MUSIC OF THE ISLES; a new weekly show each Saturday
LISTEN On Demand to current show ‘anyday-anytime’ at wmnf.org/isles
CELTIC MUSIC & More, ancient to modern, with co-hosts Bill Dudley & Seán Sexton.
The best of traditional folk & contemporary songwriting from Ireland, Scotland, Wales, and England… Eclectic Celtic across the spectrum of the evolving genre– new releases & classics, tunes & ballads; history & culture! Broadcasting since 1979 on WMNF Tampa Community Radio.
Don’t miss each new show of TRAD & Neo-folk! Listen to the weekly archive anytime.
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Support volunteer-based, not-for-profit, commercial-free WMNF Tampa Community Conscience Radio by becoming a Monthly Sustaining Member; designate your donation to Music of the Isles by joining the “Celtic” CIRCLE OF FRIENDS
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EXPLORE Playlists– scroll up & down the playlist feed below the Listen On Demand Player for present & past shows.
Playlists indicate song & album title, artist, release date, country of origin, band members, & songwriting credit.
What’s Coming Up on MUSIC OF THE ISLES?
CALENDAR — Upcoming on Music of the Isles — Spotlighting:
11/25. For Thanksgiving festivities, our show this week we have a full program of compositions by Turlough O’Carolan, blind, itinerant harper (1670-1738). Enjoy the harp music with your Thanksgiving meal. It’s our way of saying thanks for all the warm support you’ve given our show.
12/2. We’ll be touring this week the Celtic lands of Ireland, Scotland, Isle of Man, Wales, Cornwall, & Brittany. We’ll be playing songs both in the English language and in the native Gaelic.
12/9. This week we’re keeping in mind that many of our listeners stream the show late in the evening. The December nights are growing longer upon us, and you’ll notice too so are the songs in our sets this week. Stretch back and enjoy some long songs to get you through the approaching long nights.
12/16. For our show this week, we’ll be celebrating Billy Bragg’s 65th birthday (b. Dec 20, 1957). Billy a composer of love songs and protest songs is a great English folkie, who also sings traditional songs. In our program we’ll hear releases from Billy’s catalogue, as well as Celtic artists covering his songs.
12/23. This week is our Christmas Special. We’ll be spotlighting songs of the Social justice Jesus. Peace be with You and Yours this Holiday season. And thank you for the gift of your support for this show.
12/30. We bring you this week ‘MOTI’s Best of 2023 Releases’. We’ve enjoyed bringing you great Celtic music this year. We’ve appreciated all your support in 2023. Your dedication keeps the show rolling, and we look forward to bringing you more great music in 2024. We wish you a Happy New Year!
Since growing up in Cleveland (the Home of Rock and Roll) Bill Dudley has spent a lifetime in radio, beginning in his high school years, which coincided with the Great American Folk Scare. After starting out part time at a tiny little FM station in New Jersey, he became active in campus radio in upstate New York before moving to Florida in the 1960s. After working at a number of stations in the Tampa Bay Area, he was fired from his last commercial job (a country music station) just a few months after WMNF went on the air, which could be seen as some kind of omen. Started in late 1979 by station staffer Cameron Hendrix, the Music of the Isles Show was given to Bill in early 1980, along with a daytime Big Band and Swing program (later supplanted by the Live Music Showcase in 1996.) Along the way Bill founded the first Irish traditional band in Florida, the Wind That Shakes the Barley. Since the eighties he has made a living recording acoustic music albums for folks in Florida and other states, as well as producing radio documentaries for the Florida Humanities Council, and, more recently, promotional and documentary video. Bill also plays guitar in several Contra Dance bands, of which three have toured as far north as New England. An outdoorsy guy, Bill has a love of history, the old ways and traditions, and "hippie values." You can check out some of his work on the web at billdudley.com.
Seán Sexton, co-host Music of the Isles, 2000 to present, is a retired English teacher. He received his MA degree in the Creative Writing of Poetry while residing in Ireland. He holds both an Irish passport and a US passport.
