by Catherine L. Tully

Artist: The Barley Boys
Album: "The Days of Abundance"
Year produced: 2005

The one thing that you will notice about The Barley Boys is that they have a lot of energy, and they bring it to their music. The Days of Abundance is a combination of traditional Celtic sounds and more contemporary music, and the musicianship is quite good. Sometimes, such as track 4, Life Divine, the song highlights the music and just goes with it for a bit, rather than trying too hard to be a sing along type of tune. It is nice.

I hate to pick favorites, but I can't help but tell you that Raggle Taggle Gypsy was such a high energy song that the five minutes it played was much too short and I had to play it again. It was one of the best songs I have heard in a while. The complexity of much of the music on this CD makes it exciting to listen to.

You really get the sense that these guys are all about the music, but they aren't afraid to have a bit of fun either. Track 9, Scolding Wife is a good, easy romp which is done well and brings a smile. There really is a nice mix to this compilation of songs, and the energy continues throughout until the very last song, which is the only one that is a fairly slow tune. A simple wrap-up to a great album.

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Catherine L. Tully is a freelance writer and photographer specializing in the arts. She has written for Dance Teacher Magazine, Classical Singer and Dance Spirit among others, and reviews music for Celtic MP3s Music Magazine. You can reach her at www.freelance-zone.com.

Labels: cd_review_2005

Posted by Marc Gunn, Sunday, November 20, 2005.
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