It begins with a fitting crash of thunder. After all, it's the first introduction of the Tannahill Weavers to most of the world.

The Tannies, after years of hard touring in Scotland and, gradually, a growing expanse of Europe, put out their first album in 1976. Originally a Scottish band performing Irish music, they had evolved by this time into a homeland band with a tight focus on their own nation's music. And what a treasure they've become!

Fans more familiar with the band's wealth of later albums will be most shocked by what's not on Are Ye Sleeping Maggie. Bagpipes. This is their only recording without them, and it's a glaring absence. But once you get used to it (and remember, when the album first came out, no one knew the pipes would become a Tannies mainstay), you can certainly hear the band's trademark style. (Also absent are the band's usual witty liner notes!)

The touring band had already gone through a few personnel changes, but by the time they hit the studio the band featured Roy Gullane (vocals, guitar, tenor banjo, mandolin) and Phil Smillie (flute, whistle, bodhran, backing vocals). Those two, who would form the backbone of the band through all its incarnations, were joined here by Hudson Swan (bouzouki, fiddle, glockenspiel, mandolin, backing vocals) and Dougie MacLean (fiddle, mandolin, guitar, tenor banjo, backing vocals), who would later become famous in his own right as a songwriter and solo artist.

There are no original songs or tunes on Are Ye Sleeping Maggie, but the traditional sound helped to define the Tannies in their early days and clearly directed the evolution of their music-writing abilities. Meanwhile, their arrangements were developing nicely with the material. Instrumentally, the fiddle and whistle work hard fill the role later held by the pipes, and the arrangements work nicely. The instrumental set "Hugaibh Oirbh" in particular makes excellent use of various instruments, including Swan's glock, and demonstrates just how good these fellows are at stamping their mark on traditional material.

Vocal highlights include the title track, "Birnie Bouzle," "The Gypsy Laddie" and "My Love's in Germanie."

If you're a Tannahill Weavers novice, I'd recommend dipping into their more recent releases first. But if you know and love this band (and who, knowing them, couldn't love them?), don't overlook this early example of their work.