The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #46311 Message #686803
Posted By: michaelr
10-Apr-02 - 12:33 AM
Thread Name: Repertoire for a startup celtic group
Subject: RE: Repertoire for a startup celtic group
Personally, in choosing repertoire for my band, Greenhouse, I've made a point of staying away from "most of the Makem/Clancy" songbook. My main reason is that those songs, while certainly a vital and important part of the tradition, have been done to death, not only by the Clancys (and I could mention the Dubliners and the Irish Rovers, as well), but also by the countless pub singers who have covered that material for the last 50 years. Let's face it, the tradition is a bottomless treasure trove, with different and wonderful songs to be discovered for a lifetime.
I try to keep up with young artists coming out of Scotland and Ireland, and I keep finding great songs that haven't been covered (much, or at all, so far as I know). A good old song can be comfortable to revisit when the time is right (and, when the gig requires it, I will sing something like "Finnegan's Wake" or "Whisky in the Jar"), but there is nothing like the excitement of discovering a "new" trad song, coming up with an arrangement, and sharing it with the band and the audience.
That's my $0.02. Cheers,
Michael