Routes & Branches & Beyond

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 In the odd chance that you are interested in a range of celtic and roots music, you may enjoy this weekly show.  As I used to say, it is a way to travel the world without changing planes in Halifax.  Each 1-hour show features a unique range of tunes and songs, along with lots of context.  The following are links to some of the recent shows.  Click on the show to stream or download it: 

• Concerts Revisited, # 2 - music from  A Crowd of Bold Sharemen, Neil Young, 1755, Erich und das Polk, Floyd Westerman, the Avett Brothers, Johnny Clegg. Québreizh, Le rêve du Diable, Tariq Abubakar & the Afro-Nubians and Dirk Powell & Christine Balfa  
• Concerts Revisited, # 1 -  music from Beoga, Les Batinses, La Bottine Souriante, Ricky Skaggs & Kentucky Thunder, the Amsterdam Klezmer Band, the String Sisters, Capercaillie, the Blue Sky Boys, Calan and more 
• Spring Rambles for 2025, # 3 -  spooky modal stringbands, salty Cajun classics, Newfoundland rabbit-snaring tunes, yearning prairie ballads, slides from County Kerry, high-hoppin' bluegrass chops, mischievoursly charming Scots/Breton music, original newgrass, shady folk blues, Dutch Django Swing, Algerian-French celtic DADGAD, and Appalachian chicken choker 
• Spring Rambles for 2025, # 2 -  anthems from the great folks scare, session chestnuts, aggravatingly-nimble young fiddlers, Breton songs from Quebec, an acoustic folk icon joining a bunch of bands - one song at a time, downhome Stoic philosphy delivered in harmony, the blues joyously cakewalking into town, Scottish polskas & potatoes, and fine flutes with questionable percussion 
• Spring Rambles for 2025, # 1 -  great Cape Breton fiddles, Pembroke moonshiners, Acadian Beau Gallants, British mod rockers, Scottish celt funk, ceilidh bands with social media over-exposure, blacklisted treasures, Parisien accordeon energy, folk rock staples, country music heads to rehab, and the bagpiper goes to the cathedral. 
• Spring Cleaning, # 2 - incessant and driving Cape Breton fiddle (just like the rain there...), legendary Irish quartets devoted to your own good health, traditional government rams, celtic punk attitude from the suburbs, deep folk from the west, Scottish moist-eyed tributes, heavy wood from a guitar guru, lush love fiddles, thrift store americana, NL cultural anthems, and old-timey chamber music from York County 
• Spring Cleaning, # 1 - some fine music, but, alas, no Benedictine thrash metal or obscure scat joiking or heavy dark age gothic meanderings 
• Compiling a World of Music, # 11 (Nordic) -  round dance polkas, Finnish heathen forest maidens, polonaises (not the kind you eat), Arctic ethno-tekno, transcendent free-bass button accordions, Norwegian gospel blues, ladies with dark soul voices, enigmatic kanteles, and anthemic folk singalongs from Greenland
• Compiling a World of Music, # 10 (Nordic) -  Danish chain dances, intoxicating post-classical folk, grunge Klezmer, Humppa music for pensioners, Swedish wedding marches, whimsical yet earnest blonde singer-songwriters, nordgrass, and wistful country songs with fierce guitars 
• Compiling a World of Music, # 9 (British) -   Robin Hood, old horses, tolling bells, loom weavers, brilliant pebbles, famous races, sticky summers, northern rants, rovers, poachers, and jolly boys.
• Compiling a World of Music, # 8 (Scottish) -  iron roads, cousins, smoky lums, dancing feet, corkers, weavers, feathers, musical priests and ballies wi' the lintwhite locks 
• Compiling a World of Music, # 7 (Irish) -  tangly fiddle, tear-soaked nationalism, classic tune sets, Irish-Appalachian fusion, and more. With songs and tunes about horses, bucks, sailors, motorbikes, humours, pipes, operators, whitewater, and a young lady's delights 
• Compiling a World of Music, # 6 (Putumayo) -  Sudanese flamenco, Reggae originators, Quebecois Cajuns, Creole stomps, Madagascar ballads, tender trios, New Orleans lounge, Canadian classics and fundy Uzbekistani grooves. 
• Compiling a World of Music, # 5 (Putumayo) -  Brazilian-German remixes of Motown classics, Indian-Irish blues, Garifuna pop stars, Latin groove with a sense of humour, cultural anthropologists who become musicians, carnival songs to celebrate the end of the sugar cane harvest (finally!), Italian celtic contemplation, and crisp Americana picking 
• Compiling a World of Music, # 4 (Putumayo) -  gold-standard fiddling, Nigerian Kpangolo, Algerian troubadours, velvety Colombian pop, intercultural deep blues, the Italian Pogues, Chilean reggae that emerged under dictatorship, pan-African multi-lingual worldbeat, Jamaican jazz, sinewy Anatolian saz, and apocalyptic folk from the wine lands 
• 359. Compiling a World of Music, # 3 (Rough Guides) -  laconic Hawaiian slack key guitar, celtic anthems from New Zealand, feverish Cambodian surf hip-pop, Tuscan trad jams, piano-oud jazz riffs, Russian bluegrass inspired by an Appalachian horror movie, Swedish gothic shadows, rough crossroads blues, Barcelona street-wise flamenco, frenzied Quebecois celebrations, and Greek ouzo-sipping stylings 
• 358. Compiling a World of Music, # 2 (Rough Guides) -  Irish folk, English Roots, Music without Frontiers, Ultimate Musical Adventures, Americana, Fado,Unwired Acoustic Music, Italia Nova, African Disco, and the Undiscovered World 
• 357. Compiling a World of Music, # 1 (Rough Guides) -  Celtic, Cajun & Zydeco, Merengue, Yodel, Latin-Arabia, Blues Revival, New Orleans, Central America, Gypsy Revival, Paris, Okinawa, Native America and Scotland 
• 356. A Random January, # 5 -  northwest voyages, gypsies, causeways, cross-dressing drummers, shoals of herring, rubber folk, a harvest moon, and wonderland itself,
• 355. A Random January, # 4 -  meat glaze, rude soil, hurricane reels, independent blackberries, good eggs, early morning kisses, grumbling voyageurs, and more 
• 354. A Random January, # 3 -  exploding Scottish bunnies, saints and angels, sunny spells and scattered showers, Helsinki hoedowns, sulty fiddling and gutsy accordions, dance music that hits yo uin the rhythm section, three chords and the truth (finally...), haunting Danish dances, acid croft from the Highlands, Orkney six-row barley, and the cabbages of Kings 
• 353. A Random January, # 2 -  old-soul music with grit and abandon, anti-colonial African anthems, Cajun hiphop slamgrass, Finnish 5-row button accordion polskas, fiery je ne sais quoi, classical prog-folk, prairie roots with Appalachian tendencies, the merry sisters of fate, dusty songs from the distant past, 
• 352. A Random January, # 1 -  fiddling premiers, braw sailing, Lake Erie Newfoundlanders, shaky towns, eclectic klezmer blues, love at the country fair, secrets of the bride, stone cold cathedrals, Breton gatherings, dark eyes, and static in the syste 
• 351. Seasonal Tunes, # 3 -  Christmas in Carrick, the sheep 'neath the snow, the lights in our village, jingle bells (several ways), three ships, maidens, Christmas tree polskas, maybe Santa, and the rebel Jesus. 
