Can anyone reccomend some Celtic music?

[Taverner]

I love the whole Fairport Convention/Sandy Denny sound, and love when they go more traditional.

That would be Celtic music, no?

Any recommendations?

[Adsos Letter]

1. The soundtrack from "Last of the Mohicans"

has a couple of beautiful Celtic cuts on it. Does Enya work for you, or is that too adulterated (or just too old)?

[Taverner]

2. I'll check that out. I like the more traditional insturments

Although the Guitar is not a traditional Celtic instrument :)

[WildEyedLiberal]

3. Not quite traditional Celtic but Loreena McKennitt is one of my favorite artists

All of her albums are great but the most evocatively "Celtic" one to my mind is "The Book of Secrets."

Edited to add that if you like traditional instruments you'd probably like Loreena McKennitt. She plays a lot of the instruments herself, including the piano, harp, lyra, and oud.

[Adsos Letter]

5. I'll second that...we have a couple of her CD's...

...:thumbsup:...

[idgiehkt]

17. me too

She does an incredibly haunting version of "The Highwayman" that I can't listen to without getting chills.

[steelemagnolia]

40. She is awesome!

[qdemn7]

42. I love Loreena McKennitt!!!!

The woman is simply a living treasure. I don't know all the awards Canada has but she should be nominated for all of them.

I also like Solas especially "The Poisonjester's Mask"

Antje Duvekot; arranged by Seamus Egan, Winifred Horan, Mick McAuley, Deidre Scanlon, Donal Clancy, Dave West & Neil Dorfsman

"The Poisonjester's Mask"

There was tear gas in the poisonjester's mask
Shed a tear, dear, for the clown
Tried to fight fire with water
It went down on the ten o'clock news

I bought the paper and walked back to where I'd parked
The man on the movie theater steps
Can always find his needle
But I wonder where's the thread?

Chorus:
How much more can we bare
'Til the way is paved?
For the revolution
There'll be nothing left unchanged

Tonight I'm tired and I'm worn, so I consent
To cede control to the remote
To wrap me in its airtight void
And keep me from my own

(Chorus)

For the revolution
There'll be nothing left unchanged

We fight just wars and we build just walls
We raise cities and make cities fall
We raise children and we write their names
On granite walls, we don't like losing games

(Chorus)

http://www.geocities.com/celticlyricscorner/index.htm

http://www.solasmusic.com/

[supernova]

4. Catch Thistle and Shamrock on NPR

on Sunday evenings. Fiona Ritchie started out at a radio station in Charlotte close to 20 years ago. She moved back to scotland a while back to be closer to the source. Beautiful show.

http://www.npr.org/programs/thistle/

[Redstone]

8. Seconded. You'll find no better source.

Redstone

[supernova]

13. Glad to see you're a fan

too Redstone. :thumbsup:

[Redstone]

14. I've been listening to Ms Fiona for 25 years or so. We go way back, even though

she doesn't know it.

Redstone

[supernova]

15. LOL!

:D

Same here.

[idgiehkt]

18. I love it

That is my favorite show on NPR.

[greatauntoftriplets]

6. The Chieftans are great.

They've been around for ages.

[SeattleGirl]

16. I love the Chieftans. Got to see them live here in Seattle once.

It was such a fun show! I love their music.

[RebelOne]

44. The Lord of the Dance and River Dance videos are great.

I love Michael Flatley.

[alarimer]

7. I also recommend the Irish and Celtic music podcast

You can find it on itunes. A lot of lesser known bands and artists but good.

[hellbound-liberal]

9. I second the recommendation for the Chieftains. I know they are not obscure enough for many people

to appreciate but they do Celtic music very well. One of my favorite Chieftains albums is Tears of Stone with Bonnie Raitt, Mary-Chapin Carpenter, Loreena McKennitt, Joan Osborne, Joni Mitchell, Sinead O'Connor, Sissell and Diana Krall whose voice will send chills down your spine when you hear her sing Danny Boy. It also includes songs by the Corrs and the rankin family. This album cayused me to go out and buy four new albums by people who I had never heard before. I can't recommend it highly enough!

[steelemagnolia]

41. I knew you were going to pick them!

[KatyaR]

51. I LOVE the Rankin Family, and the Chieftains, too.

I'm gonna go check out that Irish and Celtic Music podcast . . . .

