The Arc Music label's two-disc collection The Ultimate Guide to Irish
Folk provides a well-curated look at modern Celtic music. In a genre that has broadened to include almost anything that features a fiddle or tin whistle, there is quite a bit of material to choose from. While much of the music here can't quite be considered traditional, the collection is peppered with enough old-school
folk scene veterans to balance out the more progressive fare. Tracks by traditional stalwarts like the Bothy Band, Altan, and the Dubliners appear alongside more
pop-oriented acts like Lou McMahon and the Screaming Orphans. There are a few missteps that veer too far into the world of Celtic/
new age schmaltz, but as a whole, this is a decent introduction to both classic Irish
folk music and some of genre's better contemporary artists.
Tracks: -------
Disc 101. Luke Kelly - Raglan road
02. L?nasa - Morning nightcap; The Malbay shuffle
03. Kevin Burke - Lord Franklin
04. R?alta - The galtee; The black haired lass; The stoney steps
05. Andy Irvine - Plains of Kildare
06. Dervish - Baba chonraoi
07. Johnny Duhan - The voyage
08. Michelle Mulcahy - The galway bay; The peacock's feather no. 2
09. Dolores Keane - The Island
10. The Makem & Spain Brothers - Crossroads ceili
11. Jane Cassidy - Green bushes
12. Lou Mcmahon - Wide eyed lady
13. Martin Hayes - Paddy Fahey's reel
14. Joe O'Donnell's Shkayla - Brian Boru's march
15. Luka Bloom - You couldn't have come at a better time
16. The Willis Clan - Boys from Boston
17. Screaming Orphans - Lonely boy
18. Afro Celt Sound System - Whirl y reel 1
Disc 201. Clannad - Rhapsody na gCrann
02. The Young
Folk - Way down south
03. Cherish The Ladies - Rayleen's reel; The pullet; Scotch Mary; Within a mile of Dublin
04. Caladh Nua - The cruel lowland maid
05. Craobh Rua - Hunting the hare; Give us a drink of water; Ellen O'Grady; Moll rua
06. The Mighty Doonans - The rambling siuler
07. K?la - Glanfaidh m?
08. The Jonhstons - Gleanntain ghlas' ghaoth dobhair
09. The Dubliners - The rocky road to Dublin [live]
10. Altan - The curlew; McDermott's; Three scones of Boxty
11. Niamh Parsons - Clohinne winds
12. The Bothy Band - The green groves of Erin; The flowers of red hill
13. John Spillane - Johnny don't go to Ballincollig
14. Sin?ad O'Connor - Lord Baker
15. The London Lasses - Boys of Belfast; Julia Clifford's; Reg Hall's
16. Horslips - King of the fairies
All thanks to original releaser