Most of the tunes on The Power and the Passion are composed and/or arranged by Andrew Warren. Andrew is a very talented writer and arranger. The sub-title of this CD is Contemporary Accordion and Pipe Music, and Andrew does indeed bring a freshness and lightness of touch to what is in essence Scottish music without losing sight of his musical roots. Many of his compositions will around for a long time to come, a sure sign of the empathy of the composer with the wider musical tradition, I consider this a fine achievement indeed.

Andrew plays Piano Accordion, Highland Bagpipes and Scottish Smallpipes. He is joined by Keith Dickson on Piano, Keyboards, and second Accordion, Steve Lawrence on Guitars, Bouzouki, and Percussion, Tom Martone on Pipe Snare and Niall Lee on Bodhran. Together they produce a well balanced integrated and often subtle sound and they maintain the music's integrity throughout the whole programme. Nothing is lost by repeated playing, in fact the musicians are so 'together' and the arrangements so good that the attentive listener will be rewarded with something new and exciting each time.

This is Andrew Warren's debut album but I am sure there will be many more to come, you can't subdue all round talent like his. Altogether a very praiseworthy release. I would urge you to give yourself a treat and give The Power and the Passion a listen.