63 episodes

Celtfather Music & Travel gives you an inside look into the life of musicians. You'll hear interviews with people I meet on the road and online who are involved in the Celtic and Geek communites. You'll enjoy stories from my Celtic Invasion Vacations and travels around the world. Plus, you'll get my inside thoughts on music marketing, cats, science fiction conventions, and the ideas that move me. This is more than Celtic music and culture. It's more than a Geek lifestyle audio blog or travel show. This is about what it means to be Scots-Irish and a Geek.

Celtic Invasion Vacations: Travel Ireland, Scotland & Beyond Marc Gunn

    • Society & Culture
    • 4.6 • 9 Ratings

Celtfather Music & Travel gives you an inside look into the life of musicians. You'll hear interviews with people I meet on the road and online who are involved in the Celtic and Geek communites. You'll enjoy stories from my Celtic Invasion Vacations and travels around the world. Plus, you'll get my inside thoughts on music marketing, cats, science fiction conventions, and the ideas that move me. This is more than Celtic music and culture. It's more than a Geek lifestyle audio blog or travel show. This is about what it means to be Scots-Irish and a Geek.

    Itinerary for Celtic Invasion of Westport, Ireland 2023

    Itinerary for Celtic Invasion of Westport, Ireland 2023

    Every year, I take a small group of people on an exciting adventure overseas. We don't see everything. Instead, we stay in one area. We get to know it through it's culture, history, and legends. EtZvGiAuFJKsacyM2U1d
    In June 2023, we are going to Westport, Ireland in County Mayo. The itinerary is now online. We will spend seven nights, visiting Matt Malloy's famous pub, hike Croagh Patrick, and ferry to Clare Island. We'll learn more about the Grace O'Malley, the famed Pirate Queen, by visiting her castles. We'll see standing stones and lots more.
    Check out the itinerary for the Celtic Invasion of Westport, Ireland right now to see if you want to join me in Ireland this summer.

    • 12 min
    Celtic Invasion Vacations FAQ

    Celtic Invasion Vacations FAQ

    Celebrate Celtic culture and music through travel. I'm gonna tell you what you can expect on my Celtic Invasion Vacations?
    If you go to the website you won’t find much information. I usually list the itinerary when it becomes available but that can be January or March before the trip. You will find podcasts and links to pictures and videos. I don't know that any of it really paints a good picture.
    So I thought I would try to break down how these trips work to help you decide if you want to join me in the future.

    Celtic Invasion Vacations are not your typical travel tour experience. Most tourists travel on big buses. They go place to place. You stay up late. You get up early. There’s 30, 60 or even 90 people packed on one to three tour buses.
    If you’re like me, that sounds pretty miserable. My first two trips were on tour buses. Everyone was a fan of my music. So that was pretty awesome. The bus drivers were awesome too. But that's a lot of people for an introvert like me.
    I don’t know how much of the fatigue was from so many people or the staying up late/getting-up-early business. But it’s not my preferred way of traveling. I like small groups.
    My mom moved to Italy in 1985. So I’ve gone back-and-forth to Europe for a long time.
    My mom is an awesome adventurer. I went to school on an American military base in Vicenza, Italy for my senior year of high school. While all the other high school seniors went to Remini to get drunk, my mom and I went on in artistic pilgrimage following the works of Piero Della Francesca. She instilled in me the value of planning as well as spontaneity.
    You see that in my Celtic Invasion Vacations itinerary. When I finally make one that is. Typically, I don't have a full itinerary when I announce the latest trip. I have… ideas.
    In fact, I usually have one big idea. Then I find a way to make it work.
    One person told me he was disappointed when my trip to the Highlands of Scotland a few years back did not also include the Isle of Skye, like it was initially listed on the early itinerary.
    That was because I had a big idea. But when I finally settled on details, I realized it was impractical. I learned from that error. If I make any big changes to what was planned, you are welcome to back out.
    I don’t usually settle on solid itineraries until December or January. I just don’t have enough details to make a solid decision.
    That might make some people uncomfortable, especially when you’re putting down nearly $3000, plus air travel, to join me.
    The adventure is worth it!
    The great thing about traveling on the Celtic Invasion Vacation in my opinion is that it is a small group. That means maximum flexibility for adventure.
    So let’s answer some questions.
    3:11 - WHEN ARE THE CELTIC INVASION VACATIONS? This can always vary. But typically I run my trips in late May or early June. This seems to be the best time to travel to Ireland and Scotland. People talk about rain in Ireland. June seems to invariably have one of the lightest rain falls ever. It's just... perfect!
    3:32 - HOW LONG IS EACH TRIP? Celtic Invasion Vacations are about seven days long. The trips are officially scheduled from Saturday to Saturday. That’s because that’s how long most vacation rentals book. But I’m not going to be taking you to seven hotels in seven days. We stay in one place most of the week.
    If the vacation rental is more than a couple hours from the airport or there's something cool to see closer, we may stay in a hotel near the airport on the last night of the Invasion. It just depends on how soon everyone on the trip has booked their departure.
    4:04 - WHEN SHOULD I ARRIVE? I usually ask Invaders to arrive the day before the trip. That way you can recover from jet lag and adjust to the time change. But that also allows us to leave first thing in the morning on Saturday to drive to our vacation rental.
    While it is recommended, it is not required. As long as you arrive by 11 am on Sa

