Coppers & Brass

Released in 1977 on Topic Records, Coppers & Brass stands as a singular entry in Dick Gaughan's discography. While Gaughan is celebrated as a premier folk singer and political firebrand, this album is entirely instrumental, focusing exclusively on his revolutionary guitar technique. Gaughan adapted traditional pipe and fiddle tunes - notoriously difficult to translate to the guitar - using a flatpicking style that emphasized the percussive 'snap' of the music. The recording is famously dry and intimate, eschewing reverb to highlight the natural resonance of the instrument. Critically, it is regarded as one of the most influential acoustic guitar albums of the 1970s, bridging the gap between traditional Celtic music and the burgeoning fingerstyle and flatpicking movements. It captures Gaughan at a technical peak, proving that his 'fierce' reputation was as much about his hands as it was his voice.