Fisherman's Blues

01) Fisherman's Blues - 10,0 02) We Will Not Be Lovers - 8,0 03) Strange Boat - 8,0 04) World Party - 7,5 05) Sweet Girl - 7,5 06) Jimmy Hickey's Waltz - 8,0 07) And a Bang on the Ear - 8,5 08) Has Anybody Here Seen Hank? - 7,5 09) When Will We Be Married? - 7,0 10) When Ye Go Away - 7,5 11) Dunford's Fancy - 6,0 12) The Stolen Child - 8,0 13) This Land Is Your Land - 6,0 TOTAL: 7,65 (77/100) I love track #1 "Fisherman's Blues". The rest of the album is also good, very pleasant listening, unlike some albums on this list :-)

Lots of fun!

Fisherman's Blues - enjoyable. I love the way We Will Not Be Lovers starts - this instrumentation combo is super cool, strings and drums, bass. This is the sort of music Bruce Springsteen would've made if he was Irish. That song was really great. Strange Boat a bit of a comedown afterwards. World Party piano almost gives me Steely Dan vibes. Hmm then goes in a very 80s direction I'm not such a fan of. Sweet Thing, Jimmy Hickey's Waltz, And a Bang on the Ear all sort of just passed me by. I really like the start of this album, but it kinda fades away and drags for me. I could give or take most of the second half. Fave Track: We Will Not Be Lovers 3.6/5

tiene violin 🦋

Love this album. Love Irish music. Good mix of rock. Not too heavy. Very folk.

Man this was a bop for how long it was

Loved it! Steeped in Irish influence and full of life. The album was super long and definitely could have benefited from being shorter, though.

A good album, it was nice to listen to while commuting to and from work. I especially like When Will We Be Married.

Very good folk rock

Well this was much better than I was expecting based on the cover and title. I like the singer... those are some real nice vocals. He doesn't sound like he should be singing in this kind of band, more like he should be in a rock/indie band or something. I like the mix of fiddles alongside the kind of upbeat rocky numbers. Some nice mandolin in there too. It turns way more traditional towards the end of the first half, which is quite a nice way to end I think. The songs are very nice. They're very tight musically and it's all solid. I was going to say it was way too long, until I realised the original album is just the effective first half of the special edition. That makes it a much more appetising package I think and means it doesn't outstay its welcome.

It's funny. In my youth I listened a lot to The Levellers. I even listened to World Party a fair bit. But I never listened to this. Why? The title track is just absolutely joyous. The second is much more of that full sounding 80s rock, reminds me somewhat of Simple Minds, but with a pulsating bass and fiddle driving it ever forward. The next couple of tracks don't grab me. Ah ok this is where Karl Wallinger first used the World Party name. I actually want a full album of the first track please, just inject that in to my veins. I think I do get a bit tired of it as it goes along but it's an enjoyable listen. My second favourite was probably When ye Go Away though, and the Keats tracks is quite sweet. I definitely want an album full of that first track, which is probably why I listened to The Levellers so much.

Pretty good

Unknown to me previously, but I love me some folk rock. Great album. The Van Morrisson cover took it over the top for me. That song is not easy to cover. Acoustic instruments and Celtic flourishes throughout, epic subject matter, vaguely religious overtones. Excellent.

Listened Before? No Album Art: 1 / 5 (as far as creative decisions go, this is not one of them) Two songs in, this is fine, but I don't really care about it too much. It feels kind of like Tracy Chapman mixed with Dave Matthew's Band with more traditional folk elements infused. It's fine, for what it is, I just don't love it. The longer I listen, the more I'm pulled into this album's orbit. I've enjoyed it being there in the background even if it hasn't reached out and grabbed my full attention. Production is quality and song writing on a few songs really is quite nice. Okay, I have been oddly swept away by this one. At first I got DMB vibes, but the more I listen, the more I see a common thread to The Decemberists and other similar artists. This isn't something I will go out of my way to listen to, but I enjoyed it a hell of a lot more than I would have expected. Really enjoy the dense arrangements and the calls back to traditional elements of Irish folk music that is intermixed with more standard pop-rock. 3.5 / 5 and I'll round up because I actually was enjoying this enough to listened to the bonus tracks. Added to Library? Yes Songs Added to Playlists: - When Ye Go Away (Sunny-vibes)

This band sounds like a combination of Dave Matthews Band and Widespread Panic. I am really digging it 4 songs in. Holy hell I just looked at their Wikipedia and they have like 75 past members. Not sure if the album went on too long or if it just got a bit too folky for me, but the first half was much better than the second half. Started at a sneaky 5 but fell to a 4 because I still really liked it.

Thought it would be more bluegrass, folksy stuff but was impressed.

Fun group of songs

Pleasant

Somehow I didnt expect much but this is really good

I was lucky enough to see the Waterboys in Cork in the late 80s. This is a beautiful album, made with a lot of passion

As pop or rock music, it's just OK. But the Irish folk-inspired component is great. The guys on the fiddles and the wind instrument section are great.

4/5. Another album that my father had shown me previously, but I didn’t appreciate. I love the Irish undertones and especially the song “Has Anyone Seen Hank?”

Sick

Loved it!

Fine album. Only previously heard Fisherman's Blues which I like a lot, but plenty more on here that resonates, particularly And a bang on the ear and a good cover of Van Morrison's Sweet Thing. The additional album's worth of material is okay, but this was stronger as the original single LP

Lovely album - there’s a lot to chew here - but despite the length it keeps interesting and varied and it’s gorgeous in many places.

I mean yeah this really is just beats to fish to. They understood the assignment. 4.5/5 stars

Enjoyed the Waterboys! After listening to Sinead O’Connor’s “I Do Not Want…” album, a Waterboys song played next as Spotify often chooses a related artist’s song. Well, they are Irish. And British. And Welsh. And Scots so… This album is an amalgam of Irish folk tinged rock and roll. Favorite songs with “Fisherman’s Blues” (including the alternative version) "And a Bang on the Ear". Despite being awfully long, it’s a really good album.

Very cool folk music! Loved it.

