The Black Cauldron by Lloyd Alexander

'The Black Cauldron' could have taken me by surprise. Why you ask, well our old friend Walt Disney made a version of this book. Therefore, if you have seen the movie like the Disney movie Tinker Bell its not. I found Book 2 to be full of wonder and excitement beyond anything Mickey Mouse could deliver. Perhaps one of the most inspiring of all five books, 'The Black Cauldron' tests the companions (Taran, Eilonwy, Gurgi, and Fflewddur). Not only was their courage tested, but also their true virtue, for Taran and his companions were, given more than once, the chance to become evil doers. In the end, as Alexander puts it, you cannot always judge good and evil 'unmixed,' sometimes you must remember people for what they once were, and others for what they became. This is a retelling of the Mabinogion’s ‘Cauldron of Rebirth’ bringing to the young at heart a vivid way to introduce the Mabinogi. Paperback: 208 pages Rating: 5 Stars Publisher: Henry Holt and Co. BYR Paperbacks (May 16, 2006) Review by Bill Tillman

The Mabinogion Tetralogy by Evangeline Walton

Fantastic telling of the four branches of the Mabinogion. One truly needs to read several versions before being comfortable with the four branches. This is my ultimate favorite among all books Mabinogi. In the forward Betty Ballantine tells the story of Evangeline Walton born in 1907 in Indianapolis Indiana as a blue baby and never enjoying good health. All her life she had to cope with silver nitrate treatments which left her with a blue complexion. She was thus home educated and was very much a recluse. In this atmosphere, she began a life long love affair with books, her early favorite authors being Rider Haggard, Edgar Rice Burroughs, L. Frank Baum, and Lord Dunsany. The worlds of fantasy, love and adventure were also her world. A love of ancient and medieval history as well as the high poets formed her. Along with these factors, writing became a lifelong habit and passion. Her direction was toward magic and fantasy and when mixed with her burgeoning imagination this led her to the Mabinogion with its heroic myths of ancient Welsh lore. Therefore, her ambition focused on this rich body of literature. The myths, with a matter-of-fact acceptance of magic in the everyday lives of humankind, together with the fierce, tempestuous stories of the early Cymru, the titanic imagery, the blending of gods and men - proved the lure of a lifetime. In 1936, Walton published the Forth Branch of the Mabinogion with a title of 'The Virgin and the Swine.' This in the Depression went largely unnoticed. In the early 1970's Ballantine Books found a copy of 'The Virgin and the Swine. .Having started a new line of adult fantasy books, they were more than eager to republish this book. The Library of Congress did not have an address for the author, the publisher was long defunct. Ballantine posted ads for any information about the author in hundreds of publications. Calling the republished book The Island of the Mighty it was already in its print run when the Library of Congress informed them that the copyright had been renewed but  they still had no address. A  publisher's nightmare! Then another author found a twenty-year-old address for Walton. She was living in Tucson Arizona, and was pleased to see her book back in print. She asked if Ballantine would like the manuscripts for the other three branches. Checking and revising her early work, Prince of Annwn, The Children of Llyr, and the Song of Rhiannon The Mabinogion Tetralogy was published to the delight of dedicated fans of the Ballantine adult fantasy series. Recognition of her immense writing talents followed rapidly in the mainstream media. The Saturday Review of Literature wrote of Walton: “Evangeline Walton stands with T. H. White and C. S. Lewis as not only the best fantasies of the twentieth century. . . they are great works of fiction. Walton succeeds in creating an imaginary world that we believe actually existed [their italics] in this world’s history.” So this is the one work you cannot live without if you love the tales of the Mabinogi. Paperback: 720 pages Publisher: Overlook TP (December 31, 2003) Rating: 5 Stars Review by Bill Tillman

