Celtic Thunder debuted in August 2007 at the Helix in Dublin, Ireland, accompanying the Celtic Concert Orchestra under the direction of Phil Coulter, the musical director of the group.
Since the group's formation, Celtic Thunder has released twelve albums: Celtic Thunder, Act Two, Take Me Home, It's Entertainment!, Celtic Thunder Christmas, Storm, Heritage, Voyage, Voyage II, Christmas Voices and Mythology as well as best-of collection Homeland, and twelve live performances on DVD, entitled Celtic Thunder: The Show, Take Me Home, It's Entertainment!, Storm, Christmas, Heritage, Voyage, Voyage II, Live and Unplugged and Mythology, as well as a Christmas performance. In December 2009 Billboard magazine named Celtic Thunder the Top World Album Artist.
Celtic Thunder is known for its eclectic style with songs ranging from a soloist to an ensemble focus. The group is backed by the Celtic Thunder Band on their concert tours, and their live shows are known for the use of dramatic effects via lighting and choreography as well as a stage set resembling an ancient stone pathway suggestive of those referenced in Celtic lore.
Members
The members of Celtic Thunder are (in alphabetical order of family name):
Neil Byrne (born November 16, 1977): Music has always been a major part of Neil's life. Born into a musical family, Neilβs father has worked as a professional musician his entire life and his mother is a huge fan of all music. By the age of 5, Neil was gripped by rhythm, which instinctively lead him to drum on anything in front of him. He began learning the guitar when he was 7, hugely helped and encouraged by his father. Later in life a mutual friend approached Neil and asked him to play at a function for one of Irelandβs most renowned songwriters and producers, Phil Coulter. When Sharon Browne and Phil began working on production for Celtic Thunder he was invited to record backing vocals for the debut DVD, and subsequently play lead guitar player for the live show. Neil would have to say the most memorable and prestigious performance of his career to date was in Radio City Music Hall in New York City. Since then he has toured America and Canada extensively with Celtic Thunder and most recently has joined the cast as the 6th leading vocalist with Celtic Thunder.
Paul Michael Byrom (born April 11, 1979) is from Dublin, Ireland. In addition to Celtic Thunder, he has also performed at major sporting events in Ireland and abroad, including singing at the All Ireland Finals in Dublin's Croke Park and at Heinz Field for a Pittsburgh Steelers game in the USA. He has also performed for Ireland's President, Mary McAleese, and for Emperor Akihito of Japan. Paul has released two albums: Velvet and I'll Be Home For Christmas. He left Celtic Thunder as of 2011 to pursue his solo career. Member from 2008-2011
George Donaldson (February 1, 1968- March 12, 2014) is the oldest member of the group and is a well-known balladeer, guitarist and flutist from Glasgow, Scotland. At Scotland's Celtic Park, Donaldson played to 65,000 fans at the opening match of the 2000-2001 season.
Keith Ronald Harkin, (born June 10, 1986), like Damian, is from Derry, Northern Ireland. He plays the guitar and has written one of the songs for Celtic Thunder: "Lauren and I". In 2008, a new solo album by Keith was rumoured to be in the working stages but has not yet been released as of mid 2009. Keith enjoys surfing and has written a song called Chasing Dreams that articulates his love for it. Keith has now recorded more original songs apart from Celtic Thunder, some titles include: Vanity, Don't Lose the Feeling, and What I Like.
Ryan John Kelly (born November 6, 1978) is from The Moy, County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. He holds two degrees from the Queen's University Belfast, having earned a Bachelor of Science in Accounting and also a Graduate Diploma in Advanced Accounting, qualifying Ryan to be a chartered accountant.
Damian Joseph McGinty, Jr. (born September 9, 1992) was the youngest member of the group for 4 years and is from Derry, Northern Ireland. He recorded the first Celtic Thunder album when he was only fourteen years old. It is rumoured that McGinty will begin work on a solo album in the next 6 months. He won his first singing contest at the age of five. He recorded the first Celtic Thunder album when he was fourteen years old. McGinty lists Michael Buble, Dean Martin and Frank Sinatra among his inspirations.[5] On April 29, 2011 it was announced that Damian was chosen as one of 12 contenders for The Glee Project, a reality series on the Oxygen Network. He tied for first and had a guest starring role in the third season of the Fox hit TV show Glee. He debuted on Glee season 3 episode 4 Pot o' Gold. Though originally awarded a seven-episode arc, his run-time was later extended to 16 episodes including a guest appearance in season 4's Glee Actually. In the summer of 2013 Damian joined Paul Byrom for "The Me and My Shadow" Tour. McGinty is also part of Ethan Bortnick's concert.
