What a musician listens to in December
The Portland Hibernian Society’s Minister of Music is Mike Phillips. After reading the blog post about Fairy Tale of New York, he sent me the following:
At my table Saturday I had fun chatting with David (O’Longaigh), Jim (Keegan) and Daniel (Curran) about favorite Xmas songs and albums. I recently started listening to the Bells of Dublin by the Chieftains for the first time and it’s been a pleasant surprise. My second favorite Xmas song (after Fairytale) is the Elvis Costello song featured on that album - The Feast of St. Stephen’s. Got me thinking, there’s got to be more in that amusing, poetic Irish genre?!?
I got right back to Mike and asked for his list of essential Christmas musical moments. Here it is.
Song - Fairytale of New York
In 2013, Jeff Baker wrote an incredible piece for The Oregonian explaining why Fairytale of New York is the greatest Christmas song of all time. The fact that I still think about this article is a testament to the power of the written word - and its core truth.
Album - Bells of Dublin
I'm 34-years late to the party with this album. It came out in 1991 yet I only discovered it last month. It offers a heavy dose of the Christmas spirit combined with caroling classics, a dose of Irish melody, and features popular artists of that era.
Song - St. Stephen's Day Murders - Bells of Dublin
Track three of The Bells of Dublin carries a Christmas tune on par with Fairytale of New York, reminding us that holiday family gatherings are not all frankincense, myrrh, mistletoe and merriment. I remember many-a-gathering featuring heated debate, cantankerous conflict, misaligned expectations and all of the messiness that comes with cramming human beings into close quarter and stuffing their gullets with sugar and drink. The Chieftain's play a gorgeous melody featuring a blue note that hits, upon first listen, like a piece of fruit cake; maybe a bit disappointing from that first bite, but by the end of the evening you’ve had ten pieces (or listens, as it were). Famously dysfunctional in his own right, Elvis Costello narrates a poetic scene that could be familiar to many in this (until recently) unknown-to-me Christmas classic.
Song - Christmas Biscuits
Mark Geary and Glen Hansard are eponymous to the Irish singer-songwriter craft. These two are connected by one degree of separation to seemingly every interesting artist and singer-songwriter with a link to the musical scene on the Emerald Isle from the past several decades. This holiday song carries a familiar theme for people familiar with Mark Geary music - missed connections, loneliness, downtrodden, confused relationships - wrapped in the gorgeous melodies, harmonies and songwriter craft he's admired for.
Event - Glen Hansard Christmas Busking Session
This one isn’t a song, but an event that you’d be lucky to stumble upon on a holiday foray through Dublin. For years Glen Hansard has been hosting a busking session on Grafton Street around Christmas to raise money for charity. What began as a casual event featuring passing musician friends like Mundy and Damien Rice, has evolved over the years into a staple event that’s featured Bono, Hozier, Sinead O'Connor and other musician friends from around the island. The Auld Triangle is hardly a Christmas song, but I think we'd agree that we wish we could've been at the 2014 Christmas busk to sing a verse or howl along in unison to its chorus like a crew of carolers!
Honorable Mention - Richard Hawley, Cole's Corner
Richard Hawley isn't Irish and Cole's Corner isn't a Christmas song, but couldn't you just envision this guy producing a classic Christmas album?
