Céad Míle Fáilte,

It is Todd once again. In this issue we have a new episodes of our own Irish & Celtic Music Podcast and Pub Songs & Stories. The other podcasts we highlight include Three Castles Burning & Mostly Folk. The articles we focus include ones about the Pairc Festival acts, same-sex marriages in Cornwall, & the 20 most beautiful spots to visit in Scotland. This week’s featured festival is the Alaska Scottish Highland Games in Palmer, AL. Also we are still featuring the Scotland Celtic Invasion tour and it’s your last chance to pick up our Celtic Pride Shirts for this year. We hope you enjoy this issue. Until next time, slàinte mhath!

IRISH & CELTIC MUSIC PODCAST #667: CELTIC DANCE PARTY

• The Drowsy Lads, Fig for a Kiss, Runa, Dublin Gulch, Lúnasa, Louise Bichan, Telenn Tri, The BorderCollies, Charlene Adzima, Fialla, Bealtaine, Dancing With Hobbits, The Crowfoot Rakes, High Octane, Conor Mallon
• A special thanks to our new and continued Patrons of the Podcast: Daniel Ide, Eric McFarling, Lorraine F

Listen to the Show

IRISH & CELTIC MUSIC: BEST OF 2024 PLAYLIST

• Every week, Patrons of the Podcast vote in the Celtic Top 20. Those votes are tabulated two weeks later. The most-popular songs are added to these playlists.
• You can vote for your favorite by following the link in this week's show.

Listen on Spotify

CAST YOUR VOTE IN THE CELTIC TOP 20

• Every year, I publish the Celtic Top 20. This is your pick of the best, most-popular songs of the year. But to make the show great, I need you to vote for your favorite songs in each episode.
• Just list each of the bands performing those favorite songs to quickly and easily cast your vote.

Vote in the Celtic Top 20

THANK YOU PATRONS OF THE PODCAST

The bands you listen to each week rely on your generosity and financial support. Just like this podcast. Your patronage allows us to create a free show for thousands of people week. It only costs you as little as one dollar per episode on Patreon. Join on Patreon now.

SCOTTISH WHISKY & HIKING

• Taste Scottish whisky and hike off the whisky in some of Scotland's grand locations. To that end, we will fly into Inverness. Drive through Speyside, past Edinburgh into the Lowlands before making our way back up to the Highlands. We will hit at least three of the Scottish whisky regions with this plan. But it's not just about the whisky. It's also about the hiking. We will spend 1-2 hours in between tastings to hike local sites, take pictures, and soak up the countryside.

Join the Invasion.

CELTIC PRIDE SHIRTS ARE BACK

• The Pride Month shirts featuring a rainbow Celtic knot design are back in the store from now through June.
• Plus, you'll get a digital copy of Marc Gunn's album, Selcouth.

Buy your Celtic Pride Month shirts now.

• PUB SONGS & STORIES #287: MIDDLE EARTH BRAGGING, GREATEST WOMEN COMPOSERS IN HISTORY WITH APRYL KNIGHT
• Have you ever read Lord of the Rings and noticed that each time the hobbits meet a new race along the road, it’s the OLDEST RACE EVER?! I wrote a song about that bragging.
• There are a lot of famous male composers in history. Apryl Knight will introduce you to some of the incredible female composers that you may not have heard of.

Listen to the Podcast

THREE CASTLES BURNING: RED ROSES FOR ME (WITH SPIDER STACY AND JAMES FEARNLEY)

• This year marks the 40th anniversary of Red Roses For Me, the first album from The Pogues. Borrowing its title from Sean O'Casey, it also carries literary influences like Ulysses and Brendan Behan proudly. As an exhibition on the London-Irish currently runs in Dublin's EPIC emigration museum, what better time to discuss this defining London-Irish band who still mean so much? Here Comes Everybody by James Fearnley (Faber & Faber) is available now.

Listen to the Podcast

BOB GELDOF, NATHAN CARTER AND RIVERDANCE AMONG ACTS SET TO PERFORM AS PAIRC FESTIVAL RETURNS

• BOB GELDOF, Nathan Carter and Riverdance will all feature on the line-up when the Pairc Festival returns to Birmingham this summer.
• The weekend-long music festival, which first launched in 2022, takes place at the New Irish Centre in Kings Heath on the Bank Holiday weekend in August.

Read the Blog

MOSTLY FOLK EPISODE 682

• Nichole Wagner, Nichole Wagner, Beppe Gambetta, Alisa Amador, Ryan David Green, Jubal Lee Young,
  The Gringo Pistoleros, Robert LaRoche, Amy Hopwood, Andy Antipin, Jackson Hollow, Mara Levine with Gathering Time, Ryan David Green, Tim Grimm, Phoebe Rees, Sloan Wainwright

Listen to the Show

RECORD NUMBER OF SAME-SEX COUPLES IN CORNWALL AND THE ISLES OF SCILLY TIE THE KNOT

• A record number of same-sex couples in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly got married in 2022, new figures show.
• It comes as more same-sex marriages took place across England and Wales than in any year since it became legalised in 2014.

Visit the site

20 MOST BEAUTIFUL PLACES & BEAUTY SPOTS IN SCOTLAND

• It's easy to find beautiful places to visit in Scotland. With our wild beaches, sparkling lochs and romantic castles, we're often referred to as one of the most beautiful countries in the world.

Visit the site

ALASKA SCOTTISH HIGHLAND GAMES

• An annual tradition the Last Weekend in June! Featuring all things Scottish: Bagpipes, Heavy Athletics, Highland Dance, Drumming, Gathering O' The Clans, Birds of Prey, Kilted Mile, Scotch, Mead and Bourbon Tasting, Tea Tent, Salmon Tossing, Highland Coo, Tug-Of-War, Celtic Marketplace and Food Trucks, Historical Demonstrations, Shortbread Baking Competition, Live Music, Scottish Strongman, Haggis Eating Contest, Midnight Sun Spurtle Challenge, Children’s Events and more!
• With so much to see, do, taste, and experience, this Scottish celebration is not just a day of fun; it's a journey into the heart of Scotland, filled with laughter, traditions, and memories waiting to be made.
• Some musical acts performing include: Syr, Ally the Piper, Harp Twins, & Wolfgang Twins

Find out more information

WHAT ARE YOU DOING WHILE LISTENING?

You can send a comment or a picture of what you're doing. You can also send a photo from one of your trips to a Celtic nation or anywhere around the globe.

Slainte!

Todd Wiley & Marc Gunn, The Celtfather

June 27, 2024

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