Customer Reviews

Live

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There is in mythology a character that drew his strength from the earth. As long as he was in contact with the earth, he could not be defeated. It reminds me of Natalie MacMaster's rapport with a live audience. She draws strength from them. Alone in a recording studio, she is amazing, on a concert stage this young (she has just turned 30) Canadian's talent is beyond description. Now I admit I am probably the last choice on earth to be objective about this lady's music, since I have been in love with it since the first notes I heard, but this CD is nothing short of amazing! During her concerts,she holds nothing back and this recording gets the listener as close to a Natalie MacMaster concert as is possible without leaving your home. Of course it is not a dynamic as actually being there, but it does come close. The first of the two CDs was a concert recording, and Natalie truly shined that night. Long time fans of hers will recognize bits and pieces of tunes here and there, (her fans are used to Natalie's 'mix and match' approach to her music, mixing a jig here, a reel there...)and I don't think I have ever heard her play better. Two tunes from her "In My Hands" release are included here, the beautiful "Bluebonnets Over the Border" and "Welcome to Trossachs", but the live performance adds something special. There is not a 'clunker' on the CD, in my opinion. And the selection "Tullochchgorum" knocked me flat! Natalie plays for an amazing 9 minutes 56 seconds, and what to me sounds like some incredibly involved runs, it simply has to be heard to be believed.
The second Cd was recorded 5 years ago at a square dance, which Natalie refers to as "Cape Breton music in its natural enviroment" and it is as engergetic as the first. (Though not included in this CD, it was this same concert that Natalie's duet with her uncle Buddy MacMaster, found on her "My Roots Ard Showing" CD, was recorded) This is the 'Cape Breton Sound' up close, personal and raw. How the Glencoe Mills Hall survived the shouting, stomping and sheer magic of everyone getting carried away by one of the worlds greatest musicans will always be a mystery. Natalie MacMaster performs like no one else, so don't miss this recording...even better if you get the chance (she has really reduced her touring schedule and possibly with her upcoming marriage will reduce it further)go see her in concert, for no one gives a better live show..till then, you will just have to be satistified with this album....

This is a great double album of fiddling by one of the world's great exponents of the genre. And it's wonderful to hear the atmosphere and the up-close crowd sounds of the small town hall where one of the discs was recorded.

For someone not entirely sold on this type of music, one of Natalie's earlier discs might be more accessible. There is a lot of music here. But if you like this kind of Canadian/Celtic music, you will love this set.

The cover photo on nearly all of Natalie's CDs depicts a wholesome, girl-next-door, demure sort of character. Her music is anything but! Her skill is nothing short of amazing on this CD. Natalie is one of those musicians who possesses the rare combination of virtuosity and a stage presence that doesn't quit. One moment your heart will be weeping at her soulful renditions and the next you won't be able to stop your feet from dancing. She knows exactly what she's doing to your emotions and she does it on purpose. At times you'll swear there MUST be two violins playing, both of them allegro. She's that good. Add in the celtic influence of jigs and reels and it just can't get much better than this.

I just returned from one of her concerts, and I was blown away. She is simply the best live performer I have seen. She creates a rapport with the crowd, and the energy just builds. Not only is the music enthralling, the visuals are incredible. She dances wonderfully, and you can tell she is quite comfortable with her band; they have fun on stage. If you ever get the chance to see her live, do so. Otherwise, buy this CD as the next best thing.

