v2:
Category: Music
Fan Art: The Electric Prunes (a.k.a. I’ve Been Listening to Too Much Psychedelic Rock)
My “Psychedelic Summer” Spotify playlist has inspired me to design posters for some of the lesser known (but awesomely named) psychedelic rock bands of the 1960s.
First up: The Electric Prunes
Mairi’s Wedding / Tell Me Ma
My annual St. Patrick’s Day recording:
The Auld Triangle (as Performed by Drunkford & Son)
A father & son, Thanksgiving rendition of the Irish song “The Auld Triangle.”
Fun fact: “The Auld Triangle” refers to an actual, metal triangle that was used to waken inmates at Mountjoy Prison in Dublin. In fact, the namesake triangle is still at Mountjoy Prison, although it’s no longer in use (according to Wikipedia).
Watering Hole: A Collection of Folky Oasis Covers
89 (Fun with 6/8, Harmonica, Octaves, & Percussion)
When the girlfriend’s away, the boyfriend will play … music.
Pretty sure I’m in 6/8 time here, pretty sure I ended up with a total of five vocal tracks, and I’m 100% sure the percussion you hear in the second half is comprised of 1) clapping 2) bodhrán (Irish drum), and 3) me tapping on a glass.
Could potentially blossom into a full-blown song, but for now, it’s just a 45-second ditty:
Jock Stewart (I’m a Man You Don’t Meet Every Day)
Centuries before the Dropkick Murphys screeched out the syllables to “Kiss Me, I’m Shitfaced” — a song ripe with tales of chest-beating and one-up-manship — there was “Jock Stewart,” the original bragger’s ballad.
Also known as “I’m a Man You Don’t Meet Every Day,” the song has a somewhat convoluted history. The interwebs tells us that the tune was originally Irish, but then made its way over to Scotland where it evolved into the popular drinking song we know and love today. However, there’s also a chance that the tune actually originated in Scotland, came to Ireland during the colonization of Ulster, and then went back to Scotland. Yikes!
10 Tunes to Get Your St. Patrick’s Day Celebration Started Early
Many moons ago, before I joined the Boston startup scene, I was part of the Montreal pub scene, where I regularly banged away on the Irish bouzouki with my band, Devaney’s Goat.
As Montreal’s premier “drinking band with a Celtic problem,” there was no shortage of Spinal Tap-esque antics and Fleetwood Mac-style romances. But through all the drunken chaos, Devaney’s Goat actually made some pretty damn good Celtic music.
To help get everyone prepared for St. Patrick’s Day, I’ve opened up the Devaney’s Goat vault and have put together a playlist of 10 live recordings from 2009-2010. (Bonus track #11 is a recording of me dealing with a heckler … and, of course, by “heckler” I mean “a guy who requested a song that we didn’t know”.) Enjoy!
“This Land Is Your Land” Reimagined…
…as an a cappella Celtic crying song performed by a bunch of grumpy Irishmen.
I swear it’s much less of a stretch than it sounds (certainly less of a stretch than playing “Royals” by Lorde on Irish Bouzouki).
“Royals” By Lorde (on Irish Bouzouki)
Admit it: when you first heard “Royals” by Lorde you thought, “Wow. Catchy tune, BUT I really wish someone would play it on the Irish bouzouki.”
Your dream come true: