[.ca] Best of Barley Bree

beauty in symbolizm of the words to "The Lord of the Dance"!:
i have searched and searched for the recording of this song i had heard about 4 years ago at Silver Dollar City. ever since, i've enjoyed the dance-troupe, but REALLY desired the version that speaks of Christ as "the Lord of the Dance" (symbolically speaking). now, would LOVE to find the sheet music to it!!! c

The Best of the Best:
Your prior reviewer was searching for the song Lord of the Dance which I was also doing when I discovered Barley Bree. Not only did I find the song I was looking for, but I found the greatest Irish group of all time. Most of the songs I had never heard, but they are wonderful. I probably play this CD more than any I own. I highly recommend this album for anyone who loves Irish music. It's GREAT!!

The Best of Barley Bree:
One of the previous contributors suggested that the Tommy Makem version of "Lord of the Dance" was much better - everyone to their own opinion, though this CD is tremendous! - it is ironic though, as the Sweeney brothers that make up 2/3 of Barley Bree are, infact, Tommy Makems nephews! I have had the pleasure over the years to have attended several Barley Bree and Makem and Clancey (Tommy & Liam) concerts in Ireland - and have met these great people on many an occassion. Barley Bree (and Makem & Clancey) have (and continue) to mean everything that is good and wholesome about Irish folk music - sad they are no longer together!

Just some info to Missouri poster below:
I have no comment on this CD, never having heard it. But for the person looking for sheet music to LORD OF THE DANCE, try the STEVEN CURTIS CHAPMAN GUITAR COLLECTION or STEPHEN CURTIS CHAPMAN FAVORITES. If that doesn't work, just look for the old Shaker hymn with basically the same tune --it's called SIMPLE GIFTS, and the music is all over the place in American folk/religious collections. The hymn also forms the central theme in Aaron Copland's APPALACHIAN SPRING. P.S. I do like Tommy Makem's version of this song.

A very complete overview of their career:
Canada's Barley Bree have broken up, but this is a fine overview of their half-dozen recordings. Other than the cheesy, Holiday Inn-style Lord of the Dance (better versions can be found by Tommy Makem & Canada's Irish Rovers), this collection truly shows the boys' entertaining mix of jigs, reels and ballads. Great vocals, fine instrumentation. Now, when will the rest of their catalogue come out on CD??

• Wild Colonial Boy
• Castles in the Air
• Eleanor Kane's/Dealer's Fancy/Louch Giel \oJigs\c
• No Man's Land
• Lord of the Dance
• Flight of Earls
• Aughamore/Bush in Bloom/Mcfadden's Reels
• Rathlin Island Boat Song
• Clare to Here
• Brendan's Fair Isle
• Tom's Wager/Road to Muff/Sixpenny Money (Jigs)
• Anthem for the Children
• Ducks of Magheralin
• Rape of Glencoe
• Morning Star/Lady on the Island/Copper Plate Reels
• If I Were a Blackbird
• Paddy on the Railway
• Youth of the Heart
• Ireland My Home