"The Celtic Soul Brothers" (known as "The Celtic Soul Brothers (More Please)" on the album version) is a song written by

Mickey Billingham Mickey Billingham (also credited Micky Billingham) is an English Keyboard instrument, keyboardist. He was the former keyboardist of the pop rock band Dexys Midnight Runners. After the band broke up, he and another member, Andy "Stoker" Growcott, ...

, Jimmy Paterson and

Kevin Rowland Kevin Rowland (born 17 August 1953) is a British singer and musician best known as the frontman for the pop band Dexys Midnight Runners (currently called ''Dexys''). The band had several hits in the early 1980s, the most notable being "Geno" an ...

of Dexys Midnight Runners.

Background

"The Celtic Soul Brothers" was first released by the band in March 1982 as a single and was also the first song on the band's 1982 album '' Too-Rye-Ay''. The song was the first song recorded and released by the revamped Dexys Midnight Runners' lineup, which added

fiddle A fiddle is a bowed string musical instrument, most often a violin. It is a colloquial term for the violin, used by players in all genres, including classical music. Although in many cases violins and fiddles are essentially synonymous, th ...

players Helen O'Hara, Steve Brennan and Roger MacDuff and

bassist A bassist (also known as a bass player or bass guitarist) is a musician who plays a Bass (instrument), bass instrument such as a double bass (upright bass, contrabass, wood bass), bass guitar (electric bass, acoustic bass), synthbass, keyboar ...

Giorgio Kilkenny. Reflecting the revised lineup, the song's instruments feature

mandolin A mandolin ( it, mandolino ; literally "small mandola") is a stringed musical instrument in the lute family and is generally plucked with a pick. It most commonly has four courses of doubled strings tuned in unison, thus giving a total of 8 ...

s and

violin The violin, sometimes known as a ''fiddle'', is a wooden chordophone (string instrument) in the violin family. Most violins have a hollow wooden body. It is the smallest and thus highest-pitched instrument (soprano) in the family in regular ...

s rather than the horn

fanfare A fanfare (or fanfarade or flourish) is a short musical flourish which is typically played by trumpets, French horns or other brass instruments, often accompanied by percussion. It is a "brief improvised introduction to an instrumental perfo ...

s featured in the group's earlier work. The song was inspired by 1960s

soul music Soul music is a popular music genre that originated in the African American community throughout the United States in the late 1950s and early 1960s. It has its roots in African-American gospel music and rhythm and blues. Soul music became po ...

, and co-writer Billingham has stated that

The Whispers The Whispers is an American group from Los Angeles, California, who have scored hit records since the late 1960s. They are best known for their two number one R&B singles, " And the Beat Goes On" in 1980 and "Rock Steady" in 1987. The Whispers ...

' song "Needle in a Haystack" was a particular influence, accounting for "The Celtic Soul Brothers'" unusual melody. Co-writer and Dexys Midnight Runners' lead singer Rowland has stated that the song was about him and Dexys'

trombone The trombone (german: Posaune, Italian, French: ''trombone'') is a musical instrument in the Brass instrument, brass family. As with all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player's vibrating lips cause the Standing wave, air column ...

player Paterson; Rowland being Irish and Paterson being Scottish. Rowland also stated the song expresses his devotion to the band. Author Richard White calls the song "a stand aside, effervescent statement." Critic Ned Raggett of

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

referred to the song as a highlight of ''Too-Rye-Ay''.

Ira Robbins ''Trouser Press'' was a rock and roll magazine started in New York in 1974 as a mimeographed fanzine by editor/publisher Ira Robbins, fellow fan of the Who Dave Schulps and Karen Rose under the name "Trans-Oceanic Trouser Press" (a reference ...

of ''

Trouser Press ''Trouser Press'' was a rock and roll magazine started in New York in 1974 as a mimeographed fanzine by editor/publisher Ira Robbins, fellow fan of the Who Dave Schulps and Karen Rose under the name "Trans-Oceanic Trouser Press" (a reference to ...

'' refers to the song as "jolly, rollicking jug band fare." Author Simon Reynolds called the song "a manifesto of a single." Julie Burchill of ''

New Musical Express ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...

'' remarked that although the song is intended to sound ethnically

Celtic Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to: Language and ethnicity *pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia **Celts (modern) *Celtic languages **Proto-Celtic language * Celtic music *Celtic nations Sports Fo ...

, it sounds more like a " Redcoat romp." Author

Maury Dean Maury Dean is an American musician, author and professor at Suffolk County Community College, whose book "The Rock Revolution" is in the Rock N' Roll Hall of Fame and the Smithsonian. Music Dean taught a "History of Rock N' Roll" course as well ...

claims that this song was an inspiration for Roddy Doyle's 1987 novel '' The Commitments'', which was later made into a 1991 film by the same title.

Personnel

* Seb Shelton – drums *Giorgio Kilkenny – bass guitar *Big Jimmy Paterson – trombone *

– organ and piano *

Paul Speare Paul George Speare (born 10 December 1955) is an English freelance saxophonist and flute player, formerly a member of Dexys Midnight Runners and The TKO Horns. He was born to Reginald and Julia Speare in Romford, Essex. He attended Dagenham Co ...

– tenor saxophone *Billy Adams – guitar *Brian Maurice – alto sax *

– vocals

"The Emerald Express"

* Helen O’Hara – violin *Steve Brennan – violin

Chart performance

It reached #45 in the UK on its initial release, and #20 in the UK and #86 in the US when re-released in March 1983. The song also reached #13 on the Irish charts.

Performances in other media

*When the band appeared as musical guests on ''

Saturday Night Live ''Saturday Night Live'' (often abbreviated to ''SNL'') is an American late-night live television sketch comedy and variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC and Peacock. Michaels currently serves a ...

'' after the release of " Come On Eileen", this song was their second-half performance. *It has also been included on a number of Dexys Midnight Runners' compilation albums, including '' The Very Best of Dexys Midnight Runners'', ''Because of You'', '' Let's Make This Precious: The Best of Dexys Midnight Runners'' and ''20th Century Masters: The Best of Dexy's Midnight Runners''. *A live version of the song, recorded shortly after the single release, is included on '' BBC Radio One Live in Concert''.

Popular culture

*"The Celtic Soul Brothers" was included on the soundtrack of the 1983 movie ''

Breathless Breathless may refer to: Aircraft *Paradelta Breathless, an Italian paraglider design Film and television * Breathless (1960 film), ''Breathless'' (1960 film) (''À bout de souffle''), a French film directed by Jean-Luc Godard * Breathless (1982 ...

'' starring Richard Gere.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Celtic Soul Brothers 1982 songs 1982 singles 1983 singles Dexys Midnight Runners songs Music videos directed by Steve Barron Mercury Records singles Songs written by Kevin Rowland Song recordings produced by Clive Langer Song recordings produced by Alan Winstanley