The Book of Three by Lloyd Alexander

The tale of Taran, assistant pig keeper, has been entertaining young readers for generations. Set in the mythical land of Prydain (which bears a more than passing resemblance to Wales), Lloyd Alexander's book draws together the elements of the hero's journey from unformed boy to courageous young man. Taran grumbles with frustration at home in the hamlet Caer Dallben; he yearns to go into battle like his hero, Prince Gwydion. Before the story is over, he has met his hero and fought the evil leader who threatens the peace of Prydain: the Horned King. What brings the tale of Taran to life is Alexander's skillful use of humor, and the way he personalizes the mythology he has so clearly studied. Taran isn't a stick figure; in fact, the author makes a point of mocking him just at the moments when he's acting the most highhanded and heroic. When he and the young girl Eilonwy flee the castle of the wicked queen Achren, Taran emotes, "'Spiral Castle has brought me only grief; I have no wish to see it again.' 'What has it brought the rest of us?' Eilonway asked. 'You make it sound as though we were just sitting around having a splendid time while you moan and take on.'" By the end, Alexander has spun a rousing hero's tale and created a compelling coming-of-age story. Readers will sigh with relief when they realize The Book of Three is only the first of the chronicles of Prydain. Paperback: 190 pages Rating: 5 Stars Publisher: Henry Holt and Co. BYR Paperbacks (May 16, 2006) Review by Bill Tillman

The Mabinogi by Patrick K. Ford

Patrick Ford has given us a college level version of the Mabinogion with a great many notes explaining the background and hard parts of the translation. A very worthwhile version to have in your library. First, "The Four Branches of the Mabinogi," from which the collective title was derived, consisting of "Pwyll, Prince of Dyved," Branwen Daughter of Llyr," "Manawydan Son of Llyr," and "Math Son of Mathonwy." These begin with a story about the conception and birth of Pwyll's son, Pryderi, whose death is one of the early events in the "Fourth Branch," and concern a variety of heroes, and what are clearly rationalized gods. (Evangeline Walton turned each of the "Four Branches" into a novel; and other writers have done versions of one or another of them.) Second, there are two "native tales," "The Dream of Maxen Wledig" and "The Story of Lludd and Lleuelys," about Roman ("historical") and pre-Roman ("mythical") Britain as imagined by the medieval Welsh. The 'Lludd" text, as we have it, actually belongs to the "Chronicle" tradition launched by Geoffrey of Monmouth's supposed translation from an "ancient British book." (Which, if any part of it ever had any existence, was NOT the "Mabinogion.") The name of Lludd seems to be Welsh variant of a Celtic divine name, "Nuada" in Irish, "Nodens" in old British inscriptions, and "Nudd" in other Welsh sources; the variation seems to be due to assimilation to his epithet, Llaw Eraint, "Silver Hand," which is explained in the Irish tale of how the physician of the Gods made new hand for Nuada Argatlam." (H.P. Lovecraft picked up "Nodens" for the Cthulhu Mythos, a use which is unrelated; but Tolkien, whose hero Beren also lost a hand, actually wrote an early article on the Nodens inscriptions, and the apparent offerings of metal hands.) He may be behind King Lud, the supposed eponym of London. As Ford points out, Lleuellys, usually given as Llevellys, and also modernized as Llefellys, clearly should be read as Lleu-ellys, and recognized as a version of the god Lugh: the name Lleu is also used for a character in the Fourth Branch of the Mabinogi. "Maxen," in which a Roman Emperor seeks as his wife a princess seen in a dream, seems to reflect an even more garbled version of a story known to Geoffrey, compounding several real people, including Helen, the mother of the Emperor Constantine. She was, in a medieval confusion compounding an honest mistake with local patriotism, believed to be British, and identified with "Elen of the Hosts." Ford drops this, as it seems to contain a rather high proportion of medieval hagiography and romance, and a very low proportion of archaic Welsh tradition. Third are two Arthurian stories in native Welsh mode. "Culhwch and Olwen," is an elaborate quest, dragging in, at least by name, most of the gods and heroes traceable in Welsh material, and some of their Irish cousins into the bargain, mostly as part of Arthur's court. "The Dream of Rhonabwy" is a visionary encounter with Arthur and his warriors (and anything else I could say would probably be controversial); a fascinating text, which, after a very grittily realistic opening, almost boasts of its authentically dreamlike obscurity. It breaks off in a manner most modern readers will find unsatisfactory -- and its arbitrary nature may have been part of the point. Ford does not include it; a pity, but it is probably the least readable part of the collection. Fourthly however Ford does not translate the three "Romances," "Owain" (otherwise known as "The Lady of the Fountain"), "Peredur son of Evrawc," and "Gereint the Son of Erbin," the first and last of which are clearly versions of Chretien de Troyes' Old French Arthurian Romances, "Yvain" and "Erec," while the second is related in a more complex manner to his unfinished and problematic "Perceval le Gallois." These seem to illustrate Celtic materials going out into wider European society, and then flowing back into Wales to enrich (and confuse) the native heroic and mythic tradition with ideas of chivalry. The version of "Taliesin," based, as noted earlier, on the text Ford had re-edited from manuscripts, is restored to its two-story version, as "The Tale of Gwion Bach" and "The Tale of Taliesin," and includes reliable versions of the poems attributed to the variously-reborn hero. Again, there was a real Taliesin, a dark-age Bard, according to Welsh tradition; but these poems, like the stories, are pretty much independent of anything he may have actually composed. But they *may* reflect some very archaic ideas about the magical nature of poetry, which were old when the real Taliesin was alive. Ford included as an appendix a translation of the notoriously difficult "Cad Goddeu," or "Battle of the Trees." Ford doesn't claim to understand its "real meaning," if any, only what it actually says, and it is very nice to have it. Paperback: 205 pages Rating: 4 Stars Review by Bill Tillman

