| Music
Review – Ceili Rain |
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No You, No
Me
review by Joanne Brokaw © 2003
 Ceili Rain "No You, No Me"
(Cross Driven Records)
If Willy Wonka had a rock band, it would be Ceili Rain. Once referred
to as “a seven-headed musical joy monster” by country artist Kathy Mattea, Ceili Rain is
a magical outpouring of heavenly merriment. Their latest release, No
Me, No You (Cross
Driven Records), is delightful, poignant, and deliciously joyful, pulling listeners
in with musical stories of home, heart, love and life, joyful rock with a decidedly Celtic,
magical flair.
As the group’s founder Bob Halligan, Jr explains, in Gaelic, the word “Ceili” (say
KAY-lee) means “party,” specifically one with live musicians, dancing, and general
merriment for an all-ages crowd. “Coeli” is a form of the Latin word for “heaven.” Rain
is the stuff that falls from the sky. Thus, according to Halligan, Ceili Rain is a “downpour
of heavenly partiness.”
Ceili Rain is all that and more. Halligan is the same man who over the years has
penned hit songs for mainstream artists including Judas Priest, KISS, Cher, Blue
Oyster Cult, and Michael Bolton as well as contemporary Christian artists Rick
Cua, Bob Carlisle, Rebecca St. James and Marie Brennan. He even made a contribution
to the movie Wayne’s World. Musically, he’s all over the board, which makes
it hard to categorize the music of Ceili Rain.
And that’s just how Halligan likes it.
“We’re not trying to impress anybody,” he says. “We’re
trying to create a heavenly party that is uplifting, and joyful, and encouraging.
Musically, we’ve been called a rock band, a Celtic band, a Christian band –
among other labels – and I’m not satisfied with any of those as a final
word. You could say the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are the collective
CEO of Ceili Rain.”
With No You, No Me, Ceili Rain releases a cloudburst of mirthful merriment complete
with everything from bagpipes and accordions to keyboards and guitars, from lilting
upbeat rock (“Everybody Clap For Everybody”) to ballads (“No
You, No Me” and “Everything Good Is You”). “A Hundred Smiles
An Hour” perhaps best embodies the band’s unique ability to praise God
with a joyful zest missing from some of today’s Christian music.
And yet, you’d be hard-pressed to categorically dismiss this as simply Christian
music. Instead, Ceili Rain showers listeners with an outpouring of heartfelt joy, each
song telling a story of praise and extolling the vivacious life found only in God. Each
song is like opening a chocolate Wonka bar and finding your very own golden ticket.
The group has also recently agreed to officially support Mercy Corp (the group’s
founder Bob Halligan made a personal trip to Guatemala to check out the ministry
before signing on) and also supports the Ulster Project, which seeks to bring unity
in Northern Ireland by allowing Catholic and Protestant teenagers to spend a summer
together in the US.
© 2003 Joanne Brokaw All rights reserved.
Joanne Brokaw is a freelance writer from Western
NY who covers Christian music and current events affecting the Christian community.
Her articles have appeared in dozens of newspapers in the US and Canada.
For permission to reprint this column, please contact the author at
jbrokaw@frontiernet.net or visit her online
at www.frontiernet.net/~jbrokaw
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Scripture taken from the Holy Bible,
NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®.Copyright © 1973,
1978, 1984 International Bible Society. All rights
reserved throughout the world. Used by permission of
International Bible Society.
NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION® and NIV® are registered trademarks
of International Bible Society. Use of either trademark for the offering
of goods or services requires the prior written consent of International
Bible Society.
Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible,
New Living Translation, copyright ©1996. Used by permission
of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, IL 60189, USA. All rights
reserved.
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