Irish Rock Music: The Best Instrumental Bands

While many people might not think of Irish instrumental bands when they think of rock music, these bands are some of the best in the genre. From The Chieftains to The Dubliners, these are the bands that have helped to define Irish rock music.

Irish Traditional Music

Irish traditional music is the music of people living on the island of Ireland. It has its roots in the Celtic music of the Irish people who were brought to the island by the Celts in the 5th century BC. Irish traditional music is characterized by its use of the fiddle, accordion, penny whistle, and flute.

The Chieftains

The Chieftains are a traditional Irish band formed in Dublin in 1962, by Paddy Moloney, Sean Potts and Michael Tubridy. The band had their first major public performance at the Wedding of Princess Alexandra of Kent and Angus Ogilvy at Westminster Abbey on 29 April 1966. In the 1970s, they reached a mainstream audience outside Ireland with their work on The Simpsons TV show and with appearances in movies like The Big Country (1958), Barry Lyndon (1975) and Bogart (1957). In the 1980s, they toured with Paul Simon and appeared on his Graceland album. They have also collaborated with Van Morrison, The Rolling Stones, Roger Daltrey, Sting, Sinéad O’Connor and many others.

Planxty

Planxty is an Irish folk music band founded in the early 1970s, consisting of Christy Moore, Dónal Lunny, Andy Irvine, and Liam O’Flynn. The group is widely regarded as having been instrumental in the renaissance of Irish traditional music.

The band’s first album, Planxty (1973), was a major success and achieved platinum status in Ireland. It included “The Blacksmith”, which has become one of the most famous Irish folk songs. The band went on to record six more albums before disbanding in 1983. They reunited in October 2019 for a series of five concerts in Dublin’s National Concert Hall.

Discography:
-Planxty (1973)
-The Well Below the Valley (1973)
-Cold Blow and the Rainy Night (1974)
-After the Break (1979)
-Words and Music (1983)

The Bothy Band

The Bothy Band was a Irish traditional music band, founded in 1975 and fronted by Matt Molloy, piper with The Chieftains.

The group’s self-titled debut album was released in 1976 to critical acclaim, and their second album, Old Hag You Have Killed Me, is considered a cornerstone of Irish traditional music. The group disbanded in 1979, but have been credited with helping to revive Irish traditional music and inspiring a new generation of musicians.

Celtic Rock

Celtic Rock is a subgenre of rock music that developed in the 1970s in Ireland. Celtic rock artists incorporate traditional Irish and Celtic music with rock music. The genre emerged as a response to the growing popularity of Irish traditional music. Celtic rock bands often use traditional instruments such as the Irish bouzouki, tin whistle, and bagpipes in their music.

Horslips

Horslips are an Irish Celtic rock band formed in Dublin, Ireland in 1970. The band’s sound incorporated elements of traditional Irish music with rock and roll, and their live performances featured a light show as well as traditional Irish instruments such as the Uilleann pipes and bodhrán. Horslips are considered one of the most influential bands of the Celtic rock genre, and were one of the first to gain a large following outside of Ireland.

The band released their debut album, The Táin, in 1971, which was based on the ancient Irish epic poem Táin Bó Cúailnge. The album was a critical and commercial success in Ireland, and helped to launch the band’s career. They went on to release a string of successful albums throughout the 1970s, including The Book of Invasions (1973), Dancehall Sweethearts (1974), Drive the Cold Winter Away (1975), and alien (1979).

Horslips’ popularity began to wane in the early 1980s, due in part to changes in musical taste. The band broke up in 1982, but reunited for occasional live performances beginning in 2002. In 2006, they released their first new studio album in over 25 years, The Man Who Built America.

Horslips are widely considered to be one of the most important Irish rock bands of all time. They were inducted into the Irish Music Hall of Fame in 2013.

The Pogues

The Pogues were a Celtic punk band from London, formed in 1982 and fronted by Shane MacGowan. The band reached international prominence in the 1980s and early 1990s. MacGowan left the band in 1991 due to drinking problems but the band continued first with Joe Strummer and then with Spider Stacy on vocals before breaking up in 1996. The group reformed in late 2001, and played regularly across the UK and Ireland and on the US East Coast, until dissolving again in 2014.

The Pogues were one of the most influential bands of the Celtic rock genre. They mixed traditional Irish music with punk rock energy, attitude, and instrumentation. Their lyrical concerns ranged from nationalist anthems to purely personal songs about love, loss, partying, drinking, bets fighting, growing old, and death.

The Saw Doctors

The Saw Doctors are an Irish rock band. From their formation in 1986 to the present day, they have released thirteen studio albums, two live albums and thirty-six singles. Their music is a blend of rock and Celtic folk influences, with song subjects include love, poverty, unemployment, government hypocrisy and social injustice. The band’s membership has varied from album to album but has always included core members Davy Carton and Leo Moran. helped define what later came to be known as Celtic rock.

Contemporary Instrumentalists

Today’s Irish rock music scene owes a great deal to the instrumentalists who came before them. Many of the best Irish rock bands – such as U2, Snow Patrol, and The Cranberries – began their careers as instrumentalists before adding vocals. This list covers some of the best contemporary Irish instrumentalists, from traditionalists to those who are pushing the boundaries of the genre.

The Gloaming

The Gloaming is an Irish-American supergroup of sorts, made up of some of the most celebrated traditional Irish musicians today. Fiddler Martin Hayes, percussionist Caoimhín Ó Raghallaigh, Thomas Bartlett on piano, New York guitarist Dennis Cahill, and Iarla Ó Lionáird on sean-nós singing come together to make music that is at once deeply rooted in the Irish tradition and strikingly fresh.

Dervish

Formed in 1989 in County Sligo, Dervish are one of the most popular and enduring traditional Irish music bands of their generation. The band’s line-up has undergone several changes over the years, but the current members are Liam Kelly (flute), Shane Mitchell (accordion), Brian McDonagh (mandolin), Séamus O’Dowd (guitar) and Tom Morrow (fiddle).

Dervish’s music is firmly rooted in the Irish tradition, but they are not afraid to experiment and incorporate elements of other musical genres into their sound. They have released eleven studio albums to date, and their live shows are legendary. If you’re a fan of traditional Irish music, or just good music in general, you owe it to yourself to see Dervish live.

Solas

Solas is an Irish Celtic music group founded in 1994 by Samhain keyboardist Seamus Egan and singer/songwriter Winifred Horan. The group’s name is the Irish word for “light.” Solas has released eleven albums, of which nine have been nominated for Grammy Awards. The band has toured extensively throughout the United States, Canada, Europe, Australia, and Asia.

Solas features a wide range of instrumentation and styles within their music. Seamus Egan is a highly accomplished musician, playing guitar, bouzouki, mandolin, penny whistle, and Low Whistle. Winifred Horan’s beautiful voice and mastery of the fiddle are a perfect complement to Egan’s musical prowess. The rest of the band is equally as talented with Nadín Glave on flute and low whistle, Mick McAuley on accordion and concertina, Éamon O’Leary on guitar and bouzouki, and Shannon Lambert-Ryan on fiddle.

The band’s sound is fresh and exciting while still staying true to their Celtic roots. If you’re a fan of traditional Irish music or are just looking to broaden your musical horizons, Solas is a group that you definitely need to check out!