Search - Dubliners, Luke Kelly :: Dubliners With Luke Kelly

The complete album

Miceal Og O'Donnell | Astoria,OR | 07/03/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"There are many variations to the "Dubliners" as far as the line-up is concerned. With some albums it is almost as if you are listening to a completely different band. This collection of songs covers a large spectrum of what we know as the "Dubliners". It also takes many liberties with its inconsistant sound qualities, from a professional studio sound to someone who had a tape recorder in their pocket at a session in a pub. Surprisingly, the ones that sound like they were taped in a pub are some of the most powerful tracks on there. Their personalities are not hampered by the studio and since what they are essentially singing are folk songs, the sense of being there completes the experience. It is a very raw and complete album."

Irish Voices and Irish Hearts

Shanshad | Discworld | 12/03/2004

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Anyone who has an interest in traditional Irish music should have at least passing familiarity with The Dubliners. Founded in 1962, this group of instrumentalists and vocalists was one of the first to incorporate traditional instrumentals with their ballads as well as adding jigs and reels into their performance program. The Dubliners have persisted over decades, sharing their delightful mix of ribald songs and melancholy ballads with several generations of listeners. As their biography suggests, The Dubliners are among "the spiritual grandfathers of most of the Irish traditional and folk groups playing today."



This particular collection is a 2-disc set of varied fare from the years when Luke Kelly was a part of group. The recording is not particularly polished or consistent on every number. These songs were gleaned from a variety of sources-some live recordings of The Dubliners in concert and they aren't all the best quality. I'll be very clear here. If you're looking for the melodic and haunting style of Enya or Loreena McKennit, or any similar performers, this isn't what you want. The voices are rough, the instruments strictly acoustic, and the songs aren't always the most melodic.



However, if you, like me, enjoy Irish music such as you might hear in pub and sometimes sing along with, and don't mind the fact that it's not a polished work, you might want to look into this CD collection. It's a mixed bag of music, some will be instantly recognizable; The Irish Rover, Fiddler's Green, and The Lark in the Morning, to name a few traditional favorites. And there are some delightfully hysterical bits such as The Sick Note, Monto, and Smith of Bristol. There are also some glimpses into the darker history of Irishmen in such ballads as Springhill Mine Disaster, James Larkin and the spoken poem For What Died the Sons of Roisin. There are some performances on the CD I found less than inspiring and some very obscure songs that aren't likely to appear among other CDs of Dubliner favorites. Overall, it's a wonderful way to capture the flavor of Irish folk music, particularly music that doesn't always get as much airtime.



This is not a CD collection to play for a part, or for background music. A lot of the selections are melancholy ballads that won't suit a festive occasion. It's good music for the pub, or among friends who will appreciate it. I'm giving it four stars rather than five because I do think the unpolished recordings at times detract from the listening-some of the other Dubliner CDs are markedly better as far as sound quality. However, the authenticity of the live performances does make up for this in most ways. The other main flaw in this collection is the lack of extensive liner notes. The liner notes contain a brief bio of the group, repeated in German, French and Spanish. There's no information about the songs featured, what their history is, or anything else about them. And for an Irish music fan such as myself it would have been nice to see some history on songs such as The Aul' Triangle!



Other than this, the CD collection is an excellent piece of Irish folk music history, and a wonderful tribute to a band that did its part to keep that music alive. If you like this CD collection, you might want to check out the recordings that have been remastered on the Ultimate Collection-- The Spirit of the Irish and the delightful variety of artists on Irish Drinking Songs.



Happy Listening (and happy drinking)! ^_^ Shanshad

"

More Joyful Irish Music

Alfred Johnson | boston, ma | 02/13/2009

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I have mentioned elsewhere that every devotee of the modern Irish folk tradition owes a debt of gratitude for the work of the likes of Tommy Makem and The Clancy Brothers and the group under review here, The Dubliners, for keeping the tradition alive and for making it popular with the young on both sides of the Atlantic. Not only for the songs, but for the various reel and jig instrumentals from the old days that they have produced. Here The Dubliners produce a veritable what's what of Irish music from the above-mentioned instrumentals to the fighting patriotic songs to the fighting barroom songs to the doggerel. Let's sort it out a little on this CD.



In this CD The Dubliners do both modern and traditional pieces. As for the instrumentals "The Battle Of The Somme/Freedom Come Ye All' combination stands out (as well as paying tribute to those 5000 or so Northern Irishmen who, under British command, fell in the Battle of The Somme in World War I in1916- in one day. Damn that war). For songs of Ireland "Donegal Danny", "The Irish Rover" and "Danny Farrell" stick out (that latter one about the plight of the `tinkers' (travelling peoples). For those patriotically inclined "James Larkin" will touch a chord (in his leadership of the famous strike in 1913 and as the predecessor of James Connolly as leader of the Irish labor movement). I have always been partial to "Now I'm Easy" and its theme of the Irish Diaspora-Australian section. For the culturati there is "The Aul' Triangle", the many times-covered Brendan Behan lyrics from his play "The Quare Fellow". Hell, there is even one in Spanish (we will not get into that Spanish/Irish historical issue here, okay?) "Ojos Negros". As I always mention in discussing The Dubliners, if you are looking for some serious Irish music that goes beyond St. Patty's Day but can still be appreciated then check out this well-done compilation. And you get Luke Kelly along as a bonus. Nice, right?

"