Customer Reviews

Fit As a Fiddle

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I give "Fit as a Fiddle" 5 stars only because the system won't let me give it a million stars. Here's some perfect music to brighten your life. As most tracks are composed of 3 or more melodies, I will describe them by number. My descriptions are from images that appear in my mind as I listen to the music. I'd like to share these apparitions with you, so you can have as much fun as I do when listening to "Fit as a Fiddle". On set 1, Natalie plays around with a simple little tune. Soon your toes start moving to the lively beat. She picks up the pace and you're clapping your hands to keep time. This music's just for fun,you find yourself on your feet tapping out a little rigadoon. Now she's caught your interest. The second set makes you feel young again,like a little kid on a swing on a Spring day. There's a strong Celtic flair to this one. Natalie has you back in the Old Country now, making music with friends in the parlor. On set 3 Natalie plays pretty and delightful and opens with that old tune right out of the pot of gold. Who makes music more beautiful than this? She drifts gracefully from one melody to another,you don't know whether to laugh or dance,what a sprite! Though I favor the lively music, I find the slow air on track 4 compelling and lovely. On set 5 Jack Rabbit jumps right out of Natalie's fiddle.He's out on the field,looking this way and that,trying to find some fun. There he goes,catch him if you can. Over the hill runs the hare looking for rainbows and flower gardens. Set 6 starts with a slow and pensive air. I picture a girl gazing over the ocean from a coastal cliff. She wonders if she'll ever find her true love. In her reverie an angel whispers in her ear, "He will be there". "You were with him before time. You will be one with him in another place,another time. Your soulmate is at the end of your music trail." Out of nowhere she has peace of mind and a heart full of love. From reverie to daydream, now she sees an ancient sage, The Old Man in the Woods. " Where is my partner", she inquires politely. He replies with a smile,"There's The King only you deserve. I know". He nods at a bright young man at his side. " Go right over and give him a great big kiss and you will be blessed with ageless love forever...and such children".... This tune is so pretty and cheery, you want it to go on to eternity, here's music to set the whole world smiling and dancing. On track 7 we are treated to the sound of Natalie's incredible step dance tapping an introduction to a lively reel. You'll just love the way she changes gears and tempos here. Track 8 is an air with a deep flavor. It goes down in your soul to touch your inner being. On set 9 you see a Cape Breton Housewife on a farm. She's hanging out clothes to dry on the line listening to "Fit as a Fiddle." But the day is so fine,she can't keep her feet from moving. Soon she's reeling on the hillside, doing her own little dance of love and joy to the blue sky and life. From Natalie's music on set 10 I see a young man out on the town. He just hit the lottery and wants the world to know. Down to the town square he strolls and tosses a gold coin to the fiddler. "Play us a tune to dance to,lass. Now we'll have some fun." Set 11 starts bright and shiny like a summer day. Then Natalie has fun and picks up the pace. Oh she justs makes you want to leap up and dance. This is The Music of The Leprechauns, spry and lively a tune as the world ever heard. Track 12 is a wistful air that touches on the sad side,but finds some hope there. Set 13 sends your spirit off to the land of no troubles, slows down for a moment then explodes with delight. It takes off like Natalie's on her way to light speed....oh too brief... Well if pure dark amber maple syrup had a sound, it would be the sound of Natalie's fiddle. Buy this CD and You'll have a lifetime of beautiful listening that makes you smile and get up and go.I am in wonder of Natalie MacMaster's musical talent and great ear for a tune

This is definitely my favorite Natalie MacMaster cd. Most of the tunes are traditional Cape Breton style, which is what I like to hear. There are less outside influences heard on "Fit as a Fiddle" than on her later albums. Still, I found that "Girls at Martinfield" is my favorite tune on this cd and it turns out to be based on Sharon Shannon's "Phil Cunningham set." I think that anyone who appreciates good fiddling will love this cd. The only criticism I've ever heard about Natalie MacMaster is that she plays too fast. Personally I don't believe that it is possible to play a fiddle too fast. This is a lively and wonderfully done cd.

