Kate Chadbourne - Irishy Girl

About the CD "It would be lovely to be on a mountainside and to have for company an Irishy Girl..." So begins the song which gives it's title to The Irishy Girl, a gathering of Irish traditional songs which I hope will provide as good company to you, dear listener, as they have to me. These are some of my favorites, brought into my life by beloved friends, teachers, singers, and musicians, and assembled here in a kind of kaleidoscope of brilliant images and voices. Their cast of characters includes passionate shepherds and men off to war, several courting couples and a handful of philosophers, a nun and at least two mermaids. About half of them speak in Irish, and half in English. And what they tell us covers the gamut: love, friendship, loneliness, wit, disappointment, devotion, and the desire to celebrate being alive! I am very lucky and grateful to have been joined in this project by several talented and generous people. Ace engineer, Steve Friedman, contributed his sharp ears, dedication, and amazing technical skills. Graphic artist, Jenn Baskin, brought the CD booklet into flower and feather, a perfect habitat for any Irishy Girl. Matt Heaton (bodhrán and guitar) and Valerie Thompson (cello) came back into the studio and wowed me once again with their creativity and musical brilliance. And to top it all off, we were thrilled that fiddling master Séamus Connolly could join us for a spirited set of jigs. About Kate Kate Chadbourne has built her life's house at the crossroads of song, scholarship, poetry, story, and music. She holds a Ph.D. in Celtic from Harvard where she teaches courses in Irish language, folklore, literature, and storytelling. She is most powerfully attracted to Irish folktales and medieval legends and often embellishes them with harp accompaniment. In her musical life, she travels between the world of Irish traditional song and the worlds she imagines and creates in her original songs for voice, piano, Irish flute, whistle, and harp. Her music and singing is featured on five recordings, most recently The Irishy Girl (2006). She is also a published poet and essayist. Responding to this freedom and range of expression, one reviewer hailed her as a modern troubadour. Kate's performances often set a traditional Irish tale alongside an original song, or a newly-minted poem next to a set of reels. Listeners encounter a blend of the ancient, the modern, and the quirkily idiosyncratic. Whether she is singing, telling stories, teaching, or sharing a poem, she aims to leave her audiences moved, enlivened, and eager for their own adventures.

1) MÁL BHÁN
2) Henry Joy
3) An Mhaighdean Mhara
4) Blackbirds ; Thrushes
5) TÁ Na Báid
6) Fear a Bháta
7) Dúlamán
8) Behind the Haystack / the Humors of Glendart
9) The Flower of Magherally
10) Gabhaim Molta Bríde
11) The Month of January
12) An Cailín Gaelach
13) Éirigh
14) Believe Me If All Those Endearing Young Charms
15) Song of the Seals