The Chieftans are popular worldwide!

[windy1]

Gilliann this is a question mostly for you. Are the Chieftans as popular in Ireland as they are here. At least in St Louis they are. I think their music is great, but is it truly traditional?

[Charlie Clown]

Obviously I'm not Gilliann but pleaase pardon the intrusion.... I think the Chieftains are regarded as one of the great groups of Ireland, god-like elder statemen and guardians of the folk traditions etc. but they are in the main seen as part of the furniture nowadays. Its is now almost 20 years since the Pogues brought them to a new younger audience and they haven't really had that push to the forefront of mass public visibility. So they're not the commercial force they might have been 20 or even 40 years back but they are still revered as one of Ireland's proudest, most dignified and honest bands.

[Pat james]

Hi,Im not Gillian either but in regard to the Chifetans and Ireland yes they are highly regarded here not only for keeping the traditonal stuff out there but also for the amount of diverse musical styles the have worked with

You really need to check out their recordings.

[Uncle Joe]

I am Gillian, but I don't know the answer to your query.

Ok, ok...I'm not Gillian.

But, top o' the mornin' to ya anyway.

[windy1]

I've seen them in concert here in St. Louis. They play here quite often, I guess whenever they are in the states, and are still quite popular. When they play here they are always advertised on the rock stations, which made me wonder if they are trully traditional. I don't know much about true Irish music. Thanks for the info.

[SoulGirl]

hi, i'm irish too!!! the chieftains are considered legendary here, and are given alot of credit for bringing traditional irish music to a mainstream (ish) audience. there are of course the purists however, who don't consider what they play to be true traditional music as there is a certain debgree of fusion involved in their work. nonetheless they are relatively popular and revered, especially among older people and have been given lifetime achievement awards and the like. in my experience alot of 'irish' music has become far more popular abroad than in ireland itself, as in the case of enya, the corrs etc. (though not the pogues, they are beloved here too!). as an obviously biased irish person i can say that i think the irish people are very musical and have offered alot to the world of music. many foreigners i've met have expressed the same opinion. music (though not necessarily traditional) is very important for most families in ireland as in many other countries of course!