[hellbound-liberal]

65. I know that if I ever make it through the Golden Gates, the angels will

sound exactly like the Rankin Sisters! They have the sweetest harmonies I have ever heard!

[GOPisEvil]

10. Try the Greencards.

Celtic-ish. Late of Austin; now on to Nashville, I think.

[two gun sid]

11. Ron Kavana and The Alien Acoustic Band...

His CD, Irish Songs of Rebellion, Resistance and Reconciliation, is outstanding. He does some great oul songs with a twist.

If you want something right now and free try: http://www.live365.com/stations/celticmelt1

[greendog]

12. Altan

Great female singer, Mairead Ni Mhaonaigh, and a fine band. I like the CD Harvest Storm.

[nytemare]

19. Afro Celt Sound System.

Pipes and African drums, nice mix.

Sarah McLachlan's earlier music had a celtic feel to it.

[BuddhaGirl]

27. I'll second Afro Celt Sound System!

Awesome group - I listen to their CD's quite often.

[nytemare]

61. They have done songs with Peter Gabriel, and Sinead O'Conner.

I like those songs.

:hi:

[SPKrazy]

20. Sunday, Bloody Sunday!

U2

Well they are celtic, as in Irish.

:rofl:

[Metta]

21. Here's authentic, Celtic folk rock.

Steeleye Span, great vocals and playing. Traditional tunes plugged in and played with passion and commitment. Early sides feature the guitar playing of Martin Carthy. All sides feature the heavenly voice of Maddy Prior.

Albion Country Band - seminal, traditional based folk rock band. Members went on to work with Fairport, et.al.

Pentangle - star, traditional based folk rock band. Founding members Bert Jansch and John Renbourne on guitars and vocal with Jaquie McShee on vocals.

For the next generation of traditional based folk rock, check out Irish bands Planxty and the Bothy Band. For Scottish folk rock, check out Silly Wizard and the Tanahill Weavers though the Tannies are more traditional and less rock.

If you're looking for a side of wonderfully evocative, sweet and mellow Celtic music, I heartily recommend you track down a copy of The Queen's Minstrel by Theresa Shroeder-Sheker on Windham Hill. Well worth the effort.

Check out www.allmusic.com for reviews of various discs.

[mvd]

22. The Corrs - Home

They do some traditional Irish songs. All of their albums are fantastic, but Home is their most Celtic album.

I second Loreena McKennitt for a taste of Celtic. Kate Rusby also has Celtic touches in her folk music.

[CBHagman]

23. In no particular order...

Get a copy of the Baltimore Consort's The Mad Buckgoat. It's traditional Irish music. And if you like that, check out their other albums, which feature all kinds of traditional ballads, dances, etc., from various parts of Europe but particularly England, Scotland, and Ireland.

The following people may incorporate one or more music styles/influences/genres. Loreena McKennitt, for example, is influenced by North African, French, Irish, English, and other traditions, and Cathie Ryan sometimes has a touch of country. A lot of it depends on the album. They're all worth your time:

Cathie Ryan
Mary Black
Kate Rusby
Clannad
the Pogues
the Waterboys
Gaelic Storm
the Clancy Brothers
Sharon Shannon
Dolores Keane

John McDermott is effective when he uses spare, simple arrangements.

Clannad has done a fair amount of soundtrack work (I haven't checked, but they're probably on IMDB) and their songs also turn up in commercials!

And the Chieftains are masters.

[Bridget Burke]

45. Linking North African & Irish music makes a lot of sense.

From the publishers of The Atlantean Irish: Ireland's Oriental & Maritime Heritage, by Bob Quinn. (NOTE: "Atlantean" refers to communities linked by the Atlantic Ocean--not "Atlantis"!)

Irish identity is best understood from a maritime perspective. For eight millennia the island has been a haven for explorers, settlers, colonists, navigators, pirates and traders, absorbing goods and peoples from all points of the compass. The reduction of the islanders to the exclusive category 'Celtic' has persisted for three hundred years, and is here rejected as impossibly narrow. No classical author ever described Ireland's inhabitants as 'Celts', and neither did the Irish so describe themselves until recent times. The islanders' sea-girt culture has been crucially shaped by Middle Eastern as well as by European civilizations, by an Islamic heritage as well as a Christian one. The Irish language itself has antique roots extended over thousands of years' trading up and down the Atlantic seaways.

www.lilliputpress.ie/listbook.html?oid=2733139

Quinn started his quest when he noted similarities between the sean nos singing of Conamara & Moroccan music. He's an inspired amateur, not an academic. But Barry Cunliffe (AKA Sir Barrington Windsor Cunliffe CBE, Professor of European Archaeology at Oxford) wrote the introduction to this edition.