    • 18 min
    8 St Patrick's Day Party Music Tips

    8 St Patrick's Day Party Music Tips

    I will share EIGHT great ways for you to have a spectacular St Patrick's Day today Celtfather Music & Travel.
    The best thing about St Patrick’s Day for me is that is a great time to celebrate Celtic culture. My passion lies in the music.  I immersed myself in nothing but Irish and Scottish music for over a decade. I took that knowledge to create newsletters, blogs, videos, and eventually podcasts that celebrate Celtic culture through music.
    St Patrick's Day is also my favorite time of year. It makes sense. I play Celtic music, and have done so since the 90s. I host the largest podcast of Celtic music in the world. Oh! And if that's not enough, it's also my birthday. I guess you could say I  know a little something about St Patrick's Day.
    So let's get started.
    The cream of the Celtic music crop is the Irish & Celtic Music Podcast. Since 2005, this show has shared the music of the Celts from around the world. It's a like your favorite Celtic radio program, except you can download it to you computer or phone. You can listen to it ANYWHERE at ANY TIME. And just like those most of those weekly Celtic radio shows, it's 100% free.
    It also focuses on the smaller Celtic bands. The ones that you might not hear on your favorite Celtic radio program. That's because most of these bands don't have record labels. They're doing it themselves. And they might be performing in YOUR community. You might not even know about them yet.
    But they are fantastic. The music ranges from traditional reels and jigs to pub songs to Celtic rock and fusion. It's a HUGE amalgamation of incredible music. And it's available for free on nearly all of your favorite podcatchers. And you can even download a free app to listen to the show on your phone.
    You can subscribe and find out more at CelticMusicPodcast.com
    This is a good time to mention the St Patrick's Day Podcast. That was a short-run show that was released by the Irish & Celtic Music Podcast many years ago. The goal was to provide you with a St Patrick's Day playlist of amazing Celtic music by some of the best indie Celtic bands online. There's not a lot of talking. It's mostly about the music.
    You can find that at stpatricksdayparty.net
    And some St Patrick's Day gifts here.
    Next on the list is the Pub Songs & Stories podcast. I started this show in 2005. It's gone through many renditions over the years, but right now, it is the virtual public house for Celtic and geek culture. I sing songs live in each show. I also chat about Celtic and Geek things that inspire me. I also share stories about my songs, both traditional and original.
    That's the thing that I love about the show. I love story telling. Pub Stories are stories from primarily Celtic musicians about their songs. It's stories from the road. The things that inspired them to write songs or share music. It's the stories that make you fall in love with Celtic music in the first place.
    Since I also host the Irish & Celtic Music Podcast, I have direct access to hundreds of Celtic musicians. I'm adding new stories from these amazing bands in every show. It's fantastic!
    Again, you will find this podcast available EVERYWHERE online. Subscribe to the podcast for free at pubsong.com
    If you want to find other Celtic podcasts and stay on top of what's new, the Celtic Music Magazine is a great resource. I started publishing the weekly newsletter in 2000. It's still going today.
    You can still get 34 free Celtic MP3s when you subscribe. And every St Patrick's Day I share 17 more free Celtic MP3s from some of the bands featured on the Irish & Celtic  Music Podcast.
    But the best part is every podcast that features Celtic music or culture is featured in the newsletter.  It's a great way to find new podcasts of Celtic culture.
    Sign up so you don't miss  at BestCelticMusic.net
    If you just love Celtic music and want some of the best of the best, the Irish & Celtic Music Podcast hosts the Celtic Top 20 every year. This is where you vote for y