Tales From The Mabinogion - Gwyn Thomas / Kevin Crossley-Holland

This could be called an illustrated Readers Digest of the Mabinogion. At 88 pages including illustrations, which are excellent, this is a small work. Some branches of the Mabinogion are done well if briefly, others are lacking. This collection of medieval Welsh tales was selected from the Mabinogion myth cycle. They serve as great examples of the old stories of the Celtic Gods who lived on the Island of the Mighty before the Romans and the Anglo-Saxons came. These gods were pushed into mythic status by the coming of Christianity and they live on in these tales. With vibrant Welsh names like Branwen, Bendigeidfran, and Cigfa, these male and female heroes of yesteryear encounter beautiful enchantresses, powerful kings of the underworld, and the magical cauldron of rebirth. These are powerful tales of an ancient time when giants roamed the earth and magic was afoot. They rely on familiar folk tale archetypes, but have distinctly Celtic elements that make them unique. The book was originally written for adults, and it includes stunning illustrations that include an artistically rendered nude image of a woman, but the tales themselves are accessible to readers and listeners of all ages. This book would be a good addition to any folk tale collection. Purchase here:- Tales From The Mabinogion Paperback: 88 pages Rating: 5 Stars Review by Bill Tillman

Welsh Folk Dance at NAFOW - Portland, Oregon 2010

An Interview with Eirian Owen, Musical Director of the Cor Godre'r Aran who will be appearing at NAFOW 2010 can be found here. More info and registration here

Welsh Folk Dance at NAFOW

WELSH DANCES The history of Welsh folk dancing is a sad one. With the advent of the Non-conformist sects in the 18th and 19th centuries, the chapels saw the Welsh folk arts and customs as sinful and not in keeping with chapel teaching. They did their utmost to stamp out all sorts of "sinful" folk entertainment except, of course, hymn singing and music in the chapels. Some saw the damage that was being done to the culture and managed to record the dances on paper. Like most music of that period, there was a lot of exchange and borrowing between Wales, England, Scotland, Ireland and Europe and a number of Welsh dances went into British/English collections, and tended to retain the original Welsh names in translation to English. By the start of the 20th Century, folk dancing contributed very little to Welsh culture. In the Twenties, a few people started to take interest in the old dances. In the 1940s, Lois Blake and Gwyn Williams led the way in reviving the Welsh dancing tradition and in 1949 the Welsh Folk Dance Society was formed, with the aim of promoting and resurrecting the old dances. Today, there are over twenty adult teams and hundreds of teams in the schools and clubs across Wales. This program is for all ages and will teach participants a number of Welsh dances, which will be taught by Sian Frick, a well-known and experienced instructor. Music will be provided by the Portland band, Beltaine. Come, enjoy a good time.