J'ai bien aimé le folk melangé avec le trad et les arrangements musicaux. Ca sonne vraiment bien. 4

This album is so uneven, but now I think it's probably part of its charm. My obvious favourite is 'We will not be lovers', which is hypnotising and has been following me for a week

Really really enjoyed this! Songs like 'You in the Sky' give off grandios Dylan's-next-door-neighbour vibes - the classic Celtic sounds peppered in made for a varied but not chaotic listening experience. Big fan!

There was a jamminess here that was very fun, but they did let it get away from themselves a little too much unfortunately. But the lead singer was so charismatic it still was pulled off anyway.

How come I did not know anything about The Waterboys before? From the very first song in this album, I was 100% in. The Waterboys is one of those bands with a distinctive, engaging sound. Charming lyrics are spread all over the song list. They have some beautiful stories to share and know how to play a variety of instruments to support their storytelling. Great album!

Still ok

Enjoyed this so much more than I thought I would!

This album sounds like the forerunner to Mumford and Son, Bon Iver and other folk rock acts. Pretty good, I'd listen again.

Pretty pretty good

Didn’t think I’d enjoy Irish folk music this much

Surprised to say I enjoyed this

It's a genre you absolutely 100% have to be into or else it comes across overblown. I can hear the quality though

A delightful reconnection the scenery of the region the musicians call home

Celtic and Folky and just wonderful. Gonna knock a star for some of the tracks that are 9 minutes long and DONT NEED TO BE.

I really enjoyed this! Its a very different style for me but I'd listen again.

Refreshingly fun.

I have to admit I enjoyed this album may more than I expected. While it's not really my musical taste, the fiddle is a bit much, and the album goes on far too long, something about it touches some deep part of me. An alternate universe version of me is completely in love with this album, and some of that comes through in this universe too.

Got into a bit of a rabbit on this one. Know the album pretty well, but things I learned afterward. 1. Scottish band 2. Karl Wallinger, of World Party was a part of the band prior to this album. He was part of the Waterboys during ‘Whole of the Moon.’ And left the band during that tour. 3. There is a song called ‘World Party’ on this album. Not sure if the timeline on all that.

Pleasant

Pleasantly surprised by this album.

Solid

Happy folk is nice folk.

This starts so strong, the title track is, to coin a phrase 'a banger', real 80/90's polished, get up and jig, Irish folk-pop at its best. But unless you're a huge fan of the genre, it's a loooooong album.

The front half of this was amazing (kinda reminds me of the levellers if any of you lot know them). The back half isn’t that good though in comparison (still quite good though) 4/5

Irish chill vibes

Album très sympa mais je connais trop peu la musique irish pour savoir si c'est une master pièce 4*

PREFS : Fisherman's Blues, We Will Not Be Lovers, World Party, Sweet Thing, And a Bang on the Ear, The Stolen Child MOINS PREF : Jimmy Hickey's Waltz

Leuke Ierse(?) folk

never even heard of the band - liked it a lot

This album is more ambitious and innovative than it sounds at first. While not every song on here is a hit, the Waterboy's have pulled off an expansive, varied and powerful record with this one. The highs on this (Fisherman's Blues, The Stolen Child, When Will Be Married, Sweet Thing) belong in the Himalaya's. The title track itself is one of the finest songs going, regardless of genre. Perhaps it's my Irish roots and familiarity with a few of these numbers but it's a great craic, pour me a big creamy guiness please Mike.

Wowzas, they're more than just the whole of the moon. This is a god damn masterpiece. I was tasting notes of rod Stewart, cranberries, U2 all topped off with some frenetic fiddling that only a fully fit Brian gleeson could match. We will not be lovers absolute banger, plenty of slower tunes to keep a lovely flow. Pair this with a glass of Campo rioja and you've got yourself an evening to remember. Kudos.

80's Scottish folk-rock. I think it is pretty dang good. I would probably pick this over U2 most days. My wife got me one of their records for my birthday a few years ago and now whenever I listen to them I think about her. That alone makes this album a 4-5 stars.

This was a great listen, Loads of good stuff going on. I imagine The Waterboys would have been a hoot live.

I have never heard of this band, but this record was quite enjoyable.

A deeply beautiful record.

If you had told me this album was released within the last 10 years, I would have believed you. It still has a very relevant sound that many indie bands are trying to evoke. It has a fun energy and I'm a sucker for fiddle, so I really enjoyed this.

Well, I was going to complain that this album was way too long, but I accidentally listened to most of a deluxe version. I kinda don’t regret it, though. My thought process going into this, having seen the (incorrect) long running time, was "Dimery, this better damn well be good!" But it didn't disappoint! I preferred the first half of the album with more of the rock vibes, but the more traditional Irish and Scottish stuff was pretty good, too. The first few tracks reminded me of early U2. I LOVED “We Will Not Be Lovers” and listened to it numerous times already.

Folk rock is a good choice. This is a great album at first. I've actually heard Strange Boat before. As it goes on, it gets a bit further into the weeds. Still interesting, but less folk rock and more generic irish.

Unapologetically loved it. Love me some Celtic vibes

Very good album. Nice listening experience

Thoroughly original and consistently enjoyable, can't wait to revisit. Also the album is only 12 songs long, everyone heard the collectors edition and was shocked when it had more songs. A great record.

A suave businessman named Peter once told me to eat all my vegetables, so I ate a disabled baby alive.

personally i love it, scottish folkrock with great songwriting

Klassisk gutta på skauen stemning ala heihvordetgår. Men jeg er i punk-humør, så dette passet seg ikke nå. Bra album da! Strålende stemme

This was a really fun listen, flavours of celtic folk but with rock sensibilities; a really nice blend.

Just played’This is the Waterboys’ from Spotify yesterday.

Every emotion and some of the best fiddling of I've heard

This is how you make folk music interesting. On its own the genre is very bland, but with a bit of piano, strings, and elements of other sounds (in this case, Irish and Scottish influences), there's more added flavor and texture to the music. Like a beautifully seasoned dish that would otherwise be tasteless. Thank goodness there were artists like The Waterboys who were willing to iterate on folk rock. We appreciate you. Standout tracks are World Party & And a Bang on the Ear.

I did not love every track on this album, but as an album, I enjoyed it.

