Celtic Folk Podcast

Please update your links

al — Wed, 06 Jun 2007 21:00:02 +0000

We have changed our feed details for the Celtic Folk Podcast. Please update your software and podcatchers to point to our current feed at:

http://celticfolkpod.com/?feed=rss2

Also, our homepage for ShowNotes can be found at:

http://www.celticfolkpod.com

Thanks and keep listening,

Al.

CFP21 - Bumper Edition

al — Mon, 19 Feb 2007 23:06:38 +0000

Show 21 - Bumper Edition

This week we feature the music of:

Christiane Cargill (Green Fields of France)
Pete Hawkes (Celtic Hornblower)
Mitch (Home)
Shadowdancer (She Moved Through The Fair)
Along with the next in the Artist Interview Series with musician and Scottish Smallpipes maker Ian Kinnear

For more information on the artists featured on the Celtic Folk Podcast, including links and pics, click on www.celticfolkpod.com.

CFP21 Show Notes:

Bumper Edition. This week we have the usual, great line-up of music from around the world, along with a conversation I had back in Scotland with Ian Kinnear, maker of some of the best Scottish Smallpipes, after which we recorded a little of Ian playing at the session in Kirriemuir.

Over the next 40 minutes or so of this bumper edition of the Celtic Folk Podcast, we feature a mix of styles either completely rooted in Celtic music or that have gone back to use the Celtic or Traditional genre to bring another facet to their art.

Christiane Cargill - Green Fields of France.

“…the show belongs to Cargill. With her sensual approach, her vocals reach far without faltering. Add to this a soulful adeptness on the keyboard, and her stock is sky high.” ~ Music Connection Magazine.

Instrumentation
Christiane Cargill - vocals and piano

Additional Instrumentation:
Carter Dewberry - cello
Rebecca Kleinmann - flute
Bob Malone - accordian
Paul McIntire - violin
Christo Pellani - drums and percussion

Biography
Christiane Cargill was born and raised in Orange County, California. An accomplished and agile pianist with a gift for melodies and a fluid, soulful voice, she begged to take piano and organ lessons at the tender age of 3, while her legs were still too short to reach the pedals.

Christiane studied classical works with great enthusiasm, but found herself drawn to musical composition and songwriting. She wrote her first song at age 8, and had several albums worth of material written by the time she graduated high school. Christiane received a music scholarship to attend the University of California in Irvine, where she graduated with honors, receiving degrees in piano performance and psychology. After college, Christiane fronted the Los Angeles-based bands ELYN and Riddle the Sphinx, and enjoyed composing for several film projects.

Christiane also co-founded the non-profit organization HeARTS Giving Hope, and was featured in Glamour Magazine’s 2005 Woman of the Year issue, and honored with the Toyota Moving Forward Award for bringing music and art therapy to at-risk children. A fiery redhead, Christiane loves to try new things, including scuba diving, indoor skydiving, hang-gliding, and firewalking, to name a few. So its no surprise that this passion for life comes out in her music.

In 2006, she decided to launch her first solo project, exploring her Scottish and Irish heritage. She says, “On this project, I’ve stepped back from the full band sound, as I wanted to make an intimate recording, capturing the mood and feel of Ireland and Scotland, and what those places have meant to me.”

Christiane collaborated with engineer and co-producer David Peters on the project, and arranged the songs with an intimate chamber music feel, including piano & vocals, electric violin, cello, flute, and accordian, as well as percussion from Riddle the Sphinx bandmate Christo Pellani.

The decision to make a Celtic album came from the overwhelming response she received on her version of “Danny Boy,” which was offered as a bonus track to people who pre-ordered the full-length Riddle the Sphinx CD, “Fun House.” “I’ve been performing a few of the Irish songs at a gig here and there, and I’m really excited about the responses we’ve heard; people really seem to connect with these traditional songs, and as an artist, it’s a wonderful challenge to take these songs and try to make them my own.” In addition to traditional songs, the upcoming album, “Metamorphosis,” will feature four original songs.

After recently opening for the Young Dubliners, Christiane says “I’ve got the bug for it now. I’ve always been in love with Celtic music, and I’m really looking forward to jumping into this project with both feet!”

Website
http://www.christianecargill.com

Discography
Metamorphosis, coming March 17, 2007.

Pete Hawkes - Celtic Hornblower.

‘The Best most diverse and original songwriter in the business today. Hawkes can do it all, write Jazz, classical, ragtime, folk, blues and more. (Roger Holesworth The global villabe PBS 106.7FM).

How often does one come across a composer with the ability to transcend several musical genres and yet stay firmly focussed within his own perceived sound? Almost never! Pete manages to turn many genres into his own, making the listener feel they are witnessing something innovative and fresh, but still familiar to the feels and traditions of the genre.

A musician that can compose and play fine airs, reels and Celtic influenced pieces; Delta Blues and cleverly written neo classical pieces is rare. Rarer still he can compose very finely arranged and well-executed Jazz. If that doesn’t take your fancy then you can always listen to Pete’s beautiful arrangements of some great classical compositions. Dig ragtime? then you have come to the right place.

The word ‘genius’ I have always reserved for the greats like Charlie Parker, Charles Mingus, Richard Thompson and Louie Armstrong, but given the diversity, variation, number of musical genres, and the prolific number of high quality, original compositions of all styles of music Pete has put out every year, not to mention a back catalogue of finely crafted original songs (that always have something unique to say about the human condition), it’s hard not to use the word for him here as well. If he is not a genius then he is certainly one of Australia’s most creative and interesting composers for acoustic music to emerge in the last decade. Tony Bates `Musicologist/Reviewer’ Station Librarian /Presenter
3WBC 94.1FM, BOX HILL Victoria

Website
http://home.iprimus.com.au/petejh

Discography
‘Secrets Vows and Lies’ ( folk blues) with guests Phil Emmanuel and Dave Swarbrick
‘Unspoken Riddles’ - instrumental collection
‘Melancholy Cello ‘- original cello
‘Double Divesity ‘- Double CD of complete
instrumental works
‘The DADGAD files’ - orginal celtic compositions, airs reels, jigs

Mitch - Home.

Mitch are a three piece rock band from Dublin Ireland in the style of Springsteen and Clash and also have a softer side of acoustic rock with Dylan and John Cougar Mellencamp as their heroes.

Instrumentation
vocals , guitar and harmonica Eamon Mitchell
Bass and backing vocals Cathal Molloy
Drums and Percussion Dominick Mitchell

Biography
Mitch hail from Dublin Ireland and are the brainchild of singer songwriter and Guitarist Eamon Mitchell, a former member of 90’s Dublin bands The Conspiracy, Babyon the Bride and Drowning Kristiania. Mitch have catchy Radio friendly singles and are a mighty live band in the same vein as the clash, oasis and Springsteen. Just pure raw energy pumping from the stage.

Website
http://www.mitchband.com

Discography
Mitch
Debut single Breathe
Debut album One Good Reason
released october 25th Dublin Ireland
available from cdbaby.com
newartistsonline.com

Shadowdancer - She Moved Through The Fair.

Jack Montgomery’s Shadowdancer has been described as “Mythic Folk” and “Celtic Fusion.” We try not to rely on the standard format of subjective interpretations of various romantic relationships but explore the worlds of myth, fantasy and spirituality.

Instrumentation
Jack Montgomery is the founder of Shadowdancer which includes Jack on guitar, harmonica, appalachian dulcimer and Graham Hudspeth on lead guitar, bouzouki and vocals.

Lesley Montgomery sometimes guests on backing vocals along with other guest musicians.

Biography
Jack Montgomery: Originally from Columbia, South Carolina, Jack began studying guitar at age thirteen. After playing music as a solo performer and in bands in and around Columbia and Myrtle Beach, South Carolina during the late 1960s and 70s, Jack retired from music in the ’80s until he joined the Kentucky folk band “Lost River” in 2000 till 2005.
He now plays guitar, bass, harmonica, mandolin and Appalachian dulcimer as a solo artist and with Graham Hudspeth in the duet known as Shadowdancer.

Graham Hudspeth, a native of Bowling Green, Kentucky is active in the local Bowling Green and regional music scene as he has been since his teens. The bands Avian, the Jambodians, Kyle Daniel Band, and Cootie Brown are only a few of the musical organizations to which Graham has contributed. Graham excels as a vocalist and versatile musician, playing guitar, bass, mandolin and bouzouki.

Musical History:
Jack’s music has been featured on several festivals, college and Internet radio stations as well as a recent PBS/KET show entitled “Mixed Media”. He regularly performs locally in the Bowling Green, Louisville, and Hopkinsville, Kentucky and also in Clarksville, and Nashville, TN.

Jack released his first musical CD entitled “Onward to Avalon” in 2002. Over 800 copies of “Onward to Avalon” have been sold worldwide. His second CD “Everywhere I Look” was released in December 2004 and is selling well.

Musically, Jack and Graham are interested in Celtic, contemporary folk, and classic rock. Jack and Graham write their own songs and have a passion for discovering older traditional material and giving it a new musical life.

Shadowdancer is a new venture into the realms of traditional Celtic and original music. Their sound is focused around original compositions as well as the traditional music of England, Scotland and Ireland. Formed in February of 2005, performs at a variety of venues including clubs, and folk festivals in Nashville, and Clarksville, Tennessee, Charleston, South Carolina as well as Louisville, Hopkinsville and Bowling Green, Kentucky.

Website
http://shadowdancermusic.com

Discography
“Onward to Avalon was released in November 2002. So far, it has sold over 1200 copies sold worldwide.

“Everywhere I Look” was relased in December 2004 and has sold over 800 copies worldwide through CDBABY and other distributors.

First Annual Celtic Folk Scotland Tour - September 2007

Ever wanted to visit Scotland and see the real sights, visit a real, traditional pub session with great artists playing wonderful Celtic and traditional music, visit the hidden sights of a country steeped in over 6000 years of history?

Come join me on our first ever Celtic Folk Scotland Tour in late September 2007. I’ll be serving as your tour guide, driver, pub advisor and personal shopper for the trip. We have put together the Itinerary and have posted a pdf file right here in the Celtic Folk Podcast show notes - just check a few posts back.

The Celtic Folk Scotland Tour will be a limited opportunity for Celtic Folk Podcast listeners on a first-come, first-served basis, so email me quickly if you’re interested.

Artist Interview Series - Ian Kinnear

One of the folks we’ll meet on the Tour is Scottish Smallpipe maker Ian Kinnear. I caught up with Ian just prior to the weekly Session at the Three Bellies Brae Bar in Kirriemuir, Scotland (yet another stop on our Tour!) and we talked about all things Smallpipes, as well as recorded a little of the sounds of the Session. For more information on Ian and his beautiful, hand-made instruments, click on http://www.scottishsmallpipes.com.

For even more Session recordings, we highly recommend checking out:
The Angus Sessions

The ShowStopper Track:

Don’t forget to vote for your favorite track from this week’s podcast by emailing us, telling us who you want to hear again and we’ll tally the votes and crown the winner the ShowStopper Track. So drop us a line and tell us who you liked the best of the four great tracks this week.

Ken O’Malley and the Twilight Lords - Easy and Slow.

Ken’s website.

Please help us support these fine artists by taking a look at their websites, buying their music or at least let them know how much you enjoyed listening to their music on the Celtic Folk Podcast.

Check out our parent website at www.upbeatcafe.com where you’ll find a schedule of great live music, as well as our Online Music Shop were you can buy those old-fashioned CD’s, as well as digital downloads.

STOP PRESS We are currently uploading all the digital tracks and “Sip-A-Clips” to the server. We will be opening this new shop just as soon as we can. You’ll be able to find it here when it goes live. Stay tuned for more updates on our progress.

Like to listen to great new, independent music of all genres from all around the world? Subscribe to our other weekly podcast Upbeat Radio. We feature excellent music for all tastes.

A note for Artists:

Would you like to have your music included on a future Celtic Folk Podcast? Just email us or submit a song to us through Sonicbids.

Please, please, please give us some feedback and let us know how we’re doing. All podcasters live for feedback, both good and bad - it let’s us know what you, our listener and subscriber, want to hear. Email us at info@celticfolkpod.com

Celtic Folk Scotland Tour 2007 - Itinerary Now Available!

al — Thu, 08 Feb 2007 00:49:49 +0000

A couple of posts further down you’ll find a link to a pdf file with all the information you need. So scroll down and download the file now.

Secure your place prior to February 16th and we’ll take off $250!

Celtic Folk Podcast featured on SplashCast!

al — Tue, 06 Feb 2007 22:20:55 +0000

The Celtic Folk Podcast is featured on SplashCast’s site!

We are one of the first users of SplashCast (you will obviously see our SplashCast Console on this site) and we are delighted that Marshall Kirkpatrick, SplashCast’s Director of Content, has chosen the Celtic Folk Podcast as one of his favorites from the very first week.

SplashCast is set to take podcast, vidcasts, bloggers and many more folks to a different level when it comes to syndicating their multimedia formats to people around the world. You can include pictures, text, videos all in one place, creating Channels that include an unlimited number of Shows.

For more information on SplashCast check out their website.

We will be using our SplashCast Console to bring you a whole heap of interesting stuff, so keep watching!

Celtic Folk Scotland Tour 2007

al — Fri, 02 Feb 2007 21:55:50 +0000

Here are the details for our first annual Celtic Folk Scotland Tour. Click on the pdf logo to download the complete information packet, including how instructions on how to secure your place on theTour.

Click for Information packet in pdf format (if you need a pdf file reader, click on the Adobe link at the end of this post).

Starting and ending in Glasgow, September 5^th through September 13^th, 2007.
Price: $1995 per person.

The first annual Celtic Folk Scotland Tour will take place between September 5^th and September 13^th and will be based in the county of Angus in the northeast of Scotland. This personal, guided tour of the “Birthplace of Scotland” will be a trip that encompasses the essence of a country steeped in 6000 years of history and culture.

Angus is said to be the birthplace of Scotland. Its claim to this title comes from both the battle of Dunnichen (formerly known as Nechtansmere), where, in 685AD, the Picts defeated the Northumbrian army - the first time a united army from the land we now know as Scotland came together against a common enemy - and the Declaration of Arbroath, signed by Scottish nobles at Arbroath Abbey in April of 1320 and sent to the Pope, declaring Scotland a free and independent nation.

Angus is steeped history, ranging from pre-historic fortresses and standing stones to medieval castles and manor houses. The everyday working people are represented too with museums describing the life and toils of local farmers and fishermen.

The countryside includes the beautiful coastal towns and villages such as Broughty Ferry, Arbroath, Auchmithie and Montrose to the picturesque farming and market towns of Brechin, Edzell, Kirriemuir and Forfar, to the city of Dundee – home of Jute, Jam and Journalism.

Our time in Angus will have us tasting the delights of all facets of this part of Scotland. We’ll see the historic sites, taste the local fare and enjoy live traditional music along the way; all guided by someone who knows the area and can give particular insight to its people and places. We will, of course, visit the nation’s capital on our final full day.

Don’t forget, this is a small group tour that has a limited number of places available. You need to secure your spot on the Tour as quickly as possible.

Complete instructions on payment details are included in the pdf file, along with the Itinerary, additional notes, pictures, tips and a whole lot more.

CFP20 - Numbers

al — Thu, 01 Feb 2007 01:48:28 +0000

Show 20 - Numbers

This week we feature the music of:

The Dorians (The Rocky Road to Dublin)
SullivanBurton (The Town of Ballybay)
Ken O’Malley and the Twilight Lords (Easy and Slow)
John McGill (Away)

For more information on the artists featured on the Celtic Folk Podcast, including links and pics, click on www.celticfolkpod.com.

CFP20 Show Notes:

Numbers. For lack of a better, more cutesy name. Plus details in the next couple of days about the first annual Celtic Folk Scotland Tour.

