30/08/2026
Dolly Parton wrote the foreword to a significant book
‘Wayfaring Strangers: The Musical Voyage from Scotland and Ulster to Appalachia,’
Published by The University of North Carolina Press
by Fiona Ritchie and Doug Orr.
In 1994 I recorded a live album entitled Heartsongs: Live from Home.
My co-producer ,Steve Buckingham, and I wanted to show the close connection of Celtic music from Scotland, Ireland, England and Wales with what became bluegrass, country and old-timey mountain music.We used the finest bluegrass and acoustic musicians from the United States and combined them with one of the greatest traditional Irish groups, Altan.It was a match made in Heaven as the fiddles, guitars, and dobro a interacted with the Irish "squeezebox",uilleann pipes, whistles and bouzouki.We often found that a song known by the Irish musicians under one title would be familiar to the bluegrass musicians under another title.
One of the songs we recorded was the ancient ballad "Barbara Allen". While I sang the lyrics in English , Máiréad Ní Mhaonaigh of Altan sang the Gaelic translation (CD track 1). The combination was unbelievable.Fiona Richie and Doug Orr have captured this magic in their book, Wayfaring Stranger- a song which , by the way, we also recorded on my live album.It just goes to show that the impact and connection of this timeless and classic music will live forever.Well done!
Dolly Parton,
Nashville,
Tennessee