• 350. Seasonal Tunes,# 2 -   flatpicked Cape Breton marches, bird-infused celtic carol, rippling New Year's Eve jigs, the beauty of birds in winter, watchful Spanish kingfishers, wassails from the rock, anthems from the Barnsley nightingale, mandolin kings, a night of a million stars, and modern prayers of thanks to those who make the world anew every day 
• 349. Seasonal Tunes # 1 -  frosty bluegrass, wassailling ships, southern steelpan bells, Irish Latin hits, vigorous celtic mirth & merriments, Brazilian Bossa Nova noels, brassy gospel organ, ale-swilling seasonal minstrels, broad British harmonies, irrational folk hymns, country bass show-offs, and swinging rockabilly fingerpicking 
• 348. New Global Sounds from Canada, # 2 -  pan-African celebrations, tightly-braided female harmonies, Radiohead meets Fela Kuti in Toronto's Cuban expat community, trans-Atlantic chamber folk, mystical Irish sounds from the left coast of Canada, luscious Colombian folk jazz, small town insights on the world, and the original Brazilian soul music 
• 347. New Global Sounds from Canada, # 1 -  Quebecois gypsy jazz, Scotland meets Jamaica in Canada, Northern Ontario Franco-Abenaki roots, anarchic guerilla Balkan folk brass, fluid traditional trumpet, and Slavic dub-punk missionaries 
• 346. Calm Down and Listen, # 2 -  mellifluous Scottish fiddles, thoughtful woke-folk, harps to grow grass by, laughing 'till you boogie, quiet celtic hearts, thoughtful Zydeco swamp-dancing and ridiculous (though infectious) Welsh grooves. 
• 345. Calm Down and Listen, # 1 -  calming fiddles, quiet sax wilderness, soothing folk rain, smooth Caribbean seas, quiet Nova Scotia creeks, the quiet joys of harmony singing, the quiet chaos of celtic trad, ancient protest songs about the draft, folk-rock industrial nostalgia and calming roots legends 
• 344. Clearing the Shelf, # 3 -  indispensible instrumentalists, swirling border pipes, raging fiddles, Shetland hurricanes, dances for feeder mice, vintage swing with a grin, Cape Verdean morna legends, shady newgrass explorations, songs radio doesn't like, Scottish introspection, and Portuguese jazz waltzes from Newfoundland.  
• 343. Clearing the Shelf, # 2 -   climate change tunes from Scotland, the cello of resilience, Bach goes to a Cape Breton kitchen party, songs to remember Ron Hynes, reels on the tin sandwich, Irish piano hornpipes, evocative rural roads, inter-celtic siblings, bagpipes on the rave floor, and symphonic abandon 
• 342. Clearing the Shelf, # 1 -  Djangoesque Newfoundland fiddle on guitars, Irish circus trad, Norfolk County bluegrass, Western homecoming folk, Appalachian gospel, genre-crossing stories of the human race, early French electric folk Stan on the Island, and Irish clear-cutting laments 
• 341. Leaves, # 2 -   old-time two-steps, resilient folkies, patriotic dogs who save the country, swirling Czechgrass, Alberta-reared celtic rock, country banjo pioneers, Chattanoogian fancies, ballads from the most Canadian of US states, whistle wizardry, Cajun kitchen parties, and leaves of Ivy & Poppies & Clover 
• 340. Thanksgiving and Harvest -  At this time of year, in this country, we take time to rejoice in another harvest and to be thankful for all that we have. To help us in this, we listen to some tracks from Canada, Ireland, Scandinavia and beyond 
• 339. Leaves, # 1 -  Canadian barn dance chestnuts, poet-driven chamber folk, new versions of old national anthems, cabin fever tunes, hippie countercultural gems from your dimly-remembered past, updated medieval morality tales, Congotronics lullabyes, jazz classics from Perthshire and Germany, and progressive Loungegrass 
• 338. The September Rambles, # 4 -   forest strathspeys, fair and tender ladies, saints and angels, an austerity alphabet, extra miles, sweet pies, yeterday's news, clever foxes, lonely buskers and poignant waltzes 
• 337. The September Rambles, # 3 -  energetic Scottish preludes, earthy sea shanties, ballads of outlawed fashion options, lazy Sergeant Majors (are there any other kind?), inspiring medicine songs, neo-Appalachian hipsters, stirring Zimbabwean harmonies, a mini-set of Irish music from the Windy City, a Central Ontario happy anthem, and acoustic flatpicking breakouts 
• 336. The September Rambles, # 2 -  frenetic Slovak dances, Scottish rural romantics, Irish "pure drop" session tunes, school holiday trad bands, appalachian old-time inspirations, Waterloo bluegrass, East Coast fiddle stylings, harmonious odes to fall fairs, Glasgow hipster prowess, and Newfoundland thrash-trad 
• 335. The September Rambles, # 1 -   Music for shingling a roof, holding a shivaree, jogging, considering the potential of a man, frontier crossing, lonely roads, the blowing of winter winds, looking forward to better times and Tennessee waltzes 
• 334g. Summer re-run # 7 -  blasts of rural trad brilliance, jolly beggars, musical royalty from Gweedore, tango dawgs, East Coast enigmas, telegraph sex, Kora Rock n' Roll from Switzerland, Schwyzerorgeli jams, Paganini meets the melodeon, Ukrainian street busking and a ballad from the Boss. 
