Music for St. Patrick's Day - Beyond "O, Danny Boy"

If you think that Irish music starts and stops at "O Danny Boy," please think again. There is more out there than just traditional songs, there is Irish pop, rock and folk music.

Try listening to an assortment of artists with The Rough Guide to Irish Folk Music  or Women of the World: Celtic.

For more folk music try Cherish the Ladies and the Chieftains.

If contemporary pop or new age music is your interest, try Celtic Thunder, Clannad or Celtic Women for a try.


And for those who need something louder, try Gaelic Storm, U2,  the Corrs, Thin Lizzy or the the jazzier tones of Van Morrison.

For the traditionalist there is always the CD,
Come Fill your Glass With Us: Irish Songs of Drinking and Blackguarding by the Clancy Brothers.

Celtic music invaded many places, and traveled with it's people. You can feel its influence in Newfoundland and Spain, and well as in Bluegrass and American folk music. And many Irish artists combine all sorts of influences to have their own style. Expand your horizons at the library in the International Music section.

For more of the story and history of music and the Celts, try this book title The Rough Guide to Irish Music by Geoff Wallis or head up to Milwaukee's Irish Fest in August. You will have fun discovering new artists and new songs.

Lena Horne RIP

Actress and singer Lena Horne passed away on Sunday at her home in Manhattan at the age of 92. Horne broke considerable ground for other African-American entertainers when she first achieved fame in the 1940s. She parlayed her role in the chorus line of the Cotton Club in New York City to a successful career in Hollywood. In the 1950s she enjoyed continued success as a singer and recording artist, culminating in the award winning one-woman show Lena Horne: The Lady and Her Music in 1981. While Ms. Horne was known primarily as an entertainer, she also made significant strides with civil rights and political organizations. For more information on this fascinating entertainment icon check out Stormy Weather: The Life of Lena Horne

RIP Les Paul and Rashied Ali

The music world lost two greats on Thursday (August 13) with the passing of guitar innovator Les Paul and free-jazz drummer Rashied Ali. It's hard to calculte the impact Les Paul had on rock and jazz with the invention of one of the first solid-body electric guitars ("The Log") in 1939. His early experiments with multi-tracking are now standard in the recording studio today. Similarily, Ali was the stalwart drummer for jazz giant John Coltrane over the course of his final recordings, beginning with Meditations and continuing through Interstellar Space, Live in Japan, and Coltrane's final live recording, The Olatunji Concert. You can check out more information on both artists here at the library.