Brecon Beacon (1981)
1 Brecon Beacon (Rosalea) - Richard Ruane
2 Polly on the Shore - traditional lyrics, tune by Dave Pegg
3 Winter Waters / Morning Star - Michael Chorney / traditional
4 Maid of Coolmore - traditional
5 Matty Groves / Kitchen Girls - traditional
6 Return to Fingal / Lord Franklin - traditional
7 Icarus - Ralph Towner
8 Eileen - Richard Ruane
9 Improvisation / Jericho - Feast or Famine / Michael Chorney
Available for download at https://richardruane.bandcamp.com/album/brecon-beacon
Photo by Sarah “Beau” Bowman
Feast or Famine’s album “Brecon Beacon” is available once again after a long lapse. It can be downloaded online through all the usual venues as well as streamed on most streaming sites. It has been remastered by one of the original engineers on the album, Charles Eller.
The band Feast or Famine formed in Vermont in 1979 as a trio consisting of Richard Ruane, Michael Chorney, and Michael Corn. Early in 1980 Ron Rost joined the band. The instruments they played (and they were often passed around between the members) included guitars, upright bass, mandolin, mandola, dulcimer, banjo, recorders, whistles, percussion, and saxophone. They played traditional music from Ireland, the United Kingdom and America, original music, and also jazz. They were also known for their live improvisations.
They toured throughout the Northeast and the upper Midwest in the 1980s and released two recordings, “Brecon Beacon” (Philo/Fretless label) in 1981 and “Tomorrow the Birds Will Sing” (self-released cassette) in 1985. Brecon Beacon received strong airplay on folk radio, especially the title track, their version of the ballad Lord Franklin, the Ralph Towner piece Icarus, and the final track on the recording, an improvisation into the original song Jericho.
The members of Feast or Famine have performed together a few times since the band disbanded. They are all still individually active musicians, continue to be good friends, and still all live in Addison County, Vermont. Michael Chorney received a Tony Award in 2019 for his orchestration work for the Broadway musical Hadestown. He also played guitar in the band onstage in Hadestown until Broadway closed due to Covid-19.