The Dorians - The Rocky Road to Dublin.
The Dorians are a Celtic band from Illinois offering songs and dance music from the Irish and Scottish traditions. They have performed throughout the midwest at festivals, colleges, conferences, and schools & are the house band for the nationally syndicated public radio program, Celtic Connections.

Instrumentation
Bryan Kelso Crow - flute, tin whistle, keyboards and lead vocals;
Mickey Soltys on fiddle and guitar;
Mike Shanahan on guitar, cittern and vocals.
Other instrumentation may also include mandolin, banjo, bodhran and bones.

Biography
The Dorians are a three-member band based in Carbondale, Illinois, specializing in dance music from the Celtic traditions of Ireland and Scotland, and songs from Ireland, Scotland, England, and North America. The current members have been performing together since 1990.

The band’s vocal repertoire includes humorous ballads, traditional love songs, songs of Irish and Scottish history and politics, and some old and new American folk songs. Their instrumental repertoire ranges from Scottish and Irish reels and jigs to lovely slower tunes. They have played throughout the midwest as well as Alaska for concert audiences, Highland games, weddings, dances, music and arts festivals, community fundraisers, elementary schools, colleges, historic re-enactments, academic conferences, and on public radio and television.

The band’s versatile and talented musicians include:

Bryan Kelso Crow as lead singer and playing flute, whistle and keyboard. He is a native of Tennessee, with Scots-Irish roots, but he never heard traditional Celtic music until he was in college.
He learned to play the tin whistle while hiking the roads of Ireland in 1978, and has been playing the traditional wood flute since the mid-1980s. He taught as an exchange professor at the University of Ulster, outside of Belfast, for the 1985-86 school year, and got to know many Irish musicians during that time. He is a guest lecturer in the Irish Studies program at Southern Illinois University, and a member of the Coordinating Committee for the Southern Illinois Festival of Irish Music.
In 1991 He launched “Celtic Connections” as a local radio program featuring Celtic music. The program moved to national syndication in July 1996 and can now be heard on over 100 public radio stations across the U.S.

Mickey Soltys is an accomplished fiddler and guitarist. He is originally from Wycliffe, Kentucky and has performed extensively in other bands and genres in the region before joining The Dorians. He has studied many of the Irish fiddling styles from both his extensive collection of recordings as well as traveling to Ireland. In addition to his interest in Celtic music he is an expert on old-time Missouri fiddling. He also plays regularly for the local contra dance society, “Friends of Traditional Music and Dance”.

Mike Shanahan plays guitar and cittern, and specializes in the singing of immigration and other historical ballads. Mike has been performing folk music since his teens. Originally from Ohio, he has performed with several old-time bands in Ann Arbor, MI and Madison, WI. It was in Madison in the early 1980’s that he became involved in promoting and playing Irish music and played in a local band, Bogside (aka Boxty) before moving to Carbondale, Illinois. There he met Bryan Crow and they formed the Dorians. He has studied guitar with Daithe Sproule, Zan McLeod and Jed Foley and performs mainly using the DADGAD guitar tuning. Mike is also the Entertainment Coordinator for the Southern Illinois Irish Festival.

In addition to playing guitar he also plays a Stefan Sobell 10-string cittern and 5-string banjo.

Discography
The Dorians - self titled album (1998)
new release due in Spring 2007

SullivanBurton - Town of Ballybay.
SullivanBurton is a full-on powerhouse of sound blending new world and old world, traditional with contemporary sounds for an audience experience that is more than enjoyable. It’s a party!

Instrumentation
Bruce Burton-vocals, guitar, bouzouki, mandolin, banjo, bodhran, fiddle
Bob Moore-bass guitar, guitar, vocals
Tom Jones-bodhran, dumbek, djembe, other percussion
Shannan Sullivan-fiddle/violin, vocals

Biography
SullivanBurton’s latest CD, “Monkey Bars [self-released 2005] is an energetic acoustic/electric mix of largely Irish material that goes well beyond the usual pub standards, with crisp playing and strong singing and a good mix of the sensitive and the silly. “Winnie’s Morning Tune Set” begins as a quiet acoustic guitar piece that morphs into a hot fiddle reel with resonating bass lines as Winnie presumably wakes up. Among the songs, there are fun versions of the Oysterband’s cheerfully cynical “Blood Wedding” and Tommy Makem’s bawdy “Town of Ballybay”.”-Tom Nelligan, Dirty Linen Magazine.

SullivanBurton (yes, all one word, both ampersand and hyphen-less) is a duo consisting of two good friends backed by two wonderfully talented musicians and friends who all share a passion for Celtic music and a penchant for adventure. Founding members Shannan (Sullivan) and Bruce (Burton) previously played together in the popular Illinois band, the Bogside Zukes—Bruce (1993-2003) and Shannan (1997-2000). Shannan and Bruce finally decided to collaborate in August of 2003 as SullivanBurton. The remainder of that year and the following one turned out nicely successful for the brand new group even including a concert date with the group Danu. The later additions of former Zukes members Bob Moore on bass and Tom Jones on percussion rounded out their sound and have turned the name SullivanBurton from a descriptor to a title.

The music created includes both traditional and contemporary Irish/Celtic colored and tempered with the unavoidable influences of growing up in American pop culture resulting in a fusion of Celtic/American/Urban/Folk. Audiences love this group for their disarming charm, sharp wit and good-natured ribbing with each other—not least to mention their fantastic musicianship. SullivanBurton brings you into the mix and leaves you soaring…

For more information on SullivanBurton:
• www.SullivanBurton.com or
• www.myspace.com/SullivanBurton
• www.youtube.com/profile?user=hark2003
• www.sonicbids.com/SullivanBurton2 (SullivanBurton Electronic Press Kit (EPK))

Discography
SullivanBurton (2004 self-release)
Monkey Bars (2005 self-release)

SullivanBurton’s website

Ken O’Malley and the Twilight Lords - Easy and Slow.
The heart and soul of Ireland: From Ken O’Malley’s one-man show with acoustic guitar and mandolin, weaving ballads, jigs and reels into a fascinating historical journey . . . to the full Twilight Lords band adding a kick-ass, get up and dance electric rock edge to Irish traditional music.

Instrumentation
Ken O’Malley (Solo performance): Rich vocal interpretation of Irish traditional music and storytelling with a historical perspective accompanied by acoustic guitar and mandolin.

Ken O’Malley and The Twilight Lords:
Ken O’Malley - Lead vocals, guitar, mandolin
Billy Watts - Electric guitar, vocals
Will MacGregor - Bass guitar, vocals
Dillon O’Brien - Keyboards, vocals
James Cruce - Drums

Biography
Ken O’Malley arrived in Los Angeles from Dublin over 30 years ago with little more than red and blue platform shoes, his guitar and the notion that he should find a pub and play. Within two weeks, he was performing at Molly Malone’s, the legendary Irish venue in the city’s Fairfax district, and he hasn’t stopped playing since. Through the years, O’Malley has performed solo and as part of The Mulligans, Blended Spirits and, currently, The Twilight Lords. He’s shared bills with such artists as Mary Black, The Chieftains, The Saw Doctors, Michael Flately and Pierce Brosnan and continues to be an ever-popular and near legendary constant on Southern California’s Celtic music circuit. “I love music and I love to play,” says O’Malley who, by his own estimate, plays well over 200 dates a year.

And just as Ken O’Malley loves Celtic music, he is devoted to nurturing Irish traditions and culture. One of seven children, he was born and raised in Dublin City. His grandfather was a band-leader, his father played piano, his mother opted for violin and everyone, of course, sang. When O’Malley was nine years old, his father gave him a ukulele. Attending a Christian Brothers school gave him fluency in the Irish language and a spot in the accordion band. He taught himself guitar and mandolin, and by age 14, he was playing coffeehouses in Dublin’s then-burgeoning traditional music scene.

While a teen, O’Malley polished his Irish language skills spending summers in the west of Ireland. At 15, he opened for legendary balladeer Paddy Reilly at the equally legendary Old Sheiling Pub. By the time he turned 18, O’Malley was gathering professional credits, among them a stint with Trudy’s People, a group he formed that played Gaelic shows on RTE, Ireland’s national radio and television network. After coming to the U.S., he also performed in the film “Patriot Games” and has acted in such theatrical productions as “Shadow of The Glen” and “The Man Who Would be King.”

Today, as a performer, he is equally at ease with the eighteenth century “Mo Ghile Mear,” the Phil Coulter penned contemporary classic “The Town I Loved So Well” or Van Morrison’s “Into the Mystic,” one of his most requested songs. As a spinner of tales tall and true, he never fails to amuse and beguile. And as a musician, O’Malley’s graceful mastery of the mandolin and guitar have earned him high peer praise.

“I enjoy playing now more than ever,” says O’Malley. “In the last ten years, I’ve matured as an artist. My voice has gotten stronger, my playing better. I’m writing more and I’m writing better.” The truth of his statement is clearly evident on “The White Seahorse,” his first CD with The Twilight Lords. With a mix of such traditional material as “Carrickfergus” and “Black Is The Colour,” and original compositions like “The High Wire Waltz” and the title track “The White Seahorse,” this CD is a masterful homage to traditional Irish music enhanced with solid rhythms, acoustic and electric instruments matched by the powerful vocal energy that is the hallmark of a Ken O’Malley performance.

The second release, “Women of Ireland,” continues to showcase O’Malley’s irresistible blend of Celtic traditional, American roots rock and eclectic world beat, this time before an enthusiastic live audience at the Celtic Arts Center. The band takes traditional favorites such as “The Night Visit” and “Skibbereen” showcasing tight, solid interpretations. There was obviously magic in the air that evening and there can be no doubt that Ken O’Malley, the driving force of the Twilight Lords, has heart and soul deeply rooted in Irish tradition and a talent as eclectic and bright as tomorrow.

“If I’ve made people happy with my performances,” says O’Malley, “that’s success to me.”

Discography
The White Seahorse (1999) - This O’Malley studio album is also a mix of such traditional material as “Carrickfergus”, “The Silver Spear/Maid behind the Bar”, and “Black is the Colour” and original compositions like “The High Wire Waltz”, “The Sailor Song”, “Better Days” and the title track “The White Seahorse” - a salute to O’Malley’s forebear, Grace O’Malley aka Granuaile,the pirate Queen of 16th century Ireland.

Women of Ireland (2002) - “With Dublin native Ken O’Malley’s stunningly vibrant Irish tenor at the helm, The Twilight Lords effortlessly span the range from sentimental traditional Irish ballads to aggressive contemporary Irish folk/rock. Included are standards like “Sally Free and Easy”, and “As I Roved Out”, contemporary rockers like “Sullivan’s John”, a few sparkling jigs and reels, and a pounding polka. There are also three songs in O’Malley’s native Gaelic language. This stellar performance was recorded live at LA’s Celtic Arts Center… ” Dave Soyers, writer The Irish Herald, San Francisco.

For a direct link to Ken’s site where you can purchase music, click here.

Ken O’Malley’s website

John McGill - Away.
Part folk, part rock and all truth…He hits major emotions with such a skilled touch that his listeners are put at ease and become part of his world,” –Music Connection.

Instrumentation
John McGill - Guitar, Vocals
Ralph Torres - Keyboards

Biography
First place winner in the of the 2005 Tucson Folk Festival Songwriting Competition.

Finalist in the 2004 Kerrville Folk Festival Newsong Competition.

Chiming guitars and silvery harmonies sustain themes of longing and triumph on Journey From LaLa., singer/songwriter John McGill’s revelatory new CD, but the title cut is rambunctious roadhouse revelry — downshifting with high octane guitars, whirring Hammond, and sultry chick singers. McGill defines this music as “Existential Blues” as he informs, “I’m a thinker who doesn’t think much.” The literate self-examination and sterling craftsmanship of his songs clearly indicate otherwise.

Born in Dallas, Texas, John at first resisted the call of the rock, preferring jazz and classical music. In time, a dizzying roster of potent American influences — Aaron Copeland to Gram Parsons — infused his musical consciousness. He spent his teen years rocking in bands with his brother, balancing high harmonies and rhythmic Southern rock roots, indelible elements that remain imbedded in his current musical mix as evidenced on his debut artist’s release, the instrumental Facing West, as well as Journey From LaLa.

Between the scrub hills and the strip malls, in that dusty corner of California that larcenous land speculators dubbed “The Inland Empire,” John, working with the inland Empire Songwriter’s Association and the Southern California Songwriter’s Network, has helped nourish a fertile community of songwriters and musicians. A facile guitarist who also plays keyboards and bass in the studio, he is a charter member of an emerging scene that includes Alien Ant Farm, as well as a new cohort, Ralph Torres, with whom he performs in the duo, mostly harmless.

Journey From LaLa. is an accomplished work from a masterful songwriter. In a voice burnished with honesty and experience, John McGill shares incandescent litanies that seem to glow from within; a steady compass pointing to a destination of infinite promise.

John can be heard at venues throughout southern california performing with musical partner Ralph Torres under the banner mostly harmless.

Discography
Journey From LaLa
11:59 - (single)
Facing West – Instrumental

John McGill’s website

First Annual Celtic Folk Scotland Tour - September 2007

Come join me on our first ever Celtic Folk Scotland Tour in late September 2007. I’ll be serving as your tour guide, driver, pub advisor and personal shopper for the trip. We have put together the Itinerary and we’ll be posting that in a pdf file in a couple of days, so keep an eye on your Celtic Folk Podcast subscription, as it will show-up in your podcatcher. We will also produce a short audio Podcast just incase you miss the pdf file.

The Celtic Folk Scotland Tour will be a limited opportunity for Celtic Folk Podcast listeners on a first-come, first-served basis, so email me quickly if you’re interested.

The Tour will be based in the county of Angus – the “Birthplace of Scotland” – and the itinerary includes a traditional music session in the hometown of Peter pan author J.M. Barrie; a visit to one of the most spectacular castles on the east coast and one where William Wallace, yes, Braveheart himself, went up against the English; time aboard the ship that took the famous explorers Scott and Shackleton to the Antarctic; and to the site of the Declaration of Arbroath, where in 1320 Scotland appealed to the Pope and declared its independence from England.

Of course we’ll have plenty of free time for individual exploration and we’ll see some of the most beautiful countryside in the world. I’m excited and if you’ve ever wanted to see this incredible country, stick close to your computer!
The ShowStopper Track:

Don’t forget to vote for your favorite track from this week’s podcast by emailing us, telling us who you want to hear again and we’ll tally the votes and crown the winner the ShowStopper Track. So drop us a line and tell us who you liked the best of the four great tracks this week.

Nathaniel Maloney - Old Empty Farmhouse.

Nathaniel’s website.

Like to listen to great new, independent music of all genres from all around the world? Subscribe to our other weekly podcast Upbeat Radio. We feature excellent music for all tastes.

A note for Artists:

Would you like to have your music included on a future Celtic Folk Podcast? Just email us or submit a song to us through Sonicbids.

CFP19 - Mix it up

al — Wed, 24 Jan 2007 19:50:36 +0000

Play Show 19 - Mix it up

Music this week from:
Bostone Blackthorne (Back When the Craic was Grand),
Three Day Threshold (Kelly I’m Comming Over),
Nathaniel Maloney (Old Empty Farmhouse) and
Bourrasque Celtique (Vincent-Marc).

For more information on the bands featured on the Celtic Folk Podcast, including links and pics, visit www.celticfolkpod.com

Welcome the Celtic Folk Podcast! We continue to showcase the best Celtic, Folk and Traditional music from around the world each week.
Click on the player above to listen to a streaming version. However, we would prefer for you to subscribe!

http://feeds.feedburner.com/CelticFolkPodcast

In order to download the episode MP3 directly to your computer, rather than streaming it, or if you do not have podcatcher software that will download it for you automatically, click on the Feedburner link above. When the new page opens, right click on the episode’s “Play Now” and then select “Save Target As…”

CFP19 Show Notes:

Mix it up.

Well, winter has finally arrived here in Kentucky as the temperatures have dropped to a more seasonable level. Storms have hit the southern United States and have also created havoc all over Europe. But on the Celtic Folk Podcast all is well as we enjoy another 25 minutes or so of great Celtic and Traditional music from around the world.

