The Benachally Ceilidh Band

The Benachally Ceilidh Band are a group of highly experienced and versatile musicians based in rural Scotland. Consisting of two fiddles, accordion, banjo, drums and guitar, the band plays a refreshing mixture of celtic music predominantly from Scotland and Ireland. Featuring former members of Silly Wizard, Capercaillie, The Dougie MacLean Band, An Teallach, The Loose Moose Ceilidh Band and Heritage they boast numerous BBC Radio Scotland broadcasts such as Take The Floor, Travelling Folk, Mr Anderson’s Fine Tunes and the Reel Blend.

The band members are:

Jim Leighton - midi accordion, piano. Jim was previously a member of An Teallach and The Loose Moose Ceilidh Band. He is responsible for putting together most of the band's tunes sets.

Pete Clark - fiddle. Pete is well known as a solo fiddler, his debut CD 'Fiddlecase' was chosen as one of 1996's albums of the year on BBC Scotland's 'Travelling Folk'. His new CD 'Even Now' features the music of Niel Gow. He has been a member of several bands including Heritage and Smeddum.

Martin MacLeod - fiddle. An original member of Capercaillie (look out for him on the 'Crossroads' album), Martin is originally from the Oban area, and is an accomplished string bass player. The twin fiddles of Martin and Pete are a distinctive feature of the band's sound.

Martin Hadden - guitar, electric bass. Martin was a member of Silly Wizard for 12 years, mainly playing electric bass. He has returned to playing music after a break of a few years.

Jake Donnelly - banjo, mandolin, vocals. Jake was a founder member of the popular An Teallach Ceilidh Band. He is the band's on -stage spokesman, and an experienced dance caller.

Martin Dibbs - drums. The third 'Martin' in the band has been involved in a variety of diverse musical projects including jazz, rock, dance. He was also a member of the original Dougie MacLean Band.