• 334f. Summer re-run # 6 -  fiddles n' feet, the glories of work, wishful fishery bliss (say that 5 times fast!), stormy Gaelic fusion, all seven rejoices, home-schooled folksingers, bluegrass hellfire & brimstone, the comforting community theology of the cafe, bawdy renaissance suggestions, Quebec-Italian anthems, Mexican accordions and Senegalese guitars 
• 334e. Summer re-run # 5 -  Glaswegian salsa, Australian ode to the land, NL ode to a broken heart, melodica-driven Reggae, British coal scab ballads, Danish guitar folk, fiddle Banshees, swirling accordions of Colombia, alt-gospel, Scottish arena rock, North African/ Indian crossover, banjo tunes from the wilds of southern Ontario and Cape Breton frenzy captured live 
• 334d. Summer re-run # 4 -  celtic and bluegrass to dixieland jazz to Irish soul to reggae to South African Mbqange, to seemingly unusual collaborations, to northern Indigenous anthems to Newfoundland classics to modern gospel to then end with some calming harp 
• 334c. Summer re-run # 3 -  cross-cultural encounters with accordions and fiddles, a Quebecois classic from a Scottish-Latvian singer from Alberta, a Canadian reggae rendition of a British chestnut, Black Sabbath meets the bagpipes, guitar surf rock about a funeral fashion faux pas, a ballad about love and hate, a western Canadian track on how a banjo tune is as good as a whiskey, an anthem of hope that the US turns toward democracy (hold your breath, everyone...), and an anxious jig and some bridge music from a new release from Scroggins and Rose 
• 334b. Summer re-run # 2 -  dazzling Scottish-German guitar duos, anthemic folk rock, Anglo-Australian fancies, lullabies about Herring, ethereal trios with classic folk-rock chestnuts, foggy bluegrass, Cuban trad, songs of lovers (both fair and foul), tunes of civil war and constitutional breakdowns, advanced didgeridoo techniques, tunes to celebrate comings and (especially) goings, and the Great Shetland Fiddle. All in a snug little hour. 
• 334a. Summer re-run # 1 -  cosmic celtic banjos, re-imagined appalachian chestnuts, hoedowns for legendary fiddlers and bright Scottish swing about industrial wastelands. There are songs of indifference (and difference) about dashing fencing masters, small fish in tins, hard-living authors, old farmers not doing well, root vegetables and maggoty fish 
• 334. Roses - the noun, not the verb, # 5 -  Irish musical canines, British art-folk, confusing Newfoundland intersections, Quebec/Acadian trad, pensive Western reflections, hipster darlings, close harmony duets about love, southwestern Ontario swing, Ukrainian post-punk, Americana-grass, Cape Breton sibling magic, and kitchen music that gets a makeover 
• 333. Roses - the noun, not the verb, # 4 -  western swing, Brit neo-folk, Sydney Mines ceilidhs, Texican rock, Scottish rasta gems, misty Swedish folklore, Kentucky bluegrass, sparse Highland ambiance, and lots of briars and roses 
• 332. Roses - the noun, not the verb, # 3 -  rosebuds, roseberries, rose trees, wild roses, rodeo roses and lots and lots of red, red roses 
• 331. Roses - the noun, not the verb, # 2 -  Music from Quebec, Ireland, Britain, Germany, Newfoundland, Scotland, Alberta, and some anonymous contra dance somewhere 
• 330. Roses - the noun, not the verb, # 1 -   red roses, blarney roses, Virginia roses, belle roses, tattoed roses, roses in a vase, and a dozen bloody roses 
• 329. Celtic Flowers, # 4 -  Acadian fiddle, Quebecois trad jazz, Irish bounce, inter-generational pollination, banjophonics for the brave, movie stars who sing, heavy folk from Scotland, Cajun magnolias, hot stringband, and 22 strings from Flanders. 
• 328. Celtic Flowers, # 3 -   groovy sunflowers, tulipa negras, fleurs de Lavande or de Quebec or de Niee or du bois, lindos flores, gypsy daisies, heavenly tulips, and crazy daisies 
• 327. Celtic Flowers, # 2 -   fiddle-accordion delights, wildflower banjo honey, cello-soaked laments, the flowers of Saskatchewan or of Bermuda or of the Red Mill of of teh Dell (there beside the Farmer), and even a few dried flowers, just for a touch of accent in the roo 
• 326. Celtic Flowers, # 1 -  butterflies and bees and flowers, pretty fair maids in the garden, flowers of sweet Erin the green or of Kilkenny or of the forest or of red hill, and even a tune on taking the flower arrangements home after the wedding 
• 325. Music for the Potting Shed, # 2 -   gravel walks, sentinel crows, June days, local barrel daredevils, big sky blues, Locaber dances, raven hair, Scottish passions, night advances, river crossings, lots of trees and even a wang dang doodle or two 
• 324. Music for the Potting Shed, # 1 -   Welsh triple harp & pibgorn, percussive mariners, close New England harmonies, upstate New York history, reggae pioneers meet outlaw country, prairie roots meet Appalachian old-time, Saskatoon blues angels, St. John's rebels, and chamber folk from Daniel's Harbour. 
