ANDY IRVINE

Twenty-four songs spanning from 1961 to 2012. Now here comes Old Dog Long Road Vol.2, (1961-2015) which this time covers fifty-five years of the career of one of the most famous Irish ballad singers. A musician behind some of Ireland's most famous bands: Sweeney's Men, Planxty, Patrick Street, Mozaik, Usher's Island...

Two more albums and twenty-three tracks. A retrospective collection of recordings from Andy Irvine's personal archives. From the oldest tune, Hobo's Lullaby, recorded sixty years ago when Andy was not yet 19, to The Snows recorded in 2015 with the band Mozaik and Greek singer Chrysoula Kechagioglou.

Throughout the albums, you'll recognise As I Roved Out, the 1975 version of Planxty or A Blacksmith Courted Me popularised by the same band. It is still the standard Érin Go Bragh, The Drunken Sailor or The Blind Harper alongside friend Dónal Lunny. And the Cooley's and O'Dwyer's hornpipes recorded during a tour with Nollaig Casey and Des Moore.

Two-thirds of the pieces are solo pieces by Andy, who accompanies himself on bouzouki and mandolin with all the dexterity he is known for. There are seventeen traditional and six original compositions.

Considering the age of some of the recordings, the sound quality rendered by the sound engineer cannot help but stand out.

One might have mistakenly thought that volume 2 would have been a copy of the first volume. This is not the case, and sixty years later, one can still be surprised when listening to the repertoire of this master of ballads. It is impossible to see his musical testament.