SIÂN FRICK, Welsh Dance Instructor. Siân is a British national of mainly Welsh parentage. From 1984 to 1991 she attended Cymdeithas Ddawns Werin Cymru (Welsh Folk Dance Society) workshops in Wales to learn the spirited but light-footed Welsh dances, and in 1988 she earned the Cymdeithas Instructors Certificate, Part 1. From 1986 to 1992 Siân led her group Dawnswyr y Tract Cymreig/The Welsh Tract dancers, based in Newark Delaware, and in 1991 she was a member of the Dawnswyr Môn display team in Anglesey for six months. Siân is frequently invited to teach Welsh folk dance workshops and give clogging demonstrations at many of the Celtic festivals in the mid-Atlantic region. On her regular visits to Wales she has joined Welsh teams performing dances at various events such as the Gwyl Ifan (Midsummer) Festival in Cardiff.

BELTAINE is a Northwest trio featuring hammered dulcimer, guitar, flute, and marimbula. They are unique in their blend of instrumentation. Their styles range from Celtic to traditional music from around the world. They do not limit themselves to any one genre. Their backgrounds include folk, rock, classical, jazz, and blues. They choose music that speaks to them. They try to put their spin on these tunes to make them unique to Beltaine. Their music is their passion, and they love playing and performing around the Northwest. They are excited to hear that others enjoy their music and they love stories about the music.

Amy Wadge - New Single and Tour Dates

Amy Wadge - Free fall ( Live ) NEW SINGLE: HOLD ME RELEASED: 12 OCTOBER LABEL: CHOICE MUSIC FORMAT: DIGITAL/BUNDLE Monday 12th October sees the release of 'Hold Me', the sublimely sweet and simply beautiful single from Welsh songbird Amy Wadge. A love song in the most classic sense, it is an unapologetically direct appeal to a lover, delivered with uncomplicated, but heartfelt lyrics in Amy's trademark vocal. Produced by Stan Kybert (Oasis, Massive Attack, Paul Weller), the track builds from sparse beginnings, through myriad melodies and gorgeous harmonies in the chorus, into a huge, layered sound that makes 'Hold Me' an irresistible teaser of what's to come on her forthcoming album. Amy, who has previously won the much coveted 'Best Female Solo Artist' at the Welsh Music Awards, has taken time off in the last year as she recently became a mum, but is now back with a renewed sense of vigour and a whole new bank of stories to tell and songs to sing. 'Hold Me' is the first single from Amy's new album (due for release in Spring 2010), that is sure to please her ever-growing and dedicated fanbase (especially in her native Wales), as well as win over brand new support from lovers of beautifully crafted songs and a wonderful voice. With years of touring experience under her belt (she has supported Van Morrison, Jeff Beck, Damien Rice and Eric Bibb amongst others), Amy has developed and nurtured an absolutely captivating and quite magical live experience, which she will once more take to the road with over the coming months. Please keep an eye on: www.amywadge.com/ www.myspace.com/amywadge for further announcements. 'Hold Me' will be available digitally from 12th October at: www.amywadgeholdme.com, and will be available to pre-order from 17th August. Upcoming gigs: (see full listings - www.amywadge.com) October 2009 Thursday 8th Cowbridge Fashion Week - The Hair Business, Cowbridge Saturday 10th House Gig, Private Function Thursday 29th Acapela, Pentyrch (nr. Cardiff) Saturday 31st The Chattery, Swansea 'Pint sized poetess with valley quaking voice. Her songs have a raw vibrancy that suit her earthy voice and emotionally mature lyrics' - Q magazine. Americymru interview with Amy Wadge here:-  "Ten Questions With Amy Wadge"

David Llewellyn Wins John Lennon Songwriting Contest ( Folk Category ) With Song About Welsh Coal Mines

Singer-songwriter David Llewllyn, of Welsh birth and Nashville, Tennessee residence, is the grand prize winner of the John Lennon Songwriting Contest's Folk category for his coal miner's lament on the sacrifice of his child to the life of the mine, "Take Us Down," (lyrics below).

The John Lennon Songwriting Contest is an international competition, open to amateur and professional songwriters since 1997. The Contest features two sessions, with 72 Finalists, 24 Grand Prize Winners, 12 Lennon Award Winners and 1 Maxell Song of the Year, twelve categories: Rock, Country, Jazz, Pop, World, Rhythm & Blues, Hip Hop, Gospel/Inspirational, Latin, Electronic, Folk, and Children's. This years' judges included The Bacon Brothers, Natasha Bedingfield, rap ensemble D12, Fergie, singer-songwriter Jesse Harris, Al Jarreau, Sony A&R VP Ken Komisar, VP of A&R, John Legend, Columbia Senior A&R Director and radio and tv host Matt Pinfield, singer-songwriter Ryan Sham, Australia's "The Veronicas" and Grateful Dead founding member Bob Weir.

