The Royalties Group -- sharing the wealth online!
Welcome and thank you for visiting. The Royalties Group is the place on Myspace where music, technology and philanthropy unite. This group will regularly feature artists who dedicate a portion of their royalties to charities and social causes. We'll tell you about these artists and the organizations they support, and we'll have their music available for you to listen to as well as interviews with them. The player on the right is what I'm calling our "Stream of Light" and every song on it is helping someone right now. So sit back, read, listen, join the discussions and the group if you care to, and most of all, enjoy.
To start the audio, select the track you want to hear or just hit play. |
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Culann’s Hounds: Trad with Passion
The Royalties Group is thrilled to introduce you to America's hottest traditional Irish band, San Francisco's Culann's Hounds. The Hounds are praised by music critics, revered by fellow Celtic and mainstream musicians like Blues Traveler's John Popper, and adored by their loyal fan base. They have heeded the Royalties Group's call to action and are donating 100 per cent of all proceeds of their previously unreleased track "The Blackthorn Tavern" to the National Veterans Foundation.
"Beyond politics we believe strongly that American citizens who fight in the name of their country deserve the thanks and support of the people they defend," Hound's founder Steve Gardner declares. His father as well as the father of singer and guitarist Mike Kelleher served in the U.S. Army. "We get to give our fans a chance to hear one of our favorite tunes while continuing our commitment to philanthropy. "
The Hound's tale began at Millennium's Dawn at The Blackthorn Tavern, the Bay Area venue affectionately known as the band’s "home" where it has played some 150 shows since. Right from the start Culann's Hounds began opening for Celtic music greats such as Solas, Martin Hayes, Liam Clancy, Lunasa, Paddy Keenan, The Boys of the Lough, Susan McKeown, Tempest and Seven Nations.
The four members of this self-described "punk-Irish-hoe down" are Steve Gardner (fiddle, vocals), Renee de la Prade (button accordion), Mike Kelleher (guitar, vocals, tin whistles) and Scott Marshall (bodhran). The Hound's musical virtuosity coupled with its zeal for punk-enthused trad caught the ears of the alert Celtic luminaries, many of whom have subsequently made guest appearances on the Hounds' two CDs, 2002’s "Culann’s Hounds" and 2006’s "Year of the Dog." Even its "competitors" can't help but admire the Hound's irrepressible spirit and musical prowess.
"I can't imagine that there's better traditional Irish music being played anywhere out on the left coast," says Denny McCarthy (All Ireland fiddle and whistle champion from NYC's Shilelagh Law). "As a musician who works in the Irish music scene in and around NYC I can honestly say that if these guys were around here I'd be out of work (or at least asking them for a job).”
Such an abundance of talent and enthusiasm occasionally leads to the circumstance of having more material than you know what to do with. That was the case with their latest CD "Year of the Dog" and "The Blackthorn Tavern."
"When we were recording the album, we wanted to kick back a little respect for letting us cut our teeth as musicians there, so we named that track after the bar," notes Gardner. "Unfortunately, that track got cut from the final version. I was dismayed, though I knew it was the right decision. It is every bit as good as anything on "Year of the Dog." In fact, Conall O’Raghallaigh’s pipe solo on the tune is one of my favorite moments of anything we have recorded."
And as any self-respecting Celtic music fan will tell you, an exceptional pipe solo should never be allowed to go to waste. And a true aficionado will recognize the four Irish Reels - "The Tempest," "Drag Her Around the Road," "Ormond Sound," and "The Virginia Reel" - which comprise "The Blackthorn Tavern." So, seven months after the CD's release, the Royalties Group is very proud to present this lovely and lively addition to the Culann canon. And the real joy is that fact that the 100 per cent of the proceeds are going to a most worthy cause, National Veterans Foundation.
"We think the services the NVF provides are incredibly important and we feel honored to be able to give something, most especially our heartfelt thanks, to American war veterans," says Gardner.
"The NVF is proud not only of its two decades of service to veterans and families in need, but of the willingness of so many musical artists, beginning with the Doobie Brothers Band in 1987, to join with us in serving for those who bear the true cost of freedom," said NVF President and Founder Shad Meshad. "Through their extraordinary efforts Culann's Hounds and the Royalties Group will raise much needed awareness and resources to support a proven support resource--our toll free national crisis hotline--at a time when it is needed most. Thank you, Thank you, Thank you!"
We are honored to do so. Here's where you can buy this rare track and support our troops. Or just use the Snocap player
(all proceeds go to the National Veterans Foundation)!
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To find out more about our other featured artist Peas, who is dedicating five per cent of the royalties from his CD "Filters" to the National MS Society, please visit my blog, where info about every artist who participates here will be archived.
This group would not be possible without the technical assistance and personal generosity of John at Skem9 (who has a great group code generator) and Private Pyro (who designs one of a kind players), and I thank them both Profusely for their expertise and for their patience.
And as some of you may have noticed, my group, Awakening Queen Maebh, is taking up a lot of space on the playlist. That's not because I'm such a megalomaniac, but rather because this group is just getting started. As new artists are featured here, their music will become part of the stream. But just so that you know, ten per cent of all sales of my music is donated to NICIE, a Belfast-based group who are contribuing to the ongoing Peace Process by funding integrated schools throughout Northern Ireland. Here's a video I made with students from one of those schools!
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If you'd like to buy the music you're listening to (and help NICIE), you can purchase it here via Snocap.
Or you can visit iTunes, Soundclick or Amazon You can also find out more on my profile page.
If you know of artists who donate a portion of their royalties to a good cause, please send them my way. The success of this group and project depends on your participation. It's my dearest wish and fervent belief that while were enjoying entertainment, we can also be helping one another.
Love and light,
Elizabeth
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Feb 2, 2009 8:45 PM
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NEW BULLETIN POST!
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NEW BULLETIN POST!
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NEW BULLETIN POST!
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NEW BULLETIN POST!
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NEW BULLETIN POST!
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