We have just put together a MySpace page the Celtic Folk Podcast and we’d love for you to head on over there and become one of our “Friends” and leave us a Comment. Another thing we’d like to ask is that you head over to iTunes and write a review of the Celtic Folk Podcast. We are one of the top Celtic music Podcasts on iTunes, a stat we’re very proud of, since iTunes is one of the most used platforms people use to find podcasts. So, there you go, a couple of homework assignments for you this week. Thank you in advance for taking the time to do that for us.

Boston Blackthorne - Back When the Craic Was Grand.

Boston Blackthorne plays driving Irish Traditional and Celtic-influenced original music with 3 part harmonies and instrumentation including fiddles, mandolins, bouzouki, 6 & 12 string guitars, 4& 5 string banjos, bass, bodhran and drums.

Instrumentation
Jim O’Connor- vocals, 6&12 string guitar, 4&5 string banjo, bouzouki
Jon Lees- vocals- 6&12 string guitars
Jim “Chetz” Keegan- vocals, bass
Robbie Griffin- fiddle
Peter McAvoy- fiddle, mandolin
Dale Monette- drums, bodhran

Biography
The Boston Blackthorne Band has entertained Celtic music fans throughout New England for more than 15 years. The group is rooted in the Irish ballad tradition of the Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem with contemporary twists and original arrangements. Featuring lush three-part harmonies and original songs, the band’s repertoire also includes classic instrumental jigs and reels played on fiddle, bouzouki, tenor and 5 string banjo, 6 and 12 string guitars and electric bass. Primary vocalist Jim O’Connor (guitar, bouzouki, mandolin, banjos) was a member of the Paddy Noonan Band, and is a veteran of the New York City Irish music scene. He was the leader of The Boys of Ward Four, house band for many years at the annual St. Patrick’s Day Street Party at Church St. Station in Orlando, Florida.

The other members- Jon Lees (vocals, guitar, harmonica), James “Chetz” Keegan (vocals, bass, keyboards), Peter McAvoy (fiddle, mandolin) Rob Griffin (fiddle) and Dale Monette (drums, bodhran), are all long-time veterans of New England Irish, folk, bluegrass and country music groups. The band mixes all of these genres freely and has developed a style of Irish/American playing that has been dubbed “Jig-a-billy”.

Boston Blackthorne has performed with many notable acts, including The Clancy Brothers, Robbie O’Connell, Derek Warfield, The Barra McNeils, Maura O’Connell and Black 47.

Equally comfortable in pubs, festivals, or corporate and private events, Boston Blackthorne has performed at venues as diverse as The Boston Science Museum, The Holyoke Heritage Festival, Charles River Cruise Lines, Pearl Street Nightclub, Cheers Faneuil Hall, The Yankee Pedlar Opera House, The Newport Waterfront Irish Festival, The Danbury Irish Festival, Harpoon Brewery, Maple Street Music Festival, Western Mass Celtfest and many other public and private functions throughout the Northeast.

The new CD “Better Late than Ever” is available at: http://cdbaby.com/cd/blackthorne

Website
www.bostonblackthorne.com

Discography
Better Late than Ever by Boston Blackthorne, available at CDBaby.com. This album won the LiveWire award for best regional album of 2005 from the Springfield Union (MA).

Three Day Threshold - Kelly I’m Coming Over.

Good Country Gone Bad

Instrumentation
Kier Byrnes - Vocals, Banjo, Mandolin, Guitar, Harp
Colt Thompson - Guitar, Vocals
Johnny Stump - Bass, Vocals
Neal Cadogan - Drums

Biography
Three Day Threshold could be the soundtrack to a shotgun wedding, tractor pull, or dog fight. It’s bluegrass on overdrive, it’s an after hours rockabilly prom, but most of all it’s a show not to be missed.

Website
www.threedaythreshold.com

Discography
Full Legnths:
Behind the Barn (Pig Pile, 2002)
Homecookin’ (Devil’s Got a Banjo Music, 2000)

EPs:
For the Southern Belles of South Boston
Hi N Dry Sessions
New Alliance Sessions
Sea Sound Studios Sessions
The Camp Street Sessions

COMPILATIONS:
Just Promotions Warped Tour Compilation
Folk For Stroke Benefit Compilation
Real Music Compilation
Bostonbands.com Compilation
Wingbat Records Compilation
Spooky Man Presents… Halloween Compilation

Nathaniel Maloney - Old Empty Farmhouse.

Honest heartfelt acoustic music that is from the central vein of a 27 year old from a small town in Northeast Ohio.

Instrumentation
Nathaniel Maloney - Acoustic Guitar, Vocal

Biography
Like a warm summer day, or a star filled sky, Nathaniel Maloney writes honestly, choosing his words spiritedly. Poetry and his passion for playing guitar rise like the sun from this singer-songwriter’s heart. Growing up in the rural township of Burton, Ohio, he found inspiration in nature and all of his life’s journey’s. Above all Nathaniel’s voice natural, and altogether his own can fill a room with no trace of device, but pure truthfulness. With his self titled debut, Nathaniel Maloney (released in 2003), one fan writes Nathaniel Maloney tells tales in his music that seem far too troublesome for someone his age to go through. Yet with the mysticism and maturity of his voice, he pulls it off like one of the great acoustic legends. His lyrics hold a spirit that soul searches and seems to beg listeners for forgiveness. He wears his heart on his guitar strings and his mind in the beauty of his voice.

Nathaniel didn’t let troublesome times and worries slow him down. In the spring of 2005 he released his second album Old Empty Farmhouse. Cleveland Scene Magazine writes, Maloney’s rural folk feels like driving through the countryside with the windows down. It’s an album so woodsy and rustic, you can damn near hear the crickets chirping. Nathaniel since has signed with Lost Cat Records and is receiving airplay on various Indie radio stations throughout the United States and Europe.

Website
www.nathanielmaloney.com

Discography
Nathaniel Maloney (self-titled) 2003
Old Empty Farmhouse - Released 2005

Bourrasque Celtique - Vincent-Marc.

Celtic compositions and Traditional music (Quebec, Ireland, England, Nova Scotia) . Acoustic and electric instruments. An unsurpassed swinging music that has the most difficult audiences tapping their toes. Mostly instrumental music with some mysterious, magical texts in French

Instrumentation
Marc Bilodeau (mandolin)
Raphaël Bilodeau (électric / acoustic guitars)
Vincent Lacroix (flutes, gaïta (spanish bagpipe), voice)
Samuel Ouellet (djembé, percussions)
Andréanne Galichand (clarinet, voice)
Pierre-David Girard (bass)
Odei Bilodeau (voice)

Biography
Their energetic stage presence and their use of a mix of traditional and modern instruments have allowed the members of Bourrasque Celtique to stand out among the many groups now performing traditional music.

The group began as a father-son duo in 1997, and audience from all across the Québec were immediately charmed by their music and complicity on stage. The other members joined in along the years, adding more depth ti their music. Bourrasque Celtique built up an impresive resume over the years, playing in over one hundred theatres, fourty colleges and many festivals.

Their performance at 2003 edition of “Les Fêtes de la Nouvelle-France” attracted considerable attention. This event attracts over 100,000 people every year in Québec city.

As well for the 2004 edition of “mondial des cultures”. Since 1982, Drummondville welcomes people from around the world to share their dance, music and culture. 300,000 visitors annually. www.mondialdescultures.com

The five men and one girl offer a unique and exhilarating performance that will captivate the novice listener and the more experienced music-lover.

Website
www.bourrasqueceltique.net

Discography
1999: First release with 4 musicians: “Nordet”, 1000 copies sale in concerts.
2003: Second release with seven musicians “L’oiseau tonnerre”. Distributed in Canada by “LOCAL Distribution”.
Third cd to come soon in 2007.

First song on the compilation: “2005 Musselman Triathlon Festival & Compilation CD” (http://www.musselmantri.com/)

The ShowStopper Track:

This week’s ShowStopper Track is from Swift Years and it’s their playful set called Eddystone Light.
Don’t forget then to vote for your favorite track from this week’s podcast by emailing us, telling us who you want to hear again and we’ll tally the votes and crown the winner the ShowStopper Track and play them again at the end of next week’s Podcast. So drop us a line and tell us who you liked the best of the four great tracks this week.

Please help us support these fine artists by taking a look at their websites, buying their music or at least let them know how much you enjoyed listening to their music on the Celtic Folk Podcast.

Check out our parent website at www.upbeatcafe.com where you’ll find a schedule of great live music, as well as our Online Music Shop were you can buy those old-fashioned CD’s, as well as digital downloads.

STOP PRESS We are currently uploading all the digital tracks and “Sip-A-Clips” to the server. We will be opening this new shop just as soon as we can. You’ll be able to find it here when it goes live. Stay tuned for more updates on our progress.

Like to listen to great new, independent music of all genres from all around the world? Subscribe to our other weekly podcast Upbeat Radio. We feature excellent music for all tastes.

A note for Artists:

Would you like to have your music included on a future Celtic Folk Podcast? Just email us or submit a song to us through Sonicbids.

Please, please, please give us some feedback and let us know how we’re doing. All podcasters live for feedback, both good and bad - it let’s us know what you, our listener and subscriber, want to hear. Email us at info@celticfolkpod.com

CFP18 - Wet, Wet, Wet

al — Mon, 15 Jan 2007 23:59:27 +0000

Play Show 18 - Wet, Wet, Wet

Music this week from Swift Years (Eddystone Light), Carol Ames (West Virginia), Maidens IV (Jolly Rover) and Mother Grove (The Ballad of Miles O’Toole).

Welcome the Celtic Folk Podcast! We continue to showcase the best Celtic, Folk and Traditional music from around the world each week.
Click on the player above to listen to a streaming version. However, we would prefer for you to subscribe!

Click on the iTunes logo to subscribe to the Celtic Folk Podcast using iTunes.

Click on the feed logo above to subscribe to the Celtic Folk Podcast RSS Feed:
http://feeds.feedburner.com/CelticFolkPodcast

Either way you won’t miss a single Celtic Folk Podcast!

In order to download the episode MP3 directly to your computer, rather than streaming it, or if you do not have podcatcher software that will download it for you automatically, click on the Feedburner link above. When the new page opens, right click on the episode’s “Play Now” and then select “Save Target As…”

CFP18 Show Notes:

Wet, Wet, Wet.

Four days of rain has not made for a great long weekend here in the States. However, we have some great music lined up for you over the next 25 minutes or so. Last week we featured the Glengarry Bhoys in the latest Artist Interview Series. This week we’re back to bringing you the usual menu of great Celtic and Traditional music from artists from around the world.

We have just put together a MySpace page the Celtic Folk Podcast and we’d love for you to head on over there and become one of our “Friends” and leave us a Comment. Another thing we’d like to ask is that you head over to iTunes and write a review of the Celtic Folk Podcast. We are one of the top Celtic music Podcasts on iTunes, a stat we’re very proud of, since iTunes is one of the most used platforms people use to find podcasts. So, there you go, a couple of homework assignments for you this week. Thank you in advance for taking the time to do that for us.

Swift Years - Eddystone Light.

Swift Years cook up a potent blend of roots music from the old and new worlds, served with hot sauce and lyrics both sweet and sour. One-word description? Worldbilly: music that originates in the hills & backwoods of many nations, plugged in for a night on the town.

Instrumentation
Bob Cussen, Mandolin & Vocals
Patrick Hutchinson, Guitar & Vocals
Suzanne Ungar, Bass & Vocals

Biography
SWIFT YEARS is the happy result of a chance encounter of three musicians who between them have played everything from Bluegrass to Reggae, via East European, Celtic and North African folk. The treatments of traditional material are marked by musical intensity and adventurous spirit, and the original compositions combine this with playful/serious lyrics that turn a satirical eye inwards as well as outwards.

They have entertained audiences of all shapes, sizes, ages and persuasions (in English and in French!), though on occasion have been reprimanded by the Folk Police for having too much fun. Swift Years have a sincere love for traditional music; but as a living changing entity rather than a museum exhibit, much in the spirit of the likes of Steeleye Span and Los Lobos.

BOB CUSSEN plays the mandolin (and anything else with strings) like a man with centuries worth of music inside him and only one lifetime to let it all out, his road-worn old Gibson always on the verge of spontaneous combustion. Montreal-based and of German/Hungarian descent, he was the founding member and leader of the White River Bluegrass Band, which, over the course of twelve years, produced three recordings, six European tours and made appearances at festivals, concerts and clubs across the U.S. and Canada, from the Western Arctic to the Magdalene Islands. He went on to become the 1985 U.S. Midwest Irish banjo champion. From 1992 to 1999 he appeared with his band the Immigrants, also known as Nobody You Know, playing extensively in the U.S. and Canada, producing several recordings. As well as Swift Years he is a mainstay of the Montreal Irish scene where he performs with singer-songwriter Belfast Andi. He also occasionally plays with Notre Dame de Grass. Bob has collaborated with a great many artists, including Tom Paxton, Jean Leloup, Kate and McGarrigle, Plume Latraverse, Karen Young, Michel Faubert, Lawrence Lepage, Claude Lafrance, Georges Langford, Garolou, Ian Tamblyn and the Venezuelan instrumental group Çavana. He has appeared on numerous CBC recordings, as well as many TV shows in Canada, Germany and Hungary. He has also recorded for the National Film Board.

PATRICK HUTCHINSON grew up in remote parts of rural Scotland and England, before coming to Montreal in 1978 with a box of punk-rock 45s and an incomprehensible accent. Formative influences were his parents’ love of folk/world music, and John Peel every night on BBC radio who could go from the Buzzcocks to the Bothy Band and Little Feat to Lee Perry without batting an eyelid. As a tasty, soulful, ensemble-minded guitarist he tips his hat to the likes of Ry Cooder, Steve Cropper, and Richard Thompson. Patrick was an original member of Top Ranking (Montreal’s first ska band) in the 1980s, and half of minimalist torch-and-twang duo Bare Bones in the ’90s, putting out several well-received albums and gigging extensively both alone and with the likes of Johnny Clegg, Procul Harum and Ani Difranco.

SUZANNE UNGAR embodies the bass virtues of talking softly and carrying a big stick. Whereas bass players tend to be in the background in folk acts, Suzanne’s silk-and-steel basslines are an essential up-front part of the Swift Years sound. Born in Budapest, Hungary, she lived in Europe and California before establishing herself in Montreal. She studied piano and classical guitar, before concentrating on the electric bass and becoming a part of the Montreal folk scene in the 1970’s. She performed with the Jay Sewall Blues Band and the Celtic trio Anam Cara, and was member of the folk/rock group Harlequin for a number of years, as well as the R&B/pop group Random Hush. Suzanne has also performed and recorded with the New York artist Barbara Lewis and also the Irish/Gaelic singer Beverley McGuire.

For more, including five more music samples of Swift Years’ Bluegrass, Gypsy, Celtic, Québecois and original repertoire, please visit:

Discography
Swift Years (2000)
Démo (2002)
Three (2004)
Joe’s Report from the Afterlife (2006)

Swift Year’s website

Carol Ames - West Virginia.

Melodic, guitar driven Americana sung with a distinctive voice …creatively, musically and lyrically “Carol Ames has it in her, for sure…that indefinable it that is associated with artistry and star power” Kim Rheul, Acoustic Today Instrumentation
Carol Ames- acoustic guitar, vocals
Ken Dow - bass, backing vocals
Hector Maldonado - lead guitar, backing vocals, mandolin
Kevin Dow- drums
Melissa Harley- fiddle

Carol Ames- acoustic guitar, vocalsKen Dow - bass, backing vocalsHector Maldonado - lead guitar, backing vocals, mandolinKevin Dow- drumsMelissa Harley- fiddleBiography

Carol Ames is a Texas-bred Americana artist. Her music is a mixture of styles and influences that create a sound uniquely her own. Her new CD, Shades of Indigo, which Carol also produced, was released in March 2005 and is already garnering critical acclaim. With her sights set high, the San Diego resident reached into her hat and pulled out the kind of record no one expected.