I knew When Will We Be Married, Jimmy Hickey's Waltz, and Carolan's Welcome from a show I was in a few years ago and I love those tunes! Based on that, I kind of expected a more "traditional Irish" sound from the album. The bulk of the album is kind of generic folksy rock, none of which did much for me. I do love When Ye Go Away. That's my new favorite.

I really liked this. Irish folk-rock. Rating: 4/5 Playlist track: Fisherman's Blues Date listened: 08/12/22

Listened Before? N Good stuff. Kind of out of left field, but good. Unique style blending folk with traditional celtic music. I'm not sure a few of these songs needed to be 7-10 minutes long, but they are. It has the feel of a concert or a jam band, and that's not necessarily a bad thing. I really enjoyed listening to this, and may again in the future. Added to Library? N Songs added to playlist: Fisherman's Blues

très sympa !!

Fine folk album with a bit of bite.

This album felt great, like a cold Guinness near a warm fire. Very unique sound, sometimes so many instruments that it sounded like two songs were playing at once. Overall very enjoyable, this is the definition of Albums to Hear Before You Die.

The first couple songs were amazing

A very enjoyable listen from start to finish. Some very unique sounds going on throughout the record!

- wow 2 discs - i'm really enjoying this, it has like an otherworldly kind of quality to it. dreamlike? overall impressions, i didn't listen to this that closely but i really enjoyed the vibes and the overall sound of it. would listen to again for sure.

Kiva vibes

Jolly irish sounds with some alternative rock elements. I especially like the songs that have a gradual build-up like ”We Will Not Be Lovers” and ”The Stolen Child”

Der Empfang das Album was wunderbar. Aber danach, die Wasser Jungen haben sich geschlafen, traurig fur ein potenzial fünf Sterne.

Good ole fiddling at its finest. The songs have great pace and are another good celtic offering from 1001.

We had this album and saw the live show down at the Masonic Temple. I suppose a lot of their fans would not have been ready for this more Irish traditional/folk/country sound and the ubiquitous violin, after their first two albums, but we like it. It gets off to a great start with the title track and especially "We Will Not Be Lovers". The interpretation of a Yeats poem is great as is "When Will We Be Married?" "World Party" sounds like it doesn't belong on this LP and it was in fact written before Scott decided to go for a more traditional sound. A few of the songs run on longer than they need to.

first listen of this band. felt i discovered a little jewel.

Ooh I really like this! There are a number of Dylanesque songs (“Fisherman’s Blues,” “Strange Boat”) and a few that remind me of U2. They incorporate elements of Celtic folk into their music but it feels fully integrated into the rock sound, at least on the early tracks. Like “We Will Not Be Lovers,” which has this surging drama led by the strings. It’s got that folky influence but with a stadium rock energy! (Later songs dive fully into Celtic folk and I enjoyed those too.) I dig the Van Morrison cover “Sweet Thing,” which also throws in Beatles lyrics from “Blackbird”! Highlights: “Fisherman’s Blues,” “We Will Not Be Lovers,” “World Party,” “When Will We Be Married”

A very enjoyable folk rock album! In particular, it nails a particular aspect bands in this genre frequently get wrong - not sounding to samey. The consistent quality in their musical variety also hints toward a somewhat rare skill that is confirmed by the Wiki article: they wrote a whole lot of material and then managed to separate the highest quality ones from the chaff so that every track adds to the album. This is confirmed by listening into the bonus disc - definitely not on par with the album material.

easy to listen to, good background music. Probably 3 or 4 stars

This album don't look interesting at first view, but listening to this will let you enjoy what the folk and rock were at first, however two or three song were kinda boring and that's ok, because it starts and finishes with great songs.

I'd like to hear Bobby Boucher do some vocals but he won't because MUSIC IS THE DEVIL BOBBEH. Contains an unexpected cameo from Willem Dafoe as Thomas Wake from The Lighthouse on the track The Stolen Child. Favourite song - When ye go away Sing in the shower - Fisherman's blues One for a swim - And a bang on the ear

Favourite Song - We Will Not be Lovers/The Stolen Child One for Karaoke- Fisherman’s Blues One for a run - We Will Not be Lovers

Interesting listen. It combined Irish folk and modern rock. The album was released in the 80s but sounded very 90s.

Great album.

4.5 stars! Jam band, good sound, lots of interesting sounds.

Amazing set of tracks and wonderful combination of folks, blues, and "big music" rock. I might actually have to check their other stuff more.

I remember this album from when it was released back at the fag end of the 80s. I love Fisherman’s Blues, the song, in particular and had always rather dismissed the rest but on a play through all these years later (2022) it really stands up. I’m not a huge fan of the cover of Sweet Thing, but that’s in part because the original is one of my all time favourite songs. Surprised by how much I enjoyed this.

Fisherman's Blues shall be in consideration for one of the all time greatest albums of the 1980s. Apparently it is also one of the best artistic reinventions for a band, given that The Waterboys were a full on rocking band. That fully rocking band still exists, it is now welding Irish jigs and poets as opposed to what came before. One will soon find themselves swayed by the passion and creativity that possessed the band on its quest to create this masterpiece. Favorites: Fisherman's Blues, We Will Not Be Lovers, Strange Boat, Sweet Thing, And a Bang on the Ear, When Will We Get Married, The Stolen Child, Killing My Heart, You in the Sky, Rattle My Bones and Shiver My Soul, Let Me Feel Holy Again, Meet Me at the Station, Soon as I Get Home.

Unbelievably strong start. As in I genuinely don’t believe how great the first half is! With more than 100 songs recorded during this session and a runtime of more than 50 minutes, I don’t understand the inclusion of the Jimmy Hickey’s Waltz. A filler on an album that most certainly don’t need fillers. Steve Wickham’s violin proves to be the secret weapon on a record that is already loaded with great musicians. Blown away! Best: We Will Not Be Lovers / World Party / Sweet Thing / The Stolen Child Worst: Jimmy Hickey’s Waltz

8/10 there was some fun stuff in there not good enough to give it five stars but I still enjoyed it too european, idk I don’t hate that irish/celtic stuff, it just sounds like a gimmick to me like some kinda bit that gets annoying after a little bit and fuck bro, I’m part irish, it’s still kind of annoying still mostly enjoyable

Really enjoying their cover of "Sweet Thing"

🟩 77 🥇 We Will not Be Lovers 🥈 The Stolen Child 🥉 And a bang on the ear

Never heard of this band before, but I love me some Celtic inspired rock.

