Possibly the finest instrumental and vocal band to sign for Greentrax Recordings. It is with considerable pride that we present this collection of some of the highlights of the music of Ceolbeg. Both the Band and Greentrax are very proud of what this mainly part-time band achieved over so many years and the contribution it made to the music of Scotland over almost three decades. Ceolbeg is arguably the finest instrumental and vocal band to sign for Greentrax - way back in 1991. The late Peter Boond was the only person who featured in every one of the band's many line-ups from its foundations in Dundee in the late 1970's, to the farewell concert in Edinburgh's Queen's Hall in 2003. It was Peter's determination, his vision and his drive that kept the band moving forward through all these years and he was immensely proud of that. 'Collected' is therefore dedicated to Peter Boond (1953 to 2013). Some of Scotland's finest musicians have been members of Ceolbeg for varying lengths of time, including Katie Harrigan, Wendy Stewart, Davey Carmichael, Kenny Hadden, Mike Katz, Colin Matheson, Stuart Morison, Mike Travis, Andy Thorburn, Gary West, Jim Walker and Dave Whyte. The late Davy Steele joined Ceolbeg on lead vocals after the first album (pre-Greentrax era) and later Rod Paterson replaced him. One track from the first album is included on 'Collected' and fifteen tracks have been carefully chosen from the five Greentrax albums. Ceolbeg toured at home and abroad, featured in many music festivals in the U.K. and beyond and their music, from the album 'An Unfair Dance' (CDTRAX058), was used for the soundtrack of David Bellamy's TV series, 'Crossing The Border'. The band was held in very high regard by many professional musicians and to emphasise the point, one Ceolbeg album was produced by Phil Cunningham and two by Dick Gaughan. Davy Steele's death was also a great loss to the Scottish music scene and in 2011 Greentrax released a tribute album when his widow, Patsy Seddon, invited singers and musicians who Davy had admired to contribute and 'Steele The Show' (CDTRAX358) was born.