Here it is,folks the best album end to end that was ever released. I like to think that I'm qualified to judge music from over 50 years of intensely listening up to libraries worth of recorded music from opera, classical, country,and rock, and swing. I really pay attention when listening and know what I am hearing in "Live". Natalie has recorded a Double Masterpiece that shows the world what music is all about. Over the years I heard the best of the best musicians from all over the world play music so beautiful as to make the angels weep. The first time hearing Natalie in concert was to me like being thunderstruck by a lightning bolt out of the blue. Her music was like a waterfall of rainbows pouring out of the sky and into my soul. She plays so fast that your mind is dazzled by Beauty quicker than you can think. Then she plays faster, then she plays faster than that then she plays fast as can be. What a player, she leaves the fastest rock musicians in the dust.
If you ever have a chance to her play, run for the tickets. You will see a glorious waif of a girl who looks so little and plays so big. When she opens up close your eyes and have a good listen. When Natalie takes off it is like a rocket ship right to the center of the sun. Your whole being will be flooded by pure light. She is like The Statue Of Liberty holding up a torch of gold and white light in the form of her music that she loves so much. Oh, She is fiercely proud of her heritage. She plays Cape Breton Fiddle Music, the happiest, most delightful, wonderful and fun music in the universe.
Natalie plays with fire in her eyes and lightning in her hands. And she packs more Beauty in a second of music in "Live" than on any CD I ever heard. And I like music blazing fast, that helps me think quick and I like to think fast as can be. Just put on side 1 of "Live" and you will hear what I mean. By the time you hear tune 3 "TORNA A SURRIENTO" you will know it's all over. Here's the best album ever released, The Greatest Record in History.
What would you like from music? Beauty, Fun, Goodness, Niceness, Joy, Exuberance, Energy, Happiness, Glory, a sense of Wonder and Delight? That's well enough but a tune to make you leap into dance, there it is. The closest I ever came to flying so far was at the end of a Natlie Macmaster concert when she was reeling and the crowd was bouncing up and down like to go right up through the sky. Listen to "Tullochgorum" and "The A Medley". Just close your eyes and listen to the fastest parts. Your mind will be filled with Light and fired with Beauty faster than you can think. Natalie's brilliant playing will fill your heart with Love, fill your mind with Light and fill your soul with Beauty. The music is to me like Gold Light. Natalie shines a Light that leaves images on the music that flood my rapt mind.
To me it's like reading a tale of The Storybook Like Princess who waits for The King With Eyes Like The Soul Of The Universe to appear and meet her on the Music. She has flax hair down in two braids neat as can be. Here she is Cool Cat Chic. She has eyes like diamonds and flames on her feet. She is at the center of a dance floor, to light up the world with her smile. She was born ready to GO. Outside, there he is, The King looking so handsome and ready.
Then I see The King and Princess sitting facing each other looking in each others eyes. Then my mind sees a Beautiful waif who plays mighty big dance in. She has fire in her eyes and lightning in her hands. She plays that fiddle fast as can be , wearing a white dress with green shamrocks and a gold fringe. She plays right to the center of the foreheads of The King and Princess. They blast into pure light. After that he is known as The King With Supernova Bright Eyes and she is The Queen Who Lived Happily Ever After. So if you can get any more out of music than these images good luck to you.

I've had this CD for 17 days. I have stacks of great music just waiting for time. But I can't even conceive to listening to anything else for a long while. Here is the triumph of the human spirit in the form of Natalie Macmaster's "Live" CD. Natalie Macmaster deserves to be acclaimed as one of the greatest musicians to ever walk the earth. She deserves credit for taking this Beautiful music to the people, on the road for 300 shows a year, working tirelessly for over a decade. Natalie MacMaster deserves a Noble Peace Prize for Brightening Up The World. Look how much Beauty ,Love, Light, Peace, Hope, Joy, Goodness, Niceness and Fun she has given the world. So Hooray for Natalie MacMaster. Encore Natalie,Encore!

There are a lot of reasons why Natalie MacMaster ranks among the very best of the world's fiddlers. A lot of those reasons can be heard on "Live," her long-awaited concert CD.

Make that CDs. As if the concert recording from 2001 at the Living Arts Center in Mississauga, Ontario, wasn't enough, there's a second disc featuring Natalie going back to her roots for a dance at the Glencoe Mills dance hall in her native Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, in 1997. Combined, the package is a potent one-two punch of some of the best fiddling you're going to hear -- anywhere -- and it's a fair snapshot of the diverse work she's done over two decades of performing.

Disc one is Natalie at her most dazzling -- fiery stuff with her current touring band. Anyone who's seen Natalie in concert knows the kind of energy that boils from the stage. With Natalie's band kicking it up behind her and the crowd's appreciation roaring through the music, it's a concert CD to enjoy over and over again.

Then it's time to switch to disc two for a hearty taste of Cape Breton traditions. The arrangements on this CD are more basic and the tempo is rock steady, providing the impetus for a hall full of dancers to keep their heels moving. It's pure Natalie all the way, reminding me strongly of the first few times I saw her perform.

"Live" is the best of both worlds, giving Natalie MacMaster devotees and Cape Breton purists exactly what they want to hear. This is a fiddle lover's dream come true.