Not to bad. Great Irish band.

I love this album. Side 1 is by far the best moment of The Waterboys career. From the epic opening track to the dissonant fiddle that dominates We Will Not Be Lovers, to the beautiful accoustic turn of Strange Boat, the start of this album is as good as it gets. The band then rocks out with danceable World Party and closes side one with a gorgeous take on the Van Morrison classic Sweet Thing. Unfortunately side 2 pales in comparison (how could it not?) With the only standout track being And a Bang on the Ear. The underwhelming second half keeps this from being a 5 🌟 classic. 4.5 🌟

I have a great deal of love for this album. The Irish folk rock sound so authentic compared the previous pomp. The voice, the lilt, th concept. Those violins. Its irresistibly happy in its approach. Mike Scott knows instinctively when its ok for a sing to run for 6/7 minutes. Yeah there are a couple of fillers but it gets away with it.

A truly lovely album, of which I am very fond. Sort of an Irish Basement Tapes.

Kinda folk rock. Good music. Violins. Cover of sweet thing van morrison.

Lo tengo en vinilo, como disco me parece el mejor de los Waterboys (aunque el anterior tiene su mejor canción). y creo que este si es de los que merece la pena. Me gustan casi todas las canciones desde "Fisherman's Blues", "We Will Not Be Lovers", "World Party", "Sweet Thing", "And a Bang on the Ear", "When Will We Be Married?", "The Stolen Child"y "This Land Is Your Land". Creo que este disco sirve para entender la popularización de la música irlandesa tradicional como algo Pop que se puede escuchar y disfrutar en cualquier parte del mundo.

A glorious Celt Folk inspired Rock record, full of joy and energy, love stories and bucolic imagery. Mike Scott has got something truly magical going on here.

3.75

þetta er insane plata

7/10 Best song - Fisherman’s Blues

I really enjoyed this

Good vibes

I loved the start and got lukewarm towards the end. Still overall enjoyable with many added to my liked list

This is such a good record, haunting and lilting. I love the energy of and playing on the uptempo numbers and the poetry and quietude of the ballads and pausier tunes. It starts on such a high that there’s an inevitable dip on the backside but such a labor of love is a great listen.

Really great celtic pub rock vibes, little bit of U2 coming through, maybe a few tracks too many, but the highs are very high- 2nd track in particular

Good vibes, energy and authenticity

Better than average, love the folk infuence

Way better than anticipated. It’s like DMB, mid-70’s Dylan and the Decemberists all had some sort of Celtic love child. I wasn’t sure what to expect here, but I was blown away. Really enjoyed this one, have already revisited.

Top album, echt van genoten

-"Fisherman's Blues" be like a bluegrass country jam -"We Will Not Be Lovers" has some of the thickest country-bluegrass sound I have ever heard. Some bass thing is absolutely chugging and the violin is flying -"World Party" has got some jamming and a grooving bass as well -"Blackbird" references in "Sweet Thing" -"And a Bang on the Ear" and "When Will We Be Married" were catchy enough -Pretty strong, but kind of died out in the second half of the album

Nice! A blend of alternative rock with Celtic instruments makes this a fun listen, especially in the first half. Favorites: "We Will Not Be Lovers", "Strange Boat", "Sweet Thing"

An interesting look into 80s Irish folk music. A splash of jazz was cool too.

I really enjoyed this. I was familiar with the title track but that's it. Strangely enough this reminded me a lot of Bob Dylan circa 1975/76 in his Rolling Thunder Revue and Hurricane era. The same driving fiddle sound and the edge to his voice. Good stuff - glad I discovered this. 4 stars.

This album was absolutely not what I was expecting, and I thought it was really cool to here. Mixing traditional Irish and Scottish folk music and instruments into a rock n roll sound actually worked really well. After listening to a few albums that didn't feel like anything special, this was a welcome change of pace 4/5

Really enjoyed this one, especially the first half. Intricate, well produced authentic folk rock.

Nice rock with Celtic influences which are not too overwhelming or too much, just the right amount. Makes for a enjoyable, happy listen, albeit a bit too long

Enjoyed it

Irish folk or idk? Reminds me a bit of bluegrass

Fiddle diddle dooo jag vill spela i det här bandet (men också Waterboys är världens sämsta namn???)

Otroligt mysigt album, bra spännvidd, lyckas blanda coola rocklåtar och riktigt bra folkmusik. Jättebra sound stage och allmänt kompetent utförande. Det fulaste albumomslaget jag någonsin har sett dock. Bra blandning mellan Bob Dylan och Dire Straits

Du vrai bon folk. Des gros bangers et des pièces plus calmes qui font plus country, mais aucune pièce mauvaise en soi. Définitivement à rééccouter

Probably beats The Pogues for my favorite Celtic rock album of 1988. Some surprisingly great songs near the beginning, and the others are good too. Nothing overwhelming, but also aesthetically pleasing despite their lengths. Found the Sweet Thing / Blackbird mashup to be interesting, yet it worked. My favorite tracks were probably the first two. "World Party" was also a highlight for me, the one you could really dance to.

This album was sweet. Will be making a re-appearance around St. Paddy's day.

Folk rock with some Scottish and Irish traditional sounds. Lead singer is sort of Dylan-esque. Liked it!

7/10

This album has what was probably the first song I ever heard from the Waterboys, "Fisherman's Blues", which was part of the "Waking Ned Divine" soundtrack. I may have listened to this album before, because of that movie, but nothing else sounded very familiar from the album. I like the mix of folk and celtic elements to the Waterboys' music. With rounding, this album probably slips into the 4 star range -- I'd probably listen to the album again.

A little too country for me

Ирландский фолк. Норм, но скучно.