    • 8 min
    Swimming the Horses with Gerry O’Beirne

    Swimming the Horses with Gerry O’Beirne

    Gerry O'Beirne is an Irish guitarist and songwriter behind the scenes of many great Celtic musicians. I met him when he toured the U.S. with Andy M. Stewart. But his history playing music is long and fascinating.
    I was surprised on last summer's Celtic Invasion Vacations that he's living in Dingle, Ireland now. He's performing both solo and with many of the top Irish musicians there.
    Show #266.
    We talk about his new CD Swimming the Horses, the Irish & Celtic Music Podcast, and how he got started as a songwriter in the desert of America.
    Find out more about Gerry O'Beirne here.

    • 20 min
    Mazz O'Flaherty Interview in Dingle Record Shop

    Mazz O'Flaherty Interview in Dingle Record Shop

    Mazz O'Flaherty owns the smallest record shop in Ireland. It's in Dingle, Ireland. It is a place you don't want to miss. It's walls are lined with music from Irish musicians, especially those in the County Kerry.
    In 2019, I took my Celtic Invasion Vacations to Dingle, Ireland. Ten years after my last trip. Mazz was as delightful a person to talk to as ever.
    Show #264

    • 21 min
    Irish & Celtic Music Podcast on Spotify?

    Irish & Celtic Music Podcast on Spotify?

    The Irish & Celtic Music Podcast is no longer on Spotify. But it is still coming out each and every week.
     
    Spotify announced at the beginning of 2020 that they will no longer host music podcasts like ours. So in February, they pulled it from their app.
     
    This stinks, but it is understandable. And it doesn't affect the delivery of the podcast into the future. The podcast still comes out every week. 
     
    You can subscribe at BestCelticMusic.net. 
     
    Subscribe on your favorite podcatcher and to our Celtic Music Magazine so you're up-to-date on all of our podcast news.
     
    While you're there, you can download our free app and never, ever miss a single episode.
     
    Thanks for listening on Spotify while you did.
     
    Slainte!
    Marc Gunn, The Celtfather, show #261
    Irish & Celtic Music Podcast

    • 2 min

Customer Reviews

4.6 out of 5
9 Ratings

9 Ratings

msmontet ,

Love Celtic Geek!

I enjoy this podcast very much. Marc has a voice that just grabs your attention. He talks about Celtic music but also about Sci-fi topics that I know and understand. He is very down to earth and real. It's like listening to a friend talk. Love it Marc!
by msmontet

gary.t.neal ,

Great way to share with your audience

While I love the interviews, I love when you share your braindroppings: when you're just talking and rambling about whatever comes to mind: music, marketing, intrvroversion, Kensie, whatever. I don't mean to make you self-concience about it, just start recording. No script, and talk!

Aly001113 ,

Celtic Geek is amazing

I have enjoyed listening to The Celtic Geek. It is a very positive and uplifting podcast with great information on various celtic and science fiction information. This podcast is a nice complement to the Irish and Celtic Music Podcast. Keep up the great job Marc!

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