The Lads Prove Their Staying Power in Celtic Thunder's Take Me Home

My parents and I spent this past weekend in Dayton, Ohio, attending its large annual Celtic fest with my uncle and his family. While we were there, we saw several different Irish bands, all for free (though a donation bucket was in constant circulation). There was Scythian, whose humorous concert ended with a schtick in which whichever band member drew the short straw had to wear a clunky Christmas sweater found at Goodwill until the next set; Slide, with its energetic fiddler and youthful guitarist; Blackthorn, who claim to be the most popular Irish band in Pennsylvania; and Fannigan's Wake, a local folk duo featuring my cousin's bagpipe teacher. Mostly, though, there was Gaelic Storm, a rollicking group that hit the big time when it was featured as the band playing on the lower decks in Titanic. They played on four different occasions throughout the weekend, and I saw them on three.

All of the bands were excellent, and it got us thinking about other Celtic groups that could participate. The Clancy Brothers? The Chieftains? My all-time favorites, the Irish Rovers? But as Gaelic Storm has headlined the festival year after year, nobody quite that renowned seemed likely to us, and we were sure of two groups who wouldn't be putting in an appearance: PBS's Celtic Woman and Celtic Thunder, both of which require an elaborate stage set-up and strictly control the presence of camera and video cameras, which would have been nigh unto impossible with this free-flowing crowd. I knew Celtic Woman had been to Erie at least once, as I'd wanted to see them but hadn't made it, and given the popularity of Irish culture here, I suspected that Celtic Thunder wouldn't be far behind.

Still, I was surprised when a little Googling unearthed an Erie tour date of October 14. So now we've saved the date and plan to snatch up tickets as soon as they go on sale. Meanwhile, I also discovered that they came out with a third album last week, which perhaps surprised me even more, since I'd done several searches for news on that score and hadn't heard anything. So while we will be making our way to the bookstore soon to purchase Take Me Home, PBS has been generous with the video segments officially released on YouTube, and what few tracks aren't available there can be easily found on Rhapsody. So I've already listened to it and have added a few of its tracks to my list of personal favorites, while there are others I suspect I will skip frequently when we have the album.

Unfortunately, the skippable tracks include both of Damian McGinty's solos. This golden-voiced youth is no longer the 14-year-old with the pristine, boyish tenor. Now 16, he boasts a startlingly deep voice, and I get the sense that producer Phil Coulter hasn't quite figured out what to do with him. He fared well before with the early rock hits Puppy Love and Young Love, but it was the more traditional, inspirational Come By the Hills and A Bird Without Wings that really showcased his talent. The former were more about showmanship, the latter about vocal chops.

It's a shame that both of Damian's songs this time around are sock hop ditties and a bigger shame that he must be backed up by a gaggle of annoying singers. It's much more obnoxious on video, since the women who do the singing seem to be there mostly as eye candy as they shimmy around the stage. But even just to listen to it, I find it grating; I never have been a fan of what I think of as the "chorus of birdies" style of accompaniment evident in so many songs of the '50s. It's not that they aren't talented, but I can't pretend they don't get on my nerves here. Damian croons his way through Breaking Up Is Hard to Do, where the vocal accompaniment feels more necessary but intrudes much more than it needs to. He gets pretty into it, and he soldiers through Happy Birthday Sweet Sixteen, but even he can't prevent that one from sounding irritating. It's also a little goofy to hear him singing about how "you've grown up before my very eyes" when he's the one to whom that description applies. At least he wasn't subjected to Calendar Girl...

Speaking of annoying songs, Ryan Kelly drew the short straw this time when it comes to getting stuck with a bland power ballad. Stalker anthem Every Breath You Take fits Ryan's bad-boy persona, but frankly, I find watching him freeze into a variety of leering expressions on the video a bit creepy. Couldn't they have come up with something better than this? His voice is fine, but there are much better songs that he could have covered.

Thankfully, this smokin' dark-haired Irishman who knocked me off my feet with Desperado fares much better with a Coulter original called Midnight Well. This song has a traditional flavor to it, though it's augmented by a tango beat, recalling the saucy Heartbreaker from the second album. It tells the story of a seductive gypsy who steals away an innocent maiden late one night, and it's easily the most risque song on the album, though it still barely qualifies as PG-13. Oddly, I've noticed that most of the songs Ryan performs solo include some form of the word "ride," and this is no exception. What is it with him and horses?

Paul Byrom, a classically trained singer who, like Ryan, is about 30 years old, is the one member of Celtic Thunder who has always felt rather out of place to me. His voice is gorgeous, but its operatic quality doesn't always mesh naturally with the others. Mostly, though, his background means that he ends up singing a lot of songs in Italian or Spanish. He does it again with Because We Believe, but this inspirational ballad is mostly in English, and I prefer it to any of his other foreign-language contributions.

It also goes perfectly with his other song, You Raise Me Up, which finally allows him to shine on something that actually sounds Celtic. Of course, by now, most people are familiar with Josh Groban's version of this song, and Celtic Woman covered it too. I'm not sure I can say Paul's is my favorite rendition out there, but he does a beautiful job with it, particularly when he explodes into the final repetition of the chorus, demonstrating just how much power is behind that voice of his. His phrasing on the last "I am strong" is particularly impressive. Props, too, to the bagpiper and the violinists who do such a lovely job with the instrumental portion.