Never heard of this group or album, but I was very impressed by this album. Right off the bat, the Waterboys hit us with some fantastic songs. The first three really got the ball rolling. I also loved the "Sweet Thing" cover, including some lyrical references to Blackbird. Wikipedia notes this album as a blend of pop rock with some traditional Irish and Scottish sounds. I could definitely hear notes of that throughout, and I can honestly say I'd enjoy more of this, either in the form of another album or one of the various extended versions of this album. Excellent record. Favorite tracks: Fisherman's Blues, We Will Not Be Lovers, Sweet Thing, And a Bang on the Ear, Stolen Child, Strange Boat. Album art: Nothing special at all. Picture looks a lot like the last Crosby/Stills/Nash/Young album we had, with an added frame. Made for an unsuspecting listen (and a pleasant surprise). 4.5/5

Folky, Irish music. You can hear the joy of these sessions in the music. Best Tracks: Fisherman's Blues, Sweet Thing, When Ye Go Away

Was unfamiliar with this band. Solid jams.

Very nice example of British skittle music.... Good fiddle, decent lyrics

Went into this with low expectations but really enjoyed it, some excellent songwriting

Really great, like Fairport and Flogging Molly made an album. (I know, this predates that, just sayin'...)

So good! Had to find out what a “Bang on the Ear” was from my east coast friend - one of my favourites on the album

Irish folk

Interesting. I had never heard of them or their story

I really got into this. There were some great riffs and the tracks were quite variable. Consequently a rare ****

Mooie stem, mooie violen, weer eens iets anders.

Fond memories

Enjoyable

This album was surprisingly good for me. Very good songs with a nice vibe.

Damn i LOVE that title track. okay, stolen child is really bad. rest of the album is actually pretty enjoyable.

I had no expectations. It blew me out of the water. Who are these people?

Irish springsteen/dylan

Folksy? Whatever it is I dig it. Remind me to look into The Waterboys in the future.

This was a blast. Plus I knew the first song from “Waking Ned Devine”

Klinkt zoals de naam

Good stuff. Bit too sombre for a dark January mind.

Brilliant. The title track is a classic, stolen child, bang on the ear, their version of sweet thing all brilliant. Overall enjoyed it a lot

Folky and easy to listen to

Super Fun album. This is not the first time, I've heard this!

Very surprised by this one! I almost wrote this one off before listening for some reason but I was hooked by the first two songs! Love the fiddle? Violin? Not sure but it's great and love the lead singers voice. Wasn't able to listen to the whole thing will have to listen again soon!

This is like a more roots based Drive By Truckers which naturally means I love it.

This is actually pretty cool!

Feels right at home!

Really good folksy celtic vibes with great production values.

Really solid and really honest folk album, I'm impressed. Great atmosphere, almost like I just stepped into a pub after a long day's work of harvesting vegetables or something. Fiddles and mandolins are both top tier instruments in my opinion. Best song: When Ye Go Away. It has just the right blend of jangly acoustic rock and trad Celtic folk.

The country/folk fusion here is cute, and exactly my bag. I felt that the more rocking numbers were the more forgettable, and that the tropier material was the most fun. I admit that fiddles are a huge weak spot in my taste, but I enjoyed them immensely. I wish that the closing track were longer, and I'm delighted that this thing was produced at all.

Listened to this all the time in college.

Good

Titelspåret är en klockren femma. Versionen av Vans Sweet thing och And the bang on the ear går inte heller av för hackor. Tyvärr är det i övrigt mest utfyllnad med låtar som i regel ligger och skvalpar mellan den svaga tvåan och vid något enstaka tillfälle en stabil trea (Jas anybody here seen Hank?).

A-sidan är riktigt bra. Irländska influenser utan att det blir Riverdance. Bara bra låtar och en bra version av van Morrisons sweet thing som avslutning. Men vad händer på b-sidan? En onödig vals som inledning och en lika onödig this is your land som avslutning. Däremellan alldeles för mycket irländsk folkmusik. A bang on the ear går ju an, men i övrigt knappt godkänt. A-sidan lyfter helheten till en stabil trea.

What am I to do with 50+ minutes of British folk? I see a few have complained about its apparent 100-minute runtime, but Fisherman's Blues closes with "This Land Is Your Land" to me - a rootsy folk album like this couldn't close any other way. To my ears, this is Springsteen-meets-Pogues-meets-U2. Make of that bizarre mishmash what you will, but it comes out surprisingly cohesive in the end. There's the driving fiddle-led opening title track that's a definite highlight, as is its frenzied follow-up "We Will Not Be Lovers," an instant download for me. There's some other big anthemic folk rock songs here to make you wonder how many people are in this band, or if they spent the entire recording budget overdubbing a Celtic fiddling symphony. Most unusual is the cover of Van Morrison's "Sweet Thing" that appears on here. There's what I can only describe as a feature verse from the Beatles' "Blackbird" in between the original lyrics. "Sweet Thing" is already a perfect song to me, so the Waterboys extending it to 7 minutes and doing what they do with it only reasserts that song's utter perfection. Following that, we get the 9-minute "And a Bang on the Ear," a song that could honestly have gone for only 6 minutes without losing its potency. Instead it do-si-does around for a few minutes too many with these overly loud, dry-sounding drums that cut through absolutely everything for some reason. I've never heard percussion mixed so loud on a folk rock album before. Slower and softer songs take precedence in the second half of this album; the best among these are "When Will We Be Married," a stellar showcase of this the Waterboys' love of fiddling, and the sweeping, maritime ballad "The Stolen Child." Honestly, a lot of the second half sounds like Stan Rogers (of Canadian folk fame) to my ears. I'm not British, so perhaps the importance of this revivalist folk rock album is lost on me, but what I hear is a sturdy document of the British Isles' acoustic traditions, skillfully retrofitted to a popular rock format. There's far worse you could do than try to modernize old sounds. Key Tracks: Fisherman's Blues, We Will Not Be Lovers, Sweet Thing, The Stolen Child

The beginning of this album was really nice. I liked the musicianship and the writing. It got a little tedious on disc two.

First song, best song? There's a lot to enjoy here, and some of it exhausts me.

