Raglan Road (single)
Brad Jacobsen
2023 / Brad Jacobsen Music
4 minutes
Review by Kathy Parsons
"Raglan Road" is the second of four singles from Brad Jacobsen's forthcoming solo piano album, Celtic Piano (release date October 20, 2023). Based on a poem by Patrick Kavanagh (originally titled "On Raglan Road"), the poem was set to the music of an Irish/Celtic folk tune called "The Dawning of the Day" by Luke Kelly of The Dubliners after meeting Kavanagh in a pub in Dublin in the 1960s. The poem tells of an ill-fated love between a man and a much-younger woman who felt the age difference was too great to overcome and could not reciprocate the man's deep feelings. Brad's arrangement expresses the heartfelt emotion of the original song and poem without the use of words, conveying the feelings of loss and disappointment simply and sincerely as a piano solo. It's a gorgeous song and Brad's arrangement is exceptional!
"Raglan Road" is available from Brad's website as well as Amazon, Apple Music/iTunes and streaming services including Pandora and Spotify. Sheet music is also available! Very highly recommended!
September 4, 2023