By Tom Knapp, Rambles.NET editor

The cover photo on nearly all of Natalie's CDs depicts a wholesome, girl-next-door, demure sort of character. Her music is anything but! Her skill is nothing short of amazing on this CD. Natalie is one of those musicians who possesses the rare combination of virtuosity and a stage presence that doesn't quit. One moment your heart will be weeping at her soulful renditions and the next you won't be able to stop your feet from dancing. She knows exactly what she's doing to your emotions and she does it on purpose. At times you'll swear there MUST be two violins playing, both of them allegro. She's that good. Add in the celtic influence of jigs and reels and it just can't get much better than this.

The first time I caught Natalie live, she turned the DC Irish Festival, Altan, and every act on its head and spun them in directions for which they were totally unprepared. Having presented her several times in concert thereafter, I realized she had a sincere and deeply rooted grasp of her identity, and the greater role of Cape Breton music on and for the world stage. She has technique in spades and an encyclopedic command of the repertoire that borders on mystical. Dave MacIsaac once remarked to me that he did not know where or how she knew some of the tunes she did, as no one in living memory had been teaching them.
So, as she moved up in profile, I was dismayed after a show in Media, Pa, where she seemed to be dallying with becoming a dixie-chic. Jayzuz, somebody please put an end to that and line dancing by blond girls with cowboy boots. Anyway, the real musical problems that night seemed to indicate that there were more serious choreography issues than those that might involve a muse.
Fortunately, or maybe because the "electric" side was recorded on Canadian soil, the US commercial banalities in such muzak are nearly non-existent. The first disc is as strong a "contemporary AOR" take on Fiddle rock as it gets. And Natalie is terrific at it. This type of stuff is only as creative, however, as the drum and bass players, and throughout this set, her sidemen distinguish themselves with tasty runs, deep grooves and a funk for the trunk. Natalie rips through her sets with fire and the audience is clearly taken with the dynamics of the show. It starts to come undone a bit in the final number and encore where Shania-Dixie-Corrs featherweight stuff seems to want to insert itself and one can actually hear the impact of the traditional tunes stop the possible excursion into less than appropriate taste dead in its tracks. A measured triumph of substance over form.
It is in the second disc that the real deal happens. This is recorded back in Glencoe Mills and the band is simply Dave MacIsaac and Joel Chaisson, i.e. probably the 2 best Cape Breton accompaniests on the planet. And accompaniests is the wrong term. The difference between the first and the second disc is that the first band is playing arrangements, leaving Natalie room to perform. The second disc Music, being played at a dance, is playing the musicians and there are significant, fiery dialectics among the trio, the dancers, the hall itself. Want to know what the pure drop is up North? This is it, mate. Joel and Dave are listening, throwing out alternatives, battling the course of the muse in service with Natalie to create a night that demands dancing and which dancing in turn demands Music.
I'm not sure that Fiddle rock can deliver that same experience. In the hands of Ashley MacIsaac, it goes out where the artists howl at the moon in dervish-like abandon, but that tends to devour the musician. Paddy Keenan may be able to clarify that. In Natalie's case, she is firmly in control, and she creates an exceptional performance electrically. Recast in Glencoe, and whatever that quality is that knocked any and all of us three ways from a flapjack is staring at you wide-eyed itself with a power so undeniable, it is completely eveident that these are 2 very, very different worlds.
Natalie MacMaster has regained what I was afraid she might be sacrificing at the suggestion of those who manage money at the expense of music. Both are terrific shows, the Cape Breton dance is where the heat is.

I played Natalie's live CD at the ice rink during a general skating session as an experiment in music choices. The kids and adults loved it!! I now get 4 or 5 requests every Sunday to put the CD on. A couple of the figure skaters even are going to use parts of her music in their skating programs.

It is definitely music to skate to!!

I first got introduced to Natalie while watching a live Christian television show. I was so impressed that I had to go buy her album. Since I didn't know which album of hers to get, I figured a live album was a safe bet. I sure wasn't disappointed. She is an absolutely marvelous fiddle player. Her style does differ from that of the Irish, but I like it better. You could say her style is more American, but since she's Canadian, I'll say her style is more North American. If you listen closely to Disc 2 you can almost picture a banjo in the background with Natalie fiddling up a storm at a good ol hoe down. Disc 1 is more artistic in nature and really displays the depth of her talent. You'll her everything from slow meoldic tunes that seem to put you in a trance to more upbeat tunes that make you want to get up and dance. Disc 2 is a flat out riot. The entire disc was recorded live at a dance hall so the music is very upbeat. Both discs are very different in nature, but each is a great joy to listen to.

Now to figure out which Natalie Macmaster CD to get next.... (and oh by the way, I hear her husband - Donnell Leahy - isn't half bad either)