David Llewellyn left the mining valleys of south Wales to pursue a career as a musician at 17, the first generation in his family to not go down into the pit. David played Welsh and English working men's clubs for the next hard-working ten years, until hearing Randy Travis introduced him to the organic, instrumental honesty of American country music and pointed him to Nashville, where he's mostly been since.

So, David, how does it feel to be the winner?

"You get lots of pats on the back after performing at gigs etc. Everybody’s happy, some are drunk, some love the way you sing, but this is purely an award for songwriting – looked at in the cold light of day. They are much harder to get and this is a pretty big one. I feel greatly honored. Now, where did I put my acceptance speech . . . :O)"

How did you find out your song won?

"I was sitting in the departure lounge of the Dallas airport at 5am waiting to fly back to Nashville, and just checking my email. A friend had sent me a email which just said “Congrats”. I dug around and there it was! Problem was, it was 5am, so I couldn’t call anyone – I then had to sit on the plane for three hours without any cell phone service! The guy next to me on the plane thought I was nuts, and just went back to sleep."

Did you expect to win, what did you think about your chances when you submitted your song? Were you waiting impatiently to hear back or were you more blase' about it?

"It’s a Sonic bids thing. You hit the button, and off goes your submission. I never thought a little Welsh coal mining song had a chance in hell of doing anything at a prestigious international contest like this. But I did like the logo – a John Lennon self portrait – and thought why not. No guts, no glory!"

Did you know anything about your competition or hear their submissions?

"No, not a thing."

Tell us about your process in creating this song - how did it get written, what inspired it?

"I cannot answer this question without mentioning my manager, Kari Estrin. It’s easy to get lost in the 40,000 songwriters in Nashville. We are all trying to hit that small target, to get that cut on Music Row. It makes us want to fit in. Kari took one look at me and said “Hang on, your Welsh. That’s what makes you stand out.” DUH! She booked a few clubs in the UK, and we visited 'my' Wales. She made me see it through her eyes. She was with me when I went down 'Big Pit', a historically preserved coal mine, and we got talk to the old miners who are the tour guides now. They were fantastic. They took us on a personal, extended tour with lots of stories and descriptions of just how brutally hard life 'underground' was a 100 years ago. I was lucky enough to be part of the first generation not to go 'down', but the generations before me did, and it brought back early memories for me. 'Take Us Down' is based on their words, their stories. I asked, 'I bet you’re glad not to have to do all that now?' and their answer surprised me: 'Naw, we miss it bad. We miss the comradery, the community. It bonded us together somehow. Together we could make it through, no matter what.'"

How would you describe your sound? A particular genre or mix of genres?

"To keep a loooooong story short - My mother loved the “Crooners” Bing Crosby, Jim Reeves etc. and I think I learned to sing singing along to Nat King Cole. The Beatles hit when I was seven or eight and were everything. The American singer/songwriters returned that invasion in the early seventies – John Denver, Don McClain, James Taylor, Joni Mitchell, so many, and all of a sudden, I was playing guitar (or at least trying to). Ten years, full-time doing the workmen’s clubs of South Wales and England, singing through God awful P.A. systems, choking down clouds of cigarette smoke (and the slightly more than occasional draught beer) will certainly hone your sound.

"Then to America and Country music. I spent four years playing the Honky Tonks around Austin Texas, three or four hour gigs, three or four nights a week. Then I moved to Nashville in ‘96 where I’ve sung a ton of Country demos and really, really learned how to write songs. And finally, the last few years, I’ve spent looking back over my shoulder to my real home, my childhood in Mountain Ash and the small coal mining valleys of South Wales. I sing about this now – sometimes the Welsh accent pops out. The grit and tears are just under the surface when I think back with fondness to that community, that safe, dirty, rainy, grey valley. I hear all of the above influences melding together in my voice, my songs. An overnight success? Hardly, but it’s been fun."

