SHAMAN took the stage last Saturday night at the Sun Mountain Cafe of Greenwich Village with the spirit of the ages. Their hippie Celtic/rock vibrations emanate from as far back as 1066 A.D., and when coupled with their driving modern folk rock, produce a chillingly ageless sound.

From the first moment Brahm Stuart strokes his wild bow across his fiddle strings, SHAMAN comes alive. Gravel Walk Set, a fitting instrumental Celtic collection of old Irish folk rhythms and melodies, set the Sun Mountain ablaze with SHAMAN's prancing, driving sound.

From the outset, this tight consort captivated the Saturday night crowd. The fine mandolin strumming and plucking of Deirdre Stuart, along with the restless bass and rhythms of John Heney and Bob LePre, respectively, with James Karcher on guitar, coalesce as their "Earth Music" unfolds itself.

The King Came Down, derived from a thirteenth century medieval tune, was Brahm's vocal opener, and a strong one it was with Debora Thomas trilling on her magic flute.

The combination house and road sound system seemed to bust a fuse preceding this moving song, but nevertheless the distinctly beautiful harmonies shone through as Deirdre's first vocal number of the evening, I Believe, sent her enchantingly powerful voice across the room with the steady strumming of her guitar.

The momentum of the first set continued to build through Little Maggie, Hiroshima Nagasaki Russian Roulette (Jim Page), I am the Ocean's Daughter, The Green Man, Geese in the Bog set, Anita Macbeth, and then showered down on the Sun Mountain crowd with this writer's favorite - The Revenge of the Earth.

The second set was truly a unique SHAMAN departure as the band complemented their rockin' regulars such as Can I Know You, When the World Falls Down, and Son of a Son, with their own versions of traditional song and tune, Here's a Health and The Butterfly, and Can't You See (Marshal Tucker Band). The set was rounded out with the High Reel Set, immediately preceded by the lovely Child of the Sun, written by Deirdre on March 18th 1990 - inspired by the birth of Brahm and Debora's then 18 day old daughter, Merlynda.

The Sun Mountain Cafe is a new setting for SHAMAN, whose socially conscious lyrics, set against a Celtic/folk/background appeal to the universal feelings there.

SHAMAN is not just a band, they are a gift of music, of life, and of love - for Mother Earth and all her children.