Fire Draw Near

This episode looks at the ballad The Baffled Knight aka Blow Away the Morning Dew aka Clear Away The Morning Dew aka The New Mown Hay aka the Shepherd Lad aka Jock Sheep aka Katie Morey. Tracklist The City Waites – The Baffled Knight Emily Bishop – The Baffles Knight Sam Larner – Blow Away the Morning Dew Assassin’s Creed – Clear Away the Morning Dew Guildford Boy’s Choir – Blow Away the Morning D...

Episode XXVI features Irish traditional dance tunes, Sean Nós, English Gypsies, 1970s Reggae, uilleann pipes, fiddle, a man with no balls and poor old England. Pictured is my Granda Thomas Lynch Snr. on the accordion. Tracklist Ceoltóirí Chulann – An Tonn Reatha (The Rolling Wave) Jackie Roche – The Blackbird (Set Dance) Peter Ingram – Mandi went to Poove the Gri – Untitled Stepdance - Can you Rok...

This episode looks at the ballad Edward aka What Put the Blood? aka My Son David aka Son Come Tell It Unto Me aka Sven I Rosengård aka The Blood of the Old Red Rooster. Tracklist Mary Delaney – What Put the Blood? Pops Johnny Connors – What Put the Blood? John Reilly – What Put the Blood? Weenie (Selphinus) Brazil – Son Come Tell it Unto Me Angela Brazil – Son Come Tell it Unto Me Mr. Webb – Son C...

Episode XXV of Fire Draw Near features Paddy Moloney, Stick in the Wheel, Máire Ní Ghráda, the Friel Sisters, Louise Mulcahy, Jelly Roll Morton, Mike Oldfield, the return of Lomax Does Ireland and more!!! Tracklist The Chieftains – An Phis Fhliuch (the Wet Quim) Paddy Moloney – Bumper Squire Jones Paddy Moloney and Mike Oldfield and band – Planxty Fanny Power and more Stick in the Wheel – The Cuck...

This is the second episode looking at the ballad Lord Randall aka Henry My son aka Amhrán na hEascainne aka Großmutter Schlangenköchin. Tracklist La Piva dal Carnér - Il Testamento dell'avvelenato Elster Silberflug - Großmutter Schlangenköchin Carl Orff, Gunhild Keetman & Kölner Kinderchor - Großmutter Schlangenköchin Abner Jay – Lord Randall Josh White – Lord Randall Sara Cleveland – My Bonny Bo...

Episode XXIV features new songs from Marlais and Jrpjej as well as tracks by Sarah and Rita Keane, Hassan Wargui, Michael O'Shea, Seán McKeon and Liam O'Connor, Anna and Elizabeth and the Caretaker. Tracklist Seán Ó Riada - Speech Sarah and Rita Keane – Moll Dubh a Ghleanna Hassan Wargui - Isawl Omarg (Music Speaks) Marlais – Died For Love Michael O’Shea – Kerry Nameless Grave – Monaghan Gay McKeo...

This episode looks at the ballad Lord Randall aka Henry My Son aka Amhrán na hEascainne aka Großmutter Schlangenköchin. Tracklist Mary Delaney – Buried in Kilkenny Frank Quinn – Lord Randal Joe Heaney – Amhrán na hEascainne Anne Mulqueen – Cá Rabhais ar Feadh an Lae Uaim Kathleen Behan – My Bonny Brown Boy Unidentified Traveller – Billy Boy Frank Harte – Henry my Son Wounded John Scott Cree – Gre...

Episode XXIII features new songs from Cathal Caufield and Conor O’Kane as well as recordings of non-lexical vocable singing from the Jewish, Inuit, Indian, Sami, French, Irish, Scottish and American traditions. Tracklist: Audrey Saint Coeur – Diddlage Cathal Caulfield – The Morning Thrush Annie Johnson – Bird Imitations Michael and Paddy Rafferty – The Queen of the Rushes Christy Moore – The Knock...

This episode looks at the ballad The Cruel Mother aka All Around the Loney-O aka Weile Weile Waile aka Carslisle Wall aka Greenwood Sidey. Tracklist Mickey Connors – Down by the Green Roadside-um Thomas Moran – The Cruel Mother Landless – All Around the Loney-O Winnie Stokes – Weile Weile Waile Andrew Stewart – Weilo Weilo Wailo Lizzie Higgins - The Cruel Mother Silly Wizard – Carlisle Wall Anonym...

Episode XXII looks at some bits and bobs from the unsettled frontiers of traditional music including homemade bagpipes, out-there arrangements of well-known tunes, a new track from John Francis Flynn, straight up honest-to-God bodhrán playing, Robin Roberts as a performer / collector, the whole question of Led Zeppelin and the influence of *that* famous blind Irish harper as well as what is perhap...

This episode looks at the ballad Long Lankin aka Lamkin aka False Lankum. Tracklist John Reilly Jr. – False Lankum Helen Diamond – Long Lankin Seán Corcoran – The Lambkin Ben Butcher – Long Lankin George Fradley - Lankin A.L. Lloyd – Long Lankin Hare and Moon – Long Lankin Steeleye Span – Long Lankin Robin Williamson and Lawson Dondo – Long Lankin Alexander Robb – Lamkin Hedy West – Beaulampkin Fr...