Countrys, nem en stilok de csak belehallgattam

Some thoughts. It's interesting how this both has a lot in common with folk jams and also with later Cure. All the fiddles in the world won't make “We Will Not Be Lovers” not feel like it could have just as easily been atmosphere-washed, post-disintegration, sprawling Robert Smith composition. It's interesting to hear the 80s seeping into the sound of music that is intrinsically not what we think of when we think of the “sound of the 80s” I think it's interesting that there's a song here called world party because world party is the band that did Ship of Fools, a song I thought was by the Waterboys. Like, there's enough here to come back to. It feels comforting and moving, it gives traditional British isles vibes without feeling one note. I think it's worth a relisten, because so much of this feels comfortable immediately. But for this listen I think it lives in the realm of ⭐️⭐️⭐️

good songs to fish to, especially if you're feelin' blue i don't know what it is about songs over 6 minutes but they tend to call out to me...

Irsk folkemusikk > skotsk folkemusikk > shetlansk folkemusikk

6.5/10 - It’s too long but this felt like Dexys Midnight Riders if they had a lot of soul. We Will Not be Lovers and World Party were worth the price of admission. These guys cared and had a lot of passion and it showed through in their sound. I felt positive about this album and would keep a few songs in rotation.

Wow, there's a lot of different styles at play on this album. I really enjoyed the first half of the album with driving upbeat tempos and fine musicianship, though there was one song in which the violin player was simply alternating between only two notes... strange. The back half of the album slipped way too far into country music territory for me, and the second to last song completely lost me with its strange spoken word element and uber repetitiveness. I then felt like I was back in elementary school with This Land is Your Land? If the rest of the album was like the first half it would easily be a four pushing five, but....

Some good songs but okay

Started strong, lots of toe tapping in the middle, but not sure this was a double album. Glad I learned about them before I died, sure, but maybe not 82 minutes of them.

Entirely too long, but some of the songs were fun.

I generally enjoyed this.

I feel the call of Cape Breton

mt bom

It sounded a lot less dated than expected, i actually enjoyed it!

Ооооо ирландцы и фолк

Pretty entertaining album overall. The mix of the traditional folk style music mixed with modern sound was a good combo. We will not be lovers sounded so modern, and was the highlight song for me

Quite catchy Celtic vibes.

I respect it, but it’s not my thing.

Never heard of this band but it was enjoyable to listen to. Never heard of any of their songs so they were obviously popular elsewhere outside the US? Anyway, wouldn’t listen again but good music

It really enjoyed this record and that the folk rock that surrounds it was very strong. The main thing that sticks to me is the instrumentation of the whole record with the whole soundscape being played perfectly throughout the record. Some of the songs go on a bit too long in my opinion and the record itself could be shortened but I feel like the songs I like from this LP are ones I’ll hold on to for a while. Fav tracks: fishermans blues, sweet thing, and a bang on the ear, and Has anybody seen Hank?

It's fine.

Liked this more than I thought I would!

This was an alright background listen, totally fine jangly folk but nothing special to my ears

I like a bit of Celtic rock as much as the next guy. Probably more than the next guy actually, and there's some really good stuff in here like the title track but then there's also quite a lot of meandering fiddle de dee stuff. A mixed bag 4 me!

5/10

Genuinely surprised

Nice, raucous folk rock that drags just a little by the end.

Great fun. I love the version of sweet thing. There are a couple more really fun tracks. It's not a very consistent listen in my opinion though. I'd be interested to listen to some later stuff

Not my music but enjoyed the listen

When it started, I thought I was going to love it, but my enthusiasm dwindled as it went on. Maybe there's just a limit on how much I can enjoy this sort of thing - I only gave the Pogues three stars too.

Honestly this would probably rate higher for me if I didn't have so much fatigue from this genre. This UK folk style music is allllll over this list.

The energy is great but not sure I remember the songs being as good the vibes. My recollection seems spot on still after these years

I liked this better than I thought I would. A standout was “Sweet Thing”, and it was a nice surprise to hear lyrics from The Beatles’ “Blackbird.” The title track and “We Will Not Be Lovers” are fun, country-ish songs that would be fun live. Didn’t really like the last 3-4 tracks, as they are more traditional folk from that part of the world and the energy sagged some.

I’d never heard of these guys- which given its proximity to my personal favorite genres is problematic. It says either “this doesn’t belong here” or “I’m not British” - or both. That said, the album definitely grew on me. And I’m glad to have learned about them. “We will not be Lovers” sounds very Dylan-esque. And I love the opener, Fisherman’s Blues. But the first half is way better than the second- fading out after Jimmy Hick’s waltz’s. And I can’t give a 4 to anything with side B fizzle…

Totally fine

Mixed bag of an album. I had no idea what to expect when I saw Celtic rock in the tags. Different from the Pogues. Overall fun though!

Awww man, it really hooked me at the beginning and was headed for a 4-star, but lost me as it got deeper into trad Celtic territory. Fork found in kitchen and all, sure, but those first tracks of rock fusion really had me going! The second track in particular had some mind-blowing fiddle (?) solos that I would've loved to hear more of. Standouts: Fisherman's Blues • We Will Not Be Lovers • World Party • Carolan's Welcome

This album is one of those that make me glad I'm doing the album challenge, because there is no way I would've ever picked this up myself, but it's really solid. I could go for a little more variety in sound and I think a few of these songs are too long (A Bang on the Ear...come now)....but I think anyone could enjoy it.

Randomly listen to any 5 songs and you've basically heard the whole album, then invest your saved time into something else.

The worst part of this record is that it was made in the 80s and you can tell by the production. A lot about this record is really cool, but that kind of clean and bass-heavy production doesn't do them many favors.

It had its moments, We Will Not Be Lovers was stellar

If Dylan was Irish…

Such a lovely concept/sound/musical dynamics in the band but somehow the song outputs are all missing something

An interesting blend of Irish/Scottish/country/folk/rock (with a pinch of Beatles thrown in - literally, just a few bars of “Blackbird” in the middle of a song?). As you might expect, it doesn’t always work; while it got off to a strong start, it wasn’t able to maintain its charm to the same level throughout. Regardless, I love the fiddle on “We Will Not Be Lovers.” Seriously, can’t get enough of that. Give me a whole album of just frantic fiddling. Also, as always, credit where credit’s due for at least being something different. Favorites: We Will Not Be Lovers; When Will Be Married 3.5

Svaag trea. Inte dåligt men jag lite längtade lite efter att byta till annan musik.

