Comments

Looking for opinions on which Dervish albums to buy

Looking for opinions on which Dervish albums to buy

I'd just like to know if anyone has any recommendations for me; to be more specific, I can't stand Cathy Jordan's voice but I love Michael Holmes' bouzouki playing. So basically, more 'zouk and less singing.

Thanks
Sean

# Posted on February 8th 2011 by seán_óg

Re: Looking for opinions on which Dervish albums to buy

Well, I find most of Dervish's cds pretty balanced between the tunes and songs. My two personal favorites are Midsummer's Night and Spirit, but I don't know how much that would help you with your suggestion.

I usually go to amazon.com to listen to bits of the tunes and songs to see if I might like them. You might want to check there to see which cds have less of her voice in it.

# Posted on February 8th 2011 by pipersgrip

Re: Looking for opinions on which Dervish albums to buy

The zouk work on Harmony Hill is my favourite. Then At The End Of The Day. Then Playing With Fire. The Later albums have an extra guitar in the mix and it's harder to hear the mandola and zouk.

# Posted on February 8th 2011 by Dr. Dow

Re: Looking for opinions on which Dervish albums to buy

None, buy any Seamus Ennis recording instead :-)

# Posted on February 8th 2011 by Steamwilkes

Re: Looking for opinions on which Dervish albums to buy

You could always go for the CD The Boys of Sligo, recorded before they were actually Dervish, and also Cathy Jordan joined, so no songs. The slight downside for you is that Michael Holmes plays a bit of guitar rather than bouzouki all the time.

Nice album though.

http://www.thesession.org/recordings/display/394

# Posted on February 8th 2011 by Mike C

Re: Looking for opinions on which Dervish albums to buy

I like this band a lot and they have produced some fine CDs, but somehow I always come back to the Harmony Hill CD more frequently. I think it has a less arranged quality that I prefer.

# Posted on February 8th 2011 by stoneboy2

Re: Looking for opinions on which Dervish albums to buy

Dr Dow wrote:

"The zouk work on Harmony Hill is my favourite. Then At The End Of The Day. Then Playing With Fire."

Those are all on Spotify. So don't buy any?



# Posted on February 8th 2011 by Bernie 29

Re: Looking for opinions on which Dervish albums to buy

Would buying instrumental tracks from various albums on iTunes be an option? Just skip the songs...

# Posted on February 8th 2011 by mcswiss

Re: Looking for opinions on which Dervish albums to buy

Dow: thanks. And I suppose I could go the iTunes route, but I have a thing about not having complete albums. And Steamwilkes, my own preference is Willie to Seamus. ;)

# Posted on February 8th 2011 by seán_óg

Re: Looking for opinions on which Dervish albums to buy

"Would buying instrumental tracks from various albums on iTunes be an option? Just skip the songs..."

Yes, but I find Amazon to be cheaper than iTunes when I buy the MP3s.

# Posted on February 8th 2011 by pipersgrip

Re: Looking for opinions on which Dervish albums to buy

I really enjoy Playing with Fire (the CD, not the act, but come to think of it . . .)

I didn't much care for Traveling Show, and it seems a bit song heavy so you would likely not care for it either.

# Posted on February 9th 2011 by eisdear

Re: Looking for opinions on which Dervish albums to buy

At the End of the Day is one of my favorite tapes....uh oh, showing my age....

# Posted on February 9th 2011 by shanty

Re: Looking for opinions on which Dervish albums to buy

All of them ;)

It astounds me that some people actually buy individual tracks in lossy format when they could--heaven forbid--buy the actual record in lossless format the way it was originally intended to be heard. That way you get an actual physical copy of the album art & sleeve instead of some .JPG on a computer. Artists put way too much effort into their recordings to have them abbreviated by iTunes' low bitrates and crappy laptop speakers on the receiving end.

The best place to purchase Dervish material is direct from their website. Isn't it nice to know as much of your money as possible is going to the artist instead of some middleman?

# Posted on February 10th 2011 by DADGADLad

Re: Looking for opinions on which Dervish albums to buy

I'm surprised no one has mentioned Live in Palma, absolutely fabulous sound with bouzouki in one speaker and mandola in the other.
There are songs but it's my favourite album from Dervish with loads of drive.

# Posted on February 14th 2011 by Pjhill

Not a member yet? Sign up!

forgotten your password?

Frequently Asked Questions

Enter your email address to have your password sent to you.