It may surprise even the most devoted of Irish music fans to learn that Dervish existed B.C.J. -- Before Cathy Jordan.

It's true, although it's not easy to prove. The Boys of Sligo, the band's first album, features five Sligo men showing their stuff on 13 sizzling instrumental tracks -- with nary a voice to be heard. To the best of my knowledge, this disc is a rare commodity; I was fortunate to find one lone copy buried in the racks of a Galway music store. Dervish barely even acknowledges its existence on their website, mentioning it only in passing as the thing which came before Jordan's arrival in 1991 and their first "legitimate" album, Harmony Hill, in 1992.

But discounting the very noticeable absence of Jordan's sterling vocals, The Boys of Sligo successfully shows a band at the beginnings of greatness. The sound isn't as full as they'd achieve in later years, and the arrangements aren't always as clever ... but if you want to hear why Dervish made it to the forefront of Irish traditional music, all you need to do is listen to these boys go.

The band is Liam Kelly on flute and tin whistles, Shane Mitchell on accordion, Martin McGinley on fiddle and viola, Brian McDonagh on mandola, mandolin and bouzouki, and Michael Holmes on guitar and bouzouki. It says something about the musicians' rapport and staying power when you realize that four of the five -- Kelly, Mitchell, McDonagh and Holmes -- are still with Dervish on their 2000 release Midsummer's Night. OK, so they're not the longest-lived band in Irish music history, but 10 years is certainly nothing to sneeze at.

Each musician on The Boys of Sligo gets a chance to shine. The whistle soars, for instance, on "Thos Byrnes/The Man of Aran." The accordion leads the way on "Jacksons/The Cliffs of Glencolumbkille." The fiddle takes over for "The Raphoe Reel/The Chestnut Tree." And so on.

Sure, I'd recommend picking up the band's later albums -- with Jordan providing excellent vocals along with the usual selection of amazing instrumentals -- but Dervish completists won't be alone in enjoying The Boys of Sligo. Anyone with an appreciation for strong musicianship will find this collection of tunes more than satisfying.