Irish Music and Films

Hy, I’ m looking for some titles of films about America where is possible to hear some irish music, something like Gangs of New York. If someone could help me in found some titles I’ll be please.
Thanks a lot

How about the Titanic? I know Drowsie Maggie and the Armagh/John Ryan’s Polka (sometimes referred to as the “Dum Dum” tune - particularly by Bodhran players!) are played in this film.

The Titanic never reached America.

waking ned devine

Angela’s Ashes………..

Darby O’Gill and the Little People…

Waking Ned Devine, although supposed to be in Ireland, was in fact filmed on the Isle of Man. Still an excellent film though. Can’t remember what the music was, unfortunately.

There must surely be some Irish music in The Quiet Man, a film that I leave the UK to avoid seeing.

The grand total of the Irish music in the quiet man is **Drum roll** - Rakes of Mallow and Wild Colonial Boy - OVER and OVER and…. Ahh well - you get the point.

I seem to remember some Irish music in Rob Roy. Perhaps they were just snipets.

Dancing at Lughnasa.

Road to Perdition, an American gangster film set in the days of the Depression. Imo, it ranks with the Gangs of New York. There’s an Irish wake early on in the film, but then again I can’t remember the titles of the tunes, although I recognised some of them at the time.

If you go into the website (http://www.roadtoperdition.com) you may be able to download, or at anyrate hear, the sound tracks from various scenes, including the Wake. Be warned: this is one of those websites that takes AGES and AGES to download … go cook yourself a meal while it’s downloading!

There’s that bizarre Boondock Saints movie which has a bit of “ITM”….

And then there’s the Wal-Mart commercials…

The track list for Waking Ned Devine (which is a thoroughly enjoyable film altogether). Note the Waterboys. Not a lot of pure trad if your idea of it is very focused. Nice enough album, at any rate, in my opinion. The version of The Parting Glass will stir you up a bit. I’m quite fond of it.

1. Let the Draw Begin (Davey) - 4:00
2. Fisherman’s Blues performed by Waterboys - 4:14
3. Red Herrings (Davey) - 3:28
4. Maggie and Finn (Davey) - 2:59
5. Cursing in Heaven (Davey) - 3:27
6. The Ballad of Ned Devine/The Witches Reel (Davey/Jones) - 5:22
7. Jackie’s Theme (Davey) - 2:58
8. Michael’s Ride (Davey) - 3:22
9. Beyond Dreams and Spirits (Davey) - 4:27
10. Hear Me (Davey/Jones) - 3:24
11. An Angel Will Cry (Davey) - 3:26
12. The Lotto Man Cometh (Davey) - 3:40
13. Lux Eterna, My Eternal Friend (Davey/Jones) - 5:51
14. The Tullymore Polka/The Witch, the Fiddle… (Davey) - 5:31
15. The Parting Glass (Davey/Jones) - 5:36

How about The Brothers McMullen? I’ve never seen the movie, but the soundtrack is basically an album by Seamus Egan with the exception of the awful played-to-death opener by Sarah Mclachlan.

1. I Will Remember You [Theme from the Brothers Mcmullen] performed by Sarah Mclachlan - 4:49
2. A Week in January performed by Seamus Egan - 4:10
3. Slip Jigs performed by Seamus Egan - 4:50
4. Intro. No. 1/Reel Beatrice performed by Seamus Egan - 4:03
5. Fermoy Lasses performed by Seamus Egan - 4:08
6. When Juniper Sleeps performed by Seamus Egan - 4:56
7. Eamon Coyne’s/Longford Collector performed by Seamus Egan - 3:15
8. Once upon a Time performed by Seamus Egan - 4:47
9. Cape Breton Set performed by Seamus Egan - 3:49
10. The Lark performed by Seamus Egan - 3:47
11. Dark Slender Boy performed by Seamus Egan - 4:30
12. Weep Not for the Memories performed by Seamus Egan - 4:58

Didn’t the Commitments have a couple scenes where the lead character was auditioning musicians for his r&b/soul band and had a traditional fiddler & piper show up amoung the rock ’n rollers. I thought the fiddler might have played Mug of Brown Ale in that scene. Anyway it was kinda cute as I remember, but it’s been a long time since I’ve seen that movie…. (I’m really bored at work today)

sorry, the Commitments took place in Dublin, NOT the US…I’m brain-dead today…..