Emmet Michael Cahill (born October 18, 1990) became Paul Byrom's replacement. 2010 was a very exciting year for Emmet Cahill; he was awarded the 2010 John Mc Cormack Bursary for the most Promising Young Tenor, and was named the most promising young singer at the Royal Irish Academy of Music. He has been a multiple prizewinner at the National Feis Ceoil singing competition in Ireland. Emmet is 20 years old and hails from Mullingar in County Westmeath in Ireland. His musical journey began when at just 5 years old he began learning the piano. By 7 Emmet had begun voice training, and he soon went on to win a music scholarship for high school in Mullingar and spend 5 years intensively studying and playing music. At school he furthered his studies in piano, organ and violin and vocal training, however singing has always been his true love. He continued his education at the prestigious Royal Irish Academy of Music where he received a university degree in Music Performance. He has been in many stage productions in Dublin and has performed on stage at the Gaiety Theatre, Dublin and as a soloist at the National Concert Hall. He is an avid sports fan and has performed twice at Croke Park in Dublin, in front of crowds of 90,000. One such occasion was for the 125th Anniversary of The GAA. He has also performed for the President of Ireland Mary McAleese and at several international rugby games Dublinβs new Aviva Stadium. Emmet also sings regularly at the Mullingar Cathedral.
He is a huge sports fan and has won many prizes playing football with his college and local teams. In his spare time, he also loves attending music and sporting events, playing the guitar and listening to music. He attended auditions for Celtic Thunder in June 2010 and was delighted to be asked by Sharon and Phil to join the show. Emmet Cahill is the latest addition to the Celtic Thunder family.
Daniel Furlong
Vocalist
Daniel Furlong was the newest (and youngest) member of Celtic Thunder. Daniel is 13 years old and hails from the town of Taghmon in County Wexford on the Southeast coast of Ireland. He is a boy soprano and was discovered when he entered a singing competition at the age of seven and won! Although Daniel is barely a teenager, he has been performing and singing in public for over six years. Daniels hometown of Wexford is synonymous with Opera and is host to the internationally acclaimed Opera Festival in October of every year. Indeed Daniel is no stranger to opera and played the role of Edgar in the Wexford Light Opera Society production of Ragtime in 2008. In 2008 and again in 2009, Daniel was also cast in the lead role of Oliver in the musical Oliver with both Oyster Lane and Festival productions. He has also performed solo on two national television stations in Ireland. In 2009 Daniel won an All Ireland Song Contest as a solo singer, competing with artists considerably older than he. In 2011 he won "The All Ireland Talent" Show a nationally televised talent competition and Irelands answer to Americas Got Talent. In light of all of his incredible achievements to date, his home county of Wexford honored Daniel by naming him "Wexford Person of the Year" for 2011.
Daniel describes himself as an outgoing and optimistic, friendly and a fun person. He likes to spend time with his friends and family, and he loves the chance to perform. He is quite competitive and loves playing team sports such as hurling, Gaelic football, soccer and rounders (softball). Music is obviously Daniels passion, he practices with his local choir "The Young Wexford Singers" every week and is also learning to play the guitar and the pigeon box. Daniel came to the attention of Celtic Thunder producer Sharon Browne, when he won the All Ireland Talent Show" and she quickly arranged to meet him. His energy and enthusiasm is infectious and once Sharon had met Daniel and seen him perform, she immediately offered him a place in Celtic Thunder. He performs an angelic version of Walking In The Air in the Christmas show and also sings solo in Heritage on Somewhere Over The Rainbow and the Josh Groban hit To Where You Are. Daniel also joins with other members of Celtic Thunder in the Ensembles and performs duets with Keith and Emmet.
Colm Joseph Keegan (born August 2, 1989) is from Dublin, Ireland. He attended University College Dublin on a music scholarship, graduating in 2011 with an honors degree in Music and Irish. Colm auditioned for and was selected for Celtic Thunder in May 2012 as a new vocalist, becoming a sixth member of the previously five-man group. He was formerly a member of the Aontas Choral Ensemble, who are known for their work with Celtic Woman. Colm appeared in the Celtic Woman DVDs 'Songs From The Heart' (2009) and 'Believe' (2011).
Emmett O'Hanlon (born July 9, 1991), Celtic Thunder's newest member, is Emmet Cahill's replacement. He is Irish- American. Emmett will be touring with Celtic Thunder during their Mythology tour and the Christmas Voices Symphony tour.
Beginning in March 2008, the group has been featured throughout the US on the PBS television network more than 1200 times, and during May and June 2008, members of the group were interviewed on dozens of local PBS stations during performances of their show
Celtic Thunder is also the name of a traditional Irish band formed in 1977. The band recorded three albumsβ1981βs Celtic Thunder; The Light of Other Days (1988), and Hard New York Days in 1996.
Most Wonderful Time of the Year / We Wish You a Merry Christmas
Celtic Thunder Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
With the kids jingle belling,
And everyone telling you,
"Be of good cheer,"
It's the most wonderful time of the year.
It's the hap-happiest season of all
With those holiday greetings and gay happy meetings
It's the hap-happiest season of all
There'll be parties for hosting,
Marshmallows for toasting
And caroling out in the snow.
There'll be scary ghost stories and
Tales of the glories of Christmases
Long, long ago.
It's the most wonderful time of the year.
There'll be much mistletoeing
And hearts will be glowing,
When loved ones are near.
It's the most wonderful time of the year
There'll be parties for hosting,
Marshmallows for toasting
And caroling out in the snow.
There'll be scary ghost stories and
Tales of the glories of Christmases
Long, long ago.
