Irish folk music : a selected discography /

Schaeffer (California State University, Los Angeles), a librarian and bibliographer and former host of "The Celtic Tradition," a weekly radio show featuring Irish folk music, has contributed a very useful volume to Greenwood's far-ranging discography series. Selections are current (mostly post-1970), available on US or major Irish labels, and usually in print; the cutoff date for full descriptions is spring 1987, but later titles are listed in notes. Coverage ranges from Sean O Riada to the Bothy Band to Clannad and is not restricted to "purist" folk recordings. Arrangement is alphabetical by principal artist (about 90 are included), and thereunder alphabetically by album (more than 200 are included). On some succeeding pages, artist headings are not repeated and therefore users leafing through the work may become confused. Entries include song titles (including alternates and translations), year of release, record label and number, band members, guest artists, soloists, producers, instruments, critical annotations, and format availability. Two useful indexes lead users to specific artists (more than 600 individuals and groups) and 3,600 song titles (but unfortunately, not album titles). A directory lists the primary mail order houses and record labels, and a brief glossary defines 15 basic styles and instruments used in Irish folk music. An excellent tool for students and scholars of and listeners to folk music and the broader range of popular music. -R. A. Aken, University of Kentucky