday night.

America’s Jerry Douglas introduced proceedings, mocking his Scottish and Irish counterparts good-humouredly and commenting on the unusual fusion of traditions which somehow bridges the Atlantic. Dirk Powell, a multi-instrumentalist with Appalachian roots, kicked things off with an emotive Cajun song dedicated to his grandfather. He was followed by a few toe-tapping numbers, the musicians flexing their melodic might like an orchestra of folk, before North Uist’s finest export, Julie Fowlis, took to the stage commanding wild applause for two dizzyingly fast songs in Scottish Gaelic.

Nashville’s Allison Moorer, wife of Steve Earle, gave a sassy rendition of ‘Crows’. But it was her emotive version of Irish folk song ‘Carrickfergus’ that really melded the two cultures. Irish musician Paul Brady’s ‘Baker Street,’ a tribute to the lately-deceased Jerry Rafferty, was received with whoops from the audience. But Knoxville’s Grammy-winning Ashley Cleveland totally fulfilled her intention to “blow our hair back” with her rocking out version of an old gospel tune.

The concert was topped off with some great solo performances, as the other musicians reclined on sofas onstage jigging along. Notable was John Doyle, a sought after backing guitarist, who rarely gains access to lead mic. His take on a traditional Irish emigration song was very beautiful. Other highlights included Michael McGoldrick on pipes, Phil Cunningham on accordion and acoustic guitarist Russ Barenberg. The evening is billed as ‘the back porch session of your dreams’ and, although you’d have trouble fitting them all onto it for a hoe-down, it really is.

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