Wishing for Her Man: Reeltime and "Siúil a Rún"

Today's random song is by Reeltime, an Irish quartet that brings percussive jazz guitar to traditional Irish music, with occasional touches of Texas swing and ragtime. Their 1995 debut garnered critical acclaim and Irish American News' praise as Best New Band and Best Female Vocalist for singer Mairin Fahy (who is also an All-Ireland award fiddle player. She played with the touring production of Riverdance, and joined The Chieftains on their 2007 tour, as well as creating her own show called Tara. Multi-instrumentalist, producer, engineer, and photographer Chris Kelly has also been part of many different compilations and has worked with many different groups. This song, Siúil a Rún, can be found on the 2005 compilation Celtic Wonder, and on Reeltime's self titled debut CD (1995).

Eat the Wings First: [dunkelbunt] with Raf MC and Fanfare Ciocarlia and "The Chocolate Butterfly"

Today's random tune is by Ulf Lindemann, who goes by the stage name [dunkelbunt]. A German freelance musician, producer, bandleader and DJ, he is considered a pioneer in the fusion of electronic music with South European music, klezmer, jazz and swing. He is joined by Tanzanian artist Raf MC and Fanfare Ciocarlia, a 12 person Roma brass band known for their rendition of Born to be Wild on the film Borat. You can find this song, The Chocolate Butterfly, on the CD The Balkan Club Night (2011).

Latin Shredder: Santana and "(Da Le) Yaleo"

A rock and roll legend and guitar lights up our random tune for today with some blistering solos. Carlos Santana is a Mexican-American musician whose band, Santana, pioneered the fusion of American rock and roll with Latin American music, highlighting Latin and African rhythms and instrumentation like timbales and congas. He started music in Mexico at five, learning violin and then guitar from his father, a mariachi musician, and he became very influenced by the music of Richie Valens, and blues artists like B.B. King, T-Bone Walker and John Lee Hooker. His guitar playing came to notice in 1966 when Paul Butterfield was unable to perform at the Fillmore West and Bill Graham was persuaded to ask Carlos Santana to fill in as guitarist with an impromptu band of musicians from Butterfield's band, the Grateful Dead and Jefferson Airplane. After forming the Santana Blues Band (later shortened to simply Santana), he quickly gained a following on the San Francisco music scene, and in 1969 gave a memorable performance at Woodstock which led to the band signing with Columbia Records. The band churned out such hits as Oye Como Va and Black Magic Woman as well as others over the next few years, but their popularity fell into decline over tensions within the group and a lot of changeover in musicians. The 1990s and beyond has brought Santana back into the limelight due to radio-friendly and more pop-oriented music, often in collaboration with many of the hit artists of newer generations. This song, (Da Le) Yaleo is from his 1999 album Supernatural, which won nine Grammy Awards.

Right to the Moon, Alice: Gaelic Storm and "Me and the Moon"

Me and the Moon is our song for today, performed by Gaelic Storm. Gaelic Storm. Gaelic Storm is an American Irish band formed in 1997 in Santa Monica, California. They play traditional Irish and Scottish music, as well as original music in the Celtic and Celtic rock genres. Gaelic Storm got a huge break in 1997 when they were cast as the steerage band in the blockbuster movie Titanic. They have burnished their resume by touring aggressively and adding new instrumentation to their ensemble, such as Uileann, Highland and Deger (electronic) bagpipes. Me and the Moon can be found on their 2006 album Bring Yer Wellies.

We Had a Yen: Ali Farka Touré and "Yenna"

Today's song, Yenna, is by the great Malian guitarist and singer Ali Farka Touré. Ali Farka Touré was a Malian singer, multi-instrumentalist and one of the most renowned African musicians. His music fits right into the intersection of traditional Malian music and North American blues. Known as the "African John Lee Hooker," he sang in several African languages, and was once ranked by a panel of critics for Rolling Stone magazine at number 76 of the 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time and was ranked by Spin Magazine in 2012 as number 37 on the 100 Greatest Guitar Players of All Time. In 2004, he became mayor of a small town and spent his own money on improving infrastructure. He died in 2006 of bone cancer.  Yenna can be found on his 1992 album The Source.

What a Way to Go: DeVotchKa and "Death by Blonde"

Today's random tune is by an American band based in Denver called DeVotchKa. A four piece ensemble, their name is derived from the Russian word for "girl." Their instrumentation, besides guitar, drums and bass can include theremin, bouzouki, accordion and sousaphone. DeVotchKa started as a backing band for burlesque shows, and in particular traveled with and backed noted burlesque performer Dita von Teese. During this time they were also self-releasing records and touring in support of them which earned them an underground following. The band was eventually picked by the directors of Little Miss Sunshine to score the film which earned them a Grammy nomination for best soundtrack. The band, while essentially a rock ensemble, incorporates a gypsy punk feel into many of its songs. This song, Death by Blonde, is on their 2003 CD Una Volta.

This Lassie Raises Red Flags: Tommy Makem & Liam Clancy with "In the Town of Ballybay"

A very happy New Year's to you! Today's song is by two legends of Irish music, Liam Clancy & Tommy Makem. Tommy Makem, who died in 2007, was a folk musician, artist, poet and storyteller known as the Bard of Armagh. Internationally acclaimed, he was a member of The Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem. A baritone, he played a number of instruments including 5 string banjo, tin whistle, low whistle, guitar, bodhrán and bagpipes. Liam Clancy, who died in 2009, was the youngest member of The Clancy Brothers. He was known for his powerful voice. Bob Dylan considered Clancy the greatest ballad singer ever and he was a hero to the young Dylan as he was learning his craft. He was a central figure in the folk revival of Europe and North America. This song, In the Town of Ballybay, can be found on The Makem and Clancy Collection (1980). There is storytelling at the beginning, and the actual song begins around 2:20.