Shades of Indigo is a sexy, energetic Americana record with hints of country in which Carol augments her fine songwriting with vocal performances to match.
The music community has taken notice as shown by her prestigious win of the Grand Prize in the International 2004 John Lennon Songwriting Contest for the song West Virginia. JLSC were impressed with the originality of the song, Carol’s soaring vocals as well as the fine tuned production.

Ames song Nothin’ but a heartache was picked up by award winning producer Bryan Michael Stoller for his film Light Years Away which will be released nationally Fall 2006
The many powerful emotional and stylistic impressions on the record make for a diverse listen for Carol’s fans and the many converts bound to pile on her wagon, but to Carol, this variety of emotional expression all comes from the same place. From the country tinted lead track Nothin’ but a Heartache to the slow burning of Underneath the Texas Sky to the delicate title track Shades of Indigo Carol asserts herself with strong distinctive voice creatively, musically and lyrically.

Discography
OUT OF THE BLUE- released jan 2000
SHAKEDOWN- released oct 2001
Shades of indigo- released September 2005
….recording new CD early 2007

Carol Ames’s Website

Maidens IV - Jolly Rover.

This youthful band of sisters presents vivacious fiddling, dynamic percussion and enchanting four part harmony to capture heart and toe. Celtic Fire with Class!! Instrumentation
Havilah Justice: Violin, Vocal
Heather Justice: Lead Vocal, Bodhrán, Violin, Cajón
Abigail Justice: Viola, Vocal, Percussion
Tabitha Justice: Guitar, Vocal

Biography
Since early childhood Havilah, Heather, Abigail & Tabitha Justice have been actively performing classical and baroque music with their nine siblings as a part of their Mothers vision for a well-rounded home-schooling education.

In 2003 Havilah and Heather brought Maidens II into existence as an engaging Violin and Voice duo. They began performing Renaissance, Celtic and Folk music intricately weaving song with theatrical drama for motor-coach tours and restaurant venues.

In 2005 younger sister Abigail added the alto sounds of her Viola as the Maidens performances were now reaching 60 gigs a year.

2006 brought in youngest sister Tabitha’s driving guitar rhythms! Kindling a new sound and genre as Maidens IV, the band now flames the fire of Celtic and Folk music performing in a variety of venues from Fairs and Festivals to private events.

The Maidens classically trained lead vocalist, Heather, holds captive her audiences with sparkling brilliance. She arranges all the music for Maidens and composes much of the vocals and instrumentals, giving the band its distinctive Maidens fire. Her Bodhrán is the heartbeat of their percussion. Havilah’s bright and spirited Violin flames their reels, jigs and ethnic tunes. Close on her heels Abigail’s vibrant Viola adds a depth and rich harmony to the group. Tabitha enriches Maidens with her driving rhythms and sensitive acoustic Guitar. Spirited rhythms of these Maiden sisters give youthful vigor to Celtic & Folk sounds.

Discography
Charm & Fire: 2006
Four Aflame: 2006

Maidens IV’s website

Mother Grove - The Ballad of Miles O”Toole.

Mother Grove seamlessly blends well crafted original rock songs with traditional Scottish and Irish instruments such as Highland bagpipes, pennywhistle and fiddle to create a sound defined as “KILT ROCK”.

Instrumentation
Brad Sprauer - Vocals, Guitars
Laura Adams - Fiddle, Vocals
Andy Kramer - Highland Bagpipes, Pennywhistles
Ron Fife - Drums, Percussion, Vocals
Jim Farley - Bass Guitar

Biography
Mother Grove has enjoyed great success and critical acclaim with their self-proclaimed “Kilt Rock” sounds. Mother Grove has performed all over the Midwest and has been chosen to perform with such Celtic rock powerhouses as Seven Nations, Black 47 and Young Dubliners as well as mainstream groups such as the Violent Femmes, Blue Oyster Cult and Berlin. They have released 4 CDs; their debut disc, “Listen to Your Mother”, “Mother May I” (which contains 6 live tracks), “TRÍ”, and “Live At The Dublin Pub”.

Mother Grove blends original rock music with traditional and not-so traditional Celtic instruments to create a sound that is unique, fresh yet timeless. Mother Grove is influenced by such Celtic Rock style bands as Flogging Molly, Seven Nations, Bad Haggis and The Pogues to name a few, as well as classic, alternative and progressive rock artists such as Dave Matthews Band, Ben Harper and others.

Mother Grove truly shines live. With unstoppable grooves and multi-layered rhythms, the music dares you stand still. The band has a professionalism indicative of their many collective years as musicians. They interact with the crowd to such an extent, by the end of the evening you feel as if you are a part of the band. Lyrically, Mother Grove draws from many sources; historical, traditional, spiritual and personal. The words are then entwined with memorable melodies and beautiful harmonies. The band stops short of calling themselves a “Celtic Rock” band, for they are much, much more.

Discography
“Listen To Your Mother” - 2002
“Mother May I” - 2004
“TRÍ” - 2005
“Live At The Dublin Pub” - 2006Mother Grove’s website

The ShowStopper Track:

No ShowStopper Track this week as we had our Artist Interview Series with the Glengarry Bhoys on last week’s Podcast. Don’t forget then to vote for your favorite track from this week’s podcast by emailing us, telling us who you want to hear again and we’ll tally the votes and crown the winner the ShowStopper Track and play them again at the end of next week’s Podcast. So drop us a line and tell us who you liked the best of the four great tracks this week.

Please help us support these fine artists by taking a look at their websites, buying their music or at least let them know how much you enjoyed listening to their music on the Celtic Folk Podcast.

Check out our parent website at www.upbeatcafe.com where you’ll find a schedule of great live music, as well as our Online Music Shop were you can buy those old-fashioned CD’s, as well as digital downloads.

STOP PRESS We are currently uploading all the digital tracks and “Sip-A-Clips” to the server. We will be opening this new shop just as soon as we can. You’ll be able to find it here when it goes live. Stay tuned for more updates on our progress.

Like to listen to great new, independent music of all genres from all around the world? Subscribe to our other weekly podcast Upbeat Radio. We feature excellent music for all tastes.

A note for Artists:

Would you like to have your music included on a future Celtic Folk Podcast? Just email us or submit a song to us through Sonicbids.

Please, please, please give us some feedback and let us know how we’re doing. All podcasters live for feedback, both good and bad - it let’s us know what you, our listener and subscriber, want to hear. Email us at info@celticfolkpod.com

CFP17 - The Glengarry Bhoys - Artist Interview Series

al — Sat, 06 Jan 2007 19:31:31 +0000

Play Show 17 - The Glengarry Bhoys - Artist Interview Series

Another in our popular interviews with leading artists in the world of Celtic music. These informal chats are designed to give you the feel of being there - a friendly talk about the music with the folks that make it.

Welcome the Celtic Folk Podcast! We continue to showcase the best Celtic, Folk and Traditional music from around the world each week.
Click on the player above to listen to a streaming version. However, we would prefer for you to subscribe!

Click on the iTunes logo to subscribe to the Celtic Folk Podcast using iTunes.

Click on the feed logo above to subscribe to the Celtic Folk Podcast RSS Feed:
http://feeds.feedburner.com/CelticFolkPodcast

Either way you won’t miss a single Celtic Folk Podcast!

In order to download the episode MP3 directly to your computer, rather than streaming it, or if you do not have podcatcher software that will download it for you automatically, click on the Feedburner link above. When the new page opens, right click on the episode’s “Play Now” and then select “Save Target As…”

CFP17 Show Notes:

The Glengarry Bhoys - Artist Interview Series.

I caught up with the Glengarry Bhoys prior to their appearance on Woodsongs Old-Time Radio Hour back in November. They are a great example of Canadiana music - huge in Canada and rightly so; they’re music spans both Traditional and contemporary, but always with the Glengarry flair.
A passion inspired by their respective musical backgrounds; skills honed in the Glengarry melting pot music scene; an against-the-trend-pig-minded-approach to playing their self-penned songs in the battle scared pubs of Eastern Ontario, were the necessary ingredients that spawned what is now an internationally acclaimed alternative-roots band: the Glengarry Bhoys.
Described as bold, unorthodox, vibrant, and evocative, the Glengarry Bhoys hybrid of Canadian Highland Scots and French Canadian musical idioms has evolved into a sound that is weighty, authoritative, and extremely entertaining.
Graham Wright, the charismatic songsmith’s material, although edgy and challenging, never strays too far from his native Scottish roots. His colleague, Gaye Stuart Leroux (Ziggy), is also a graduate of the “Graham Wright Band.” He cut his percussive teeth in drum corps such as the 1980’s successful Grade 1 Dunvegan Pipe Band, ceilidh bands like the Brigadoons, underpinned by a healthy exposure to Glengarry kitchen ceilidhs throughout his youth : A rhythmical palate that assisted in building this unique world-beat Glengarry Bhoys danceable groove.
A Glengarry Bhoys show is both a musical and visual experience. Blending old and new their music is stirring and unerringly nuanced – always within earshot of the melodic Scottish tradition!
Their years of determined touring and consistent output have cemented their status at the top of the independent alternative-roots scene. In the United-States, they are a marquee act on the Music Festival circuit, as well as their concert and club shows, which draw crowds usually associated with significant pop acts of today. In Canada, their appeal is much at the same pace, most tellingly evidenced by their continual placing in top ten purchases made through major online retailers such as Maple Music.

Glengarry Bhoys’ website

To buy their music go to:
Maple Music

iTunes

CDBaby

To see the Glengarry Bhoys in action, live on Woodsongs click HERE

The ShowStopper Track:

Don’t forget to vote for your favorite track from this week’s podcast by emailing us, telling us who you want to hear again and we’ll tally the votes and crown the winner the ShowStopper Track. So drop us a line and tell us who you liked the best of the four great tracks this week.

Shawn Lidster - The Sealers Song.

Shawn Lidster’s website.

Please help us support these fine artists by taking a look at their websites, buying their music or at least let them know how much you enjoyed listening to their music on the Celtic Folk Podcast.

Check out our parent website at www.upbeatcafe.com where you’ll find a schedule of great live music, as well as our Online Music Shop were you can buy those old-fashioned CD’s, as well as digital downloads.

STOP PRESS We are currently uploading all the digital tracks and “Sip-A-Clips” to the server. We will be opening this new shop just as soon as we can. You’ll be able to find it here when it goes live. Stay tuned for more updates on our progress.

Like to listen to great new, independent music of all genres from all around the world? Subscribe to our other weekly podcast Upbeat Radio. We feature excellent music for all tastes.

A note for Artists:

Would you like to have your music included on a future Celtic Folk Podcast? Just email us or submit a song to us through Sonicbids.

Please, please, please give us some feedback and let us know how we’re doing. All podcasters live for feedback, both good and bad - it let’s us know what you, our listener and subscriber, want to hear. Email us at info@celticfolkpod.com

CFP16 - Back to Talkin’

al — Sat, 30 Dec 2006 00:50:29 +0000

Play Show 16 - Back to Talkin’

Welcome the Celtic Folk Podcast! We continue to showcase the best Celtic, Folk and Traditional music from around the world each week.
Click on the player above to listen to a streaming version. However, we would prefer for you to subscribe!

Click on the iTunes logo to subscribe to the Celtic Folk Podcast using iTunes.

Click on the feed logo above to subscribe to the Celtic Folk Podcast RSS Feed:
http://feeds.feedburner.com/CelticFolkPodcast

Either way you won’t miss a single Celtic Folk Podcast!

In order to download the episode MP3 directly to your computer, rather than streaming it, or if you do not have podcatcher software that will download it for you automatically, click on the Feedburner link above. When the new page opens, right click on the episode’s “Play Now” and then select “Save Target As…”

CFP16 Show Notes:

Back to Talkin’. OK, so a little experiment last time with very little in the way of introduction and me talking about the music. Well I don;t know how well that went over so we’re back to the usual format this week. One question, though: did it make you head on over to read our ShowNotes at CelticFolkPod.com?

Sharon Knight - King Willie.

As a duet Sharon accompanies herself on mandola, acoustic guitar, and bodhran. She is joined by long-time collaborator Winter on acoustic guitar, whose tasteful and original arrangements lend an air of sophisitication that transcends the traditional folk interpretations associated with Celtic music.

As a trio they are joined by Gari Hegedus on violin, mandocello, and whistles. For a bigger sound, a full band including drums & bass is on call.

Alive with soulful longing, passionate hope, and vivid imagery, the music of Sharon Knight is a journey into the otherworldly mists of a timeless land, filled with brave heroes, epic love, and mythical quests. For more than 10 years, the San Francisco Celtic songstress has been performing and recording her unique musical vision as both a solo artist and fronting the world-rock fusion band Pandemonaeon. Her voice is strong and soulful, with a hint of vulnerability, and her striking poetry is set to lush instrumentation reminiscent of Loreena McKennitt’s work. Sharon has also been favorably compared with Fairport Convention, Stevie Nicks, and Tori Amos.

Sharon has recently released her fifth recording, titled Song of the Sea, a collection of original and traditional Celtic songs which sweeps the listener along on an enthralling musical journey. Including performances by Irish vocalist Shay Black, and Gari Hegedus of Stellamara, Song of the Sea evokes the indomitable spirit of the Celts and reminds us that we can all see the world through the eyes of enchantment.

Discography
Song of the Sea (2005, Trance Jam Records)
Siren Songs (2004, Trance Jam Records)
Temple of Dreams - Live! (2003, Trance Jam Records
Pandemonaeon (2001, Trance Jam Records)
Incantation (1996, Trance Jam Records)

Sharon Knight’s website

Shawn Lidster - The Sealers Song.

Shawn Lidster is a singer/songwriter from Brigus, Newfoundland,Canada, who has been writing and performing a wide range of original material for more than 20 years.

In 2003 Shawn did a remix of his song, Sealer Song for the Homebrew 4 CD and in 2004 his song Newfoundland Summer’s Day (recorded in Great Big Sea’s studio) was released on Homebrew 5 CD both songs get extensive play on traditional radio station’s here in Newfoundland.

Shawn’s new project called Legends on the Baccalieu Trail has been years in the making. He has done extensive research into the history of Cupids,Brigus,Bull Cove,Harbour Grace and Carbonear. The time line of songs that Shawn has written shows how he has developed as a songwriter. The songs get right to the heart and soul of the characters he is reflecting on and brings the listener back to the era in which he is singing about.

The Sealers Song and Newfoundland Summer’s Day now only available together on this CD will surely draw attention to all the new songs Shawn has crafted for this CD.

Discography
1995 Lidster’s Hill “Swally Dis”
1998 The Ratso Man won song competition in Sydney Australia’s Rock Station Triple M. Prize chosen by Sammy Hagar
2004 The Sealer’s Song re-recorded and released on Homebrew 4
2005 Newfoundland Summer’s Day re-recorded and released on Homebrew 5
2006 Legends on the Baccalieu Trail first solo release- On the Baccalieu Trail, Cupers Cove, John Hawe and Carbonear Island all receiving airplay on 560 CHVO,Homebrew 97.5 Fm,Jigs and Reels 94.7 Fm and Radio Newfoundland.

Shawn Lidster’s website

Stonecircle - Road to Lisdoonvarna.

Stonecircle is a vibrant five-piece, Celtic fusion band. The goal of the band has always been to create a musical experience that is both ethereal and beautifully uplifting. Stonecircle music is a language of haunting melodies and driving tunes.

Stonecircle has been performing acoustic Celtic fusion music in the United States since 1993. In addition to performing its own arrangements of traditional tunes from England, Scotland, Ireland, and Brittany, Stonecircle also writes original instrumental and vocal tunes in the Celtic style and performs them with passionate energy and clarity of sound.

