Category: The Music Sparkle.

The Music Sparkle.

New Music.

Dawn - The Sparkle Diaries.3 Comments

Our fabulous Irish Music stars have a host of recently released new music, these are very popular songs already and are featuring on the various Country Music shows on Keep it Country TV and also on the various internet radio stations.

The second single from the forthcoming new album “The Fire” and filmed in and around County Carlow (where my Dad is from), this is another sure fire hit for Derek Ryan.

I can’t help but feel this one was released a little late in the season as the children are now back at school.  Once again Nathan Carter pulls a hit out of the hat.

What can I say about the latest offering from the fabulous Michael English.  You’ll definitely want to get up and dance.  Taken from the forthcoming live DVD filmed in Killarney, I cannot wait to see the whole DVD, a must for my Christmas list.

I really enjoy Gerry Guthrie singing, he has developed his own identifiable sound.  This is a great track and a lovely video.

Robert Mizzell has a wonderful voice. Originally from Louisiana and now living in Ireland, Robert is extremely popular.  I’ve not seen him live yet but I hope he will tour the UK.  This is a beautiful song and video.  All proceeds to Marie Keating Foundation.

http://www.mariekeating.ie

I hope you have enjoyed my selection of the latest releases, no doubt I’ll sharing more in the next few weeks…

@aurorasparkles

 

The Music Sparkle.

Gigs, Dancing and Tours.

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There are a few Irish music gigs coming up both in the UK and Ireland over the next few months I thought I’d just list a couple of what I think are really good ones, ones definitely worth buying a ticket for and attending.

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I have a ticket to the Birmingham concert, Louise Morrissey has the most beautiful voice.  Louise has recently released the Johnny Logan Irish Eurovision winning song “What’s Another Year”, a really wonderful version of a fabulous song.

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Michael English Irish Concert Tour Dates.

Michael English kicks of a huge Irish Concert Tour next month in Dublin accompanied by the legend that is Brendan Shine.  Michael will be touring the UK again next Spring, I’ll be keeping my eyes peeled for the tickets.

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You know I’ve already secured my tickets – Whoop!!

A mini tour next March in the UK by a class singer/songwriter Derek Ryan.  I try to go and see Derek Ryan every time he is in Birmingham, whether it is a dance or a concert it is always a fabulous night out.

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There are some big names from the Irish Country Music scene appearing at The Ryandale, Moy.  Ireland appears to be full of Country Music venues and there always seems to be such great bands on.  Festival season is coming to an end so hopefully a few of these will head for the UK over the Winter months.

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September dates – Dancing at Dixie’s.

Dancing a Dixie’s is a great night out in Stradbally, Co Laois.  Every Friday evening see either established stars, up and coming stars and lesser know singers.  Entrance price includes a bar meal and Dixie’s offer special nights from time to time.

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Music is a must for me.

Music is my magic potion, it can enhance and improve my mood tenfold, I can escape into the memories, the emotions and the sheer fun of some tracks. Are you a music lover?  What is your favourite genre?  What track really makes you sparkle?

The Music Sparkle.

New Music Friday.

Dawn - The Sparkle Diaries.7 Comments

There have been a few new releases on the Irish Country music scene in the past couple of weeks so I though I would share some of my favourites with you.

Firstly a wonderful singer, Patrick Feeney and “Step it out Mary”, I love the girl Irish dancing on the beach and throughout the video.  Patrick Feeney is known for his humour and often dresses up as characters for his video’s.  For me, I’m not sure it works so well in this video but I love the song and the video all the same.

I am a fan of Stuart Moyle, absolutely love his music, especially “Westport Town”.  The video to his latest release is beautiful, the magnificent Irish scenery is shown in all it’s glory and the song is a good one!  The video was made by Alan Clarke and apparently this took close to twelve months to plan and  implement.

Another favourite of mine is Lisa McHugh.  This girl works so hard and is now enjoying great success on the Irish music scene.  I love her version of “Girl with a Fishing Rod” and the video is just fabulous.

Not quite a new release as it has been out a little while but I thought I would include it in order to showcase another young artist, Ben Troy, this time singing the Springsteen song “I’m on Fire”.  I’ve seen Ben Troy live twice when he has been on tour with Derek Ryan in the UK.  A beautiful voice, I think he has a great future ahead with his music.

