Handful of Earth

Personnel: Dick Gaughan (vocals, guitar); Brian McNeill (fiddle); Phil Cunningham (keyboards); Stewart Isbister (acoustic & electric basses).
Includes liner notes by Dick Gaughan.
Originally released on Topic (#419) in 1981.
Fiercely political, this was the work that cemented Gaughan's reputation for outspoken topicality and burning Scots nationalism. It is a milestone and traditional music would doubtlessly be the poorer without it. The mix of vitriol and conciliation is startling: there are no punches pulled in "The World Turned Upside Down," yet contrast that with the tender "Snows They Melt The Soonest" or the hands-across-the-water brotherhood expressed in "Both Sides The Tweed." The unobtrusive, atmospheric backing allows Gaughan to range freely across the principles and influences by which he still stands as loyally to this day. A truly passionate record.