• 323. Music Relatively New to This World, #28 -  the dewy dells of Yarrow, fire walking, new jackets, yacht money, flying beetles, torn calico (there's a story there...), lonely roads, and advice for the wicked 
• 322. Celtic Spring, # 6 -  wing commanders, peculiar ferrets, green bushes, shoals, skylarks, merry sisters, hash (not the expensive kind), false young men, good beer, speedy ploughs and a mess of feathers 
• 321. Celtic Spring, # 5 -  a smattering of Irish pipe dainties, Breton-Scottish hybrids, blooming bright stars, singing dairy farmers, grown-up folk rock, transendental guitarists, avant-garde old-timey fiddle, golden Anstruther voices, the joyful melancholy of Gaelic songs, and Caribbean/ Scots pipe and percussion combos 
• 320. Celtic Spring, # 4 - Tourmakeady accordions, celtic yacht rock, traditional swagger, dazzling musical lights, Breton sparks of creativity, west coast ceilidh-rock stylings, music from the mythical UK/Sweden borderlands, heavy winds from St. John's, Dingle Berbers, and nonconformist flutes 
• 319. Celtic Spring, # 3 -   jolly beggarmen, haggis fondue (focus on that for a moment...), mysterious yet alluring black-haired maidens, tuxedos and firewood, 75 pound fines, Paddy in heaven, acid croft and generally amazing things. 
• 318. Celtic Spring 2024, # 2 -  the rhythmic stuttering of the tenor banjo and the dulcit tones of a Scottish love lilt and the strident dry-stone-wall-of-sound of the bagpipes and blistering political critique with an Irish jazz-rock soundtrack and German Celtic trombone and Shropshire cajun and dignified Galician anthems and the bounce of the Cape Breton fiddle 
• 317. Celtic Spring 2024, # 1 -  Shetland bluegrass fusion, gaelic fiddle divas, yearning uillean pipes, Breton flute 'n fiddle trances, patriotic Irish ballads sung by Scots, Quebec dance soundtracks, singing poets, flowing flutes & percussive guitars, down-under bush bands, heavy folk and wholesom (but unrefined) stepdancing. 
• 316. From the "Now Playing" Shelf, # 3 -  Scottish bonnets, Newfoundland federally-controlled substances, best uses for old tombs, proletariat pride from the kitchen, coal dust grins from western Canada, Franco-Ontarien prog rock, Pacificanadiana anthems, and Cape Breton fiddle evangelists. 
• 315. From the "Now Playing " Shelf, # 2 -  the same old Irish flashy slip jigs, Scottish romanticism, Dublin tourism appeals, country-folk theology, Calypso double entendre, UK folk royalty, Gaelic entreaties about something or other that is likely important to someone or other, Canadian celtic with a western twang, and whirling Newfoundland accordions 
• 314. From the "Now Playing" Shelf, # 1 -   fiddle 'n bone tunes, high lonesome mandolins, intense classic country, Abbotsford ghost towns, how bluegrass gets allowed in folk clubs, interracial stringband anthems, robot love songs (as opposed to "robotic" love songs), mighty fine days, road warrior apologies, golden barley voices and Bonne Bay accordions. 
• 313. The Eucharist Elements of St. Valentine - Sugar & Chocolate, # 2 -  music from the Chocolate lands (such as Cuba, Newfoundland, Ireland and Austin, Texas), tunes about the science of chocolate and even ballads about the bitter colonial taste of sugar. And, given the effects of sugar and chocolate, there will be lots of frenetic fiddles, swirling banjos and hyped-up drums 
• 312. The Eucharist Elements of St. Valentine - Sugar & Chocolate, # 1 -  music that pairs chocolate with Scotch... and with beer, liberal uses of sugar as a metaphor for love, the darker side of a holiday for love, sugar bush breakfasts, a few bubblegum hits just for the season, and all tied up with a lovely Scandinavian waltz about nordic Valentines 
• 311. The January Rambles, # 4 -  Chase-the-Ace lucky fiddle tunes, stadium rock for the bedroom, collisions of rock n' twang, bluegrassified Zeppelin, coal minin' ennui, gospel footwear, Bay Area bluegrass stylings, the rhythm method for fiddle, Muskoka syrup tales, indie bands play the ultimate Canadian indie icon, and ghosts of Acadian trad 
• 310. The January Rambles, # 3 -  flashy finger picking, Playford dancing delights, singing cowboys, uxorious highwaymen, Bluegrass from that yonder mountain, stringband anthems from the hollers of SW Ontario, and important signs on the freewa 
• 309. The January Rambles, # 2 -  rags (not the kind you wipe up spilled milk with), giants (the friendly kind), chickens (the fried kind), jars (the kind containing whiskey), strangers (the alluring kind), life (the everlasting kind), hotels (the kind you can check out of but can never leave), and love (the kind that conquers hate) 
• 308. The January Rambles, # 1 -  astounding sibling tunesmiths, a rather laconic b'y, ballad writers writing about ballad writers, the glories of work (as seen by folksingers), Big Land anthems, gothic chamber folk, Canadian bluegrass from the last century, everyday Hebridean lads, hand-picked guitar pickers, torch fiddle, the banks of Newfoundland (not TD or BMO or RBC, etc....), and a Venezuelan- Senegalese harp duo 
• 307. Music relatively new to this world, # 27 -  singles (not the umarried kind), bankers (not the service-fee-charging kind), clowns (not the scary kind), blues (not the seedy kind), rain (the prayed-for kind), junctions (the hip kind), Gaelic maritime laments (the gothic kind), ghost towns (the interior kind), and self-help advice (the uplifting kind) 
• 306. Music relatively new to this world, # 26 -   seriously-noteworthy mandolin, ringing solstice bells, funky shepherds, excessively-merry gentlemen, overflowing wassail bowls, mummer's play cameos, Danish children's music, Anglo-Appalachian ballads and New Year renewal shanties 
• 305. Is it That Time of Year Already?, # 2 -  laugh-out-loud samba polkas, Gaelic high-brow hymns, folk blues laments, and lots of tales of angels, merry gentlemen, wassails, mistletoe cuddling, sweet bells and the holly and the ivy 
• 304. Is it That Time of Year Already?, # 1 - progressive rock bourees, eastern stars, little dusty roads, three highly-visible ships, old men - sometimes with white beards, holy suspicions and cherry trees, waltzes in the kitchen, a night of a million stars, and goodwill to all. 