Robert Mizzell has a fabulous voice; an American singer who has settled and made his life in Ireland and doing brilliantly on the Irish music scene.  I love this song, “Two Rooms and a Kitchen”, it reminds me so much of being a little girl going home to Ireland on holiday with my parents to visit my grandparents.

Lastly for today, Jimmy Buckley, another great Irish singer/showman.  Part of the Three Amigo’s with Patrick Feeney and Robert Mizzell, Jimmy Buckley has a huge following in Ireland.  This is Jimmy’s latest dancefloor hit “A Pencil Full of Lead”.

I hope these have got your toes tapping or even got you up for a bit of a dance.

Happy Friday, share your sparkle.

The Music Sparkle.

Summer in Dublin.

Dawn - The Sparkle Diaries.2 Comments

No, I’m not in Dublin at the moment, not physically anyway.  We watch so much Irish TV here at home and listen to Irish Music so often and also Mass from Knock Shrine via their webcam, I think our home is a tiny province of Ireland here in England.

Nathan Carter sang the brilliant song “Summer in Dublin” at his recent gig at the 3 Arena in Dublin and it is a fabulous version of the song. Well done Nathan Carter!

This brings back so many memories as I do remember a Summer in Dublin when the original recording of this song was out by Bagatelle.  I remember buying the single, on vinyl, in the record shop in Tipperary Town after hearing it on the radio. (I still have the record).  Then we had a few days in Dublin visiting family and I can clearly remember walking by the Halfpenny Bridge on a hot summer afternoon, there was a lot of traffic and the cars had the windows down.  They must have all been tuned into the same radio station, as Bagatelle filled the Summer afternoon with their words…”and the Liffey as it stank like hell, the young people walking on Grafton Street, everyone looking so well…”

Isn’t it strange the things that stick within our memory and how the lyrics and music bring it right back to life for you.  When I first watched the clip of Nathan singing this I was able to sing along to every word even thought I hadn’t heard the song for years.

They were happy, uncomplicated and carefree days and I do remember that Summer in Dublin.

 

@aurorasparkles

 

 

The Music Sparkle.

It’s Friday!

Dawn - The Sparkle Diaries.14 Comments

In the words of Derek Ryan…It’s Friday!  This is one of our favourite Irish country tunes and Mom and I sing it each Friday and we sing along to the video when we watch it on You Tube.  Another favourite is from Michael English “Friday at the Dance” made especially enjoyable as my cousin is in the video (such a name dropper).

So, as it is Friday evening, it is pouring with rain here in Birmingham and I’ll admit, fairly chilly for a Summer evening, I decided to share with you some of my favourite, get you on your feet, Friday night, Irish country music songs.

Mam and I will be singing along to this one as Dad joins in when he can.

Yee Haw!!

An absolutely wonderful gentleman, with a great heart and a fabulous voice.  I love the Irish dancing in this video…Let’s Dance!

My favourite Irish country song of last Summer – just love the Summer vibes all over this video.

Thankfully I’ve had many a good night out in Temple Bar on my visits to Dublin, a great song from Nathan Carter.

A fantastic toe tapper, get up and move it tune from Lee Matthews.

I hope you have enjoyed my selection of Friday night Irish Country songs and I hope too that they have uplifted your inner sparkle and put a spring in your step.  Turn the music up and keep it country.

The Music Sparkle.

A Little New Music.

Dawn - The Sparkle Diaries.5 Comments

As you know I love Country Music and I love Irish Music which means that I also love Irish Country Music.  We regularly watch Keep It Country TV and the pleasure it brings to my parents is fabulous.  As well as the newer songs and artists, which I have to admit, Mom has a great eye and ear for the talent, we have been introduced to American Country Artists and sometimes we hear the old songs, the songs of bygone days in Ireland which my parents remember well.  You Tube is also a regular in our home, we really think there isn’t anything you can’t locate on You Tube.  Any song from the past that my parents think of, we can locate someone singing it on You Tube!

I thought I’d do a little round up of the latest Irish Country releases and share them with you.  You may already be a fan or perhaps I will introduce you to some of the fabulous talent currently taking the country music world by storm.  I hope you enjoy.