Feathery blond teen dream Keith Harkin, who is in his early 20s, does a nice job with wistful Wichita Lineman, especially toward the end, but it's Homes Of Donegal that really showcases his vocal and emotive abilities. On this traditional tune, there are several opportunities for him to sustain notes for impressive lengths of time as well as embellish them with runs that would make Mariah Carey proud. I suspect that after a couple more listens, I may become just as fond of this one as I am of Mountains of Mourne and The Island.

But George Donaldson, the elder statesman of the group by a decade, undeniably gets my vote for MVP on this album. His rich Scottish baritone deepens the group harmonies and is ideally suited for gritty narrative ballads. His Working Man, which in many ways recalls the bitter Yesterday's Men from the second album, is one of my three favorite tracks on the album. Embracing the simple but affecting melody, George soulfully delivers the lyrics about a man who has worked his whole life in the coal mines. The cherry on top of this masterful performance is the final chorus, when the rest of the men join him for a truly harmonious conclusion: "It's a working man I am / And I've been down underground / And I swear to God / If I ever see the sun / Or for any length of time / I can hold it in my mind / I never again / Will go down underground."

Celtic Thunder has a tendency to take itself very seriously, and George usually comes across as especially solemn, so it's a hoot to hear him rollick his way through the Proclaimers' I'm Gonna Be (500 miles). I still remember the first time I heard the Scottish twins perform this song on Good Morning America. I recall claiming to be distinctly unimpressed, yet every time I've heard it since, I've felt compelled to bop my head in time to the beat. From the moment George's rendition begins, I can't help but break into a big grin, and usually a few giggles, especially if I'm watching the video. He looks like he's having an absolute blast out there, especially when he flings his arms out to the audience so they can provide the "da da da da"s. It's a hard-rocking, bass-heavy tune, but ultimately it's also a sweet song of what I take to be marital devotion, which puts it right in keeping with most of George's other songs.

The instrumentalists are enormously important to Celtic Thunder, and on this album they get two tracks to themselves. Belfast Polka/Pennsylvania Rairoad is a joyous romp that focuses mostly on the woodwinds, while Appalachian Round Up is more of a showcase for the strings and the drums. Both are exuberant tunes that make you want to get up and dance a jig; indeed, when this concert was filmed, some of the audience members did just that.

While each of the members of Celtic Thunder is enormously talented, there's a certain magic that happens when the five of them join forces that makes me want shout, "By your powers combined, I am Celtic Thunder!" Seriously, these guys should invest in some snazzy rings... At any rate, it's the group numbers that really bring out the "thunder" in the group's name, even if it's just a gentle rumble. The only song on the album that's a repeat from previous outings is Steal Away, and this version is different enough that I don't mind much. Instead of Paul taking the lead the bulk of the time, Damian does it, and I much prefer his singing here to that in his silly solos. Additionally, George plays the guitar, which is nice, as up until this point, only Keith contributed to the instrumentals. While this version is not quite a cappella, the instrumentation is so delicate that much of the time, I almost forget it's there. I love the way it gently augments the song, and the pennywhistle the accompanies the final chorus may just be enough to give this the edge as my favorite of the two versions.

The album ends with another Coulter original entitled Take Me Home. Comparable to Ireland's Call and Caledonia, this show-stopper has the men switching off throughout the verses to express their longings for home before blending marvelously in the chorus: "Home / Oh take me home / Home to the people / I left behind / Home to the love / I know I'll find / Oh take me home!" I found myself really liking the bass in this song and loving the piano, which has an especially percussive quality to it. I've been reading that others have found this number corny, but I really like it, and when I heard it, I suspected that it would wind up being my favorite track.

But that was before I encountered The Green Fields of France, their other big new group song. Individually, each of the men sounds better here than on any other single track on the album. I'm especially moved by Ryan, who otherwise doesn't get any opportunity for heart-tugging; his bad-boy persona is fun, but it's when he gets reflective that he really slays me. When they hit the chorus, meanwhile, the five men harmonize in the most exquisite of ways. Like Christmas 1915, this is an epic anti-war song in which the tight harmony underscores the idea that all men are brothers and shouldn't be going around killing each other. Almost as effective as the vocals are the strains of the mandolin rippling throughout this ode to a teenage soldier whose simple grave stands as a testament to his death during World War I. "Now Willy McBride, I can't help wondering why. / Do those who lie here know why they died? / Did they really believe when they answered the cause, / Did they really believe that this war would end wars? / But the sorrow, the sufferin', the glory, the pain, / The killing and dying were all done in vain. / But to Willy McBride, it all happened again, / And again, and again, and again, and again."

While a few tracks are disappointing, the quality of the rest easily balance those out. I would've liked a little more traditional Celtic music, particularly for Damian. I wonder if the Celtic elements are being toned down; there's no Gaelic on this album at all, and I've heard that there are plans to evict the kilts from the men's concert wardrobes. However, there are harps, bagpipes, pennywhistles and other instruments that evoke the culture, and several of the songs specifically do that as well. I probably would recommend picking up the first or second album before Take Me Home, but if you've developed a taste for these Celtic crooners, this third album is well worth taking home.