The High Level,Claddagh Records ***

There’s an inherent buoyancy in the music of Clare accordion and melodeon player Bobby Gardiner that makes it ideal for dancers. Gardiner’s unquenchable sense of rhythm sets him apart as a player with charisma and chutzpah in equal measure. The Kilfenora Céilí Band veteran conjures a rich patchwork collection of tunes, tracing a picaresque pathway from Kilrush (where he first heard The Wind That Shakes the Barley, played by Mrs Crotty on concertina) to Limerick, Belfast and on to France for the delightful Bourrasque Waltz. Gardiner allows plenty of space to infiltrate his accordion, particularly on The North Shore hornpipe and Ré Nuaon, the latter a delicate slow air composed by his daughter, Kelley. At times the piano accompaniment gets lost in the mix, but inventive use of banjo, bodhrán, harp and fiddle keep the tunes high-stepping all the way home.

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