Howling Gael - The Sailor's Alphabet

Here is a grand tune from the album Second Wind. This classic seafaring tune is performed with such passion and precision by the always enjoyable Howling Gael.

I chose a selections of my coastal and ship photos to accompany this song and show the Pacific Northwest as it is today, while summoning thoughts of the sailing days of old.

Howling Gael, a folk music group from Portland, Oregon, released two albums on vinyl in the late 1970's on the small Grassroots Music label and became very popular amongst the locals and abroad. Their musicianship is exceptional and very pleasing to the ears of anyone who enjoys Irish and Old English folk music.

The recordings are very rare and much sought after; hopefully whoever has the masters will someday release all of their work on compact disc and more people will be able to experience the lost magic of this incredibly talented group.

Category:

Music

Tags:

• sailors alphabet
• the sailor's alphabet
• howling gael
• second wind
• Bob Kotta
• Rant and Roar
• Robin Banks
• Mary Benson
• Irish Folk Music
• irish music video
• portland folklore society
• Patrick Salsich
• Robin McRevey
• Paul Susen
• Lex Browning
• howling gale
• marcia park
• paul susen
• jan deweese
• sylvia hackathorn
• oregon coast video
• vancouver washington

[TheJustinMansfield]

Did you use anything to clean up the audio on this? Or is it straight off the LP?

I've been using Adobe Audition to clean up the pops and clicks and filter out some other noise with pretty good results, the only iffy thing is always the speed.

[rovingrepairbot]

@TheJustinMansfield I don't know if anything was used to clean up the audio; these are from two CD's purchased on a website that made them directly from the records. I think they may have cleaned up the audio, but I don't know.

[patricksalsich]

I doubt there is muchr demand for a full blown remake CD of the lps... but who knows? Maybe I will explore the idea.... or better yet, maybe you'd like to make a DVD with your nice images and a few shots of the band members, if I can find them... and you can see if anyone bites...

[rovingrepairbot]

@patricksalsich Well, I have gotten several comments from original fans and new fans have been made with these uploads. I think there is a lot more demand out there than one might think. The musicianship and caliber of the songs has always been remarked to me by lovers of this genre of music to be among the very best and most sought after by collectors. I would love to contribute to a DVD! Add me as a contact so I can send you my email address and we can discuss this further!

[patricksalsich]

That's me singing lead... Robin (accordion) used to joke.. "give sailors a dog and there's nothin goes wrong"... ah those were the days...

[rovingrepairbot]

@patricksalsich Love your vocals on this! Give sailors a dog! Haha! My mother saw Howling Gael live 4 or 5 times in Portland back in the day. Thanks for watching these! I am working on uploading many more. Am very glad you approve!

[dhog41]

@patricksalsich Great sound, Patrick. Takes me back to my roots. There's a bigger audience for this out there than you might think. I know I'd definately buy a cd. :::smiles:::

[TheJustinMansfield]

@patricksalsich I grew up listening to this music! I was born in 78, my parents used to go hear you guys, Copperfield, Wild Geese and some others around Portland back then. I've actually been digitizing these LPs to preserve this excellent music in my own collection (so my kids can grow up with it too). Do you know if someone might ever release "Rant & Roar" and "Second Wind" on CD?

[rovingrepairbot]

@KARENK72886 Thank you! Matey-ette! Yes, I was fortunate to be in the right place at the right time for that shot. Thanks for the kind words and appreciation! I am touched!

[KARENK72886]

Great video and the music is so well spliced and mixed with the imagery! Matey-o, you've done a good job! So loving the shots at 1:31 & 4:15! Nice, sweeping. Even the grey, doesn't detract! Looks like a big reclamation job? The ship 'on' the wooden framing is fantastic photography! Ahoy! Great share! Thanks yet again, rovingmeister!