Long ago
It's the most wonderful time of the year.
There'll be much mistletoeing
And hearts will be glowing,
When loved ones are near.
It's the most wonderful time of the year
It's the most wonderful time
It's the most wonderful time of the year
Of the year
We wish you a merry Christmas
We wish you a merry Christmas
We wish you a merry Christmas
And a happy New Year.
Good tidings we bring
To you and your kin;
Good tidings for Christmas
And a happy New Year!
Oh bring us some figgy pudding
Oh bring us some figgy pudding
Oh bring us some figgy pudding
And a cup of good cheer
Good tidings we bring
To you and your kin;
Good tidings for Christmas
And a happy New Year!
We wish you a Merry Christmas
We wish you a Merry Christmas
We wish you a Merry Christmas
And a happy New Year.
The Christmas Medley performed by Celtic Thunder is a combination of three classic Christmas tunes - "It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year", "Stories of the Glories" and "We Wish You a Merry Christmas". The song brings out the true essence of Christmas, which is all about spreading happiness, love and celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ. The upbeat melody, coupled with the positive tone of the lyrics creates the perfect festive mood among all music lovers.
The opening line "It's the most wonderful time of the year" sets the tone of the song and creates excitement in the listener. It talks about the festive atmosphere that takes over during the holiday season, with kids singing jingle bells, people wishing each other with "good cheer" and making merry. The second verse highlights the joyous season when friends come to call, and they have happy meetings and holiday greetings. The verse also talks about how stories of Christmases long ago and scary ghost stories are shared over hot cocoa.
Line by Line Meaning
It's the most wonderful time of the year.
The winter holiday season is a time of joy and festivity that is cherished by people all over the world.
With the kids jingle belling,
Children are joyfully ringing bells, signaling that the holiday season is in full swing.
And everyone telling you, "Be of good cheer,"
Kind-hearted people are sharing a message of positive energy, urging others to be happy and enjoy the season.
It's the hap-happiest season of all
With so much joy and love to be shared, the winter holiday season is a time of unprecedented happiness.
With those holiday greetings and gay happy meetings
People are sharing friendly and joyful greetings with one another, happily gathering together to celebrate the season.
When friends come to call
Friends are stopping by to see one another, share joy and laughter, and commemorate the warm atmosphere of the season.
There'll be parties for hosting,
Many people will be hosting lively and merry gatherings in honor of the holiday season.
Marshmallows for toasting
People are clumping together around fires and stoves to roast delicious marshmallows and enjoy one anotherβs company.
And caroling out in the snow.
Groups of people are singing joyful and cheerful carols as they traverse snow-covered landscapes.
There'll be scary ghost stories and
Some people will be telling ghost stories that evoke feelings of fright and horror in order to add an element of excitement to their holiday celebrations.
Tales of the glories of Christmases
Others will be sharing heartwarming stories of the joyful experiences they've had during previous holidays.
Long, long ago.
These good memories come from many holiday seasons past.
There'll be much mistletoeing
People will be kissing underneath sprigs of mistletoe, symbolizing love and affection during the holiday season.
And hearts will be glowing,
People's hearts will be full of love and affection for one another.
When loved ones are near.
People feel happiest when they are surrounded by the love and company of their family and friends.
We wish you a merry Christmas
A festive holiday greeting that expresses the desire for the recipient to enjoy the Christmas season.
And a happy New Year.
A message of good wishes for the coming year.
Good tidings we bring
We have come bearing news of good cheer and joy.
To you and your kin;
We hope that you and your loved ones will join with us in celebrating the joy of the holiday season.
Oh bring us some figgy pudding
We joyfully request the traditional Christmas dessert, figgy pudding.
And a cup of good cheer
We wish to share in a joyful moment and a warm cup of something delicious with our loved ones.
Of the year
The celebration of the holiday season is a unique time of year that everyone looks forward to, year after year.
Lyrics Β© DEMI MUSIC CORP. D/B/A LICHELLE MUSIC COMPANY, Peermusic Publishing
Written by: Eddie Pola, George Wyle
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@mariemoore6406
Hearing them sing always makes me feel good..Know you can't turn back time but wished I could just to see them together again like they are here especially with George...π’
@robin14ize
Always a wonderful day when Celtic Thunder is with us/
@Jackie-ld2ki
It nice to see George, Paul, Keith & the other guy's all together again. Love Celtic Thunder ππ
@a.michon7719
George passed away and Keith left...old video.
@meripederson8379
When nothing else can, Celtic Thunder can always bring a smile to my face πβ€οΈ
@christinamcilwaine350
Sleep Peacefully George Donaldson never forgotten πͺΆποΈπ―οΈπ€ RIP π€π©΅π―οΈ
@vickiemcgeary5527
Miss this original group R.I.P George
@DebbieElaine
Love these guys. Awesome song. Love this. π₯π₯π₯π
@tigre7739
A wonderful classic, and an even more wonderful Celtic Thunder classic, always helps get me into the holiday spirit!!ππππβ
@ildicodaczo2030
It's my wonderful morning!Thank you.β€π