Festligt, folkligt, trivsamt. Stark trea!

Blev rätt fragmentarisk lyssning idag, men gillade detta. Landar i rätt stark 3a!

Gillar ju fiol. River inte till som Pogues direkt. Kan rekommendera senaste plattan Life and death of Dennis Hopper.

fine, pleasant to have on in the background but not really something i'll ever seek out again

I really enjoyed the opening track of this record, and it set my exepectations high. Unfortunately I didn't feel the rest of the record lived up to it unfortunately. There's some good tracks on here, but also many forgettable ones. Still, some decent layered folk instrumentation.

3. Liked some of it a lot. The “big music” stuff is fun and a full sound with tons of different instruments. A lot of the album is a little too traditional and the spoken word stuff isn’t really my thing.

Was okay, not really my style, but certainly wouldn't complain if someone put it on.

There were some solid songs on the album but it also seemed to struggle on others. The vocals and instruments seemed off at times.

It felt somewhat cohesive however at the same time vocals were bringing it down

fine, parts sounded pretty good. too long. Kinda unremarkable tbh

Really enjoyed the music & blend of sounds/instruments. Traditional fiddle w guitar-excellent. Vocals, however, were rough & detracted from album.

I like "The Whole of The Moon", so expected to like this despite being on a different album. It's a bit too folky for my taste, but it's okay.

good album, but it drags a bit. does really cool stuff on some tracks but most of it isn't really something im into. i would've never listened to this if it wasn't on this list type album

No me desagrado un buen álbum para empezar el día

Never heard of this band or album, and but it seems like it could be interesting just from the song names. Not unenjoyable at all, I think the instrumentals are beautiful. I’ve liked almost none of the folk rock I’ve been handed so far, so this is very nice. Might be better if it was just a little shorter.

same song in different fonts for almost 2 hours i mean at least the song is mildly pleasant

Folk rokkia. Alku oli kova ja 2 ekaa biisiä loistavia, sitten levy putosi perus hyvälle tasolle. Eli ei siis huonoa silloinkaan. Irkkufolkki vaikutteiset kappaleet myös kovia. Sen verran kivaa kummiskin, että kuuntelin myös deluxe kappaleet. Parhaat: Fisherman's Blues, We Will Not Be Lovers, The Stolen Child

Fisherman's Blues 3.4 We Will Not Be Lovers 3.5 Strange Boat 3.3 World Party 3.5 Sweet Thing 3.3 Jimmy's Hickey's Waltz 3 And a Ban on the Ear 3.3 Has Anybody Here Seen Hank? 3.1 When Will We Be Married? 3 When Ye Go Away 3 Dunford's Fancy 3 The Stolen Child 3.2 This Land Is Your Land 3 Score: 3.2

I just listened to an entire genre get destroyed because someone thought Irish folk music wasn't modern and bland enough

It was a nice album to listen to as I drove through the Scottish Highlands today

Objectively, it's hard to find a flaw with this album. It sets out to do this sort of well produced, Folky sea shanty album and it succeeds at that. Reminds me most of the Cowboy Junkies, including a cover of a Velvet Underground song. I don't really click with it though. It had enough pleasant moments, but the entire album also brings a kind of boringness with it. It's a tad monotone and the production quality means it lacks a sort of rawness that I enjoy in Folk music.

This is most certainly not one of the best albums ever, no double album should be, but I did expand my musical horizons and find a song I really liked. So a worthwhile endeavor and a nice reminder of why I'm doing this.

First time hearing this one. First go and I wasn’t feeling it but a couple more listens and it’s grown on me. Under all the folk stuff I hear Dylan, Springsteen and even some Replacements. I’ll probably revisit this one.

This was long but pretty good

Solid album with a unique sound.

This album makes me feel like I'm at a local folk festival. It's got that honest twang and country fiddle. The songs kinda all sounded the same to me. I probalby would enjoy this live rather than in my living room.

i love ireland. this was nice! and irish!

The music itself is pretty good, but it is needlessly long. I hardly if ever feel that an album needs to be 2 discs

Titular song is a banger

Not sure what I expected here. I listened to the whole expanded version and didn’t mind, so yeah it’s a good one.

Not familiar with these guys but enjoyed this. Easy going indie/alt rock. Need to give them a deeper dive.

This is just Irish Dave Matthews.

This really wasn't my genre, so I predictably, I wasn't really moved by it. It was good musically, but just didn't catch my ear very much. I found myself longing for the album to be over. Three stars.

I was feeling it and then I wasn't. Hmm. 2.7.

Personal enjoyment: 3/5 Relevance to this list: 4/5

Didn’t mind this overall. At times leans too far into low grade Irish folk (When Will We Be Married), but at other times it soars, with great contributions from guitar, fiddle and vocals alike. It’s probably overly long and the cover of ‘This Land Is Your Land’ could have been left on the shelf, but worth a listen overall.

There were moments when I liked the atmospheric Irish/Scottish folk rock, but then it started to get annoying.

3.5

Honestly a fun record

This has been quite revealing for me. To start with I thought The Waterboys were a plastic American band with a singer who sounded a bit like Bob Dylan, and so I wrote this here: "Not really memorable. Back in the day I'd probably have changed the radio station to find something better to listen to if any of these tracks came on." Then I listened more closely, and read a bit about them, and my view changed. Of course the music hadn't changed, just how I categorised it. It's OK to like Celtic folk music but not plastic American 80s bands.

Totally fine. Just not a huge fan of this kind of folk-inspired English pub-rock.

The Waterboys remind me of my NCL friend Ella’s FIRAT DANCE at her wedding

First song I'm familiar with because TMD plays it from time to time. It sounds like a lot of instruments playing at the same time. World Party (weird name considering there's a band called the same) starts out like a Carole King song (which was my album yesterday), lyrically is it a jab at Karl Walinger? Karl left in 1985 apparently. Hmmm. It feels like an Irish jam band. In Sweet Thing, he quotes a line from the Beatles Blackbird over and over. It could be good background music but nothing I could see myself putting out to listen to.