Episode XXI features a number of lost gems of my personal cassette collection from the likes of Tommy Reck, Noel Hill, William Mullally, Mick O'Brien, Frank Browne and more....Also some classic Irish hip-hop from Scary Éire, a new track from Jordan O'Leary, an Irish translation of a Leadbelly classic, the return of two missed segments and more of the usual oddness from the wider world of Irish tra...

This episode looks at the ballad The Dying Soldier aka The Unfortunate Rake aka The Locke Hospital aka St. James' Hospital aka When I Was On Horseback. Tracklist Brendan Gleeson – The Unfortunate Rake Christy Moore – The Locke Hospital Tom Lenihan – St. James’ Hospital Mary Doran – When I was on Horseback Molly Collins – As I Went Out Walking One Fine Summer’s Morning Norma Waterson – The Unfortun...

Q. What are the three greatest mouth-noises in FDN XX? A. Not difficult to tell. To wit; the vainglorious manly-man shout of Throllmas of Trollech, the heart-rending soulwail of Patty Waters and the soul-soothing tongue-rolled musical warble-diddles of Paddy Tunney. Q. Is that the extent of FDN XX? A. Not difficult to tell. No. Many are the many-noised noises besides. To wit; Cath and Phil Tyler,...

This episode looks at The Gypsy Laddie aka the Dark-Eyed Gypsy aka the Raggle Taggle Gypsy. Tracklist: Planxty – Raggle Taggle Gypsy John Reilly - Raggle Taggle Gypsy Paddy Doran – Seven Yellow Gypsies Joe Holmes - Dark Eyed Gypsy Séamus Ennis - The Three Gypsies Joe Lynch - The Whistling Gypsy Jeannie Robertson – The Gypsy Laddie Carolyne Hughes – The Draggle Tail Gypsy Walter Pardon – The Raggle...

This episode looks at the ballad Our Goodman aka Seven Drunken Nights. https://campsite.bio/firedrawnear

This episode looks at various bits and pieces - lost gems from the forgotten strange wilderness on the edge/centre of the Irish Tradition. Includes a look at jigs that had songs to go along with them in Connemara. Tracklist Séamus Ennis – Patrick’s Day George Ross – Hornpipes The Honeydreamers – Irish Mambo Sean Mooney – If We Only Had Old Ireland Over Here Tsunekichi Suzuki – Omoide Frank Harte –...

Last December Dublin Digital Radio celebrated their 4th birthday. As part of a weekend of celebrations myself and Declan Synnott recorded a long conversation. Declan Synnott is not only a gentleman, he’s also scholar – with an actual PhD in Punk. I know I’ve talked about my own perceived parallels between Punk and Traditional Irish music many times in the past, but I think this is the most in dept...

Episode XVII goes even deeper down the ancient instrument rabbit hole and looks at the oldest pipes in the world from the city state of Ur in ancient Mesopotamia - believed to be the precursor to all modern bagpipes. This is followed by more pipes throughout history, looking at a few different stages before we get to those we know today. If that wasn't enough we also look at the oldest song in exi...

An introductory overview of the printed ballad in Ireland, this episode looks at the people who sang them, the people who sold them, the people who bought them and the people who hated them. Anyone wishing to investigate this topic further is strongly advised to take a look at Dr. John Moulden's authoritative thesis on the subject - 'The printed ballad in Ireland: a guide to the popular printing o...

Episode XVI looks at the strange and fantastic life of the song An Droimeann Donn Dílis which was played and transformed by artists as diverse as Seosaimhín Ní Bheaglaoich, Lead Belly, the Weavers, Nana Mouskouri and Rasputina. Alongside this are an Irish tune played on the Chinese Hulusi, an unusual folk sound from the Isle of Mull more of the usual mayhem as well as another installment of Lomax...

Episode XV features distorted accordions, tunes learned from the Otherworld, Bronze Age war horns and punk rock piping jigs. Alongside all of this are new tracks from Jim Ghedi, Caoimhín Ó Fearghail and Cormac Begley. Tracklist: George Ross – Higgins Hornpipe / Other Hornpipe Caoimhín Ó Fearghail – John Lydons / Nora Cíonna Delia Murphy – Moonshiner Ronan Browne – Port na bPúcai Jim Ghedi – Ah Cud...

The final installment of the Wild Rover Podcast looks at the song in Ireland before the Dubliners came along as well as where Luke Kelly’s iconic version might have originated. Featuring performances from Cormac Mac Diarmada, Cat Forster and Mark O'Kane. Do yourself a favour and check out Brian Peters' article The Well-Travelled 'Wild Rover' (Folk Music Journal Vol. 10, No. 5 (2015), pp. 609-636),...

Fire Draw Near Bonus Episode - The Gypsy Laddie by Ian Lynch

Fire Draw Near Episode XIV is a Shitfaced Christmas Extravaganza Bonanza! Featuring the amazing tale of the Donegal Tarantella, me doing a Felix Doran but its Iron Maiden, more bad language than usual, lots of beer reviews, tonnes of drunken slobbering, Christmas songs, Scandinavian Folk Metal tropes, as well as new songs from Ruskavellas, Stick in the Wheel, Burd Ellen, Myrkur and Yorkston Thorne...