Haborlite Music: The Wherries

The Wherries

The Wherries play traditional Scottish folk music in an informal and off-beat style that appeals to audiences of all ages, and have performed regularly throughout Scotland, mainland Europe and the USA. The Wherries unique blend of popular Scottish and Irish 'sing along' traditional Celtic folk music, Clydeside humour and abundant audience participation has won them friends and fans wherever they have performed. From venues as diverse as The Usher Hall in Edinburgh to a Scout hut in Kemnay, and from Singapore to Texas, the warmth

and intimacy of a 'Wherries' concert will raise your spirits to a new level and leave you with fond memories for years to come. An evening with The Wherries is something not to be missed.The band name is a reflection of the flat-bottomed gaff-rigged river boats known as 'Wherries' that plied the River Clyde between the 16th and 18th centuries before the current deep-water channel to Glasgow was dredged. As an alternative to the stagecoach, these vessels journeyed between Greenock and Glasgow and carried a mixed compliment of passengers, cargo and livestock. The captain and his two mates would entertain the company by singing songs, telling tall tales and occasionally leaping off the boat as it ran aground on one of the numerous sandbanks on the river. Often, passengers would be required to assist in pushing the boat off the sandbanks. It is recorded that a great assistance in undertaking such a journey was to have a drop or two of whisky. After much merriment, some even managed to finish the journey.