But I'll go along with using "Celtic" to identify certain styles of music. I like many mentioned on this thread.

Yes, the Chieftains are wonderful; and they've played with musicians around the world. How about The Chieftains in China?

The Dubliners were quite different--rowdy pub singers going several steps beyond The Clancy Brothers of my youth. They were a big inspiration for The Pogues, who in turn influenced Irish-American groups like Black 47, Flogging Molly & The Dropkick Murphys. (Not for your mellow moods.)

Richard Thompson was a founding member of Fairport Convention & he continues to make amazing music. Pour Down Like Silver is a wonderful collection with "traditional" instrumental backing--from several traditions. (But he can rock out, too.)
www.richardthompson-music.com/album.asp?id=8

[Mz Pip]

24. Clannad

They are pretty good.

Mz Pip
:dem:

[Katina]

63. I love Clannad

for a more modern sound, Solas is good too.

[Prisoner_Number_Six]

25. I'm partial to Mary Black, myself

Try "Babes In The Wood" for starters.

http://www.mary-black.net/

[KT2000]

35. Second that

she has a great voice.

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

68. Agreed

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wd022t_UA3s&NR=1

[volstork]

26. Some favorites:

Bothy Band
Capercaillie
Dougie McLean
Nightnoise
The Tannahill Weavers

[Jade Fox]

28. Laura Love.....

She's an African American woman who does Celtic/African music. Interesting, to say the least!

http://www.google.com/musica?aid=iA065p1IrrH&sa=X&oi=music&ct=result

[ironflange]

29. Hang in there a bit

I hear Larry Bird has an album coming out next month. . .

[appal_jack]

30. excellent rec's so far...

Especially Bothy Band, Waterboys, Steeleye Span, etc.

I'll add Christy Moore. Sometimes called Ireland's Bob Dylan, he combines conscious and humorous original lyrics with traditional Irish folk sounds.

I'm not sure whether he's around any more or not. The disc I have of his is an 81-91 greatest hits. Excellent stuff if you can find it...

My local groovy radio station: 88.7 WNCW, has a Sunday afternoon Celtic program, Celtic Winds, that I basically plan my weekend around. I try to be home or in the truck between noon and three. It can also be heard at wncw.org

-app

[mohinoaklawnillinois]

48. Christy's still around and going strong..

Here's his website: http://www.christymoore.com/index.php

[havocmom]

31. Check out KXCI - community radio from Tucson

http://www.kxci.com/ Listen on the web. Check out the schedule

First hour of their Acoustic Alternative show on Saturday mornings always has interesting Celtic music you won't hear just any ol where. Great place to get new artists to try. It would start at 11 AM Eastern Daylight Time, I believe.

Global Rhythm Radio on Thursday evenings is usually interesting too.

Great radio station. LOTS of good music for lots of tastes. Fun place to explore. NEVER boring.

[idgiehkt]

32. on the off-chance that you might like to hear some percussive dance

here is a band that a friend of mine used to be in (she is the singer)

http://www.amazon.com/He-Didnt-Dance-Cucanandy/dp/B00000JSYV/ref=sr_1_1/105-2334326-8064422?ie=UTF8&s=music&qid=1182487141&sr=8-1

these are bare bones celtic folk songs that just showcase the percussive dancer, not a lot of bells and whistles


edit: a sample with just music and dancer
http://www.amazon.com/gp/music/wma-pop-up/B00000JSYV001001/ref=mu_sam_wma_001_001

a sample with Stephanie's vocal (swoon)
http://www.amazon.com/gp/music/wma-pop-up/B00000JSYV001002/ref=mu_sam_wma_001_002/105-2334326-8064422

[GoddessOfGuinness]

33. Kate Rusby

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JgidfxhVAFU
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_7V7m265QHQ
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5AjblYI9KEY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RFl03bXrSMk

[LSK]

34. how about this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4leJ39TbEGo

[KitchenWitch]

36. Any Chieftains!

Clannad is another good Celtic group.