• 303. Late Autumn Rambles, # 4 -  unleashed French tangos, Irish easy listening summer music, ballads for a dance club mix, northern banjo folklore, catchy Cape Breton nationalism, hurtin' songs from south of the 401, deep Tasmanian blues, Americana-tinged analyses of the working class, Latino soul for restless feet, East Coast celtic pop fusion, and harp music for dancing. 
• 302. Late Autumn Rambles, # 3 -   Irish with a Quebec accent, East Indian waulking songs from PEI, central Canadian smooth jazz fiddle, deep-throated shanties from the deep seas, Sicilian-Canadian jazz, midwestern back alley swing blues, Glaswegians abroad in Montreal, old-time river music, clear-eyed psychadelic pop about tyrants, mid-eastern Ontario roots tunes, and Australian sheep-shearing anthems. 
• 301. Late Autumn Rambles, # 2 -  harmonicated diversions, guitar stylings from the father of DADGAD, Irish down-home swing, sombre Scottish love laments, universalist folk theology, Colombian prickly pear songs, American chambergrass, pan-Mediterranean rumba, fanciful flatpicking and places where no mandolin has gone before. 
• 300. Late Autumn Rambles, # 1 -  pure drop Irish reels, smooth vocals from that deep part of the soul, chaotic folk-punk singalongs, funky knitting fiddles, swirling Glasgow pipes, germinal folk rock from a half-century ago, a beautiful mess of folkgrass, troubadours to sooth your troubled minds, gospel sleep aids, Cape Breton lullabies, and the old-time urge to post a letter 
• 299. No Comment: An Hour for Peace, # 2 -  blues lessons, campfire singalongs, maudlin ballads of "collateral damage," sad songs of desperation, anthems of hope and resolve, the abuses of the old and powerful, the misues of nationalism, and reggae hymns reminding us that we can always turn the ship around 
• 298. No Comment: An Hour for Peace, # 1 -  peace marches, children's street songs about war, cautious tales of the foolish algebra of an eye for an eye, grand wishes, empty promises, plaintive laments, historical low points that repeat themselves, all from traditional sources and beyond 
• 297. Music Relatively New to This World, # 25 - the soundtrack for a half century of heritage activism, charming shepherdesses of French Cape Breton, druidic folk trance from deepest Winnipeg, intergenerational Acadian joy from Bathurst (the town in New Brunswick, not the street in Toronto), Western European Trad tunes that should lead to dancing, updated Italian folk-hop, and songs of travelling, exile and impossible love. 
• 296. Music Relatively New to This World, # 24 -  rippling koras, everyday folk vignettes, tunes from the epicentre of Quebec trad, tender and delicate - yet resilient - ballads of love, Acadian country shuffles, voices speaking truth to power, and radical klezmer for tumultuous times 
• 295. Music Relatively New to This World, # 23 -  soaring mystical celt-trance, bagpipes from the bothies & ceilidh halls, Romani-Syrian tango fusion from Montreal, symphonic Quebec trad with orchestral podyrhythm, faery-generated acid croft, and Colombian-Canadian Rock en espanol that'll get you on the dance floor (even if there isn't one) 
• 294. Music Relatively New to This World, # 22 -  subtly-nuanced joie de vivre, Scottish-Quebecois melanges, icebreaking Breton martime shanties, Ottawa Valley swing n' jive, Syrian-Canadian flamenco, jaw-dropping Irish music of champions, and Moroccan trance n' jazz 
• 293. Music Relatively New to This World, # 21 -   jaunty front porch shuffles, buckboard banjos, skittering fiddles, celtic boundary breaches, Afro-Caribbean steelpan jazz, sweet and savoury old-time music from darkest SW Ontario, poly-rhythmic voices of the past, pure drop Kerry polkas, spirited (yet dignified) classical celtic tunes 
• 292. Music Relatively New to This World, # 20 -   music for hobbit weddings, Atlantic legends, trad cello and fiddle pedagogy, joyous Irish abandon, banjo-grounded songwriters, dumpster-folk thriftstore Americana, and festive devils from Quebec kitchen parties 
• 291. Music Relatively New to This World, # 19 -  authentic outport accordion, intensely mesmeric Hebridean fiddle, bittersweet but hopeful narratives, rolling peatland tunes, old Dutch dances for lost cows, and Quebecois urban neo-folklore.
• 290. Music Relatively New to This World, # 18 -  intimate fiddles, Glasgow session aerobic workouts, celtic-Acadian kitchen parties, punchy jigs & soaring reels, the offspring of Quebec/Newfoundland intermingling, and the brilliant verve of new traditional material.
• 289. Summer on the Range, # 6 -  contra dance welcomes, transcendental folk, fanciful ideas from Merrie Olde Englande, celtic didgeridoo stylings, dignified Dartmoor hornpipes, 60s folk scare hitmakers, Canadian medieval tunes, early morning rain, organ funk, Quebecois effervescence, Scottish whiskey thoughts, and cold and lowdown bluegrass.
• 288d.  Quicksteps, mojo advice, kelp preparation suggestions, gold diggers, laments, navel-gazing introspection and pure religion. 
• 288c. Yearning jigs, begging ballads, hot young bands and cool old bands, uplifting reels about a person's downfall, the beauty of North Atlantic cities... in the summer..., Appalachian blame-laying songs, fiddle/throat singing duets, chamber trad, Quebecois polyrhythms, bouncy Morris tunes, a new setting of an camping song, and a domestic song that can melt butter at 50 metres.
