Irish Folk

The scrape of a bow across a fiddle, the thump of a palm on the bodhrán, the cry of a tenor unfolding a tale of love, friendship, or family — what else you could you be hearing but a healthy dose of Irish folk music? Ireland has a rich tradition to draw upon, whether Tommy Sands is singing of enchantments both otherworldly and romantic on the old standard “Raglan Road” or folk-rock rebels the Pogues are reaching back to their roots to deliver “The Irish Rover” alongside veteran balladeers the Dubliners. But songsmith Luka Bloom’s joyous “You Couldn’t Have Come At a Better Time” shows that there’s plenty of room for expanding on those time-honored traditions too.

Awesome Irish instrumentalists tear it up, in Next Steps.

While the Irish songbook overflows with heart-stopping ballads full of luminous lyricism, the tradition also teems with fleet-fingered folk musicians. Their dazzling instrumental flights are just as much a part of the Emerald Isle’s sonic story. Taking a solo journey on “Lark In the Morning Medley,” Solas multi-instrumentalist Seamus Egan attacks the banjo with the speed and intensity of a NASCAR driver on a championship run. Martin Hayes does everything but literally set his fiddle on fire as he blazes through “The Crooked Road/The Foxhunter’s Reel” like a man who’s got foxhounds at his own tail. And Bothy Band founder Paddy Keenan cuts straight through to the soul on that quintessentially Irish axe, the Uilleann pipes, with a track titled, quite simply, after the enchanting instrument itself.

In Deep Cuts, Irish folk feeds on fiery fiddling and punky power.

For a style with roots that run so deep and remain so strong, Irish folk has got a lot of room under its tree of song. There’s space enough to encompass everything from Blood or Whiskey’s premium blend of punky attitude and trad tunes on “King of the Fairies/Western Junk” to fiddling demon of Donegal Tommy Peoples tearing through a trio of “Slip Jigs.” But when the hour arrives, at last, to sing the final song of the evening and lift your tankard towards the rooftop in toast, Liam Clancy’s “The Parting Glass” will send you home with a grin on your lips and a tune tumbling sweetly around your head.

If all you’re expecting out of Irish folk is a few fond choruses of “Danny Boy,” then you’re about to have your expectations seriously upended. Sure, Ireland’s constantly evolving folk tradition is based on the firm foundation of ballads, jigs, hornpipes, and reels that often have the weight of centuries behind them, but from the Pogues and Luka Bloom to Enya and Clannad, each new generation adds another flavor to stew, be it punk, pop, New Age, or ambient music. We’ve reached into every corner of the Emerald Isle, from Bantry to Belfast, to bring you the pipers, fiddlers, tin whistlers, and troubadours who feed the eternal flame.