[Buttercup McToots]

37. Willie McCulloch

Willie McCulloch


Broadjam URL:
http://www.broadjam.com/WillieMcCulloch

my fave...:)

[LostinVA]

38. Glengarry Bhoys

[necso]

39. Here are a few,

of approximate genre (excluding previously mentioned artists... hopefully):

Connie Dover; De Dannan; The Dubliners; Enya (some more traditional); Mary McLaughlin; The Wolfe Tones.

Maddy Prior (Dance on the Wind*) is maybe more English folk; but sounds similar.

*:
I soar with the drafts and balance on the wind.
Coal black and at ease.
I drop; I swoop; I loop the loop,
Tumbling above the trees.
I drop; I swoop; I loop the loop,
Tumbling above the trees.
My partner for life well matches my flight,
Through weather sharp or fair.
We dip and dive a drunken jive,
Falling as a pair.
We dip and dive a drunken jive,
Falling as a pair.
My games in the cloud, a pirouette, a dance,
Pure fun and glee.
To fall on air without a care,
Joyfully flying free.
To fall on air without a care,
Joyfully flying free.

While on the subject.

"Raven Girl" -- Richard and Mimi Farina

Now roam away, my Raven Girl,
And roam away from me.
And find a typhoon in the sky,
And find a howling sea.
And beat your wild and roving wings,
And toss your raven hair.
And sing a mad and joyous song,
And leave me with the dead.
The night's a cold and barren place,
The darkness seldom lies.
The wind upon the howling sea,
Will lift your feathers high.
The sand that itches from the tide,
Will claim the steps I sowed.
The whispers in the ocean deep,
Will pick my weary bones.

What murmurs in your raven heart,
Have taken from sleep.
What raging on a foreign shore,
Has left me here to weep.
What clashing in the nightmare wind,
Has stirred your angry dream.
What thunder on the dark wing plain,
Has never been foreseen.
I long to rove among the seas,
And hear the current cry.
I long to blend among the waves,
And never question why.
I long to shift above the sands,
And never come to rest.
I long for raptures never known,
While lying at your breast.

"Raven in the Storm" -- Mary Black

I'm the latest apparition
Cutting slices in the night
I come through without permission
Moving in and out of human sight

I'm the tapping on your shoulder
I am the raven in the storm
I'll take shelter in your rafters
I'm the shiver when you're warm

I'm the gold in California
I am the well in Mexico
Like the vultures in the valley
I will wait for you to go

I'm the gypsy in your pocket
I am the horseman in your dreams
I'm the reason dogs are barking
I am the hand that stops the scream

I am the baby's cry that isn't
I am the distant relative
I am the scratching in the ceiling
I am advice you shouldn't give

I'm the ghost of a traveling salesman
My foot will be there in your door
Though I can walk through walls and windows
I will knock just like before

I am the darkness in your daughter
I am the spot beneath the skin
I am the scarlet on the pavement
I am the broken heart within

I won't take a train to nowhere
I will not touch just anyone
Ask a stranger why I'm waiting
In the chamber of a gun

...

I didn't know. I guess I'm cool with it.

...

It's not a matter of fortune; it's the expectable outcome of cruelty and contempt.

[bikebloke]

43. Silly Wizard

Plus collaborations of former Silly Wizard members - Andy Stewart, Phil Cunningham, John Cunningham, Manus Luney & Martin Hadden.

Capercaillie

Natalie MccMaster for good fiddle music.

Clannad

[1gobluedem]

46. The Clancy Brothers

Everything they've done is outstanding.

[somewhere_out_there]

47. Try Celtic Woman....totally awesome!

[GreenPartyVoter]

49. New agey: Clannad, Enya, Iona, Alasdair fraser and Paul Machlis. Or

Try some bluegrass, like the Chieftains Another Country albums or Cherryholmes. Or punker stuff like Boiled in Lead and Planxty. And then there's Altan, from the same town as Clannad but more traditional sounding.

[SoxFan]

50. My suggestions

Waterboys: "Fishermen's Blues" and "Room to Roam" are the most Celtic albums. The earlier stuff is more akin to U2/Echo & the Bunnymen post-punk.

Pogues: Anything is good

Shane MacGowan & the Popes: MacGowan is the on again/off again singer for the Pogues and perhaps the leading consumer of alcohol on the planet. Try "The Snake".