First up is Lisa McHugh and “Girl with a Fishing Rod” – very catchy song and I just love this video.

Derek Ryan is the most amazing singer songwriter, we have so many of his albums, all filled with his own compositions and a few covers.  I’ve seen Derek three times, twice at a dance and once in concert – excellent nights out.  This latest song is another huge hit for him and captures the magic of a festival night where he is appearing.

This is my song of the summer – such a happy video, everyone is smiling broadly and the sheer enjoyment of the dancing is plain to see – absolutely love this.  Michael English is another fabulous singer/songwriter.  Michael also has his own show on Keep it Country TV, Monday night at 11pm, repeated on Sunday afternoon at 5pm.

No round up would be complete without the fantastic Nathan Carter, I’ve now lost count of the times I have been to see Nathan perform!  This is a real chill out, summer holiday vibe kind of song and I have found myself “na na, na na na na na” at random times throughout the day.

This is a beautiful song from Johnny Brady, a wonderful sentiment and sang with real meaning.

I hope you have enjoyed my selection of the latest Irish music releases; I think Cliona Hagan and Michael English both have new singles coming out soon so some more new music coming soon.

 

The Music Sparkle.

Mixed up Music.

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My visit to my vocal coach on Monday was brilliant.  I always look forward to my session and I am constantly amazed at how my voice is improving, the clarity of notes, the pitch and the resonance.  If feels wonderful, because I am doing something I love and also following a dream.

I’ve started over the past few months to download backing tracks and print off lyrics and learn the songs and the music, to inject emotion and passion although my confidence to do this is still not very good.

Last Monday I sang “Rose Garden” made famous by Lyn Anderson and more recently by Martina McBride. From there I moved to “Love of the Loved” by Cilla Black.  A totally amazing song written by Lennon and McCartney in the early Sixties and was Cilla’s first single which I think entered the charts at Number 35 and she was disappointed at that.  I first heard this song when I watched the film/documentary “Cilla” a couple of weeks ago.  What a story.  I think it made an impact on me because I grew up to the sounds of Cilla, I remember my family watching “The Cilla Black Show” on Saturday evenings and I remember Cilla hosting “Blind Date” and “Surprise Surprise” she was definitely a UK national treasure.  This film brought to life her start and the whole music scene in Liverpool in the early Sixties, her friendship with Ringo Starr and the Beatles, singing at The Cavern, the fashion of the time and her wonderful friendship/relationship/romance with Bobby Willis who became her husband and was her only love.  A truly fabulous story and I fell in love with that song, “Love of the Loved”.  It is not easy to sing, it jumps up and down and there are a lot of lyrics to fit into a few bars of music but I still loved singing it.

From there I made a complete change to a rock song, “Home Sweet Home” by Motley Crue. Oh yes, a big change from Country Music and The Sixties.  I have loved this song since I heard it in the 1990’s and wow – can I belt it out too – it is in my vocal comfort zone but still needs a lot of practice to perfect it.

 

So a few new songs to learn here, to sing out clear and brightly, to inject the emotion and to gain confidence.  To record on my iPad and listen back to, to see where I can change a note or a phrase to make it mine.

Video’s shared from You Tube – I hope it is ok to do this, I just wanted you to get a feel of my mixed up music this week.

Thank you for reading my blog.

 

 

 

 

The Music Sparkle.

Ray of Sunshine.

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I remember well “Young Guns” and “Wham Rap”, they were played non-stop in our house. The album “Fantastic” was also played at any opportunity and when my nieces came to visit we would disappear to my room, plug in the microphone and record ourselves singing “Love Machine”.  In 1984 there was a cold Winter, lots of snow and I caught a bad chest infection. Confined to bed with the radio for company, “Everything She Wants” was on every radio show. 

I queued outside my local record store in order to purchase the 12 inch “Careless Whisper”, oh how I loved that song. “Club Tropicana”, a Summer holiday anthem, another favourite of mine and again, played over and over. “Last Christmas” still a firm favourite and like “Careless Whisper”, touches the heart and soul and reignite’s memories.