Discography
2005 Winter Sky
2003 In Concert
2001 Alchemy
1997 Serendipity

Stonecircle’s website

Vincent Berney - Espoir.

Born in 1979, third in a very musicial family, as a child, Vincent’s favourite hobby was to listen to Beatles albums (especially the White Album).
At 7 years of age, his parents enroled him at the school of music of Angers, where he learned musical theory and classical guitar. In his teenage years he moved on to bands like Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Metallica and Soundgarden, and at the same time, and it was during this period he started playing electric guitar and creating his first compositions.

These last years, I’ve discovered coolest music like Ben Harper, Fat Boy Slim, and recently Loreena McKennit.

Vincent Bernay’s website

The ShowStopper Track:

Don’t forget to vote for your favorite track from this week’s podcast by emailing us, telling us who you want to hear again and we’ll tally the votes and crown the winner the ShowStopper Track. So drop us a line and tell us who you liked the best of the four great tracks this week.

Barleyjuice - Whiskey to the Sea.

Barleyjuice’s website.

Please help us support these fine artists by taking a look at their websites, buying their music or at least let them know how much you enjoyed listening to their music on the Celtic Folk Podcast.

Check out our parent website at www.upbeatcafe.com where you’ll find a schedule of great live music, as well as our Online Music Shop were you can buy those old-fashioned CD’s, as well as digital downloads.

STOP PRESS We are currently uploading all the digital tracks and “Sip-A-Clips” to the server. We will be opening this new shop just as soon as we can. You’ll be able to find it here when it goes live. Stay tuned for more updates on our progress.

Like to listen to great new, independent music of all genres from all around the world? Subscribe to our other weekly podcast Upbeat Radio. We feature excellent music for all tastes.

A note for Artists:

Would you like to have your music included on a future Celtic Folk Podcast? Just email us or submit a song to us through Sonicbids.

Please, please, please give us some feedback and let us know how we’re doing. All podcasters live for feedback, both good and bad - it let’s us know what you, our listener and subscriber, want to hear. Email us at info@celticfolkpod.com

CFP15 - Less Talk

al — Wed, 20 Dec 2006 00:41:02 +0000

Play Show 15 - Less Talk

Welcome the Celtic Folk Podcast! We continue to showcase the best Celtic, Folk and Traditional music from around the world each week.
Click on the player above to listen to a streaming version. However, we would prefer for you to subscribe!

Click on the iTunes logo to subscribe to the Celtic Folk Podcast using iTunes.

Click on the feed logo above to subscribe to the Celtic Folk Podcast RSS Feed:
http://feeds.feedburner.com/CelticFolkPodcast

Either way you won’t miss a single Celtic Folk Podcast!

In order to download the episode MP3 directly to your computer, rather than streaming it, or if you do not have podcatcher software that will download it for you automatically, click on the Feedburner link above. When the new page opens, right click on the episode’s “Play Now” and then select “Save Target As…”

CFP15 Show Notes:

Less Talk. Not a whole lot of chat this time - just great new music.

Important Announcement:

Stay tuned for more details regarding our first

Ever wanted to visit Scotland and see the real sights, visit a real, traditional pub session with great artists playing wonderful Celtic and traditional music, visit the seldom-seen sights of a country steeped in over 6000 years of history?

Come join me on our first ever Celtic Folk Scotland Tour in late summer 2007.

This will be a limited opportunity for Celtic Folk Podcast listeners on a first-come, first-served basis, so email me if you are interested and keep it right here for more information coming very soon (we’ll produce a quick podcast to announce posting of the details, so your podcatcher will let you know when we’ve done so).

But enough of that - on to the music!

Trouz Bras- Jump. Catapulting traditional Breton dance tunes into the 21st century, Trouz Bras combines swirling bagpipes and soaring fiddle with a rocking rhythm section. The band is led by bagpiper and vocalist Ray Price, a native Welshman who has expanded his Celtic roots to become a global ambassador of Breton music and dance.

Brittany is a magical place of barren landscapes, megaliths, Celtic myths and legends and unique music and dance. Ray, who considers Brittany his second home, describes a tremendous recent renaissance of interest in the Fest Noz or Night Festival. A Fest Noz can have thousands of dancers at large, international festivals, or just a handful of local dancers in a far-flung village,” he says. “The music is driving, insistent and mesmerizing. The spiral and circle dances are performed by everyone from the very young to the very old.” The musicians of Trouz Bras seek to introduce these ancient traditions to a modern American audience.

Joining Ray in creating Trouz Bras’ “big sound” are some adventurous lads who aren’t afraid to let their diverse roots drive the band’s powerful sound. With impressive pedigrees in Irish, rock, blues, jazz, zydeco and medieval music, they pump new energy and vitality into the ancient Breton repertoire.

“Our origins are in the trance-like spiral dances of Brittany,” says fiddler and bouzouki player Barry Hall, who also sings and plays the vielle (a Medieval-style fiddle). “Much of today’s Breton dance repertoire remains unchanged from medieval times. Because Brittany has been so culturally isolated, the ancient musical modes have survived for many centuries. These fascinating tunes provide us with a point of departure for our own unique musical vision.”

Not content with merely recreating the past, Trouz Bras’ repertoire extends from starkly primitive traditional tunes to modern tunes composed by the band’s members that derive from the ancient dance beats. Drummer Mance Grady, who provides the band’s percussive foundation, says, “The dance steps dictate everything we play. Each type of dance has its own internal rhythm, and our tunes must synch perfectly to that pulse.” Adds bassist Brian Rost, a 30-year dance roots veteran, “When our music locks up with the dancers, it quickly becomes a symbiotic relationship. Their energy channels back to us and further invigorates our playing.”

Since its formation in 2005, Trouz Bras has played at many diverse venues, from the floors of intimate dance halls to the stages of major Celtic festivals. Audiences have enthusiastically embraced Trouz Bras’ unique style of traditional Celtic music that honors the past while giving it a swift kick into the present.

The Trouz Bras website

Ellis Island- Kevin’s Fancy. Ellis Island performs 2 – 3 times a month at bars and pubs in the Omaha and Kansas City area. Between the two of them they play over a dozen instruments on stage and have a vast selection of material from traditional tunes and Gaelic singing, to popular ballads and songs from Irish history. They have developed a strong following of loyal and enthusiastic fans whom are encoraged to join in and be a part of the act.

Mick and Dave have played at several festivals including the Omaha Irish Festival, Weston Irish Festival, Sioux Falls Irish Festival and the prestigious Kansas City Irish Festival.

Ellis Island’s website

Idaho Boy - Life in the North. Fiction is the art of lying to tell the truth. If your lies are true enough, your stories or songs take on a life of their own once they are unleashed upon the world.

I have been playing music (and telling lies) in Seattle-area bands since 1977. I first started out as a bassist and backup singer in a heavy metal rock band, and I’ve since performed at festivals, in schools and auditoriums, and in a cross section of the Good, the Bad and the Ugly bars and taverns all across Washington.

After purchasing a Martin guitar in 1999, I discovered, much to my surprise, that a magical muse inhabited the instrument. Ever since then I have been able to make up songs out of thin air. I’ve written over thirty songs in the years since I bought that guitar, but they have all grown up and gone off into the world to make their own way.

I have always been attracted to the desert country of the American West, one of the harshest but most beautiful places on earth, and I am descended from the early pioneers who came to inhabit that raw, wild land. So lately all my songs have that cowboy twang. Kick off your boots, put up your feet and listen, as this Idaho Boy paints new pictures of the Old West.

Barleyjuice- Whiskey To The Sea. The first thing you notice about Barleyjuice, after their kilts, is their uncanny ability to pen songs that sound like they came straight from classic Pogues, Christy Moore, or Ewan MacColl albums. The second thing that hits you is their wit and prowess in performing them. This is why they’re making waves in the celtic community and beyond.

Chuck Fishbein & Sarah Stager, videographers for U2’s recent tour, caught the band at Rocky Sullivan’s, NYC last year and followed them from venue to venue to create the “rockumentary” you see on this website.

Barleyjuice’s eponymous first recording was steeped in traditional bagpipe & celtic singing songs. By their second album, Another Round, Swanson & Brewer had written more than half of the material. Encouraged with numerous comparisons to Shane MacGowan & the Pogues, Tom Waits, Ronnie Drew, Monty Python, even the Rolling Stones, they staved on with their own original tunes as well as trad favorites. Their tongue-in-cheek element delights audiences thoroughly, in addition to, as Brewer notes, making it difficult for them to sing properly. The six members pilot a barrage of instruments - guitar, fiddle, accordion, bagpipes, bouzouki, mandolin, harmonica, banjo, tinwhistle, piano, bass and drums. Sometimes they even dance.

In the past year, Barleyjuice released a third album, Six Yanks, and stretched their avid fanbase across America and into Europe with the help of such fan sites as MySpace, and a seamless show. Celticradio.net listeners voted “What’s Up Yours?” Song of the Year for 2005.

Barleyjuice’s website

The ShowStopper Track:

Don’t forget to vote for your favorite track from this week’s podcast by emailing us, telling us who you want to hear again and we’ll tally the votes and crown the winner the ShowStopper Track. So drop us a line and tell us who you liked the best of the four great tracks this week.

Williams and Williams- Abraham.

Williams and Williams online.

Check out our parent website at www.upbeatcafe.com where you’ll find a schedule of great live music, as well as our Online Music Shop were you can buy those old-fashioned CD’s, as well as digital downloads.

STOP PRESS We are currently uploading all the digital tracks and “Sip-A-Clips” to the server. We will be opening this new shop just as soon as we can. You’ll be able to find it here when it goes live. Stay tuned for more updates on our progress.

Like to listen to great new, independent music of all genres from all around the world? Subscribe to our other weekly podcast Upbeat Radio. We feature excellent music for all tastes.

A note for Artists:

Would you like to have your music included on a future Celtic Folk Podcast? Just email us or submit a song to us through Sonicbids.

Please, please, please give us some feedback and let us know how we’re doing. All podcasters live for feedback, both good and bad - it let’s us know what you, our listener and subscriber, want to hear. Email us at info@celticfolkpod.com

Please help us support these fine artists by taking a look at their websites, buying their music or at least let them know how much you enjoyed listening to their music on the Celtic Folk Podcast.

CFP14 - Laura McGhee Interview

al — Thu, 07 Dec 2006 19:58:28 +0000

Laura McGhee Interview

Welcome the Celtic Folk Podcast! We continue to showcase the best Celtic, Folk and Traditional music from around the world each week.
Click on the player above to listen to a streaming version. However, we would prefer for you to subscribe!

Click on the iTunes logo to subscribe to the Celtic Folk Podcast using iTunes.

Click on the feed logo above to subscribe to the Celtic Folk Podcast RSS Feed:
http://feeds.feedburner.com/CelticFolkPodcast

Either way you won’t miss a single Celtic Folk Podcast!

In order to download the episode MP3 directly to your computer, rather than streaming it, or if you do not have podcatcher software that will download it for you automatically, click on the Feedburner link above. When the new page opens, right click on the episode’s “Play Now” and then select “Save Target As…”

CFP14 Show Notes:

Laura McGhee Interview. The second in our series of interviews with musicians and artists from the world of Celtic and Traditional music, brought to you by the Upbeat Cafe & Music Venue.

(Please visit our Artist Interview Series Sponsor by clicking on the logo)

Our Artist Interview Series was an idea that came out of a little brain-storming about the Podcast. We thought it would be a good idea to get together, very informally, with some of the artists we feature right here on the Podcast and chat with them about their music, their background and whatever else might be on their mind. We deliberately decided to be very low key when it came to the interviews to give you, the listener, a sense of being there – part of the conversation.

Some of the folks we have chatted to so far, and will be featured in upcoming Celtic Folk Podcasts include:

Scots trad songstress, Christine Kydd

Scottish smallpipes maker, Ian Kinnear

and Celtic-rock and Canadiana band, The Glengarry Bhoys

Last week we introduced you to the music of Laura McGhee. Laura has been touring almost exclusively in the UK, but has recently announced that she will be travelling to North America in early 2007 for two events during the Folk Alliance in Memphis, Tennesee in February and Canada Music Week in Toronto in March.

She has been working very hard making many appearances, playing with bands as a guest artist, but she also tells us what her first gig was and some of the big names that have enjoyed her music and encouraged her to keep playing and writing in her own unique style.

Not only does her music reflect a mix of Celtic and Rock, but she is a composer of rare quality bringing the story of Scotland’s history to music in the Arbroath Suite, a journey through the heritage of traditional music from the signing of the Declaration of Arbroath, through to the Clearances when tens of thousands of Scots left their homeland for a new life in the States

I sat down with Laura in her home town of Monifeith, Scotland.

Laura’s website
Laura’s MySpace page

The ShowStopper Track:

No voting this week for a ShowStopper Track, obviously - that will be back again next week. The ShowStopper Track is your favorite track of the week. You can vote for that track from last week’s show by emailing us, telling us who you want to hear again and we’ll tally the votes and crown the winner the ShowStopper Track.

Brendan Carey Block- Borderline.

As always, you heard a little bit of our regular theme tune at the start of the podcast. The tune is Bm Reel by Brendan Cary Block. We leave you this week, however, with another tune from Brendan.

Brendan’s website (still under construction)
Brendan’s MySpace page

We’ll be back next week with our regular show, packed with great Celtic, Folk and Traditional music.

Check out our parent website at www.upbeatcafe.com where you’ll find a schedule of great live music, as well as our Online Music Shop were you can buy those old-fashioned CD’s, as well as digital downloads.

STOP PRESS: Looks like we will be going live with our Online Music Store VERY SOON! You’ll be able to find it here when it does go live. Stay tuned for more updates on our progress.

Like to listen to great new, independent music of all genres from all around the world? Subscribe to our other weekly podcast Upbeat Radio. We feature excellent music for all tastes.

A note for Artists:

Would you like to have your music included on a future Celtic Folk Podcast? Just email us or submit a song to us through Sonicbids.

Please, please, please give us some feedback and let us know how we’re doing. All podcasters live for feedback, both good and bad - it let’s us know what you, our listener and subscriber, want to hear. Email us at info@celticfolkpod.com

Please help us support these fine artists by taking a look at their websites, buying their music or at least let them know how much you enjoyed listening to their music on the Celtic Folk Podcast.

First Annual Scotland Tour

al — Thu, 30 Nov 2006 02:32:13 +0000

We are excited to announce that we are at the start of the planning stages of the first Annual Celtic Folk Scotland Tour!

“What’s that all about?” I hear you ask.

Well, have you ever wanted to visit Scotland and attend an actual session and watch and listen to some great traditional music being played in a 300 year old pub? Have you ever wondered what it would be like to wander down quiet country lanes, sheep and pheasants everywhere you look? Have you ever longed to walk through the picture-perfect glens of Angus? Or how about sampling freshly smoked fish in one of the great fishing towns of the east coast?

Or perhaps you want to visit one of the ancient sites that date back almost 6000 years or look at the craftsmanship of a 1600 year old carved pictish stone?

The Celtic Folk Scotland Tour will take place in July or August (probably) and will accomplish all that and more. We will be taking a relatively small number of people on a tour of the sights, sounds and tastes of the real Scotland. Yes, we’ll do some of the typical tourist things too, but if you have ever wanted to see the real beauty that is Scotland, you shouldn’t miss this great opportunity. The small group number will ensure we have an intimate time together, allowing us to visit places slighly off the path beaten by bus-loads of tourists!

A draft itinerary will be available soon and we’ll let you know, of course, when that becomes available. Once we finalize the schedule we’ll post it right here at the Celtic Folk Podcast and allow folks to book their spot.

If you would like to be emailed with complete information as soon as we have it available, please email info@celticfolkpod.com and put “Scotland Tour” in the subject line.

So, keep an eye out for more news of this exciting trip available only to subscribers of the Celtic Folk Podcast.

