Music Columnist Ian Worpole chronicles his return to the Big Apple Having spent a rowdy ten years in a cheap loft in Tribeca, New York City (Cheap! It wasn’t quite yet an oxymoron twenty years ago), with two small children and an irate landlord, it was time to move north to Woodstock, a quaint hamlet known for its arts colony and a certain concert that took place in 1964. We … [Read more...] about New York City Redux
Music
From Cork to Dublin: The New Wave
Ian Worpole looks at three albums by a fresh crop of Irish musicians A whole New Year, and a whole new crop of Irish rockers set to invade these shores. After 50-odd years of this modern stuff, the boundaries are naturally blurred between the Rock genres, with Soft Rock, Hard Rock, Folk Rock, Progressive Rock, Pop, Garage, Punk, Post-Punk, you get the picture. And when we talk … [Read more...] about From Cork to Dublin: The New Wave
Celtic Songbirds
Bringing to life the music we love Here’s a moderately interesting question: Do women lean towards male singers, and men towards women singers? Based on a sample poll of myself and my partner, the answer is a resounding yes, Van Morrison being the exception to the rule. Hence this month’s column, “Celtic Songbirds,” a glance at some of the best chanteuses out there. Of … [Read more...] about Celtic Songbirds
Leahy: Staying True to the Tune
Leahy sure knows how to bring a crowd to their feet. The Canadian group’s music fills a listener with the intensity of unfiltered joy, a rare experience in an age where songs lose their power after having been played to death by radio stations. This raw energy can perhaps be attributed to the group’s unwillingness to compromise their values. Fiddle player Donnell Leahy … [Read more...] about Leahy: Staying True to the Tune
Anniversaries and Amazing Performances
IAN WORPOLE looks at the massive musical contributions of traditional groups Solas and Cherish the Ladies, who both reach major milestones this year. When I was a lad growing up in post WWII England, festive holidays were always about food. One of the lesser but still vital days was Shrove Tuesday, AKA Pancake Day. Or should it be the other way round? We knew there was some … [Read more...] about Anniversaries and Amazing Performances