Sinead O'Connor: "Gospel Oak". Sinead has a beautiful voice, and it is put to good use on this quiet, introspective mini-album. You may have heard "She Moved Through The Fair" in the Laim Neeson movie "Michael Collins".

[CBHagman]

55. Speaking of Shane McGowan...

Oh, I love your quote:

MacGowan is the on again/off again singer for the Pogues and perhaps the leading consumer of alcohol on the planet. :rofl:

Check out this video for a duet you won't believe, from the closing titles of a movie you might remember.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WHPMmRHauNE

[supernova]

74. Shane McGowan

OMG! Can't believe I forgot about him.

:rofl:

I love the Pogues!

[AmyDeLune]

52. Green Linnet label--

http://www.greenlinnet.com/

Their sampler discs are a fantastic (and economic) way to find out who you like and who you don't. :)

[BreweryYardRat]

53. David Arkenstone.

He's more general New Age than Celtic, but his "Celtic Book of Days" is quite excellent and traditional.

[hyphenate]

58. Arkenstone is fantastic

He's also collaborated quite a lot with one of my absolute New Age favorites, David Lanz.

[jpgray]

54. No, no one can

:scared:

[Redneck Socialist]

56. Altan

I can't believe no one has recommended them yet.

http://www.altan.ie/

[greendog]

66. Post #12

I can't imagine a collection of Celtic music without Altan. They're essential.

Ta Mo Chleamhnas A Dheanamh:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kHKPn5NRt2s&mode=related&search=

John Doherty's Reels:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EJDTQW87w-s

[Redneck Socialist]

73. Oops!

:blush:

scanned too fast I guess.

Fantastic band.

[hyphenate]

57. I'm not familiar with the one you mentioned

but if you want some good old Gaelic fiddle music, I recommend you check out Natalie MacMaster's work, for one. Her uncle, Buddy MacMaster, was a genius in his own time, too, and at his age (over 80) he's still performing. A great CD with some great music is "Heart of Cape Breton" which has some of the best artists doing good work, including Natalie, Buddy, the MacIsaacs, Jerry Holland, and others. I also just picked up a CD of some old recordings by Bill Lamey, an artist in the 50s-70s, who my parents knew pretty well, and who used to perform at the Canadian-American Club in Watertown, MA.

It's not what you would call "Riverdance" type music, but a sound that is rich and steeped in tradition, to quote a cliche.

If you are looking for some sweet vocals, check out "Celtic Woman" which has 5 talented women performing, or a group named Caledon, which is fairly new.

For older, more folk sounding Celtic music, see if you can get hold of songs from The Corries. (There is a younger group called The Corrs, but they're not the same, so don't get confused.) The Corries were well known for their recordings of a lot of the Gaelic/Scottish folk songs.

There are lots of others including The Chieftains, and the Irish Rovers.

Some are Scottish-Gaelic, others are Irish-Gaelic. Check out Amazon--they usually have a good amount of songs from a wide selection of artists.

Hope that helps!

[haele]

59. Steeleyespan -

Updated English and Scottish ballads, some great fiddle music. Peter Knight, Maddy Prior, Tim Hart and others.
The line-up has changed over the years, but the basic sound is still good. They weren't quite as popular as Fairport Convention, but that might just be tastes - after all, they opened for Journey back in the day...

Haele

[LaraMN]

60. A sixty post thread on celtic music? Whodathunk?

I can't advise, but my Mom certainly could. She's obsessed with celtic folk music and has been playing in various bands, locally, for about fifteen or twenty years. It was horribly embarrassing when I was a teenager and my friends would come over while my mother was playing concertina or tinwhistle. My Dad even built her a hammered dulcimer. My kids know a lot of folk songs, as well.

[tigereye]

62. Afro Celts Soundsystem

now called Afro Celts, I think.

Not as traditional, but fun!

Maura O'Connell is good. (i think that's her name.)

[unsavedtrash]

64. Henri's Notions

They are a local band that does both traditional and American music.
http://www.henrisnotions.com/

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

67. Karen Matheson is usually good

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DC8vVXQQrz0

[dropkickpa]

69. The Wicked Tinkers

are always fun!!

[Bzzzz]

71. I'll...

2nd that!!!

[Xipe Totec]

70. Celtic Festival 2004 - Ortigueira, Galicia, Spain

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VPi4I_eS8_g

[Breeze54]

72. Here's a few suggestions!

Céad Míle Fáilte

http://www.midwestirishradio.com/

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