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Description of Celtic Rock

 
Combining loud guitars and the like with traditional Irish instrumentation, Celtic Rock links the Emerald Isle's beloved folk tradition with contemporary rock's energy and bravado. Celtic Rock bands often employ tin whistle and Uilleann pipes to achieve this end, rendering an atmosphere of a revved-up, plugged-in Irish traditional session. As with more established forms of Celtic/Irish artistic expression, central themes of Celtic Rock often include hardship of most any sort, working the land, and a keen love of liquid cheer.
 

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Celtic Rock Key Artists

 
Black 47

Radio-friendly Celtic Rock
band formed in New York in
1990 and sang songs that
boil down to 26 + 6 = 1.
They took their name fro...

Dexys Midnight Runners

Dexys Midnight Runners
were a Northern Soul and
new wave group who were
early-'80s stars in the UK.
Their name comes from th...

Hothouse Flowers

Like their influence Van
Morrison, H.F. make rootsy
rock 'n' roll, Celtic folk and
gospel all get along with one
another.

Mike Scott

The primary force behind
the Waterboys,
singer-songwriter Mike
Scott branched out on his
own in 1995.

Shane MacGowan

The Pogues' former singer is
the Johnny Thunders of
Celtic folk-rock -- except
that he's still alive.
Expulsion from school, dr...

The Levellers

A British pop rock band
with folk/punk leanings, the
Levellers are similar to
Hothouse Flowers, only
better. The band play a m...

The Pogues

The best thing to come out
of Ireland since the
Shamrock Shake, the
Pogues played Celtic folk
like it was punk rock. Ori...

The Saw Doctors

The Saw Doctors are the
Beatles of western Ireland,
only funnier. The Saw
Doctors' lyrics catch the
soul of small-town life, an...

The Waterboys

A Folk-Rock band with a
healthy Celtic influence,
the Waterboys have been
playing since the early
1980s. The Waterboys' Ce...

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