CFP13 - Back to the Music

al — Wed, 29 Nov 2006 05:16:04 +0000

Play Show 13 - Back to the Music

Welcome the Celtic Folk Podcast! We continue to showcase the best Celtic, Folk and Traditional music from around the world each week.
Click on the player above to listen to a streaming version. However, we would prefer for you to subscribe!

Click on the iTunes logo to subscribe to the Celtic Folk Podcast using iTunes.

Click on the feed logo above to subscribe to the Celtic Folk Podcast RSS Feed:
http://feeds.feedburner.com/CelticFolkPodcast

Either way you won’t miss a single Celtic Folk Podcast!

In order to download the episode MP3 directly to your computer, rather than streaming it, or if you do not have podcatcher software that will download it for you automatically, click on the Feedburner link above. When the new page opens, right click on the episode’s “Play Now” and then select “Save Target As…”

CFP13 Show Notes:

Back to the Music. Some of you are waiting for us to get back to great traditional music here on the Celtic Folk Podcast and that’s OK.

Williams and Williams- Abraham. Laurie and Rick Williams are a songwriting couple who draw on many influences and produce songs in many styles. They can pen childrens’ songs to movie scores and everything inbetween.

Laurie is a former opera singer and journalist turned lyracist and music critic. Rick was on the road for years in the Gospel circuit with his family, did some other bits and pieces, met Laurie and got a Ph.D in Clinical Psychology. He pens the music and does the arranging.

Laurie and Rick William’s website

Laura McGhee- Green Eyes. The beautiful Laura McGhee there with her very catchy song Green Eyes. Laura describes her music as Crossover Celtic Folk Rock - with a hook.

Her influences range from Dolly to Dylan, the Pogues to The Proclaimers. Throw in a bit of Celtic and a little of Loretta and your half way there.

A classically trained fiddler who graduated from the Royal Academy of Music just a couple of years ago, Laura is off to a great start to what I think promises to be a very successful career as a full time musician. Laura’s first pro gig was as the string arranger for Echo and the Bunnymen. From there she landed an appearance on Broadway with Pete Seeger at the Matt McGinn tribute concert.

I sat down and talked with Laura recently and we’ll have that full interview next week. We talk about the fact that like the Proclaimers, she’s not shy about her native accent, and the major music project she’s working on.

Laura’s website

Four Leaf Peat - Follow Me Up To Carlow. Born out of Irish traditional music in pub sessions our next group brings together musicians from various backgrounds whose musical hearts beat Irish! Grounded in tradition with undeniable influences by Ireland’s traditional pipers, fiddlers and singers, they also doff their caps to the current innovators of traditional music.

Four Leaf Peat’s website

Larry Allen Brown - Jaime Marie. Born and raised in Chicago, Larry Allen Brown has had a long career as lead guitarist for a variety of groups. Larry embarked upon a solo career as a composer and performer on the acoustic guitar six years ago. Larry teaches in Birmingham, Alabama where he resides with his wife Kathryn and their dogs, Dipstick and Murphy.

Larry has also been a guest artist with Trad. music legend Alasdair Fraser.

Larry’s website

The ShowStopper Track:

Don’t forget to vote for your favorite track from this week’s podcast by emailing us, telling us who you want to hear again and we’ll tally the votes and crown the winner the ShowStopper Track. So drop us a line and tell us who you liked the best of the four great tracks this week.

Alasdair White- The Cockerel In the Creel.

Alasdair White’s MySpace page
Battlefield Band’s website
Temple Records

Check out our parent website at www.upbeatcafe.com where you’ll find a schedule of great live music, as well as our Online Music Shop were you can buy those old-fashioned CD’s, as well as digital downloads.

STOP PRESS OK, so perhaps we have one or two more things to do to get Upbeat Sounds ready for the music-hungry public, but we’re so close. We will be opening this new shop just as soon as we can. You’ll be able to find it here when it goes live. Stay tuned for more updates on our progress.

Like to listen to great new, independent music of all genres from all around the world? Subscribe to our other weekly podcast Upbeat Radio. We feature excellent music for all tastes.

A note for Artists:

Would you like to have your music included on a future Celtic Folk Podcast? Just email us or submit a song to us through Sonicbids.

Please, please, please give us some feedback and let us know how we’re doing. All podcasters live for feedback, both good and bad - it let’s us know what you, our listener and subscriber, want to hear. Email us at info@celticfolkpod.com

Please help us support these fine artists by taking a look at their websites, buying their music or at least let them know how much you enjoyed listening to their music on the Celtic Folk Podcast.

CFP12 - Alasdair White Interview

al — Wed, 15 Nov 2006 02:25:51 +0000

Alasdair White Interview

Welcome the Celtic Folk Podcast! We continue to showcase the best Celtic, Folk and Traditional music from around the world each week.
Click on the player above to listen to a streaming version. However, we would prefer for you to subscribe!

Click on the iTunes logo to subscribe to the Celtic Folk Podcast using iTunes.

Click on the feed logo above to subscribe to the Celtic Folk Podcast RSS Feed:
http://feeds.feedburner.com/CelticFolkPodcast

Either way you won’t miss a single Celtic Folk Podcast!

In order to download the episode MP3 directly to your computer, rather than streaming it, or if you do not have podcatcher software that will download it for you automatically, click on the Feedburner link above. When the new page opens, right click on the episode’s “Play Now” and then select “Save Target As…”

CFP12 Show Notes:

Alasdair White Interview. This week we are kicking off our series of interviews with musicians and artists from the world of Celtic and Traditional music. We brought back a few from our trip from Scotland and we have others from artists on this side of the Atlantic.

We start, however, with a great instrumental from Todd Smith.

Todd Smith- Cliffs of Aran. Boston based multi-instrumentalist, arranger/producer, singer/songwriter, Todd writes guitar-driven, classic-style rock and folk-rock. He draws influence from many different genres, and is able to compose/arrange in virtually any one of those genres. This tune showcases his ability as a musician.

Todd Smith’s Website

Our Artist Interview Series was an idea that came out of a little brain-storming about the Podcast. We thought it would be a good idea to get together, very informally, with some of the artists we feature right here on the Podcast and chat with them about their music, their background and whatever else might be on their mind. We deliberately decided to be very low key when it came to the interviews to give you, the listener, a sense of being there – part of the conversation.

Some of the folks we have chatted to so far, and will be featured in the series include:

Up and coming fiddler and singer, Laura McGhee

Scots trad songstress, Christine Kydd

Scottish smallpipes maker, Ian Kinnear

and Celtic-rock and Canadiana band, The Glengarry Bhoys

Last week we introduced you to the music of Alasdair White. Known perhaps as the multi-talented fiddler from the Battlefield Band, Alasdair has just released his first solo CD – The White Album.I caught up with Alasdair at a session in Edinburgh just prior to his departure for the United States and the Batties’ Fall tour.

If you haven’t seen Alasdair and the rest of the Battlefield Band perform live, well, you’re missing a terrific experience.

Alasdair White’s MySpace page
Battlefield Band’s website
Temple Records

The ShowStopper Track:

No voting this week for your ShowStopper Track - that will be back again next week. The ShowStopper Track is your favorite track of the week. You can vote for that track by emailing us, telling us who you want to hear again and we’ll tally the votes and crown the winner the ShowStopper Track.

Mary Knickle- Weave the Yarn.

Having killed her name last week, Mary gets some sweet revenge by being this week’s ShowStopper Track. Well done, Mary, and my apologies!

Mary Knickle’s website

We’ll be back next week with our regular show, packed with great Celtic, Folk and Traditional music.

Check out our parent website at www.upbeatcafe.com where you’ll find a schedule of great live music, as well as our Online Music Shop were you can buy those old-fashioned CD’s, as well as digital downloads.

STOP PRESS: Looks like we will be going live with our Online Music Store next week! You’ll be able to find it here when it does go live. Stay tuned for more updates on our progress.

Like to listen to great new, independent music of all genres from all around the world? Subscribe to our other weekly podcast Upbeat Radio. We feature excellent music for all tastes.

A note for Artists:

Would you like to have your music included on a future Celtic Folk Podcast? Just email us or submit a song to us through Sonicbids.

Please, please, please give us some feedback and let us know how we’re doing. All podcasters live for feedback, both good and bad - it let’s us know what you, our listener and subscriber, want to hear. Email us at info@celticfolkpod.com

Please help us support these fine artists by taking a look at their websites, buying their music or at least let them know how much you enjoyed listening to their music on the Celtic Folk Podcast.

CFP11 - Getting Colder

al — Sun, 05 Nov 2006 03:29:45 +0000

Play Show 11 - Getting Colder

Welcome the Celtic Folk Podcast! We continue to showcase the best Celtic, Folk and Traditional music from around the world each week.
Click on the player above to listen to a streaming version. However, we would prefer for you to subscribe!

Click on the iTunes logo to subscribe to the Celtic Folk Podcast using iTunes.

Click on the feed logo above to subscribe to the Celtic Folk Podcast RSS Feed:
http://feeds.feedburner.com/CelticFolkPodcast

Either way you won’t miss a single Celtic Folk Podcast!

In order to download the episode MP3 directly to your computer, rather than streaming it, or if you do not have podcatcher software that will download it for you automatically, click on the Feedburner link above. When the new page opens, right click on the episode’s “Play Now” and then select “Save Target As…”

CFP11 Show Notes:

Getting Colder. Winter is starting to tighten it’s grip on our home state of Kentucky. So, as the weather is finally making an effort to turn cold we will try to keep you warm, at least mentally, with another half hour or so of great Celtic, Traditional and Folk music from around the world.

Our trip back home to Scotland was excellent! We toured around, frequented a whole lot of coffee shops, drank lots of coffee, got together with some old friends and made some new ones.

This week we’ll be introducing you to some of the folk we talked to during our trip and of course we’ll play some fine music.

Ron Renninger- Kilkenny Mist (Instr.). New Jersey Singer-Songwriter Ron Renninger manages to cross many genre borders effortlessly with tunes and songs that you can listen to all day without thinking this is or is not my kind of music – it’s all good! His skills as a guitarist are obvious from “Kilkenny Mist”.

Ron Renninger’s website

Alasdair White- The Cockerel In The Creel. We talked to some very talented people on our trip. Here’s a fantastic fiddle player you may know from the Battlefield Band. This set of three tunes: Pull The Knife and Stick It Again, The Flooded Road to Glenties, The Cockerel In The Creelis on Alasdair’s brand new CD The White Album which is now out in the UK and will be available to the rest of the world by the middle of the month.

We start with an Irish jig here with a very macabre title, to do with an old tale about witches. Apparently if they were stabbed, they would try to get you to stab them again. The second stab, it seems, renewed their life. And then you’d better watch out! The first of the reels was written by the late and celebrated Irish fiddler, Jimmy McHugh. Originally brought up in Donnegal, like many of his countrymen, he settled in Glasgow, where he brought up a family and became well known on the Glasgow and Scottish traditional music scene. The Cockerel In The Creel was written by the legendary piper and composer Donald MacLeod. The title refers to the Hebridean practice of putting the Cockerel in the creel on Sundays - probably something to do with stopping the cocks crowing on the Sabbath. In any case its is another great tune from “wee” Donald.

From Alasdair’s liner notes from The White Album / an Clar Geal

You can hear our interview with Alasdair White from the Battlefield Band in an upcoming episode of the Celtic Folk Podcast, so stay subscribed to catch it.

Alasdair is currently on tour with the Battlefield Band in the United States.

Alasdair White’s MySpace page
Battlefield Band’s website
Temple Records

Hard Logic - Leprechaun Hammer Incident. Hard Logic is a six-member Jazz band but that doesn’t stop them from hitting Celtic, Funk, Latin and Rock along the way.

Hard Logic’s website

Mary Knickle- Weave the Yarn. Typical of Mary’s songs that focus on stories from the woman’s point of view is Weave the Yarn. Her album “Weave” is full of wonderful original songs that have you believing they were written a couple of hundred years ago.

Mary Knickle’s website

The ShowStopper Track:

Don’t forget to vote for your favorite track from this week’s podcast by emailing us, telling us who you want to hear again and we’ll tally the votes and crown the winner the ShowStopper Track. So drop us a line and tell us who you liked the best of the four great tracks this week.

Kaedmon- Lone Ranger.

Kaedmon’s website

Check out our parent website at www.upbeatcafe.com where you’ll find a schedule of great live music, as well as our Online Music Shop were you can buy those old-fashioned CD’s, as well as digital downloads.

STOP PRESS OK, so perhaps we have one or two more things to do to get Upbeat Sounds ready for the music-hungry public, but we’re so close. We will be opening this new shop just as soon as we can. You’ll be able to find it here when it goes live. Stay tuned for more updates on our progress.

Like to listen to great new, independent music of all genres from all around the world? Subscribe to our other weekly podcast Upbeat Radio. We feature excellent music for all tastes.

A note for Artists:

Would you like to have your music included on a future Celtic Folk Podcast? Just email us or submit a song to us through Sonicbids.

Please, please, please give us some feedback and let us know how we’re doing. All podcasters live for feedback, both good and bad - it let’s us know what you, our listener and subscriber, want to hear. Email us at info@celticfolkpod.com

Please help us support these fine artists by taking a look at their websites, buying their music or at least let them know how much you enjoyed listening to their music on the Celtic Folk Podcast.

CFP10 - Coast to Coast

al — Tue, 03 Oct 2006 18:46:17 +0000

Play Show 10 - Coast to Coast

Welcome the Celtic Folk Podcast! We continue to showcase the best Celtic, Folk and Traditional music from around the world each week.
Click on the player above to listen to a streaming version. However, we would prefer for you to subscribe!

Click on the feed logo above to subscribe to the Celtic Folk Podcast RSS Feed:
http://feeds.feedburner.com/CelticFolkPodcast
Or, for iTunes users, click on the iTunes logo.

Either way you won’t miss a single Celtic Folk Podcast!

CFP10 Show Notes:

Coast to Coast. If you are a regular of our website you will have seen that I have been in Texas for a couple of weeks and it’s been killing me that I was unable to put together a couple of Celtic Folk Podcasts during that time.

However, things are back to normal and I want to start this episode by saying thank you to all those who have emailed over the last couple of weeks saying just how much you’ve missed new shows.

Here’s an email from Mick O’Hara:

“Just a quick note from Nottingham England. Just thought I would let you know we love the show. I play in a Celtic Rock band called “Shamus O`Blivion & the Megadeath Morrismen”. We mix Celtic and Anglosaxon Folk with rock music and a whole heap of humour. Just recently we have been downloading your programme and burning them onto a CD to listen to your shows in succession on the way to gigs. We particularly like your show because it is so upbeat and you play lots of rock-folk mixtures which is what we like. Your show makes some Celtic / folk podcasts sound downright cold and dowdy by comparison. KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK and hurry back - we have heard all the shows now!!

Mick, thanks for the kind words and I’m glad that you like what we do here. I don’t think you’ll be disappointed this week either – our show has more of a folk feel to it this week, but is a little edgy too!

Before we get started, however, I also want to quickly mention the fact that I’ll be off to Scotland in two weeks and will be taking some recording equipment with me. More information on that later.

Right off the bat I know I’m flirting with reduced subscriber numbers this week, but stick with me here! This week’s podcast is all about stretching ourselves and getting a little outside our comfort zone and going “coast to coast”, so to speak. So, Mick, crank up the car sound system and open the windows, this is the Celtic Folk Podcast #10.

Harper- Braveheart. Jeff Harper’s persona “Harper” allows this very talented artist to write and perform work that comes from all genres, from one side of the musical spectrum to the other. Growing up in southern California and now living in Dallas, TX, his life experiences I’m sure play into the fact that he also not tied down musically. Check out Jeff’s website for more information on Jeff and his music.

Jeff Harper’s website

Xavier Cardriche - Meagan. Xavier Cardriche describes his music as “acoustic Americana with a Brooklyn drive” and that is a very apt description. His personal drive over the last few years has had him playing his music from the studio to coffee shops.