• 288b.   The usual mix of outlaw folk, fairy dances, bagpipe-driven pub songs, wide-open bluegrass, auction barn nostalgia, flea market love, sacred harps, carnival lights, country kids and a downpour of heavenly partiness. 
• 288. Summer on the Range, # 5 -  fiddle divas, anthemic Scottish folk, Irish jazz, refugee reggae, Cuban ska, Vancouver multicultural mocaics, a trinity of folk masters, salsamuffin stylings, dark bluegrass, banjos on the loose, and the Barnsley Nightingale. 
• 287. Music Relatively New to This World -  contemplative guitars, then on to meandering Flemish folk, Canadian blues (as if such a feeling exists in this country...), the big bottle of joy that is gospel, thoughful spirituality set to music, celestial celtic harps, and quiet ballads of everyday wonder.
• 286. Summer on the Range, # 4 -  waves of conta dance, homestead love, glorious guitars, Shetland neo-trad, Western rock 'n riddim, Fransaskois folk, Moroccan flamenco, the pints of Cape Breton, Irish played at Balkan speed, barnyard bachelors, ragged burglars, ethereal Gaelic harmonies, Cajun mambo and the dream life of devils.  
• 285. Summer on the Range, # 3 -  reverent hornpipes, Quebec suites, cowboy swagger 'n swing, jug-free rural ballads, jazzgrass wanderings, alt-country blues, west coast celtic rock, end-of-the-night waltzes, Turkish revery, the careless immaturity of the mass consumer, Irish cajun polka Queens, royal kitchen games and thoughtful jigs. 
• 284.  Summer on the Range, # 2 -  granola guitar, Irish trad trail-blazers, Newfoundland cello-driven folk, Scottish zen-pop, teeny-bopper organ, Appalachian guitar frailing, Dutch male choirs, dulcimer country, sober trad songs (sit up straight and be quiet during these...), Texican outlaw country, Canadian psychadelic folk, and British polka deliverance. 
• 283.  Music that is Relatively New to This World -  high-octane harmonica alongside classical accordion, British flute rock with a Scandinavian accent, bawdy hurdy-gurdies, diatonic walls of wound, shanties to make you feel good about your species, an ode to the NL phone code, reels up to St. John's speed, the mind-expanding potential of longhair bluegrass, and noble Morris marches 
• 282. Summer on the Range, # 1 -  Balkan celtic sailors, weathered soul, Northern dog tails, desert blues full of hope, Ethiopian one-stringed swing, islanders throwing caution to the wind, a flurry of reels, British dancing shoes, Quebecois django, summer wassailling, Vegas telephone calls, Cornish orchestral prog trad, and calming spacegrass. 
• 281. Celtic Spring, # 13 -  Anglo-French grit & bonhomie, English country dance reggae, Cornish Newfoundland ballads, chamber hoedowns, cluster rock ensembles, Quebec travelling comrades, folk operas about banishment, Scottish steam punk mosh pits, classic French folk-rock from three Johns, celtic punk tossers, complicated accordions and Dung beetle wedding polskas 
• 280. Celtic Spring, # 12 - Irish jam sessions, Scottish marmalade sessions, even a few Quebecois maple syrup sessions, pipes of all makes, soaring contra dances, and lots of bellows that wheeze and squeak, instruments that go plunk, and percussion that goes "diddley-duddley-doodley-thud." 
• 279. Celtic Spring, # 11 -  Breton festou-noz polkas, cajun Quebecois, garlic-breathing sailors, Scottish heartthrobs, glowing double plinns, chestnuts from the used bins, accordions on 78, celtic rock road warriors, Cape Breton fusion, sulphuric acid chasers, Irish trad swagger, Hebridean crooning of the highest order and tempo-crossing tunes (which are illegal in some States). 
• 278. Music Relatively New to This World -  the Quebec trad maturity of Genticorum, the bootstrap philosophy and folksy blues of Chris Coole, the pure drop Irish soul of the Jeremiahs, the Cape Breton winter swamp music of Lookout Tower, the whimsical pandemic-inspired liminal ballads of Kate Weekes, the intricately-frenetic Irish rhythms of John Doyle & Mick McAuley, and the starkly scenic Highland palette of Assynt 
• 277. Celtic Spring, # 10 -  saltfish whisky, Cuban-Scottish cumbias, acid croft for attic dancing, anthemic trad music for the hockey arena, swaggering jigs, crooked tunes from quaint villages, swinging down the gravel path to Stravinsky's cottage, Irish American wanderlust, Cape Breton goes to Calgary, and the gentle pulse of beating harps 
• 276. Celtic Spring, # 9 -  honorary Danish dancing, Swedish folk trance, turbulent Finnish nordgrass, Scottish social conscience, trusty Irish reels, intergenerational UK groove folk bands, Riverdance connections, Breton electric guitar and bombarde duels, lockdown lights, Acadian river shanties, North Sea bonhomie, non-woolly folk music, and music to eat fishcakes by. 
• 275. Celtic Spring, # 8 -  mature pan-Atlantic tunes, musical fox-hunters, triplets playing triplets, Gaelic christmas drinking rhymes, cheeky soft drinks, shanties used for human anatomy texts, first loves who end up marrying a tinker lad, the joys of breakfast before bed, Newfoundland accordion singles (not the dating site though), fiddlers with bus passes, narcoleptic gamekeepers and figgy kisses. 
• 274. Celtic Spring, # 7 -  celtic at home on the range, a Newfoundland chestnut meets the multicultural west coast, a flock of beavers, Australian wedding bands, prog-trad rave tracks, Irish vagabonds, head-banger trad, golden-throated stonemasons, German celtic dances, anti-fascist shanties, an ode to a controlled substance (cod liver oil), fisherman's blues and short-grass loggers.  
