Parabox Media Group | Music | It's Entertainment!

Bio / Background:

Personnel: Brendan Monaghan (guitar, whistle, pipes, bodhran); Neil Byrne (guitar, background vocals); Ivan Gilliland (electric guitar); Dave Cooke (keyboards); Conor McCreanor (double bass, bass guitar); Declan O'Donoghue (drums, percussion); Mark Wilson (percussion). Recording information: Amberville Studios, County Antrim. Creator: Sharon Browne. Arrangers: Michael Keeney; Phil Coulter. Celtic Thunder's fourth studio album helps further distance the outfit from its traditional roots, swapping out the songs of its homeland for ballads from Neil Diamond and Peter Catera. Like 2009's Take Me Home, 2010's It's Entertainment has little fear of schmaltz, as evidenced by the inclusion of straight-up tear-pleading renditions of funeral hymn/American Idol audition standards like "Amazing Grace" and Leonard Cohen's ubiquitous "Hallelujah." That said, the lads have a lot of fun with material like "Surfer Medley" and "Doo Wacka Doo" -- say what you will about the heavily marketed, camera-ready Irish gentlemen, at least they don't take themselves too seriously. ~ James Christopher Monger