Lähellä neljä

Enjoyable to listen to - made me think I was at some Irish pub somewhere. Another reviewer said this sounds like Dylan meets Dave Matthews, which I think is an extremely appropriate comparison! Yes, it's enjoyable music but do I think it's one of the thousand and one best albums of all time?… That's quite a stretch.

3/5

Cool Irish infused folk rock with nice energy and passion. Sadly, they probably said all they needed to say within about 45 minutes but it went on another hour anyway

Enjoyable, but not amazing. If I remember it, I’ll probably listen to some of this again.

We Will Not Be Lovers is a banger, the rest... not so much

Unknown band. A good variety of genres. Good album.

10/06/2026 There were a few good songs in places.... but overall, just an average album. Spotify listeners: 2.7 million

Fisherman's Blues was certainly a pretty solid album. I initially went into it thinking it was gonna be a country album and i was kinda right as it is folk rock which in a lot of ways is similar to country music. There were two types of songs on this album, the fast upbeat ones and the slow ones. I do lean a bit more toward the former style but i think that they both have their merit in quite a lot of the songs. I'm not usually the biggest fan of the folk violin that is used in quite a lot of these songs but they actually work decently well here. I wouldn't really say its a super great album but for what it does, it does pretty solidly. Best Song: World Party Worst Song: This Land Is Your Land

Overall: 6/10 At first I was enjoying this, it fuses rock and traditional irish music very well. The biggest problem is that the songs are overlong and there's way too many of them. I shouldn't be checking how much longer the album is halfway through it. Maybe I'm being a bit harsh, but it overstayed it's welcome so much that it started to become unenjoyable. Fav Song: Sweet Thing

Decent and fun music while I was working

mediocre

Ja, klingt teilweise nicht schlecht, aber auch nicht mehr. Nette Folkmusik, aber auch bisschen langweilig mM.

Folk-klanken zijn vaak vrij uitbundig. Maar dit album weet de klanken zo 'normaal' te maken, dat het soms naar de achtergrond zakt. Al biedt dit album ook wel eens een nummer dat een feestje kan doorstaan. Met name de zang springt niet overdreven uit de band. Als het wat meer lijkt om de sterotype folk-zang, als bij When will we be married, vind ik het eigenlijk fijner. Toch wil ik de drie van dit album niet vergeetbaar noemen. Het is in totaal best een geinig plaatje.

Ik ken the Waterboys alleen van hun ene grote hit, the Whole of the Moon. Dat is van die typische jaren 80 bombastische stadionmuziek. Dit album is totaal iets anders. Meer folky deuntjes van de Britse eilanden. Het doet me denken aan (een vrolijke) Van Morrison, the Pogues, the Dubliners, dat soort muziek. Blijkbaar is dit hun best verkochte album, maar er is geen enkel nummer bekend. Dat is toch raar vind ik. Aan de andere kant, had ik dit album nooit uit mezelf gevonden, want als je iets van the waterboys moet draaien, dan ga je dat album met die ene grote hit opzoeken. Misschien hadden ze dus helemaal niet opgenomen hoeven worden in het boek met albums, maar had die ene hit in het 1001 songsboek moeten staan. Nou goed, ik vind het wel geinig om dit te luisteren op de vroege ochtend, een degelijke 3.

I didn't know them and I had low expectations (when I read that something mess with folk, I get instinctively suspicious). It was a nice surprise though: it starts with a couple of kick-ass songs and remains enjoyable but still a little boring towards the end.

Interesting

This is quite reminiscent of the Pogues which I really enjoyed quite a lot. I am also enjoying this quite a lot, however it feels like this album is way too long and blends a little bit too much, so we'll give it a middle rating of 3, not super great, but no bad by any means either.

This is definitely like Rusted Root meets the dad singing Rod Stewart in So I Married An Axe Murderer. It's good but feels like a very specific mood to want to hear this. Like at work in front of two screens is not a good environment. More of these songs sound better with a cask pour ale and some good friends around in a bar.

Interesting album of Irish and Scottish traditional music mixed with modern rock sounds.

Not for me! Fine, but just very not for me. 2.5

I liked the sound mostly but a double album of something I don’t love felt like a little much at times and the whole thing also felt kinda like county fair music

Pre Listen: Based on the name of both the band and album, I assume in order to fully experience this album, I need to put my waders on and get fishing. Will do. No idea who these guys are. Notable Tracks: This Land Is Your Land | Dunford's Fancy - Tied for my favorite tracks on the album. I'm a massive fan for this style of folk music. The sort you hear live in a local pub by chance that cements itself in your head as a cherished memory. Jimmy Hickey's Waltz - Another highlight, not quite my favorite due to the slower tempo, but great nonetheless. The Stolen Child - Not a big fan of what I'd call "Story Rock" typically, and this one falls into that. Not a big fan of the refrain, the whole song just feels like a wet napkin. Least favorite track. Fiddle work is solid tho. Sweet Thing - Beatles referenced oh my goodness gracious oh my good heavens. Post Listen: Definitely wasn't what I was expecting. I have a massive soft spot for Scottish/Irish Folk Music, as I live in the Appalachian region of the U.S., where immigrants from those countries played a huge role in shaping our folk music. When the first song played, I got quite excited and went to look where this band was from, and understood everything when I found out. That said, the album isn't entirely traditional folk. I enjoyed it the most during the more folkish songs, and the least when it was closer to traditional rock. The fiddler is great, the acoustic guitar is pretty good, the vocalist harmonizes well sometimes. I'm incredibly torn on giving this album a 4 or 3. I think I'll give it a 4 for now, but I might come back to it once I've listened to more albums, and I've had time to sit on it. EDIT - Sat on it, giving it a 3 ultimately. The more folkish songs were all I remembered after a while, the rest just really isn't as great.

I liked this more than I thought I was going to do

Im not listening to all this. But it’s always nice to get a bit of Scotch music.

I don’t think it’s essential to listen to an hours worth of average Celtic Country before I die, but if it is at least I’ve done it. Meh.

I like folk music and I love a change of pace album. Haven’t heard any other of the Waterboys’ stuff outside of this but I’m keen to explore now.