• 273. Celtic Spring, # 6 -  a smattering of slides, witch trial transcripts set to music, damp shepherds, Galway girls, lost harmonica reels, job application ballads, laddie-o-s who have trouble following directions, Scottish rhythm n' Swing, destination weddings in the outer Hebrides, Chicago night life and harsh winter jigs. 
• 272. Celtic Spring, # 5 -  morning night caps, maidens on the sore, Acadian bridges, rabbits complaining to hunters about foxes, the musicial progeny of Portuguese wine and Galician sun, idioglot reed aerophones, peripatetic polskas, unfaithful swallow fanciers, the dangers of the 24 ounce steak, well-dressed Welsh accordions and passionate Gaelic tongue twisters. 
• 271. Music that is relatively new to this world -  pure drop gypsy jazz, Acadian amour, jaunty shanties, old-school folk rock, multicultural palettes beyond the causeway, inclusive folk songs, earnest indie contemplation and western cello rock 
• 270. Celtic Spring, # 4 -  solid tunes for questionable politicians, romantic songs of the good ole' fishery, polka in the corners, wistful melancholy, life after Riverdance, men behaving badly, big muddy harps, lazy Flemish waltzes, Cape Breton bedlam, fiddle trios playing tunes about quints, and Irish Arran sweater sex symbols. 
• 269. Celtic Spring, # 3 -  Nordy lads, Limerick lasses, Belfast combos, Manx octopi, Minneapolis rock 'n reel, ocean-straddling accordions, jazzed up Quebecois trad, Euro dance wall of sound, voices so lovely they will haunt you, left-handed tin whistle tunes, trad dissing of replacement workers, percussive pianos and high impact pipes.  
• 268. Celtic Spring, # 2 -  Donegal craic, google frenzy put to music, impossible time signatures for sword dancers, Breton crop circles, bright but flickering sailors, cajun bagpipes, jigs 'n talkin' drums, waves of crunchy folk rock, a banjo for Spiderman, downhome gypsy jazz and bodhrans on the brain.
• 267. Celtic Spring, # 1 -  Welsh tongue-twisting tunes, Irish anti-sobriety ditties, pan-celtic emanations, well-timed Swiss tunes, heavy trad anthems, nouveau Euro-Quebecois, jaunty Welsh melodeons, wandering Slangpolskas, rainforest piping chants, cascading harps and persistent hurdy-gurdys
• 266. Mid-Winter Rambles, # 5 -  Orkney weddings, Liverpool pilots, small town excitement, the saga of the unappreciated folksinger, the fondness of waltzes, rock & roll banjo, apple wassailling, sword dancing, snowshoeing beside the caribou un the moonlight, Romanian accordions that defy the laws of physics, and hammered (dulcimer) country.
• 265. Mid-Winter Rambles, # 4 -  Irish trad divinity trinity, obscure fishing terminology, red clay halos, unfaithful hearts, contested tune titles, sleepless knights in the Virgin Islands, British ballads meet reggae rhythms, a yaffle of old-time lost city pioneers, and tasty banjo stylings. 
• 264. Mid-Winter Rambles, # 3 -  Irish road reels, coal mining blues, French guitar stylings, awkward high school waltzes, lusty Québecois a capella, wild west music from the middle of the continent, yet one more Robbie Burns song, classical guitar therapy (followed by some Acadian energy to revive you), Ghanaian sweet organ, George Street raggle taggles, Dutch shanties and maritime birchgrass. 
• 263. Mid-Winter Rambles, # 2 -  Scottish frenzy, rural Cajun existentialism, garage swagger swing, folkish questions, country Queens, Australian music for upside-down dancing, stadium rock for the bedroom, French mouregues (whatever those are), little packs of Irish tailors, carnival Zouk from Guadaloupe, American Idol hits, gospel quartettes and blackberry banjo blossoms 
• 262. Mid-Winter Rambles, # 1 -  Sliabh Luachra polkas, revitalized Brit trad, odes to honeycombed hexagonal columns of basalt, songs of unravelling covenants, Manitoba Métis reels, throwback pop rock, Andalusian flamenco jazz, name-dropping love songs for the Maritimes, East LA cumbia rock, appalachian free-falling, and weeping ukuleles 
• 261. Hope & the Better Life, # 3 -  wild hope of the forest, transatlantic new years, jingoism put to catchy tunes, brilliant relationship timing, celtic drinking songs (just the one), Zimbabwean mbira divas, ska from the Rock, middle eastern multicultural celebration, folk punk brass, blood-pressure-calming guitars and Scottish highland delicacies 
• 260. Hope & the Better Life, # 2 -   uillean piping pleasures, quiet anthems of better days, electric blues optimism, shanty-singing fishers, Aztec funk that will get you dancing, Zimbabwean goodwill, post-hardcore folk, circus sideshow joy, gospel from Memphis North, Methodist hymns and jigs of abandon 
• 259. Hope & the Better Life, # 1 -  jigs of hope, the comfort of stunning northern expanses, sacred spaces where it is always sunset, the abuses of history, lands of hopes and dreams, morris dances, sawdust trail gospel gems, anthems, prayers, contemplations, resistance, defiance, and downright danceable beats 
• 258. New Tunes for a New Year - folk rock ploughboys, denture pop, anthems in praise of praise, wistful reflections on working in tall buildings, memories of gathering around the radio, s(w)inging about talking, the long and joyful tunnel of life, hip Hebridean tweed-working songs, west coast cajun heat, and what happens when the funeral director meets the master of controlled collective descent into chaos. 
• 257. Oh No, It's That Time of Year Again!, # 3 -  Christmas polka sambas, indie folk holiday angst, New Year's pop, Ukrainian flamenco mashups, Cape Breton ukuleles, stray rockabilly swing jazz, bluegrass counting songs, ethereal druidic carols, a hymn to radical inclusivity and the best darn Ukrainian band in all of Newfoundland and Labrador! 
