Celtophilia

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Artist: Tom Dahill
Album: Let The Goat Out

This album is sort of a big deal. It’s called Let The Goat Out, it’s by an amazing musician named Tom Dahill, and I could make a solid case that this website exists because of it. In 1998, I was a sophomore in high school, and Mike was a freshman attending a small college in Oakwood, Georgia. One day Tom Dahill performed on Mike’s campus, and after the show Mike purchased this CD. He loved it and he loaned it to me. We passed it back and forth. We squabbled over it. We learned most of the songs by heart and we sang them in the car, around the house, and possibly in public once or twice, much to Julie’s embarrassment.* Let The Goat Out was our introduction (and gateway drug) to the wonderful, wild, world of Celtic music. I can’t tell you how much it means to have this album sent in for us to review, it feels - well, indescribable.

All of that said, I simply don’t have it in me to be overly critical of this particular album. I have too much history here, it’s too close to me and I realize that I’m ridiculously partisan. So, I’m just going to share a few of the things I love about it, and call it a day.**

The first track on the CD is Roads of Kildare, a song about an upstanding, well to do young man who falls in love with a gypsy. If there is a sweeter, more charming version, then I certainly haven’t heard it. Accordion, guitar, and vocals come together beautifully, and there’s a lovely bit of whistling at the finish. It’s little touches like this that make the album such a treat to listen to - it could come off as superfluous or even pretentious, but somehow it never does. Cynics and pragmatists beware, as this one is going to tug at your heartstrings.*** Romantics, it’ll be right up your alley!

Lark In The Morning is an interesting little piece of work. Half nature documentary and half soap opera, but if you ask me, it’s all about the bodhran - and the guitar. While the appeal of the majority of the album lies in the storytelling, this is one song where the musicianship outshines the tale.

Crossmaglen is a somewhat obscure traditional Irish ballad. I rarely come across recordings of it, most likely because of the lyrical content. It is a rebel song and it tells the story of a small band of Irish rebels readying and carrying out the ambush of a convoy. Tom Dahill’s Crossmaglen is a lovely song telling an ugly story, acknowledging that the men involved will be labeled terrorists, but relating their belief that they have no choice but to act as they do.

There is no funnier song in the Celtic trad music library than Paddy McGinty’s Goat. The goat’s baaing noises only make it more hilarious, as opposed as I usually am to such things. I defy anyone to listen to Tom singing this song and not smile. I firmly believe it’s impossible. Do stick around for the surprising, dare I say, explosive! ending.

Let The Goat Out is a gem of an album, containing rarely recorded songs, old favorites, and more heart than you can shake a stick at. Tom Dahill’s personality comes through with so much straightforward authenticity that listening to this CD is like getting to know a new friend, or reconnecting with a treasured old one.

Slainte,

Bonnie

*Poor Jules, she’s been putting up with the two of us for a long time now. She’s going to have to bail us out of jail one of these days, and she knows it.

**And mercilessly rip apart the poor unlucky band that I get to after this one. Kidding!

***If it doesn’t, then I bet you didn’t cry when that poor kid had to shoot his dog in Old Yeller. Sociopath.

You would have to have never read Celtophilia.com to not know that we are huge fans of The Langer’s Ball. We were privileged to be graced by their first CD, and honored to be given an early listen to their second. There may be no other band we’ve met through the site who has had more of an effect on us, through their kindness as much as their music. We love them so much, we want to send them halfway around the world.

To Ireland, of course.

If you’re not familiar with Ireland, it’s that little island off the coast of England where a huge number of us trace our heritage, and can’t seem to play well with the rest of the British Isles. That’s how we like it. It’s also the shape in the middle of The Langer’s Ball logo (see above.)

The good news is, we’ve got someone who just might be willing to take them to Ireland, if we band together and make it happen. Strangford Lough Brewing Co. is trying to find a band to invite to play in Ireland. We want it to be The Langer’s Ball. Secretly, we’re hoping they will make us band “members” and take us with them. So, here’s what we need you to do: Head over to www.slbc.ie to register and vote! To be fair, you can listen to the other bands, but really, we want you to vote for The Langer’s Ball. Each voter also gets entered into a drawing for a trip for 2 to Ireland, so it’s not like we’re asking you to do something with no potential for personal reward.

After you go over to the site and vote for The Langer’s Ball, we have one more task for you. Grab two envelopes, put your own address on one and this address on the other: “I Voted for The Langer’s Ball, P.O. Box 16484 St. Paul, MN 55116″ Put enough postage on both of them for a trip to Minnesota and back, stick the one with your address inside the other (this is now referred to as a SASE) and put them in the mail to snag yourself 3 free band stickers.

VOTING ENDS AT 11:59 APRIL 5TH, SO DON’T DALLY AROUND. GO NOW

What, you’re still reading? Go vote!

Artist: Celtic Woman
CD: Songs From The Heart

Celtic Woman is a group now comprised of vocalists Lisa Kelly, Choe Agnew, Lynn Hilary, and Alex Sharpe along with violinist Mairead Nesbitt. The group was made popular by thousands of showings on PBS stations across the country. In fact, that’s how I first became familiar with Celtic Woman a few years ago. The CD, Songs From the Heart, showcases Celtic Woman’s take on several well known and traditional songs including “Fields of Gold”, “Amazing Grace”, “Nil Sen La”, “My Lagan Love”, “When You Believe” (The Prince of Egypt), “The New Ground/Isle of Hope”, “The Coast of Galicia”, “Non C’e Piu”, “The Moon’s a Harsh Mistress”, “You’ll Be In My Heart” (Tarzan), “Goodnight My Angel”, and “Galway Bay.” “The Lost Rose Fantasia” and “O, America” are two Celtic Woman originals.

I’ve really enjoyed listening to this CD today…so many times I completely lost count. Now I skip over a couple of songs (”When You Believe”-from The Prince of Egypt and “You’ll Be In My Heart”-from Tarzan) because I’ve heard other versions of them a little too frequently on my son’s MP3 player. “Fields of Gold” is a cover of the song Sting made popular and I still prefer his over this one…probably because of familiarity. Bagpipes and “Amazing Grace” go hand in hand. Add beautiful voices, piano, and drums for an obvious winner. My boys were singing along and really enjoyed it as well. I really liked Lisa’s voice in “The Moon’s A Harsh Mistress.” Very pretty. I’ve listened to many different renditions of “Galway Bay” and I have to say that Chloe did an excellent job and hers is now my favorite.

My favorite song on this CD has to be “Nil Se’n La”. I loved the violin reels, drums, and lively tempo. It’s disappointing that I’ll never be able to learn all the words and sing along with the pristine voices (I looked all over the internet and couldn’t find the correct lyrics). Maybe I’ll just have to settle for dancing…that should work, right? I’m sure the neighbors would prefer dancing over my singing anyway.

If you prefer watching Celtic Woman instead of just listening, there is a DVD (Songs From the Heart-Live at Powerscourt House & Gardens) that aired on PBS as part of the network’s quarterly pledge drive. Better than that, why don’t you check out the tour schedule and go see these girls in person! With shows planned from Washington to Florida and New Hampshire to California, there’s a chance they’ll be at a town near you within the next several months. If you want to hear a new, satisfying twist on some familiar songs, I recommend the CD Songs From the Heart by Celtic Woman.

Slainte,
Julie