I have no idea how many professional musicians there are in the world, but I DO know that out of that undoubtably large number, only a scant handful go beyond merely talented and are truly gifted, and this 1993 recording shows beyond dispute that Natalie MacMaster is one of the "gifted of the gifted". Like her most recent US release, (My Roots Are Showing), "Fiddle" is traditional in scope which is, after all Natalie's bread and butter. Happily for her fans, no one bakes better bread or churns pure butter better than Natalie MacMaster. You don't merely listen to Natalie's music, you see it and most of all you FEEL it...(lke most of her albums, the sets here are, for the most part, composed of three or more tunes, so the titles I use refer to the opening number...)Trying to pick a favorite tune here is (for me, at least) impossible, so let me hit on a few highlights in no particular order...the seventh cut on the CD, "Jean's Reel" begins with Natalie's stepdancing talent, (yes, she dances too...)then a easy piano comes in, with that wonderful fiddle blending in, taking over, a few almost tenative slow notes, then she breaks loose and if you can resist at least tapping your foot in time, then you are probably dead..."The Girls at Martinfield" is a wonderful musical romp, you can see Natalie dancing across a stage with a big smile on her face as she plays...the list goes on: "The MacNeils of Ugdale", "My Dungannon Sweetheart", the haunting "I'll Always Remember You", this lovely and supremely talented Canadian never misses a beat. Another reviewer mentions the mental imagery of this CD, and truer words were never written. For me, the 4th tune, the beautiful "Nancy's Waltz" was the most powerful in this regard, but hardly the only one..."Fit As A Fiddle" will take you to those special wonderful places we all have in our mind, putting a smile on your face and a lump in your throat all at the same time. It's a wonderful journey to a magical world...And thank you Natalie for taking us there.....

I bought this CD after seeing Natalie in Berkeley, CA. Great music. She is one of the true masters of the Cape Breton fiddling style. Since I am from an old Nova Scotia family, the Cape Breton style of music is one of my favourites. Her deft combination of jigs and reels is outstanding. She is able to drive the bow and transition to light fret work with the best of them. If you love Celtic fiddle, this CD is for you.

I love the way Natalie MacMaster plays the fiddle, and this cd shows Natalie at her best. Except that hearing her live in concert really shows Natalie at her best. My wife and I have all of Natalie's cds and we rank her as probably our favorite artist of ANY genre. Although some of the more modern tunes that Natalie tries on her other cds are quite interesting, the traditional Cape Breton/Scottish fiddle tunes of "Fit as a Fiddle" show off her virtuoso style and complete command of the fiddle. The tunes are lovely and they make you want to dance, even if like me, you have two left feet. I love this cd!

I love the way Natalie MacMaster plays the fiddle, and this cd shows Natalie at her best. Except that hearing her live in concert really shows Natalie at her best. My wife and I have all of Natalie's cds and we rank her as probably our favorite artist of ANY genre. Although some of the more modern tunes that Natalie tries on her other cds are quite interesting, the traditional Cape Breton/Scottish fiddle tunes of "Fit as a Fiddle" show off her virtuoso style and complete command of the fiddle. The tunes are lovely and they make you want to dance, even if like me, you have two left feet. I love this cd!

9 months after "discovering" Natalie and Cape Breton music I finally went ahead and bought Natalie's first release, Fit as a Fiddle. Like "My Roots are Showing", this CD sizzles with wonderful Cape Breton traditional music at its finest. Why does Natalie make this music leap out at you when so many have played it before?

I'm still trying to figure out why I've become so enamored with Cape Breton music and Natalie's fiddle--friends and family are equally puzzled.

To try to answer the question above, I think what Natalie brings to this music like few others have done before is this. Her love for both this music and the fiddle enable her to play with a passion and respect for the magic and true beauty that is Cape Breton Island music. The notes leap off her fiddle with love and a commitment to a style of music that Natalie seems determined to share with us knowing, like me, that the mere hearing of it will evoke a passion for it like her's. There is a confidence here too. Even at the tender young age she recorded this CD, you can feel even then that every note is played with a certainty that it is exactly the way it's supposed to sound. I'm amazed at how her music affects me, and I'm probably not alone!

As for this CD, her debut, it surprises and delights. You can hear the talent and the passion even then. Amazing...

I love this CD. It really picks up a dull day & makes me feel up and like dancing! I love the beat & movement! I can't sit still and listen to it.

This is a nice CD if you like fiddle. Natalie has her own style that makes her rock! I think she is great on every CD that I have.

If you like fiddle music by one of Canada's best, you will love this