Disclaimer: This file was last updated in about 1996 or 1997. Since then, much of the band has changed, so take this as a mostly historical view of Tempest at one stage of their journey!
The band official site is at:
http://www.tempestmusic.com
Profile: Tempest
Tempest is celtic-rock/folk group based in the San Francisco area combining a standard rock group line up with fiddle and electric mandolin.
Lineup
Lief Sorbye of Norway is lead singer and plays an eclectic double-neck electric mandolin. He founded Tempest in 1988 after 8 years with the folk group Golden Bough, and some time in Ireland. He has also recorded two solo albums (at least one of them, Across the Borders, is available from Firebird).
Rob Wullenjohn is a blues/rock guitarist, from San Francisco, who also plays with a cover band called, funnily enough, "No Cover".
Adolfo Lazo, originally from Cuba, and then Spain is the percussionist. When Tempest's original drummer failed to show for their first gig, he was drafted in from another band playing at the same time, and has been with them ever since.
Ian Butler, on bass, is from San Diego, of Irish ancestry. His sister Margie was a founding member of Golden Bough.
Jon Berger (ex.), a traditional fiddle-player from Boulder, Colorado is the newest recruit, with the band since February 1993. He is on the net (jonb@ingres.com) and is a frequent contributor to rec.music.celtic.
Discography
1991 Bootleg
1992 Serrated Edge
1993 Sunken Treasures
1994 Surfing to Mecca
1995? Turn of the Wheel Magna Carta
I don't currently have label info, but all are available from Firebird, at (800) 752-0494 or (503) 239-9941, or directly from the band (2155 Park Blvd., Ste.1, Oakland, CA 94606, (510)452-5084)). Firebird also sell a bunch of Tempest-obilia, including T-shirts, mugs and bandanas.
Bootleg is a mix of alternative rock and trad rock, Serrated Edge veers much more to the traditional edge; it was written as a tie-in with a series of fantasy books of the same name by Mercedes Lackey, but stands well on it's own. Sunken Treasures is a recent compilation of earlier unpublished stuff (including some tracks from their demo tape, Celtic Rock, which was released for a while on cassette), including every lineup of the band bar the current one.
Brief Update
As of Feb 1996, Jon Berger had left (for law school!) and original fiddler Michael Mullen is back in the band; a new album "Turn of the Wheel" is in the works, and they have also contributed a track to the new Jethro Tull tribute album "To Cry You a Song".
Track Listings
Bootleg
- Heather on the Moor
- Soldier Song
- Handsome Molly
- Wild Rover
- Desert Eyes
- Captain Morgan
- Same Side of the Fence
- Dance of the Third Leg
- Heart of Mine
- Man Withour a Name
Sunken Treasures
- Queen of Argyll
- Nottamun Town
- Milligan's Fancy
- When Tenskwatawa Sings
- Cat in the Corner
- The Creel
- Barrow Man
- Baladi
- One Last Cold Kiss
- Heavy Nettles
- And Shall Trelawny Die?
- Black Jack Davy
- Winding Road
- Parting Glass
Serrated Edge
- Hal-an-Tow
- Taggle Taggle Gypsy
- A Kiss in the Morning Early
- Reels on Fire
- The Hose Carpenter
- Whiskey in the Jar
- Dark Lover
- Tam Lin
- Mad Tom of Badlam
- The Ballydesmond Set
Surfing to Mecca
- Top of the Hill (Sorbye/Wullenjohn)
- You Jacobites by Name (trad.)
- On the Road (Sorbye)
- Spring Carol (Berger)
- Manifest Destiny (Butler)
- Surfing to Mecca (Wullenjohn)
- Green-Eyed Irish Girl (Butler)
- The Sleeping Highlander (trad.)
- Early Winter (Wullenjohn/Reynolds)
- Take You to the Well (Butler)
Copyright (c) 1994,1996 Ceolas.
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