In 1997, Gaelic Storm appeared in the film Titanic as the steerage band. This catapulted them into touring, where they were met with extreme success and popularity. They have toured throughout the United States and Canada, in the United Kingdom, France, and Japan.
To this date, Gaelic Storm tours aggressively, and plays over 125 dates a year. It has also put out six albums since its inception, including the compilation album Special Reserve. The band is notable for its energetic rendering of traditional Irish music and Scottish traditional music, and for its albums which repeatedly top the Billboard world music charts.[citation needed]
Gaelic Storm's album Bring Yer Wellies was released on July 25, 2006 and debuted at #2 on the Billboard World Chart, #16 on the Internet Sales Chart and #31 on the Independent Album Chart. Their fifth album, How Are We Getting Home?, was released in August 2004 and debuted at #3 on the Billboard World Music Charts, #10 on the Billboard Heatseekers Chart and re-entered the September 2005 World Albums Chart at #3. "Gaelic Storm". Retrieved on 2007-11-13.
Over its history, the band has replaced its fiddle player a few times, its drummer once, and added Highland, Uilleann, and Deger (electronic) bagpipes to its instrumentation.
In January 2006 the band released its first DVD titled "Gaelic Storm: Live In Chicago". The show was filmed live at the House of Blues in Chicago.
A Simlish version of the song, Scalliwag, from the band's latest album, Bring Yer Wellies, was recorded and featured on the World music channel in the expansion pack, The Sims 2: Bon Voyage, for the popular PC Game, The Sims 2.
Now the next album of Gaelic Storm was released in July 8, 2008, titled "What's the Rumpus?" released by their own label, Lost Again Records. Taken from the Amazon.com Editorial Review of the album, "Inspired by the music that drives their loyal fan base, Whats the Rumpus is a wild party of an album, full of colorful characters and outrageous stories, flavored with Gaelic Storm's signature acoustic sound that gets you dancing and never lets you go. I think this is some of the best writing we have ever done, everything seemed to come together perfectly for this CD, says Steve Twigger, This is the culmination of a great deal of hard work and a barrel of good times. From the upbeat opening title track to the final cut, The Night I Punched Russell Crowe; (a true story involving singer Patrick Murphy), the music captures the contagious energy of the bands carefree attitude and infectious live performances. With instruments ranging from African drums, Irish bagpipes and Celtic fiddle to trombones and Cajun-style accordions, WTR is a three-ring circus of acrobatic songs, swirling tunes and galloping rhythms. Steve Twigger produced the project with co-production by drummer Ryan Lacey and Pat Manske, and additional production by Patrick Murphy. Returning to The Zone studio in Austin TX where the band recorded their previous release Bring Yer Wellies, Gaelic Storm also enlisted the help of a few select Austin locals including Lloyd Maines and 1960's psychedelic performer, Arthur Brown, to round out their eclectic Celtic sound. To quote Patrick Murphy, We have so much fun together as a band, we managed to capture some of the good times we have together on this recording.
Gaelic Storm also includes: Ryan Lacey on drums and world percussion (graduated twice from the Los Angeles Music Academy, once for hands and once for sticks), Pete Purvis of Merrickville, Ontario on uilleann pipes, tin whistle, deger pipes and highland pipes (a Grade 1 piper who toured with award winning pipe bands including the Braemar Pipe Band and played at 2000 Sydney Olympics) and the newest member of the band Jessie Burns on fiddle (originally from Suffolk, England, now living in Colorado)." and Celtic rock genres.
