Measure of Dreams

Description

Measure of Dreams is the seventh album by the British/French Celtic-folk duo Rodney Cordner & Jean-Pierre Rudolph, released on Pleitegeier Records in 1996.

Being a self confessed lover of all things Celtic, I looked forward to chucking this one in the CD player. At first I didn’t think I could get into it, but after a second listen I found my foot gently tapping and my mind wandering back to home in the Outer Hebrides. Echoes of The Electrics, The Waterboys, The Crossing and even Don Francisco merge to capture a spirit of, in the words of the blurb, “healing and hope”. Clearly a very personal album, primarily apparent in Rodney’s lyrics, but the eloquent fiddle of Jean-Pierre is also very emotive, especially the instrumental pieces. Hope is clearly a major theme of the album. I feel that two lines from «Strange Master» talk of such hope: “But pain is such a small price/ To know mercy again”. However, for me, I found the re-arranging of the traditional «Spancil Hill» really soaked into my soul. A song about a man dreaming of Ireland whilst living in California, being at home in his mind. My “Ireland” is Benbecula and my “California” is Birmingham. Over all a very good album, once I got in to it, recommended for fans of Celtic authenticity. [Alastaire Reece, Cross Rhythms, April 1996]

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CD tracklist:

01. Temporary Exile the Exile Reel – 4:46
02. Spancil Hill – 3:28
03. Silent Dancer – 4:04
04. The Eviction – 5:23
05. Redemption – 2:49
06. The Long Run – 3:59
07. Strange Master – 3:09
08. Don Quifiddler’s Jig – 1:39
09. Celtic Curse – 5:56
10. Living in the Now – 2:34
11. The Unexpected Cup of Tea – 3:37
12. Backyard of Hell – 3:36
13. The Music of the Healing a Little Dream of Hope – 3:47