On at least two other occasions, we've celebrated St. Patrick's Day and the contribution of the Irish to American Popular song. Those prior issues were quite some time ago (March, 1988 and March, 1999). Since then, a lot has changed at Parlorsongs and we've acquired many more songs, our commentary has expanded and our music has improved (we hope you agree). So, after a three year absence, we thought it high time to bring back a bit o' the green and celebrate the Irish one more time.

As we said then, and it seems worth repeating now; "The Irish have always played a prominent part in and have made huge contributions to the music and culture of America. A major part of that contribution has been a large number of wonderful Irish ballads and songs about Ireland. The millions of Irish immigrants who have blessed our shores have not only brought wonderful values and a sense of humor but they have also brought music to us that is now as much a part of our society as it is of thier own. Celebrate these wonderful people and their music as we honor the patron Saint of Ireland and the Irish State's national Day this month.

IMPORTANT NOTICE: Sibelius have created an Active-X Scorch player that works with MSIE. In March we implemented the Active-X version and MSIE users who click on a scorch link or cover are automatically directed to a download and registration. Once done, you will not have to go through the download again and all MSIE users will have Scorch functionality. It will only take a minute and you'll be glad you did it! We hope you don't find it to be annoying.

Netscape and Opera users may continue to use the Scorch 2 plug-in player available from Sibelius at the Sibelius download site The Scorch player allows you to fully experience the music at our site. Scorch is a plug in for your browser (or an Active-x player) that will allow you to not only listen to our songs but to view the playing, real time on sheet music WITH LYRICS! Though we often find plug-ins to be annoying, this is one that we guarantee will be well worth the time to download and install. If you are not automatically directed to the Active-x version, download the Scorch player from Sibelius right now, then enjoy an astounding musical experience! The player is available for Mac and PC. Just click on the button below to go to the Sibelius site and get your free plug-in.

WEB-TV USERS! We know that the Scorch player will not work with WEB-TV and will continue to provide midi versions of our songs for you. For your added enjoyment we have now added viewable lyrics to our feature. Simply click the "Lyrics" link to see the full lyrics for the song you are listening to.

As with most of our features, this month's is covered on two separate pages to speed your downloads and to avoid a mile-long page. Be sure to see them BOTH to fully enjoy all of this month's music!