Waiting for the album “Make It Big” to be released, playing “A Different  Corner” over and over whilst drinking lots of coffee and listening to a friend talk about her heartbreak after a relationship break up. Happy nights out dancing to “Wake Me Up”…the soundtrack to life continues.

I could go on and on about George Michael and how I had Wham plastered around my bedroom walls. How I was lucky enough to see them live and experience the silence in the concert hall when George Michael sang “Careless Whisper” accompanied by Andrew Ridgley on guitar, it was perfection, beautiful, moving and unforgettable.

Yes I was disappointed when George “came out” as were a million other girls my age with the usual dreams of marrying their idol. George Michael had his problems, his issues, his demons but don’t we all. He also managed to touch the hearts and minds of people across the world with his music, lyrics, voice and kindness.

2016 has been a year of loss of many of our well known stars and I have felt sad to hear the news of their passing.  The shocking news of George Michael has affected me all day, hence this post. At the moment I can’t listen to him singing for fear of tears falling and heartbreak. It’s so strange, how can the passing of someone I don’t know or have never met make me feel like this? The power of music, of words, of a voice and memories.

“Sometimes, you wake up in the morning with a baseline, a ray of sunshine…”

God bless you George Michael.

The Music Sparkle.

Sunday Evening Country Music.

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As you know I love to sing and I enjoy going to gigs to see my favourite singers, especially of the Irish Country kind. Music is an escape for me. It takes me into another world. I love singing the songs I remember from childhood and also new songs which I hear and have to make a note of immediately in case I forget them. I have a list on my iPad of songs to learn, songs to put my own mark on, to play around with how I can sing them. My head is always full of music, songs, dreams…

Last Sunday evening I was lucky enough to attend a wonderful concert. “Stars of Irish Country”. It was a fabulous evening. From long time singers such as John Hogan and Frank McCaffrey to a Queen of Irish Country, Louise Morrissey to the up and coming talents of Lee Matthews and Tracey Macauley. They were brilliant. From hits from the past to new material, engaging the audience, including the audience and singing their hearts out. The backing band “Keltic Storm” are awesome musicians and complimented the artists perfectly.

During the interval and after the show we had the opportunity to meet the stars and purchase their CD’s. I have waited two years for Lee Matthews to visit England and I wasn’t disappointed. A truly lovely lad who can really sing and entertain. He’ll surely go places. Meeting John Hogan was a delight, a favourite of my parents he is a true gentleman and with a unique voice. I can still hear him singing “Please help me I’m falling, in love with you”, in my head, just beautiful.

I was so happy to meet Louise Morrissey again. It has been a very long time since we met and she was still singing with her brothers then. A pitch perfect voice with such clarity and power, an inspiration. 

It was the sort of evening you just want to relive over and over again, a rare evening out for me these days and a very happy one.  If you get a chance, check some of their video’s out on You Tube.

A few pictures below of the evening.

The Music Sparkle.

A little bit of Dolly…

Dawn - The Sparkle Diaries.2 Comments

Like most Country Music fans I love Dolly Parton. Her songs, her quotes, her style and her humour, to name but a few reasons why. 

It has taken about 4 months but I have finally mastered singing ‘Why’d ja come in here looking like that”. I thought I’d never get there!!  I just couldn’t get the lyrics to fit the music. The first few times I attempted to sing it I was out of breath in seconds. I started to wonder why I’d chosen such a difficult song. As the week’s went on and I still couldn’t sing it, I began to wonder if I ever would manage to sing it without keeling over and requiring medical attention and then one day… I just sang it. No breathlessness, no couldn’t get the words to fit the music, no incorrect key change…the girl had got it!!!

Picture via Pinterest

I’m still practising this fabulous song, I want to bring my own emotion to it, to live it when I sing it. If I just think of my own boyfriend in Cowboy boots that will inject the correct level of surprise into my voice.

I have two further Dolly songs on my list; “If I could fly” and “Better get to livin”. I find I am choosing songs which not only challenge my ability but which also have meaning for me.  

My amazing vocal coach said that only a lack of self confidence and self belief would hold me back. If I am to make any kind of headway at all I must start to throw myself into this heart and soul. I am a confident person but I’m not good at self promotion. I believe God gave me a voice and now is my time to use this talent. I can do this!!!


Picture via Pinterest.

Thank you for reading my blog.