Search - Black 47 :: Fire of Freedom

Power and Passion

Tim Bray | Albion, CA | 03/05/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is one of the decade's best albums. Every track is memorable, though "James Connolly" and "Fire of Freedom" are the ones that stick with me long after the music stops. This is Black 47 at the top of their game (or at least as good as they get in the studio: Nothing beats them live). A mixture of straight-on rock 'n' roll, with Celtic flavors on some tracks, and reggae beats or hip-hop thrown in occasionally. The musicianship here is incredible at times; the horn section blends with the pipes for some truly inspired sounds.Look for a CD put out in 1995, called "Keep it Reel," with Seanchai (Chris Byrne from Black 47), Eileen Ivers, and Pat McGuire. Absolutely awesome live recording of Irish hip-hop, and several other genres fused together, with brilliant lyrics by Seanchai. Hard to find."

The soundtrack of the Irish diaspora

Caitriona | NYC | 06/25/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Okay, so maybe that's pushing the envelope just a bit. But with trad-inspired music that manages NOT to sound cliched, and meaningful and sometimes touching lyrics that manage NOT to sound like your father's drinking songs, Fire of Freedom is definitely among the best Irish rock albums you're going to find these days. Probably the only thing that could've made this one better is if they'd held on to "Our Lady of the Bronx"..."

Their most original, and the best starting point

David A. Bede | Singapore | 09/19/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"All of Black 47's albums have their strong points, but Fire of Freedom has nothing but strong points. There aren't very many albums I've heard by any artist that sound terrific on the very first listen and stay that way for good. But this is one - from the day I bought it in 1993 (on cassette - remember those?!), every song was catchy and memorable in its own way then and still is now.



If I had to settle on one genre for Black 47, "Irish rock" would have to do. But that's a massive oversimplification, and these guys sound absolutely nothing like U2 or The Pogues. What do they sound like? A mishmash of funk, folk, punk, hip-hop, soul, reggae and straight up rock and roll that almost had to be either horrible or wonderful. Luckily for us, it's the latter. The band's unabashedly militant politics turn up in several of the songs, notably "James Connolly," the title track, and the rather enigmatic "Fanatic Heart." They're also not above co-opting old ballads with new words of their own in "40 Shades of Blue" and "Livin' In America" (set to supercharged arrangements of "Down By The Sally Gardens" and "The Foggy Dew" respectively); folk purists might not like these too much, but they're among my favorites. Most of the others are slice-of-life tales of the modern immigrant experience in various corners of New York, ranging from tragic to hilarious.



Nothing beats seeing these guys live, but this CD is a close runner-up to that."