Irish Folk

Love, history, war, religion — as well as the occasional elbow-bend — are all fair game in the musical heritage of a country whose coat of arms and its best-known ale both sport the image of a harp. The decision to complement the Chieftains with the velvet gravel soul of Van Morrison was pure genius, as the two mesh perfectly in an update of Van's sentimental "Irish Heartbeat." Seán Tyrrell spins out philosophy with the easy charm of pub banter in "Only from Day to Day." Aine Minogue summons forth the spirits of the ancient Celts in a celebration of spring, with "Mal Bhán Ni Chuilionáin" and The Irish Rovers turn hometown Toronto a bright hue of emerald with "The Unicorn." In Next Steps, you will want to play the piper . . .

Bagpipe playing is by no means the exclusive domain of blue-bottomed Scotsmen charging into battle; in fact, Irish bagpipes – known as "Uilleann Pipes" — differ markedly from their Scottish cousins, having a wider range, sweeter sound… and they're usually played sitting down. Seamus Ennis, the late dean of Irish pipers, fills the air with a no-frills, flash-free lament in "Were You at the Rock?," an ancient Roman Catholic hymn disguised as a love song. A sweet sadness clings to Riverdance star Davey Spillane's "Caoineadh cu chulainn" like moss to a boulder, as his mournful piping is joined by a full orchestra. And if it's world-class fiddling you're after, look no further than Nova Scotia's Ashley MacIsaac. In Deep Cuts, we hear some of fair Erin's best musicians getting their Irish up, alongside homegrown artists with green hearts: Will Millar and Mary Jane Lamond.

Singing and fighting are two of Ireland's great pastimes, and here we combine both. Don't be fooled by the tin whistle's light-hearted lilt and mandolin's jangle; in Planxty's "Pat Reilly," Christy Moore and company remorsefully warn of the dangers of signing a contract while under the influence . . . particularly when it involves going to war. Novelist and playwright Dominic Behan, on the other hand, holds forth with a rebel's cry to take up arms in his bitterly dark brew, "The Patriot Game." And brothers Mychael and Jeff Danna split the difference between Riverdance and Enya's new age Celtic sonics in their symphonic tribute to a mythical Irish warrior in "The Blood Of Cu Chulainn."

If your knowledge of Irish culture begins with Lucky Charms and ends in a pint of Guinness, you're in for an awe-inspiring tour of the Emerald Isle via its music. Philosophy, politics, love, travel, war, peace — and, yes, drinking — all are fair game for these modern bards with their ancient roots. Harpers and pipers, singers and shamans, priests and poets all have their parts to play as we trek through several centuries of this country's storied musical history. From the homesick longing of soldiers and ramblers separated from the land and people they love to the whiskey-soaked ecstasy of lightning-fingered fiddlers and rafter-rattling ravers who view the world as one big ceilidh, this is the sound of Ireland in all in shamrock-sporting glory.