This is a song called “Meagan”. Take a listen and it doesn’t take you long to hear those influences that inspire folk music from all around the world – whether you are sitting in a coffee shop in Seattle or a pub in Scotland – the songwriter expresses his heart and a story. Again, it may be of the lost love of a girlfriend in New York or the plight of the Covenanters in Scotland.

Xiavier Cardriche’s website

Rob Byron - Sweet lady of the wintertime. Not content with stopping at the east coast of the United States, we keep heading east and come across Rob Byron who writes poetical lyrics, inspired by nature and its ability to help us find ourselves.

Here’s Rob’s song that topped out at #8 in the American Idol Underground Chart and asks us to look beyond the surface to find the true creation of who we can be – “Sweet lady of the wintertime”.

Rob Byron’s website

Kaedmon - Lone Ranger. If you think of an Americana band with a little Celtic thrown in for good measure, then you come up with Kaedmon. An excellent band with an excellent sound. I highly reccommend that you head over to their website. This award-winning band from California has several performances lined up, so if you are on the west coast - check them out live.

Kaedmon’s website

So we’re off to Scotland in a couple of weeks!

We have a few things lined up, but check out next week’s Celtic Folk Podcast to find out where we’ll be recording and who we’ll be interviewing and what you can do if you are in Scotland while we are there.

For all of our subscribers that perhaps didn’t care too much for this week’s podcast – that’s ok. Email us and let us know what you did think, I’d love to hear from you. I promise to bring back more of a Celtic feel to our next podcast and let you into all the secret plans for Scotland – I think you’ll be excited too.

The ShowStopper Track:

Don’t forget to vote for your favorite track from this week’s podcast by emailing us, telling us who you want to hear again and we’ll tally the votes and crown the winner the ShowStopper Track. So drop us a line and tell us who you liked the best of the four great tracks this week.

Millish - Hungry Man #1.

Millish’s website

Check out our parent website at www.upbeatcafe.com where you’ll find a schedule of great live music, as well as our Online Music Shop were you can buy those old-fashioned CD’s, as well as digital downloads.

STOP PRESS Upbeat Sounds is getting very close to going “live”. Our brand new online music shop is shaping up to be a great resource for new and independent music. We want to bring you the very best site on the web for new music, so we are making sure everything is just right before we go live. We will be opening this new shop just as soon as we can. You’ll be able to find it here when it goes live. Stay tuned for more updates on our progress.

Like to listen to great new, independent music of all genres from all around the world? Subscribe to our other weekly podcast Upbeat Radio. We feature excellent music for all tastes.

A note for Artists:

Would you like to have your music included on a future Celtic Folk Podcast? Just email us or submit a song to us through Sonicbids.

Please, please, please give us some feedback and let us know how we’re doing. All podcasters live for feedback, both good and bad - it let’s us know what you, our listener and subscriber, want to hear. Email us at info@celticfolkpod.com

Please help us support these fine artists by taking a look at their websites, buying their music or at least let them know how much you enjoyed listening to their music on the Celtic Folk Podcast.

GTT - Gone To Texas

al — Tue, 12 Sep 2006 15:19:03 +0000

Well, here I am in yet another hotel room; this one in Dallas, TX.

As some of you may know, I have been a professional pilot for 20 years and took a break from flying about two years ago. The break was planned to be a retirement of sorts, but since then (over the last year) I have been flying again for a local management and charter company.  A couple of episodes of the Celtic Folk Podcast have been “on the road” and this is due to the fact that every once in a while I end up on a multi-day trip in the aircraft and have to produce the show from the hotel room!

These past two weeks have seen me on the road again, this time in Dallas completing what is called a Type Rating for a new aircraft. For those of you who may want to know what a Type Rating is, it’s basically a course of instruction on a jet or larger aircraft, culminating in a 2.5 hour simulator test. The course lasts just over two weeks.

What does all this mean? Well, for all our listeners and subscribers, it means a break in bringing you the latest Celtic Folk Podcast. But not to worry! We’ll be back next week with a full episode.

In the meantime, wish me luck, check out our past episodes and don’t forget to tell your friends about the Celtic Folk Podcast and send them a link to our home page.

Thanks,

Al.

CFP09 - On The Road Again

al — Thu, 17 Aug 2006 19:50:23 +0000

Play Show 9 - On The Road Again

Welcome the Celtic Folk Podcast! We continue to showcase the best Celtic, Folk and Traditional music from around the world each week.
Click on the player above to listen to a streaming version. However, we would prefer for you to subscribe!

Click on the feed logo above to subscribe to the Celtic Folk Podcast RSS Feed:
http://feeds.feedburner.com/CelticFolkPodcast
Or, for iTunes users, click on the iTunes logo.

Either way you won’t miss a single Celtic Folk Podcast!

CFP09 Show Notes:

On The Road Again. Recorded this week from right above McCabe’s Irish Pub and Grill in downtown Naples, Florida.

The Borderers - Loch Lommond. This is a great live version of an old standard - with a great up-to-date treatment. The Borderers have sold over 58,000 CD’s and DVD’s through their own Record Label. Listening to this track, you can tell why they are well received.

The Borderer’s website

Doug Sparling - Launcing the Currach/Gort na gCapall. Doug has been composing music since he was eight years old. His music has been used in national ads, corporate presentations and cell phone games. No stranger to Celtic music, Doug’s love of traditional music began nearly 20 years ago after seeing the Scottish band Ossian. He became friends with members of local Irish band, Scartaglen, and was mentored in traditional music by Kirk Lynch, Roger Landes, and Mike Dugger. Later Doug played penny whistle with Dublin-born Irish singer Eddie Delahunt and he also played on two CDs by the Irish rock band The Elders.

Doug Sparling’s website

I wanted to say a quick hello to my friends at The Angus Sessions. If you want to be a (virtual) part of a pub session, check out this great podcast.

Millish - Hungry Man #1. Here’s a band that I’ve been listening to a lot since receiving their CD. Their playing ability, mixed with a Jazz background, makes for a great sound from this Mississippi-based band.

Millish’s website

O h’Anleigh - In The Town Of Strabane. Here’s some Irish-American music that translates well all over the world. Another band with a great mix of instrumental talent, as well as well-balanced vocals. The range also includes fine ballads and driving pub favorites, so you can have a O h’Anleigh tune for every occassion!.

O h’Anleigh’s MySpace site

The ShowStopper Track:

Don’t forget to vote for your favorite track from this week’s podcast by emailing us, telling us who you want to hear again and we’ll tally the votes and crown the winner the ShowStopper Track. So drop us a line and tell us who you liked the best of the four great tracks this week.

Beyond The Town Pants - Bottle of Rain.

The Town Pants website

Check out our parent website at www.upbeatcafe.com where you’ll find a schedule of great live music, as well as our Online Music Shop were you can buy those old-fashioned CD’s, as well as digital downloads.

STOP PRESS We continue to work overtime to bring you our brand new online music shop. We took a break this past week from this podcast to work on Upbeat Sounds. We want to bring you the very best site on the web for new music, so we are making sure everything is just right before we go live. We will be opening this new shop just as soon as we can. You’ll be able to find it here when it goes live. Stay tuned for more updates on our progress.

Like to listen to great new, independent music of all genres from all around the world? Subscribe to our other weekly podcast Upbeat Radio. We feature excellent music for all tastes.

A note for Artists:

Would you like to have your music included on a future Celtic Folk Podcast? Just email us or submit a song to us through Sonicbids.

Please, please, please give us some feedback and let us know how we’re doing. All podcasters live for feedback, both good and bad - it let’s us know what you, our listener and subscriber, want to hear. Email us at info@celticfolkpod.com

Please help us support these fine artists by taking a look at their websites, buying their music or at least let them know how much you enjoyed listening to their music on the Celtic Folk Podcast.

CFP08 - Pass it Forward

al — Thu, 27 Jul 2006 22:08:40 +0000

Play Show 8 - Pass it Forward

Welcome the Celtic Folk Podcast! We continue to showcase the best Celtic, Folk and Traditional music from around the world each week.
Click on the player above to listen to a streaming version. However, we would prefer for you to subscribe!

Click on the feed logo above to subscribe to the Celtic Folk Podcast RSS Feed:
http://feeds.feedburner.com/CelticFolkPodcast
Or, for iTunes users, click on the iTunes logo.

Either way you won’t miss a single Celtic Folk Podcast!

CFP08 Show Notes:

Pass it Forward. We would like a little help! If you like what you hear on the Celtic Folk Podcast and are a loyal subscriber, we’d love for you to tell two friends who might enjoy it as much as you do. Ask them to subscribe and if they like it, ask them to tell two of their friends. The Celtic Folk Podcast is all about promoting this grand form of music around the world and we do that through the kindness of the artists allowing us to feature their music and the help of our listeners - especially those of you who subscribe and receive CFP every week.

The Town Pants - Bottle of Rain. A Vancouver-based “West Coast Celtic” band with a great sound. In a recent Vancouver poll, The Town Pants were short-listed alongside Great Big Sea as Best National Celtic/Traditional Act. As a big GBS fan I can honestly say, from what I’ve heard, they deserve it.

The Town Pants website
The Town Pants MySpace page

Andrew McFayden - an t-alltan dubh (The Black Brook). Multi-lingual and inspired by his Gaelic-speaking grandfather, Andrew McFayden found his passion for the language at the Gaelic College of Celtic Arts and Crafts in Nova Scotia. This brought him intouch with those family roots like never before and after four years of attending the college each summer his album An Rathad Cam, ’s An Rathad Direach (The Crooked Road and the Straight Road) was born - a mix of studio and live tracks, all traditional in feel. Andrew hits the studio again next month to start on his next project.

Andrew McFayden’s website

A big Shout-Out to Marc Gunn of the Celtic Music Podcast and the Brobdingnagian Bards. We’ll be featuring Marc’s music in a future Celtic Folk Podcast. Check out his website - it’s a wealth of good info and has a ton of celtic mp3s.

Raymond McCullough - Ar tir seo aguinne (Our Land). This is a great instrumental tune from Raymond that forms many images when you listen to it. His music is always from the heart, whether it is from his experiences whilst travelling abroad or his faith or from his life growing up in a troubled country. An excellent variety of styles and influences make his work unique. Give his website a visit and find out more - especially about his visit to China.

Raymond McCullough’s website

Moira Nelson - The Enchantress of the Wood. With a varied musical upbringing in which she first played professionally as a Jazz pianist, Moira Nelson is best known for her Celtic and Traditional compositions featuring the 36-string Enchantress harp. Born in London, England, now in Toronto, Canada, Moira has worked as a solo artist as well as with a variety of ensembles. She has another CD in the works, but you can find out about her current work by visiting her website.

Moira Nelson’s website

The ShowStopper Track:

This week we have the first ever Celtic Folk Podcast ShowStopper Track. This is your favorite track from last week’s show. Vote for your favorite by emailing us and we will tally the votes and crown the winner the ShowStopper Track and play them again at the end of next week’s Celtic Folk Podcast. So drop us a line and tell us who you liked the best of the four great tracks this week.

Beyond The Pale - Princess Morgan / The Skipper.

Beyond the Pale’s website

Check out our parent website at www.upbeatcafe.com where you’ll find a schedule of great live music, as well as our Online Music Shop were you can buy those old-fashioned CD’s, as well as digital downloads.

STOP PRESS Our online Music Shop is almost ready to go live with a ton of new music, including those old-fashioned CDs as well as digital downloads. We will be opening this new shop on Monday July 31st. You’ll be able to find it here when it goes live

Like to listen to great new, independent music of all genres from all around the world? Subscribe to our other weekly podcast Upbeat Radio. We feature excellent music for all tastes.

A note for Artists:

Would you like to have your music included on a future Celtic Folk Podcast? Just email us or submit a song to us through Sonicbids.

Please, please, please give us some feedback and let us know how we’re doing. All podcasters live for feedback, both good and bad - it let’s us know what you, our listener and subscriber, want to hear. Email us at info@celticfolkpod.com

Please help us support these fine artists by taking a look at their websites, buying their music or at least let them know how much you enjoyed listening to their music on the Celtic Folk Podcast.

CFP07 - Hidden Quality

al — Tue, 18 Jul 2006 19:20:43 +0000

Play Show 7 - Hidden Quality

Welcome the Celtic Folk Podcast! We continue to showcase the best Celtic, Folk and Traditional music from around the world each week.
Click on the player above to listen to a streaming version. However, we would prefer for you to subscribe!



Click on the feed logo above to subscribe to the Celtic Folk Podcast RSS Feed:
http://feeds.feedburner.com/CelticFolkPodcast
Or, for iTunes users, click on the iTunes logo.

Either way you won’t miss a single Celtic Folk Podcast!

CFP07 Show Notes:

Hidden Quality. I couldn’t think of a catchy title for this week’s podcast, so it’s a bit of an in-joke for the boys of the Battlefield Band (check out their website www.battlefieldband.co.uk and look at the Tour Diary from their latest US Tour).

The Cady Finlayson Band - Moving Cloud / Fair Haired Mary. This young, New York City based band, headed by the very talented Cady Finlayson, is just one example that traditional music is for all ages. Their live performances as well as their studio work is first class.

www.violincady.com

Coyote Run - Oak & Ash & Thorn. This tune starts out traditionaly enough, but soon becomes bang up-to-date with a driving bass line and crisp percussion. It takes another traditional turn before heading back to a more modern presentation. They have several CDs, so pay a visit to their website and pick up some music for you collection.

www.coyoterun.com

Ceili Rain - Stomp. Celebrating 10 years of heavenly partiness! CEILI RAIN is an original and innovative blend of pop-rock music with a flamboyant Celtic/Irish flavor; and a subtle but sincere spiritual message with lyrics meant to be inclusive and inviting. Their website features a video of Stomp, so go watch some Irish Step Dancing. Their live gigs are spot-on and their message of hope is certainly made even more attractive with their blend of music.

www.ceilirain.com

The ShowStopper Track:

This week we are starting something new. The ShowStopper Track is your favorite track from this week. Vote for your favorite by emailing us and we will tally the votes and crown the winner the ShowStopper Track and play them again at the end of next week’s Celtic Folk Podcast. So drop us a line and tell us who you liked the best of the four great tracks this week.

Beyond The Pale - Princess Morgan / The Skipper. Beyond The Pale have a great sound that mixes American Folk with Traditional Celtic; the fiddle and whistle with the hammered dulcimer and sax. This set showcases the wonderful instrumental skills of each band member. They too have several CDs for sale. For more information visit their website.

www.beyond-the-pale.com

Check out our parent website at www.upbeatcafe.com where you’ll find a schedule of great live music, as well as our Online Music Shop were you can buy those old-fashioned CD’s, as well as digital downloads.

PLEASE NOTE: Our online Music Shop at Upbeat Cafe’ is undergoing a major facelift as we prepare to debut the new-look shop with a ton of new music, including those old-fashioned CDs as well as digital downloads. We will be opening this new shop on Monday July 31st.

Who has been your favorite Celtic artist so far on the Celtic Folk Podcast? Let us know.

Like to listen to great new, independent music of all genres from all around the world? Subscribe to our other weekly podcast Upbeat Radio. We feature excellent music for all tastes.

A note for Artists:

Would you like to have your music included on a future Celtic Folk Podcast? Just email us or submit a song to us through Sonicbids.

Please, please, please give us some feedback and let us know how we’re doing. All podcasters live for feedback, both good and bad - it let’s us know what you, our listener and subscriber, want to hear. Email us at info@celticfolkpod.com

Please help us support these fine artists by taking a look at their websites, buying their music or at least let them know how much you enjoyed listening to their music on the Celtic Folk Podcast.

CFP06 - Great Deal

al — Tue, 04 Jul 2006 03:33:56 +0000

Play Show 6 - Great Deal

Welcome the Celtic Folk Podcast! We continue to showcase the best Celtic, Folk and Traditional music from around the world each week.
Click on the player above to listen to a streaming version. However, we would prefer for you to subscribe!

