December 29, 2005 -
We're hard at work on a year end update of all of our artists.

Modern Bard now has listings for 407 artists and has 1,020 listed recordings!

     Artist News - Richard Follet, aka the Merrie Minstrel,
     Bedlam Bards has announced that he is retiring the
     Merrie Minstrel after 12 years of performances. 

     Recording News - Bedlam Bards have announced that
     their next album, On the Drift, is due in January.
     The CD is a collection of songs inspired by the TV series
     Firefly. 

     Recording News - The Gypsy Guerilla Band are planning
     a new album (tentatively entitled Ernie's Adventures
     II) to be recorded in 2006.

     Recording News - The Flying Fish Sailors have made
      their second album (now out of print) available for
      free download! You can find Remnant Stew here.

     Recording News - Eachdrach is at work on a new,
     currently unnamed, album. 

     Added new Artist - Asch, Carl
     Added new Artist - Awalim Dance Company
     Added new Artist - Broceliande
     Updated Artist - Bedlam Bards
     Updated Artist - Black Irish Band, the
     Updated Artist - Bounding Main
     Updated Artist - Black Irish Band, the
     Updated Artist - Farran, Celia
     Updated Artist Website - Cooper, Dustin
     Updated Artist Website - Cowles, Anne            
     Updated Artist Website - Dogwatch            
     Updated Artist Website - Follet, Rich            
     Updated Artist Website - Gaita            

December 28, 2005 -
The art for Circle is complete and the CD has been sent off for its first production run. With that done, we can finally announce the full CD lineup and track list. 22 artists and over an hour of music, one could say that we're all pretty excited about it. As a reminder, all profits from this CD are going to the Red Cross hurricane relief efforts.

01 - Rillian and the Doxie Chicks - Sam's Gone Away (trad.)
         from Get Down (Like an Anchor), www.rillianandthedoxiechicks.com
02 - Three Quarter Ale - (It was a) Lover and his Lass (trad.)
         from Three Quarter Ale, www.threequarterale.com
03 - Djilia Phralengo - Primavera (by Ernesto Villarreal)
         from Oracle, www.djiliaphralengo.com
04 - Brobdingnagian Bards - Lily the Pink (by McGear, McGough,  Gorman-Felicia)
         from Brobdingnagian Fairy Tales, www.thebards.net
05 - The Rogues - Pressed For Time (by Gordon Duncan & R.S. MacDonald)
         from RogueTrip, www.therogues.com
06 - 3 Pints Gone - Highland Paddy (trad.)
         from One More Round, www.3pintsgone.com
07 - Cantiga - Brandle Des Cevaux (trad.)
         from Martha's Dragon, www.cantigamusic.com
08 - The Cheshire Singers - The Boar's Head Carol (trad.)
         Previously unreleased, http://www.cheshiresingers.com/
09 - Bedlam Bards - Saint Brendan's Fair Isle (by Jimmy Driftwood)
         from Furious Fancies, www.bedlambards.com
10 - Dogs in Doublets - The Pirate Song (by Glen Risner)
         from Dogs in Doublets, http://www.dogsindoublets.com/
11 - Vash (featuring Kathryn Claire) - Madam I'm a Darlin (trad. arranged  by Vash)
         Previously unreleased, http://www.bodhranai.jackalpress.com/main.html
12 - Queen's Gambit - Johnny Jump Up (trad.)
         from Pawn to King Four, http://www.queens-gambit.com/
13 - The Bilge Pumps - The Dark Lady (by Ek Ong Kaar Kaur Khalsa)
         from Brigands with Big'uns, http://www.thebilgepumps.com/
14 - Marc Gunn & The Dubliners' Tabby Cats - Furagone's Wake
         (trad., lyrics by Marc Gunn)
         from Irish Drinking Songs for Cat Lovers,  www.catdrinkingsongs.com
15 - Howl-o - Wraggle Taggle Gypsies (trad.)
         from Where Legends Remain, www.howl-o.com
16 - E Muzeki - Unknown Gypsy Dance (trad.)
         from Sindh, www.emuzeki.com
17 - Empty Hats - The Night Visitor's Song (trad.)
         from Captured, www.emptyhats.com
18 - The Merry Wives Of Windsor - Devil and the Knight (by Stu Venable)
         from Here's to the Men, www.mwow.net
19 - Marooned - Haul Away Joe (trad.)
         from Marooned, www.marooned-lv.com
20 - The Muses - Maiden's Revenge (by Tanya Brody)
         from Passing Time, www.renaissancechic.com
21 - Fugli - Greensleeves (trad.)
         from On the Woad, http://povera.com/
22 - Seelie Court - Will the Circle Be Unbroken (trad.)
         Previously unreleased, http://www.seelie-court.com/

Great news, Modern Bard has moved to our permanent home on the web at ModernBard.org so be sure to change your links accordingly. We have taken teh time to go through and touch up the website to ensure that everything is nice, consistant, and working properly. Should you find anything broken, please notify us.

     Recording News - Featured artist, Djilia Phralengo has      informed us that his next album is due out early next     
     year.

     Recording News - Mallory & McCall spent a quiet            Christmas working on their CD, And Then We Wrote.      All the songs on the forthcoming album are originals or      near originals.  More news as we get it.

     Recording News - Tanya Brody has let us know that the      next album from the Muses is Passing Time. No release      date has reached us yet, but the track "Maiden's     
     Revenge" makes an appearance on the hurricane relief     
     CD Circle. 

December 16, 2005 -
We are in the final stretch on Circle, just waiting for the last of the album art to be completed. Stay tuned for more release information.