• 256. Oh No, It's That Time of Year Again!, # 2 - Cajun extraterrestrial arrivals, jaunty songs of the return of light, syncopated nowells, hammered hymns, Galician cathedral jigs, British traditional class consciousness-raising, Ukrainianized carols, as well as garlands, drummers, kings and travelling foxes. 
• 255. Oh No, It's That Time of Year Again!, # 1 -  Christmas eve whistles, fond harmonic hearts, trees trimmed with jazz chords, Chanukah Christmas, Irish kitchen traditions, alehouse celebrations, wassailling shanties, Venezuelan burritos, Cajun carols, and Baroque dancing Noëls.
• 254. Autumn Harvests, # 3 -  blistering bluegrass families, darkly hypnotic sounds of pre-radio music, Atlantic songwriter angst, american primitive guitar, modest Gaelic funk fusion, octave gymnastics, fanciful harps, Australian neo-liberal protests, neo-medieval branles, modal Irish guitar, gospel aeroplanes and the foreboding fiddles of post-Brexit times 
• 253. Autumn Harvests, # 2 -   Irish slippery sliding, Scottish fishwives, Newfoundland bakery shanteys, southern sad songs, Italian everlasting accordions, Sami yoik dancing, Cuban Convent jazz, wise old market women, cheesy chord organ swing, perilous gravel roads and cowboy songs of the Wild East. 
• 252. Autumn Harvests, # 1 -  Irish trad royalty, plooboy laddies, cluckin' old hens, Breton gavottes, jazzy folk laments, retrofitted chestnuts, stark European political klezmer, pig foot BBQ tips, Galician dance hall tunes, sublime concertina mastery, deep south Peterborough blues and new age buskers. 
• 251. Relatively New to This World, # 10 -  spicy multicultural aural gumbo, rambling sailors & the fires down below, brave Montreal indie-folk, relentless high-octane pub folk, inspirational vocal aerobics, zombie post-folk cross-country skiing odes from Estonia, and Canadian Irish punk one-nighters that last over three decades
• 250. Relatively New to This World, # 9 -  Appalachian abandon, deep banjo-phonics, the sound of mountain air, outlaw trashgrass pioneers, pure drop Irish music from a trio from Tokyo, when charming turns to creeping, wanderers, wagoners, demons, fiddlers, horseracers and Old Bill. 
• 249. Relatively New to This World, #8 -  trusty Irish reels and laments, Labrador folk-rock insights, Appalachian music stylings from Quebec, high octane newgrass, heavy Celtic shanty riffs, lilting neo-Calypsonian dancehall wit and homesteader banjo vibes.  
• 248. October Rambles, # 4 -  Quebecois odes to the rather successful dandelion, tapping of feet and twisting of tongues, charming NL folkies, bluegrass low self-esteem, Irish commuting ditties, the one celtic song of a lovers' parting that turns out well, guitar rambles, how to rock in a weary land, Scottish shepherds, celtic flirtations with pop rock, and trad chaos theory 
• 247. October Rambles, # 3 -  musical journeywork, emotion-laden bluegrass, Appalachian banjo rockers, infectious fiddles (there's a vaccine for that now...), fantastical loggers' commutes, odes to this clumsy ol' world, reflective dish-washing folk, neo-gospel exhortations to love this life, celtic songs about arranged marriages, respect for indigenous grandfathers, wildwood harmonies, piano banjo, long-bow fiddling (as opposed to long-bow archery), Hawaiian slack-key guitars, and Glasgow session flair 
• 246. October Rambles, # 2 -  nordo-celtic sword dancing, odes to a noble and meditative form of transport (the canoe), spine-tingling anthems to nature, Italian vocal gymnastics, campfire chestnuts (but not the roasting kind), flood control ballads, the gospel recliner, the blues made-up mind, throwback bluegrass, celtic vision and Breton accordion delights (yes, those two last words can go together).  
• 245. October Rambles, # 1 -  reeling molybdomancy, anniversary Irish, trad tunes with brass, double bagpipe octane, Quebec je ne sais pas, Swedish bride marches, tree-planting campfire songs, Manx dances, power chord trad, Swiss celtic heroes, Icelandic chamber pop (not to be confused with an Icelandic chamber pot...), European folk walls of sound, and Nordy lads & Limerick lasses. 
• 244. The Oak Tree -  northeastern bluegrass, celtic electrification, Danish breakfast guitars, mournful gospel, shuffling Donegal fiddles, gruff-voiced story songs, Irish swing, sombre songs with a good beat about urban sprawl, chamber trad for soft-seat opera houses, and new songs that sound traditional along with traditional songs that sound new. 
• 243. The Pine Tree, # 2 -  old-timey country music from hip city folks, homestead homesickness, the solace of the banjo-filled pine cabin, Zydeco trail rides, government-commissioned folk songs (your tax dollars at work!), Brechtian cabaret folk, edgy mountain Irish, strutting Cajun, and bluegrass jam bands.
• 242. The Pine Tree, # 1 -  Cajun two-steps, blues chestnuts, tearful harmonies, shanty joy joviality, highland abandon, sad-eyed ladies, symbolic Ukrainian pines, and western progressivegrass.
• 241. The Willow Tree, # 2 -   a PB&J sandwich (pop, bluegrass & jazz), songs so sad only the Irish can sing them, Bretonesque hop dancing, reflections on a table setting design, Australian bushdancing, Appalachian burial instructions, disrespectful workplace issues on sailing ships, blues to weep by, and haunting fiddle odes from Fogo Island. 
• 240. The Willow Tree, # 1 -  fluid Cape Breton fiddle, melodious Irish larks, rowdy folk, bluegrass songs of Shakespearean themes, flutes from tree branches, nouveau old-time songs, sea shanties from the forest, heart-string-tugging waltzes, Appalachian songs from just north of Toronto and the dark side of willow gardens. 
• 239. August Rambles, # 4 -  mandolin marches, Irish buskers, reels of abandon (not to be confused with "real" abandon), sleep-indu