The Chieftains image by Barry McCall
The Civil Wars image by Phil King
Listening to The Chieftains: Voice of Ages tonight, I am again knocked over by this album. It takes me to another place. My scalp tingles as the music on it seems to activate long-resting atoms. The Chieftains collaborate with a plethora of other exceptionally talented musicians that, for the most part, are unfamiliar to me.
The playlist:
“Carolina Rua / The Ladies Pantalettes” – 3:57 (with Imelda May)
“Come All Ye Fair and Tender Ladies” – 4:20 (with Pistol Annies)
“Pretty Little Girl” – 2:48 (with Carolina Chocolate Drops)
“Down in the Willow Garden” – 4:16 (with Bon Iver)
“Lily Love” – 3:01 (with The Civil Wars)
“The Lark in the Clear Air / Olam Punch” – 3:20 (with Punch Brothers)
“My Lagan Love” – 4:27 (with Lisa Hannigan)
“When The Ship Comes In” – 3:26 (with The Decemberists)
“School Days Over” – 3:33 (with The Low Anthem)
“The Frost is All Over” – 3:06 (with Punch Brothers)
“Peggy Gordon” – 4:10 (with The Secret Sisters)
“Hard Times Come Again No More” – 5:26 (with Paolo Nutini)
“The Chieftains Reunion” – 11:22 (with Sean Potts & Michael Tubridy)
“The Chieftains in Orbit” – 3:40 (with NASA Astronaut Cady Coleman)
“Lundu” – 3:09 (with Carlos Núñez)
Cut 4, “Lily Love,” by The Chieftains and The Civil Wars, really does it for me.
From wikipedia:
The Chieftains are a traditional Irish band formed in Dublin in 1962, by Paddy Moloney, Sean Potts and Michael Tubridy. Their sound, which is almost entirely instrumental and largely built around uilleann pipes, has become synonymous with traditional Irish music and they are regarded as having helped popularise Irish music across the world. They have won six Grammys during their career and they were given a Lifetime Achievement Award at the prestigious BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards in 2002. Some music experts have credited The Chieftains with bringing traditional Irish music to a worldwide audience, so much so that the Irish government awarded them the honorary title of ‘Ireland’s Musical Ambassadors’ in 1989.
per wikipedia:
The Civil Wars was an American musical duo from Nashville, Tennessee, composed of Joy Williams and John Paul White. Formed in 2008, The Civil Wars won four Grammy Awards prior to their 2014 breakup.
Down, down by the sea, there is a crown of daisies
High, high on a hill, my little lily love
West wind in your hair, tied up in golden daisies
She’s chasing you down, my little lily love
You hide and seek high and low
In every corner of my soul
I almost hear the sound of your heart beating
Oh, like it’s my own, my little lily love
You hide and seek every day
You just get farther away
What, what kind of world
Would take a sweet wild flower
And pull it up from the ground
My little lily love
Oh, down by the sea, there is a crown of daisies
I’ll never forget my little lily love
Songwriters: Williams Joy Elizabeth / White John Paul
Tao Talk 
Love that tune, especially the harmony singing! I don’t believe I had heard of The Chieftains before.
BTW, the title of your feature “Music that Strikes a Chord” is great – obviously, you’re very gifted with words!😀
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Christian, happy to introduce you to The Chieftains. Not sure how I happened upon this wonderful album where they have talented others collaborating with them, but it gives me a bunch of artists to learn more about. I’ve got two from The Civil Wars headed my way from the library. Thanks on the title also, it’s an old expression that I’ve nabbed to use 🙂
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I like bands with Irish folks influences like The Waterboys and The Pogues. As a big fan of harmony singing, liking The Chieftains wasn’t much of leap! 🙂
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I love their collaborations. Brings out the best in both. (K)
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❤
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NIce song Lisa… I first started to listen to them when Van Morrison sang with them for a while. They have a sound you could only get from Ireland.
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Good to know about the Van connection. Those harmonies are something else.
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Sounds corny but when I hear them I see green grass and think of Ireland… it’s just there
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Beautiful. I could stay with this all day. Big fan for a long time.
(I apologize for not spending more time with your writings. It’s about choices (and time). Maybe I will switch from the music and spend time with your pen work. I usually stick with music/film but I do like words. Later)
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CB, I hear you on the time factor. Too much to try to do in a day. It’s nice to have “seen” you and chit-chatted today. Hope we get a chance to do it more often.
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You’re in my loop. The “loop” is at a manageable place right now. I enjoy the back and forth.
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Thanks for this, Jade! The Chieftains were just emerging un the late sixties and early seventies when I lived in Dublin, and they were such a welcome relief from the endless folk ballads. There was a complexity to their music that was exciting. You might what to check out a band called Planxty, they were also popular at the time, excellent musicians!
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Glad you like them and to hear about their place in Irish music history. I will be on the lookout for Planxty 🙂
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