I wasn't sure The World's Room by Old Blind Dogs was ever going to get reviewed.

I took the CD to my car for an initial impression. But, once the disc was in my car stereo, it didn't want to come out. It remained in a steady rotation for quite a few weeks, and it was only my dedication to duty which forced me to bring it inside for this write-up.

This Scottish band has been around for 10 years, and it amazes me that they escaped my attention for so long. Fortunately, Green Linnet sent this 1999 release my way and rectified that problem. But those already familiar with the band shouldn't expect more of the same old Dogs -- a few changes in the line-up have revamped their sound.

Formed in 1990 by three boys from Aberdeenshire -- Ian Benzie, Jonny Hardie and Buzzby McMillan -- plus percussionist Davy Cattanach, the band retained that core group through six years and four albums. They became a quintet in 1996 with the addition of Fraser Fifield on the Scottish small pipes and soprano saxophone. The Dogs were shaken up in 1999, however, with only Hardie and McMillan remaining, and with newcomers Jim Malcolm, Paul Jennings and Rory Campbell filling out the roster.

In the new line-up, Malcolm replaces Benzie as lead vocalist, and plays guitar and harmonica. Hardie provides the band with fiddle, guitar, mandolin, bouzouki and backing vocals, McMillan adds bass, cittern and backing vocals, Campbell handles the whistle, Border pipes and backing vocals, and Jennings takes care of percussion, wielding the djembe, conga and other beat-makers.

Their first recording as the new Old Blind Dogs begins with style. The rousing traditional song "To the Beggin' I Will Go" takes a happy approach to the life of leisure this particular beggar enjoys. It proves the band's instrumentation to be tight, their arrangements fresh and Malcolm's singing -- in a thick Scots dialect -- to be strong. They flex their playing muscles a bit more for "The Branle," a Scottish dance set beginning with a concentrated dose of Campbell's pipes before kicking over into a fiddle spotlight which sounds like Hardie has a dose of Gypsy influence in his playing. As the fiddle and pipes compete for attention and all but Campbell add a wordless vocal line in the background, the tune develops an almost Middle Eastern flavor.

"Forfar Sodger" begins with such an enticing flute-and-drum duet, I was almost disappointed when the rest of the band chimed in -- fortunately, the song was good enough to appease me. Sung likewise in heavy dialect, it tells of a rural lad who hopes for an easy life of soldiering and ends up battling Napolean's troops at Waterloo. The Dogs slow things down a bit for the romantic ballad "Mill o' Tifty" which, like many Scots romances, ends sadly.

After another lively instrumental set, "Bannockburn Road," which sandwiches an original tune by Campbell between a few traditionals, the band showcases "Battle of Waterloo." Performed to the tune of a traditional pipe march of the same name, this somber song features lyrics by Malcolm about the pain caused both on the battlefield and at home. Hardie's gorgeous fiddle harmony adds chills. The mood is broken by another cheerful Campbell pipe tune, "Soup of the Day." Malcolm's harmonica jumps into the tune in the middle with splash and flair, leading to a climactic pipe-and harmonica duet. Then "Roslin Castle" softens things up again; it's a lovely tune for fiddle, whistle and guitar.

"Edward" is another song in which the dialect is so thick that non-natives may have to rely on the liner notes for the meaning. I certainly didn't realize before reading the lyrics that this energetic dialogue between mother and son detailed a patricide! The final track, "The Ritual," begins with a laid-back Campbell tune before again kicking into high gear.

Anyone who, like me, missed out on the Old Blind Dogs in their early years, should take this opportunity to jump on the bandwagon. The band is in top form and seems eager to show off a few new tricks.