Posts Tagged ‘4 star’

Cathy Maguire – Portrait

Cathy Maguire - PortraitOne of the things I really enjoy about music is you never know when you’re going to find another artist whose music you truly enjoy.  I was in Ireland last year for a vacation and to see Martina McBride perform.  Martina is a country music singer, so I was curious to see what kind of acts might open the shows in Ireland.  For two of the shows we were blessed with Irish singer-songwriter Cathy Maguire opening the bill.

Cathy’s music is perfectly in my wheelhouse since I enjoy Celtic music as well as American country music.  Cathy has spent some time in Nashville looking for a break in the country industry and I hope she can find a niche here in the States as she is a very talented young lady.

On “Portrait,” her debut album, Cathy co-wrote five of the twelve tracks and overall those are my favorite tracks on the album.  “Portrait” is a beautiful song based on an old black and white photo of a young married couple on their wedding day.  The song is about wondering about their lives and their love story.

“The Song I Want To Sing” is as auto-biographical as a song can be for a singer who wants to do nothing more than reveal the world through their songs.

“Nothing But Blue” is a haunting song that really brings out the beauty of Cathy’s voice.  I see that Don Mescall is listed as one of the writers, so I’m making another mental note to check out more of his material.

Cathy also does a fantastic job on a few cover songs as well with her renditions of the Phil Collins’ song “I Wish It Would Rain Down,” Gram Parsons’ “Return of The Grievous Angel” and the Steven Stills penned tune “Love The One You’re With.”  All three, I have to say, I enjoy more than the originals.

Cathy Maguire is in the unique position of being somewhat between two musical worlds and I hope that trying to conform to either one of them doesn’t make her lose her musical vision.

The two shows we saw of Cathy she performed solo, with just a guitar player to accompany her.  It’s situations like that where an artist can either shine or falter.  Cathy without a doubt shined for those two nights in Ireland.  I have read she’s working on her next album now, so I’ll be anxiously awaiting that release!

Rating: ★★★★☆

Deirdre Shannon – Deirdre Shannon

Deirdre Shannon is an Irish soprano that has worked with some of the biggest groups in Celtic music.  She has been a featured soloist with Anúna, Lord of the Dance and Celtic Woman and has a truly remarkable and beautiful voice.

This is her debut solo album and it’s one that finds its way into my cd player over and over again.  From the opening track “I Know My Love” to the final track “New Born” the listener is taken on a journey to another place with Deirdre as your tour guide.

Throughout the disc Deirdre moves effortlessly through different styles of music from classic Irish folk songs to more modern fare like the Rod Stewart song “I Don’t Want To Talk About It.”  The song “One More Day” was featured in the film Veronica Guerin.

Overall Deirdre Shannon’s self-titled disc is a great introduction to a very talented singer.  I can’t wait to hear more from Deirdre in the future!

Rating: ★★★★☆

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