The Gentle Light That Wakes Me

  1. John Kelly
    John Kelly
    I was sure that someone must have previously posted this lovely slow air written by Phil Cunningham, but can find no mention of it in any past threads, so here is my version, played on mandolin, guitar and keyboard.

    Photos are all courtesy of a great website I found, Unsplash. I have acknowledged the individual photographers in the closing credits (after the problems Ginny had recently in another posting of Carrickfergus) and seem to have attracted no adverse reactions yet!

  2. Bertram Henze
    Bertram Henze
    Lovely, John, and the use of a keybord was a tradition with Silly Wizard, the band Phil Cunningham used to be with if I remember correctly.
  3. Frithjof
    Frithjof
    I enjoyed your recording, John. You did a great job in performing the composition of Phil Cunningham.

    You produced a beautiful video using the photos of some artists unknown to me until this video. In my opinion we should indeed be careful with the author’s rights of others. Like the composer they did a good job. Otherwise we wouldn’t use their creative work.
  4. Ginny Aitchison
    Ginny Aitchison
    Absolutely love this, John. Great use of the different instruments suits the theme perfectly.
  5. Simon DS
    Simon DS
    Very nice John, and the photos are spectacular.
  6. Christian DP
    Christian DP
    Great mix of instruments and pictures!
  7. John Kelly
    John Kelly
    Thanks, all of you. I first encountered this tune when I was asked to deliver the eulogy at the cremation of a close friend about eight years ago. He had requested that this be played (the version by Phil Cunningham and fiddler Ali Bain) during the ceremony and ever since then it has held a special place in my heart. I had never got around to trying to record it although I had played it several times with various other musicians.

    Phil tells the story of being on holiday abroad in either Portugal or Spain and being awakened VERY early by the sun streaming through his hotel window. He said he did not feel particularly gentle towards that sun at the unearthly hour it was rousing him, but the tune came to him anyway.
  8. Brian560
    Brian560
    Great recording John, perfect in both your playing and arangement
  9. John Kelly
    John Kelly
    Thanks, Brian.
  10. Martin Jonas
    Martin Jonas
    Here is another Phil Cunningham tune I have recorded this weekend, using Nigel Gatherer's setting. This one has a cello part, which I have played on mandocello:

    https://www.nigelgatherer.com/tunes/...ntL/GentLc.pdf

    1898 Giuseppe Vinaccia mandolin
    Suzuki MC-815 mandocello
    Vintage Viaten tenor guitar


    https://youtu.be/Sw6wq59Emk0

    Thanks also for John's lovely version from 2020, which I must have missed at the time. Like with "When Summer Comes", my tempo is a bit slower than John's.

    Martin
  11. John Kelly
    John Kelly
    Well played there, Martin. Already just over two years since I started this thread. A timely revival of Phil's great tune, and of Nigel's arrangement. He has so much great material on his site.
  12. Frithjof
    Frithjof
    Mandolin and mandocello do a good job together, Martin.
  13. John W.
    John W.
    Just catching up with events at the cafe…2 lovely versions of another Phil Cunningham offering…he’s popular at the moment, and rightly so!
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