Leaving Friday Harbor

Scottish music can be famously rousing, and with a name like the Battlefield Band, you might expect nonstop bagpipe tunes and war songs. Instead, on this album, the band specializes in delicate instrumental suites, ballads, and the occasional nostalgic song about lost country life. The pipes do play, but with a more lyrical tone than can be imagined by anyone who thinks of the instrument as just a part of a pipe-and-drum band. Indeed, the pairing of the pipe with tin whistle and fiddle on the title track is marvelous, even soothing. Of course, there are some rousing numbers, like "One More Chorus," a great little showoff piece for fiddler John McCusker. The band plays everything with the grace and authority that comes from long experience and a whole lot of talent in the same place, making Leaving Friday Harbor a must-have for fans of Scottish music with contemporary flair.