Cowbois Rhos Botwnnog - Yn Fyw! Galeri Caernarfon (2023) Hi-Res

Cowbois Rhos Botwnnog are a folk-rock cum Americana band consisting of brothers Iwan, Aled and Dafydd Hughes from Rhos Botwnnog, in Gwynedd, Wales, and accompanying musicians and singers. Iwan Hughes is their main writer, and the songs are in Welsh.

This selection from a live show in 2020 features mainly original material with a few covers, e.g. Gan Fy Mod I by Nia Morgan. There are also some adaptations of folk songs such as Ffarwel i Langyfelach Lon, an old traditional song about a young man who bids farewell to his native village to join the British Army - here updated as an atmospheric folk-rock ballad with some fine lead guitar work containing elements that reminded me of Quicksilver guitarist John Cipollina.

The opening track, Y Ffenast (The Window), stands out as my favourite here. It's a sad song about a break-up in which the singer is kept awake by a chorus of seagulls outside his window who seem to mock his personal dramas. The arrangement is quietly melodic and Iwan's sweet singing aptly conveys a sense of melancholy.

Not far behind in my reckoning is Malu'r Ffenestri (Breaking The Windows), the second track, which starts a slow build on the album with the band playing a bigger part in the arrangement - especially notable are the backing harmonies and Euron Jones' lilting pedal steel. The lyrics refer to the tradition of attracting a lover's attention by tossing stones at her window, in this case leading to breaking the glass.

The title track from their 2010 album Dyddiau Du, Dyddiau Gwyn (Dark Days, Light Days) is described as a "carpe diem" song, and goes a bit further down the road signalled by Malu'r Ffenestri's pedal steel by moving into a toe-tapping country rhythm after Iwan Hughes's plaintive harmonica introduction.

Like The Byrds (who, I suspect, provided some inspiration for the Cowbois), the band's repertoire flows back and forth between folk-rock and country-rock - and a fine example of a song that stands astride both genres is Lle'r Awn i Godi Hiraeth (translates very, very roughly as Which Places Touch Our Hearts?). There is some fine interplay between the guitars, piano, and pedal steel and a light but solid underpinning by the rhythm section that reminded me more than a little of Fairport's Hutchens-Mattacks backline.

While some may be surprised at country music elements being incorporated into such a definitively Welsh lyric landscape, I have to say that the integration is very tastefully done and bears absolutely no comparison to the clichéd "stuck in 1980s Nashville" sound that characterises so many country-influenced bands in other parts of the "Celtic Fringe". No, Cowbois Rhos Botwnnog have a sound that has its roots more in Gram Parsons than Kenny Rogers, along with, as indicated, more than a few hints of the Fairports there too.

To sum up: an enjoyable album that features skilful playing, perfect vocal harmonies, and well-written melodic songs. A big plus, so evident on this live album, is their abilty to connect with their enthusiastic audience.