Is there a usual pattern to your process, ie; do you get lyrics first or melody or story? Do songs mostly come to you whole or have to be built?

"No. No real pattern, but I do recognize when the 'muse' is around. She comes and goes when she wants to - just got to make yourself available as often as possible, and don’t stop writing until she’s gone. Sometimes it’s a good topic, something you really want to write about, or maybe a great hook or title. Either way I might jot down a bunch of related ideas, but at some point I want to set that hook to music. I’ll sing it, usually with guitar, trying different melodies, rhythms etcetera, until it feels natural, conversational. There is music built into speech, I try to find it. And there, somehow, we have the key, the tempo, the groove, the genre, the seed. From there it’s just a matter of letting it grow without pruning your rose bush into a privet hedge. Some can just pour out in the time it takes to sing the damn thing, sometimes it’s months. The melody for the winning song 'Take Us Down' took a few minutes but the words percolated in my head for several months. A lot of them being honed down during a couple of 14 hours road trips – Nashville to Austin Texas. You have to keep a tape recorder with you at all times!"

Are there any musicians that you would particularly name as your influences or inspiration? Anyone you'd be happy to hear in your own music?

"It’s the singer/songwriters here on the road that I listen to now. Great performers. Great writers. They could so easily be the James Taylor or Elton John or Carole King or Buddy Holly of this generation but the U.S., and particularly it’s tight genre radio, is so difficult to break into. Please check out people like Tom Kimmel, Pearce Pettis, Dana Cooper, Darryl Scott . . . All my top 40 myspace friends."

As an artist, what work are you the happiest with, most proud of? What do you think is your best work?

"My newest song. You’ve got to be blown away by your current song or project, or why do it!"

You're in Nashville today but you're from Wales - how was it coming from Wales to the the US music scene?"

"My twin sister moved to Austin Texas in her early 20’s. She sent me, and my mother, airplane tickets to come to her wedding. I was 30, frustrated with the computers/samplers/pop music in the British charts, and the 'Your songs are too Country – try America' responses from London music publishers. I just fell in love with the Austin vibe, the climate, the evenings spent out on the front porch sitting and strumming with so many good players. It took 5 years to organize, to sell everything, but even though it probably meant sleeping in my car for awhile (and it did) I knew I had to try it. I’m so glad I did. Now I get to go back to Wales/UK a couple of times a year, and hey, I can even get the gigs back home that I never could while I lived there!"

TAKE US DOWN ©2006 ( and other songs ) by David Llewellyn
"A child's first day down a Welsh coal mine His father's feelings . . ."

Lyrics, "Take Us Down"

Take us down my friend, and quickly
Take us down lest we wise up
Take us down to make a living
Count us down, and count us up

Here is my son, who stands beside me
The pride and joy of Mountain Ash
Better hold on tight to my leg boy
This old cage goes down real fast
And I can't believe I ask you
Aw, to fill a miner's shoes
They don't make a miner's cap
For one as small as you

And with eyes as big as saucers
You stick out your little chin
And that would fill me up with pride inside
If I didn't feel so ill

Give him chance you ugly bastards
It's his first time, it's his first day
And they all stopped with all their joking
Cause they all started 'exact same way
Heed ye well those sweet gray ponies
Oh, they were once as white as snow
But they've been blinded by the darkness
They'll trample you and never know

Kneel right here, right here beside me
And catch the coal as it come loose
They're only paying for the lumps today
All the small coal ain't no use
And host it up into that hopper
So they can weigh our sweat and blood
Paying pittance for our labor
In this hell hole that we've dug

And let me host you on my shoulders
Cause this shift is nearly done
And we'll march through town triumphant
But you'll cry when you see mum

You always were a dirty muchen
But coal, it gets beneath the skin
You can scrub to wash it all away
But that's a battle you won't win
So let me dry you in this towel
'N carry you upstairs to bed
Just the way that my dad did for me
And I'll cry like my dad did

Better count those toes and fingers
Take a deep breath while you can
Best forget about that schooling
Cause today you became a man

But it cuts a deeper sorrow
Starting you off down the mine
Cause it’ll kill you soon or later
It just bides it’s own sweet time

So take us down my friend, and quickly
Take us down lest we wise up . . .
Take us down to make a living
Count us down, and count us up