IRISH MUSIC

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Register for The Wild Geese Today e-mail updates. UPLOADED 5/18/06, 11:30 AM EDT Black 47's Child Comes of Age 'BITTERSWEET 16': A REVIEW BY ALEX FÉTHIÈRE NEW YORK — The agit-punk institution Black 47 has turned 16, celebrating with the release in March of "Bittersweet Sixteen." The album invites old, new, and classic tunes to the celebration. "If the foundations be destroyed, what can the righteous do?" a preacher thunders in a recorded excerpt introducing a live performance of "Big Fellah", one of Black 47's signature biography tunes reprised on "Bittersweet Sixteen." This quote from Psalms 11:3 prefaces a tune about Irish revolutionary legend Michael Collins and suggests the catholic (with a small c) aesthetics and politics of Black 47. "Bittersweet Sixteen" (on Gadfly) does what all sound compilations should: It introduces the neophyte to a discography while unearthing treasures for fans. MORE ABOUT KIRWAN ON WGT Black 47's Larry Kirwan: At 'Sixteen' Still a Voice for the Underdog In Music, Plays, Kirwan Grapples With Legacy of Anglo-Irish Strife Black 47 was founded in 1989 (first release in 1990) by Wexford native Larry Kirwan and Brooklyn-born beat cop Chris Byrne, over many a Guinness at Manhattan bar Paddy Reilly's. The band has consistently produced songs that are fun, conscious, and eclectic for the 12 albums and 16 years commemorated by "Bittersweet Sixteen." Byrne left after the 2000 release of "Trouble in the Land" to found the "Celtic hip-hop" group Seanchai and The Unity Squad. Over the years, some of the Black 47 personnel has changed, currently comprising Joseph Mulvanerty (uillean pipes, flute), Fred Parcells (trombone, pennywhistle), Andrew Goodsight (bass, vocals), Thomas Hamlin (drums, percussion), Geoffrey Blythe (tenor/soprano saxophone), and Kirwan (vocals, guitar, songwriting). Their mixture of Celtic folk, rock, punk, rap, and reggae is a heady highball for the Irish music fan looking for something more cosmopolitan. Black47.com Chris Byrne, who today leads the group Seanchai, shares the microphone with Larry Kirwan, right, at Paddy Reilly's in Black 47's early days. Kirwan remains eclectic even as he venerates Irish heroes. In the refrain of "Bobby Sands MP," he cross-references another famous and controversial prisoner, Eldridge Cleaver: "Your soul's on ice/But they can't stop the desire/To break on out/When your heart is on fire." In the two biographical tributes included on this album, Kirwan immortalizes Irish revolutionary figures without elevating them beyond humanity. He laments Collins' signature on the treaty that produced Ireland's civil war, but forgives that choice of a heart subsequently "broken in the flood." One can hear in his strains of song why he doesn't perform these songs at every show: They are pains, and paeans. 'BITTERSWEET 16' – IN BRIEF Artist: Black 47 Album: Bittersweet Sixteen Release Date: Mar 7, 2006 Label: Gadfly Genre: Rock Styles: Adult Alternative Pop/ Rock, Celtic Rock Where To Buy: Amazon.com WGT Reviewer: "Heady highball for the Irish music fan." Besides two of Black 47's historical tributes in passionate stage performance, "Bittersweet Sixteen" includes the original mix of their smash hit "Funky Ceílí," before Ric Ocasek, of New Wave rockers The Cars, produced it and winged it into the mainstream ear. Other notable gems on this compilation are the old raw drum-machine hip hop reconstruction "Home of the Brave," their new wistful Iraq war ballad "Southside Chicago Waltz," and an a capella rendition of Wobbly martyr Joe Hill's last will. WGT Alex Féthière is a Brooklyn, N.Y.-based freelance writer with a special interest in music and the arts. RELATED RESOURCES: More On Music From WGT Black 47 Official Website (Includes audio and lyrics of many of the band's songs.) Discuss Kirwan's Muse and Music in WGT's Forum This feature was produced by Gerry Regan. Search WWW Search TheWildGeese.com E-mail us for more information about The Wild Geese Today Click to return to The Wild Geese Today's Home Page Copyright © 2006, Alex Féthière and GAR Media. All rights reserved. This article may not be resold, reprinted, or redistributed for compensation of any kind without prior permission from the author. Direct questions about permissions to permissions@garmedia.com. © 1997-2006 GAR Media LLC. All Rights Reserved. Contact us. All external sites will open in a new browser. TheWildGeese.com does not necessarily endorse external sites.