Northern Lights
Gaelic Storm Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Down the lanes of this harbor town, like so many times before
There’s so much you’ve done for me, so much, I’ve asked of you
But when I’m gone there’s one more thing, please promise me you’ll do
Chorus:
Everyday sing a song
To help me sail along
And I’ll be on my way
If you miss me when I’m gone, just walk down by the sea
Sing with a whisper of the waves, and there remember me
What a lucky man you made of me, always at my side
Where I am, I’ll wait for you as faithful as the tide
(Chorus)
Rocks keep rolling, hills keeps rising
Water flows, no compromising
Trees are swaying, leaves are turning
Earth is spinning, sun is burning
Clouds are forming, wind is blowing
Now it’s raining, now it’s snowing
Flowers are blooming, birds are flying
Some are laughing, some are crying
Remember there was dancing on that night so long ago
We sang and raised our glasses to the starlight on the snow
Well if you should see those northern lights on a frosty winters eve
Watch them dance and know I’m there, there’s no need to grieve
(Chorus x 2)
The Gaelic Storm's song "Northern Lights" is a touching tribute to a loved one who has passed away. The song speaks to both the connection between people and the connection to nature. The first verse speaks of revisiting a place that holds memories of the past, and the gratitude the singer has for their loved one. The chorus is a request to sing a song every day to help the singer "sail along" and move forward. This is a heartfelt ask for a way to keep the memory of the person alive in some way.
The second verse continues with the theme of nature, with the singer asking that the person they've lost remembers them at the seashore, and to "remember me". There is a strong sense of the impact that the lost person had on the singer's life. The verse ends with a comparison of the singer's love to the tides, which is a beautiful image that speaks to the connectedness of all things.
The last verse is about the memories of the past, and how they can bring comfort in the present. It speaks of moments spent with friends, and how the beauty of nature can remind us that loved ones are still with us in the world. The chorus repeats again, emphasizing the need for connection and memory.
Overall, this song is a poignant tribute to lost love, and speaks to the importance of connection to both people and nature.
Line by Line Meaning
Let’s go out just one more time, to that old place on the shore
Let's make one last visit to our favorite spot on the beach
Down the lanes of this harbor town, like so many times before
We've walked these streets many times before
There’s so much you’ve done for me, so much, I’ve asked of you
You've been incredibly generous to me and I've relied on you a lot
But when I’m gone there’s one more thing, please promise me you’ll do
When I'm no longer here, there's one more thing I need you to do for me
Everyday sing a song
Please sing a song every day
To help me sail along
To help me on my journey
Too ra loo ra loo ra loo ra le
Singing this comforting Irish phrase
And I’ll be on my way
And I'll continue my journey knowing you're thinking of me
If you miss me when I’m gone, just walk down by the sea
If you start to miss me when I'm gone, take a walk by the sea
Sing with a whisper of the waves, and there remember me
Sing softly along with the sound of the waves while thinking of me
What a lucky man you made of me, always at my side
I'm so grateful to have had you by my side, you've made my life so rich
Where I am, I’ll wait for you as faithful as the tide
Even though I'm gone, I'll be waiting for you like the tide always returns
Rocks keep rolling, hills keeps rising
Nature keeps moving and changing constantly
Water flows, no compromising
Water flows effortlessly without any compromise
Trees are swaying, leaves are turning
The trees are moving and changing with the seasons
Earth is spinning, sun is burning
The Earth is spinning on its axis while the sun keeps burning
Clouds are forming, wind is blowing
The clouds are forming and the wind is blowing
Now it’s raining, now it’s snowing
It's raining now and snowing at other times
Flowers are blooming, birds are flying
The flowers are blooming and the birds are flying
Some are laughing, some are crying
Some people are happy, some are sad
Remember there was dancing on that night so long ago
Recall that wonderful night we spent dancing long ago
We sang and raised our glasses to the starlight on the snow
We sang and toasted to the starry sky reflecting on the snow
Well if you should see those northern lights on a frosty winters eve
If you happen to see the aurora borealis on a cold winter night
Watch them dance and know I’m there, there’s no need to grieve
Watch the colorful display and know that I'm there with you, no need to be sad
Everyday sing a song
Please sing a song every day
To help me sail along
To help me on my journey
Too ra loo ra loo ra loo ra le
Singing this comforting Irish phrase
And I’ll be on my way
And I'll continue my journey knowing you're thinking of me
Contributed by Eli S. Suggest a correction in the comments below.