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Nuevo Celtic Duo: Willson & McKee

What happens to traditional music when it settles comfortably in the west?
Curiously untamed since 1990... they simply don’t fit the traditional Celtic mold! Traditional songs are re-worked to a contemporary shine and a drop of the ancient is added to the originals. The fine line between the centuries takes advantage of tight harmonies, unusual instrumentation, stories and fun, reflecting the moods of their life in the Rocky Mountains… let’s just say this is not your Grandfather’s Irish music, or sloshing pub music, or simple folk tunes! Intelligent, thought provoking, fun, soulful! What good music should BE!!

 


Our music is a great mix of Original and tradional...Real Music for Real People...We are looking for people wishing to get rare and great music that is not on the radio. 

Tired of Top 40?  Try Willson & McKee

Listen and Order Here
 
Click on the Album Covers to see a larger picture and songlists
        
This Thin Place

  This CD is  mixed with Instrumentals and Vocals

  Has The 2nd Place Song "Agahadoe"

(Milwaukee Irish Fest 05)

       DETAILS

This album features two-second place song contest winners from the Milwaukee Irish Festival “New Irish Song” contest. The title “This Thin Place” comes from one a line in one of the winning songs: “Aghadoe”, about the comfort of a gravedigger singing to and caring for his “thin place,” where the distance between worlds is very small.

The other second place song is “Silkworm’s Flight”.

The duo’s mix of sophisticated and poetic lyrics, delivered with diverse instrumentation and great vocal blend, really connects with audiences. McKee’s lyrics are traditional with a modern swirl and exciting dashes of fresh ideas and precision delivery.

Guest musicians on this outing include Montana cellist Janet Haarvig and fiddler
Al Cantrell of the Cantrells. Pat Japenga is featured on Irish flute and daughter Darci adds harmonies to several tracks. The many instruments Willson & McKee command include accordion, bass, bodhran, bouzouki, guitar, hammer dulcimer, keyboards and would you believe, cake pan?

… another rewarding collection!!!

Scott Prinzing, Lively Times

One Lone Rowan Tree :  (All ballads)  2004

"Another duo that does and outstanding job with harmonious narratives is Willson & Mckee.  On One Lone Rowan Tree, Colorado-based singers and multi-instrumentalists Ken Willson and Kim Mckee are joined by a half-dozen guest musicians for a set of richly arranged story songs, mostly of the quiet contemplative sort, many of them originals in traditional Celtic ballad style.  They do a lovely, slow version of "Scarborough Settler's Lament" that captures the wistful loneliness of the lyrics with a delicate cello and guitar accompaniment, and Padraig Buckley's uillean pipes add a lush buzz to a number of tracks, like "Last Trip Home," a moody evocative picture of changing times on a western farm.  The disc's title song is a haunting picture of the anonymous graves once reserved in Ireland for those who had run afoul of the Catholic Church. 

--Tom Nelligan,  Dirty Linen Magazine
When the Notes Dance:    (all instrumentals)  2003

“ Superb mountain and hammer dulcimer! Easy to hear why she’s a champion! A healthy dose of original material, that varies from sprightly to expressive, with stellar support from Ken’s guitar and bouzouki!”
                                                                                                           
                                                                                        Dulcimer Players News
Passed by Here:   (vocals & instrumentals) 2001

“ Singers and multi-instrumentalists Willson & McKee combine smooth harmony vocals, luscious hammered and Appalachian dulcimer, bouzouki, harp, and guitars to create one of the better duo albums I’ve heard!”
                                                             
                                                         Tom Nelligan-Dirty Linen, Apr/May 2002

Strung Tight and Played Loose:   (instrumentals & vocals)  1997                                                                                                                                                                  

“ Great traditional material and contemporary writers. Both have enjoyable voices, instruments are well played, arrangements are nicely varied. An enjoyable recording!”
                                                                          Jle-Dirty Linen, Oct/Nov 1998
The Pattern: (instrumentals & vocals)  1995

“ A pretty collection of tunes and songs of diverse origin, traditional and contemporary. Both Willson & McKee have clear sweet voices, and apply them to some lovely songs. They are both accomplished and versatile musicians who make the most of their palate. In all, an impressive and expressive disc!”
                                                                
                                                         Steve Winick-Dirty Linen, Apr/May 1996
Farther Down the Road: (instrumentals & Vocals)  1993 (out of print)

Willson & McKee’s first recording, from 1993. Only my mother’s review has survived the years… “GREAT”!
                                                                                                         Mom, 1993

Celtic Cowboy Christmas Concert:  (instrumentals & vocals)  2002

This is a great CD, done with our good buddies the Dublin Gulch Band from Butte Montana and a few additional players as well as Irish Dancers! Lots of fun!!   The   "Cowboys 12 days of Christmas" is legendary.