If my memory serves me right, i think Stockton’s Wing played in John B Keane’s film “The Field”. Is it them playing the music in the barn when Bull McCabe (Richard Harris) takes the itinerant girl out to dance? I think the banjo player looks like Kieran Hanrahan. Does anyone know the tunes they played?
I remember reading before about the mistakes film makers make, like in the Lord Of The Rings when you can see a car in the distance in one scene. In “Titanic” the band playing the music in steerage have a bouzouki player, which was introduced to Irish music in the late 60’s and certainly was’nt around in 1912, great film all the same.

What are all those Hollywood films which are supposed to have ruined The Irish Washerwoman for ever as a session tune?

Paddy Keenan played a couple of tunes in a film called “Traveller.”

the quinn brothers made the film “This Is My Father” and it features kieran hanrahan and jimmy mc creevy among others as the ceili band at the local dance. Quite a good film.

sorry u may not think it is about america but it does tell a story of nostalgia through the eyes of a young american holiday maker!

A recent discussion mentioned Rakes of Mallow being played in the film High Spirits.

It’s been a while since I’ve seen it, and it wasn’t particularly memorable to begin with, but there’s a thriller called “Blink” in which the female lead (Madeline Stowe) is a fiddle player in an Irish band. As I recall, one or two scenes take place while the band is “playing,” but as far as Madeline Stowe goes, I don’t think we’re supposed to admire her for musical talent.
Didn’t “The Grey Fox” -- with Richard Farnsworth as an Old West bankrobber paroled after decades in prison -- include music by the Chieftans?
And this one is probably a reaaalllll stretch: “Jane Austen’s Mafia!” features a (thankfully) brief “Riverdance” parody.

Folks:

In response to those citations above, I’ve uploaded an article I wrote for Dan Beimborn’s irishmusic.com website about films using trad music.

You can find the article at
http://www.geocities.com/coyotebanjo/movies.html

Have fun.

all the best,

cjs

The movie The War of the Buttons was really good--I don’t remember how much music was in it, but at the very end the kids all dance and play Egan’s Polka, which I had just learned when I saw the movie, so I was really excited….

I remeber a brief scene in “The Devil’s Own” that had some music during a house party scene - I think it was “Lark in the Morning” that was played, but it’s been awhile (and I have no desire to watch the movie again).

A lot of great tunes in the Secret of Roan inish…Andee in my memory it was Maggie in the Woods in the war of the buttons..

Hmmm Almost sure it was Egan’s, paul-leray, but maybe I will rent it again and see for sure……

2 names for 1 tune?

Naah, definitely 2 different tunes….

I checked: we’re both right!! In the scene in the cabin log when they celebrate their victory after the taking of the castle, the first tune played by the two tin whistles, when they asked the girls to dance, is Maggie in the woods, then there is a change of scene, we see the traitor with the tractor, and then back again in the cabin log, and they are playing Egan’s..
The Secret of Roan Inish is worth seing, if you had’nt!

Thanks for checking paul-leray--it’s not often when both parties are right! I have seen Secret of Roan Inish--great movie, maybe i’ts time to see it again!

Barry Lyndon, directed by Stanley Kubrick and starring Ryan O’Neal had a complete soundtrack by the Chieftains. I think most of the stuff was penned by Paddy Moloney but there was some trad stuff in there too.

Trevor - The only film I can remember that had the Irish Washer Woman was the Outlaw Josey Wales. I guess I can remember that because I like the film and I have played it several times through. There were a bunch of junk films that had the overdone tune in it but I can’t remember a one of them for the life of me.

Or was it the Irish Waterman? ;)

Ryan’s Daughter (shot in Ireland but with many Americans including Robert Mitchum) had some trad tunes - it’s so long since I’ve seen it that I can’t remember them other than the jig Saddle the Pony played for some Ceili dancing. It sounded so good to me at the time that I got down to learning it the next day!

Just to follow up a point celtic1234 made about the ITM in John Carpenter’s Titanic: The Movie.

You pointed out there’s a bouzouki in the band, and that this is an anachronism. A well-known maker of these lovely instruments. Where can you get your hands on an Anachronism & Sons Bouzouki these days?

But I digress…

Another anachronism is, of course, the bodhr

Bodhranistas, i think, they’re called.

Eat the Peach had some excellent music from Donal Lunny. There is also The Playboy of the Western World which had music from Sean O’Riada’s group (before they became the Chieftains).

Glauber - I expect you’re right. Bodhranditos didn’t work, either. I was just thinking “Desperados”. Nice tie.

Does anyone have the music for “ Dancing with Lughnasa” would love to play this Jig!