Some great news has reached us at Modern Bard! We have been actively involved in helping to track down the lost recordings of Charley MacGowan. Earlier this year we managed to find some of the recordings and were able to put Charley's son in touch with the person with those recordings. Now Kender is at work preparing to release a new album of Charley's work to be available sometime next year. This will rescue a number of Charley's previously unreleased tracks from oblivion and make them available to his fans. In addition to this, Kender has discovered a previously unknown album by charley and the band Middle Pillar (more details to follow). Our thanks go out to Kender for all of the work he's done to protect Charley's legacy. 

We have heard from Fugli that his CD's On the Woad and Il Est Né are both available for purchase as digital downloads. We applaud him for taking this step, as digital downloads never have to go out of print. 

Vash has been busy lately and has recorded some new tracks that can be heard at his Myspace site. For those unfamiliar with Vash, you'll be able to hear a prime example of his work on the Circle CD.  

Word has reached us that Mychael Wordsmythe's cassette has gone out of print, possibly for good. Should this change we will post word of where the recording might be available. Anyone with a copy of this recording (Mychael Wordsmythe's Story Tyme Lyve) that they are willing to part with are asked to contact us here at Modern Bard.  

Modern Bard now has listings for 404 artists and has 1,009 listed recordings!

     Added new Artist - O D Score
     Added new Artist - Vash
     Updated Artist - Bottle Alley Buskers, the
     Updated Artist - Bringers, the
     Updated Artist - Mychael Wordsmythe
     Updated Artist - Smee & Blogg

December 5, 2005 -
We're just waiting on the last few artists to sign off on the credits for the CD and we should be about ready to start production on Circle. Thanks to all of the talented artists who have contributed their time, effort, and music to this project.

Modern Bard now has listings for 402 artists and has 1,008 listed recordings!

     Added new Artist - Silverbranch
     Added new Artist - Wyldefyre
     Updated Artist - Bedlam

December 1, 2005 -
November was a busy and rather rough month for the Modern Bard crew. We were thrilled to meet with some of you at Gen Con and it was wonderful to add some new recordings to the archives. Of course we had to endure hotel fires, shootings, car accidents and quite a few other things in the meantime, so we are VERY behind on updates. We'll be taking care of that right now. 

Work on the Hurricane benefit CD "Circle" (drawing it's title from a contribution by Seelie Court) is almost complete. In the next few days we should be announcing the final lineup, track listings, and release date. Modern Bard would like to thank all of the artists who have contributed music for this project, several of whom went into the studio to record brand new songs specifically for release on "Circle". Modern Bard would also like to thank the continuing efforts of Brobdinagian Bard Marc Gunn (without who's efforts none of this would have been possible) and "Cavalaxis" for donating her time and creativity into providing the CD cover art for us.

Modern Bard now has listings for 400 artists and has 1,005 listed recordings!

     Recording News - Modern Bard and the Renaissance     
     Festival Podcast are pleased to announce the artist     
     lineup for "Circle", our Hurricane relief CD. They are     
     (in order of appearance): Rillian and the Doxie Chicks,     
     Three Quarter Ale, Djilia Phralengo, Brobdingnagian  
     Bards, The Rogues, 3 Pints Gone, Cantiga, The  
     Cheshire Singers, Bedlam Bards, Dogs in Doublets,  
     Vash (featuring  Kathryn Claire), Queen's Gambit, The 
     Bilge Pumps, Marc Gunn & The Dubliners' Tabby  
     Cats, Howl-o, E Muzeki, Empty Hats, The Merry  
     Wives of Windsor, Marooned, The Muses, Fugli, and  
     Seelie Court.

     The CD features new tracks by Seelie Court and Fugli     
     and is the CD debut of the Cheshire singers. Release      
     info should be announced shortly.

    Recording News - Smee & Blogg have released "Goodies       for O.D Score". Originally recorded in 1979, this is the     
     first time this recording has been available in a VERY     
     long time. We're thrilled to hear of this rerelease. The    
     CD is available for $15 + $1.50 S&H.

     Recording News - Mallory & McCall are offering     
     charter memberships in the "Let’s Get Mallory &     
     McCall’s CD Recorded" project. Charter members    
     will be entitled to receive a preview self-published,      
     guaranteed-home-made songbook (words and music)    
     for the upcoming CD, which has a working title of "And      Then We Wrote–And Rewrote." 

     This will be a collection of both original and adapted             songs they have written through the years. Originals will      include, among others, This is My Night to Howl (the            Werewolf’s song), Aces & Eights (the Death of James            Butler Hickock), and That Old Fashioned Mummy of            Mine (in honor of King Tut’s visits in 1978 and 2005). The      special material put together for their act by re-writing      old songs will include, among others, their versions of            The Derelict (15 Men on the Dead Man’s Chest), Wet            Pirate Bones (from Dry Bones), and Cats on the                  Rooftops-Catty Version. There is even a possibility of       some of Mallory’s evocative poetry. 

     Most of the songs are quirky, funny and just fun. Soon       (hopefully) the proto-CD will follow, and if you ask, you       will be given a free copy of both the booklet and the CD       when they happen. Charter membership in the                      LGM&McCDR Project is a minimum donation of $15.

     If you want to help the LGM&McCDR Project send a        check or money order payable to

Mallory Geller
 1649 South Hobart Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90006  

     Added new pages - News Archive
     Added new review - Get Down (Like an Anchor)
     Added new review - Opening Move - Take Two
     Added new review - Pawn to King Four 
     Updated Artist - Brody, Tanya
     Updated Artist - Klein, Kenny 
     Updated Artist - Mallory & McCal
     Updated Artist - Muses, the 
     Updated Artist - Rillian and the Doxie Chicks
     Updated Artist - Sailor's Dream
     Updated Artist - Smee & Blogg