Subscribe to the Celtic Folk Podcast RSS Feed

Or…

CFP06 Show Notes:

Great Deal. Ok - so we have 4 great songs too, but we also have a great deal on a preloaded MP3 player! Check out the post prior to this one.

Debbie Zepick - Calling All Angels. Blend the contemporary and the folk, the raw, earthy with the sublime ethereal. Lyrics and beautiful, melodies…songs about the real stuff of life. Lots of award winning songwriting.

www.debbiezepick.com

Keltic Kudzu - Soul Cakes. Traditional and contemporary “celtic music with a southern accent”, and some cool original tunes as well. Keltic Kudzu features intricate vocal harmonies, fresh new arrangements of traditional songs and tunes with some fun surprises thrown in, and an overall shiny, happy experience.

www.keltickudzu.com

Síochána - Dance Me Away. Síochána (pronounced sha kahw naa) are 2005 MUSICNL Entertainer of the Year nominee. Síochána which is gaelic for “Peace” are high energy on stage and play a mixture of original, Traditional Newfoundland music, bluegrass, Celtic, folk and some rock and roll.

www.siochana.ca

UglyStick - The Keeper. Traditional Celtic/East Coast music with an alternative flavour; a little funk, a little rock, a little jazz and a unique sound, truely Canadian.

www.uglystick.ca

Check out our parent website at www.upbeatcafe.com where you’ll find a schedule of great live music, as well as our Online Music Shop were you can buy those old-fashioned CD’s, as well as digital downloads.

Who has been your favorite Celtic artist so far on the Celtic Folk Podcast? Let us know.

Like to listen to great new, independent music of all genres from all around the world? Subscribe to our other weekly podcast Upbeat Radio. We feature excellent music for all tastes.

A note for Artists:

Would you like to have your music included on a future Celtic Folk Podcast? Just email us or submit a song to us through Sonicbids.

Please, please, please give us some feedback and let us know how we’re doing. All podcasters live for feedback, both good and bad - it let’s us know what you, our listener and subscriber, want to hear. Email us at info@celticfolkpod.com

Please help us support these fine artists by taking a look at their websites, buying their music or at least let them know how much you enjoyed listening to their music on the Celtic Folk Podcast.

Preloaded 2GB Celtic Folk Podcast MP3 Player!

al — Mon, 03 Jul 2006 20:01:30 +0000

Want to own a brand new MP3 player, that can also be used as a USB Flash Drive, preloaded with 20 FREE songs and tunes featured right here at the Celtic Folk Podcast?

Our CFP MP3 Player doubles as a regular USB storage device! It is lightweight and similar in look and function to the Apple iPod® Shuffle®. The CFP MP3 player will play up to 9 hours on a charged battery and also includes a lanyard/headphone set combo for maximum ease-of-use and portability. Use it on your Macs or PCs. The CFP MP3 Player is the ultimate mp3/storage device. Effortlessly play your favorite songs throughout your busy day or store important documents to take to and from work/school.

The CFP MP3 Player is ultra-versatile and sleek. All you have to do is drop us an email and we will give you details on an exclusive 2GB MP3 player and USB Flash Drive combo unit, complete with 20 FREE songs and tunes from artists featured right here at the Celtic Folk Podcast.

This offer is limited to the first 100 of our subscribers that email us and purchase our exclusive Celtic Folk Podcast MP3 player - so act now!

Cost is $129 each* (plus shipping**). In order to take advantage of this great deal, you must email us to receive the payment details. Remember, this offer is limited to the first 100 subscribers that email us and purchase our exclusive Celtic Folk Podcast MP3 player with 20 free songs - so act now!

* For Kentucky, USA residents, please add 6% Sales Tax.

** Shipping will be via USPS Priority Mail within the United States - approximately $5 - and USPS Global Priority Mail worldwide - approximately $5-10 (with some exceptions).

CFP05 - Traditional Sounds

al — Wed, 28 Jun 2006 16:06:20 +0000

Play Show 5 - Traditional Sounds

Welcome the Celtic Folk Podcast! We continue to showcase the best Celtic, Folk and Traditional music from around the world each week.
Click on the player above to listen to a streaming version. However, we would prefer for you to subscribe!

Subscribe to the Celtic Folk Podcast RSS Feed

Or…

CFP05 Show Notes:

Traditional Sounds. This week we feature four tracks from artists that bring the traditional sound of Celtic music to the fore.

Ian Stephenson - Nyt Tak. Ian is in high demand for his multi-instrument skills. He also started a band called Baltic Crossing as a university project in Newcastle, UK about three years ago. This is a tune out of that project that combines several flavors into one very well produced instrumental.

Ian Stephenson on MySpace

Brendan Carey Block - Murphy’s Shadow - Double Apex. As part of the Matt Blackfield Project, this tune highlights Brendan’s flair on the fiddle. 2000-2001 US National Junior Scottish Fiddle Champion, Brendan brings hints of jazz and rock into the Cape Breton tradition.

www.brendancareyblock.com
Brendon Carey Block on MySpace



Russ Rentler - Planxty Fluharty. This one-man folk festival plays a variety of traditional stringed instruments including the Hammer Dulcimer. This tune has a very light and airy feel to it because of the sound of this very instrument.

www.russrentler.com

Anne Roos - Jacky Tar. Anne is at the top of the ladder as a traditional Celtic harpist. She doesn’t just limit herself or her instrument to traditional tunes, however. You may find her getting down to some Metallica!

www.celticharpmusic.com

Check out our parent website at www.upbeatcafe.com where you’ll find a schedule of great live music, as well as our Online Music Shop were you can buy those old-fashioned CD’s, as well as digital downloads.

Do you think the CD will go the way of the LP or 8-Track? Let us know what you think.

Like to listen to great new, independent music of all genres from all around the world? Subscribe to our other weekly podcast Upbeat Radio. We feature excellent music for all tastes.

A note for Artists:

Would you like to have your music included on a future Celtic Folk Podcast? Just email us or submit a song to us through Sonicbids.

Please, please, please give us some feedback and let us know how we’re doing. All podcasters live for feedback, both good and bad - it let’s us know what you, our listener and subscriber, want to hear. Email us at info@celticfolkpod.com

Please help us support these fine artists by taking a look at their websites, buying their music or at least let them know how much you enjoyed listening to their music on the Celtic Folk Podcast.

CFP04 - The Old With The New

al — Wed, 21 Jun 2006 00:58:06 +0000

Play Show 4 - The Old With The New

Welcome the Celtic Folk Podcast! We continue to showcase the best Celtic, Folk and Traditional music from around the world each week.
Click on the player above to listen to a streaming version. However, we would prefer for you to subscribe!

Subscribe to the Celtic Folk Podcast RSS Feed

Or…

CFP04 Show Notes:

The Old With The New. Here are three bands that mix the old, traditional instruments and tunes, with the new to come up with their own, unique form of Celtic music. I hope you enjoy.

The Killdares - September. Based out of Dallas, TX, the Killdares have been described as alternative Celtic Rock. Their music is infectious, high-quality - modern elements, such as electric guitar, join the traditionalfiddle and bagpipes. This is great driving, high-powered music.

www.killdares.com
www.myspace.com/killdares

Fathom - Battle of Ballylochlan. Here’s a thunderous Celtic Rock band! Fathom bring nuclear power to Celtic. They merge the old and the new and that fushion explodes their own style of music.

www.fathom.tv

Mythica - Don’t Be. This young band blends Folk, Rock, Celtic, Bluegrass, new Age, World, Ambient and Alternative for their distinct sound.

www.mythicamusic.com

Check out our parent website at www.upbeatcafe.com where you’ll find a schedule of great live music, as well as our Online Music Shop were you can buy those old-fashioned CD’s, as well as digital downloads.

Do you think the CD will go the way of the LP or 8-Track? Let us know what you think.

Like to listen to great new, independent music of all genres from all around the world? Subscribe to our other weekly podcast Upbeat Radio. We feature excellent music for all tastes.

A note for Artists:

Would you like to have your music included on a future Celtic Folk Podcast? Just email us or submit a song to us through Sonicbids.

Please, please, please give us some feedback and let us know how we’re doing. All podcasters live for feedback, both good and bad - it let’s us know what you, our listener and subscriber, want to hear. Email us at info@celticfolkpod.com

Please help us support these fine artists by taking a look at their websites, buying their music or at least let them know how much you enjoyed listening to their music on the Celtic Folk Podcast.

CFP03 - Oh Canada

al — Tue, 13 Jun 2006 00:51:29 +0000

Play Show 3 - Oh Canada

Welcome the Celtic Folk Podcast! We continue to showcase the best Celtic, Folk and Traditional music from around the world each week.
Click on the player above to listen to a streaming version. However, we would prefer for you to subscribe!

Subscribe to the Celtic Folk Podcast RSS Feed

Or…

CFP03 Show Notes:

Oh, Canada! Don’t exactly know what that has to do with this show, but it sounded good. There you go!  Perhaps you can figure out a link.

Flook - Road to Errogie. Flook has been around now for eleven years. They were recently voted Best Band at the BBC Folk Awards. I am sure they will be around for many years to come - they are just awesome.

www.flook.co.uk
www.myspace.com/2flutes

Arminta and Blaq Lily - On the Moor. Husband and wife team up to form this great band that plays some great traditional sound with a hint of something more modern.

www.arminta.net

Craic Wisely - Belle of Belfast City. A great band from up in Western Michigan, Craic Wisely “play Irish music fast.” Their website is full of tour dates and has links for you to buy their two CDs.

www.craicwisely.com

Elmer Deagle - Charity’s Rage. Elmer hails from Prince Edward Island in the very northeastern part of Canada. A beautiful part of the world - you should go visit if you ever get the chance.

www.elmerdeagle.com

Check out our parent website at www.upbeatcafe.com where you’ll find a schedule of great live music, as well as our Online Music Shop were you can buy those old-fashioned CD’s, as well as digital downloads.

Do you think the CD will go the way of the LP or 8-Track? Let us know what you think.

Like to listen to great new, independent music of all genres from all around the world? Subscribe to our other weekly podcast Upbeat Radio. We feature excellent music for all tastes.

A note for Artists:

Would you like to have your music included on a future Celtic Folk Podcast? Just email us or submit a song to us through Sonicbids.

Please, please, please give us some feedback and let us know how we’re doing. All podcasters live for feedback, both good and bad - it let’s us know what you, our listener and subscriber, want to hear. Email us at info@celticfolkpod.com

Please help us support these fine artists by taking a look at their websites, buying their music or at least let them know how much you enjoyed listening to their music on the Celtic Folk Podcast.

CFP02 - Back from Martha’s Vineyard

al — Tue, 06 Jun 2006 16:18:03 +0000

Play Show 2 - Back from Martha’s Vineyard

Welcome to the brand-new Celtic Folk Podcast! We are very excited about this new, weekly podcast showcasing the best Celtic & Folk music from around the world. We have tons of great music lined up and we hope that you enjoy it all.
Click on the player above to listen to a streaming version. We’d love, however, for you to subscribe!

Subscribe to the Celtic Folk Podcast RSS Feed

Or…

CFP02 Show Notes:

Sligo Rags - Dirty Old Town. Sligo Rags is a Celtic Band, but they’re a little bit Country, a little bit Bluegrass, a little bit Jazz! See what you think of Dirty Old Town. Their latest CD, The Night Before The Morning After is available at their website.

www.sligorags.com.

The Larkin Brigade - Mission Thrill. A super live band, The Larkin Brigade can be found playing in and around the Boston area. Check out their website for more information on the band and also their gig schedule.

www.thelarkinbrigade.com.

Brigid Kaelin - The Ballad of Motorcylce Joe. Louisville, KY songstress Brigid writes songs that tell stories and the tunes compliment her sweet voice. But these songs and Brigid herself are anything but simple. Her songs are award-winning and her musical talents include playing the saw!

www.brigidkaelin.com

Check out our parent website at www.upbeatcafe.com where you’ll find a schedule of great live music, as well as our Online Music Shop were you can buy those old-fashioned CD’s, as well as digital downloads.

Do you think the CD will go the way of the LP or 8-Track? Let us know what you think.

Like to listen to great new, independent music of all genres from all around the world? Subscribe to our other weekly podcast Upbeat Radio. We feature excellent music for all tastes.

Roger Drawdy and the Firestarters - Open Seas, Empty Skies. After the fire department was called to one of their shows in 2000, the name Firestarters stuck! Roger hails from County Cork in Ireland - a beautiful part of the world - and together with his band they bring the traditional tunes of Celtic music together with American Rock.

www.roger.drawdy.com.

Daniel Carwile - Clarinet Polka. Daniel Carwile and his wife Amy live and work in Lexington, KY. Daniel was the U.S. Grand Master Fiddle Champion in 1997 and has worked on the highly aclaimed CD Moody Bluegrass that takes Moody Blues songs and turns the Rock classics into Bluegrass classics. Both Daniel and Amy are multi-instrumentalists and when they get a break from teaching, they judge competitions around the country and still manage to play a few gigs.

www.carwilestringstudio.com

A note for Artists:

Would you like to have your music included on a future Celtic Folk Podcast? Just email us or submit a song to us through Sonicbids.

Please help us support these fine artists by taking a look at their websites, buying their music or at least let them know how much you enjoyed listening to their music on the Celtic Folk Podcast.

CFP01 - Off and Running!

al — Mon, 29 May 2006 18:35:46 +0000

Play Show 1 - Off and Runnning

Welcome to the brand-new Celtic Folk Podcast! We are very excited about this new, weekly podcast featuring the best Celtic & Folk music from around the world. We have tons of great music lined up and we hope that you enjoy it all.
Click on the player above to listen to a streaming version. We’d love, however, for you to subscribe!

Subscribe to the Celtic Folk Podcast RSS Feed

Or…

Notes:

Alan Reid and Rob Van Sante - Ballantrae from their debut CD Under the Blue. Visit them on the web at www.reidvansante.com. Alan is one of the founding members of (and continues to be with) Battlefield Band, while Rob is the band’s sound engineer. More info can be found at http://www.battlefieldband.co.uk/

Murder the Stout - Roddy McCorley/Sean South. Texas band MTS is well known in the indie Celtic scene. Their website is www.murderthestout.com.

The Gobshites - Cheers. A great name for a Celtic band! Check them out at www.gobshites.com and if at all possible go see them live.

Vadim Krakovsky - Love Among The Barley. Vadim is looking for folks to record his music, so if you’re interested, please contact him at www.sonicbids.com/vadimkrakovsky.

Garrett Wall - Elizabeth. Our Folk song for the week, Garrett is an Irish Singer/Songwriter now living in Spain. His songs are a fresh mix of several styles along with great lyrics. He has several CD’s available, so if you like what you hear click on his website: http://www.garrettwall.net/.

A note for Artists:

Would you like to have your music included on a future Celtic Folk Podcast? Just email us or submit a song to us through Sonicbids.

Please help us support these fine artists by taking a look at their websites, buying their music or at least let them know how much you enjoyed listening to their music on the Celtic Folk Podcast.

We’re almost ready!

al — Wed, 17 May 2006 03:28:37 +0000

The very first episode of the Celtic Folk Podcast is in the works and will be available next week. We have a fun line-up for the first show and are just now putting it all together.

It has been slightly longer than expected due to a hard drive failure on my laptop (on which I do my final mixing), but the content is ready to go and I can’t wait to start sharing all the great music we have with you.

So, we’re almost ready!

Test File

al — Wed, 26 Apr 2006 16:36:16 +0000

This is a little test file, so we must be getting close to launch!

A little snippet of Stanne’s Jig from Craic Wisely:

Al.

Welcome!

al — Sat, 18 Mar 2006 03:52:44 +0000

Welcome to what promises to be the place to find all the best Celtic and Traditional music from around the world on the Web.

I hope you visit often and subscribe to our podcast. If you have any comments, you can leave them here, email us or call 859-215-0215 and let us know just how much you enjoy the Celtic Folk Podcast!

Cheers,

Al.