<a id="aptureLink_Y5lk92yGQd" style="float: left; padding: 0 6px;" href="http://apture.s3.amazonaws.com/0000012750722c8a1c156ccd007f000000000001.%2820091012%29International_Sensation%2C_Celtic_Woman_Singing_Group_Signs_Treaty.jpg"><img class="alignleft" style="border: 0 none; margin: 8px;" title="Celtic Woman" src="http://apture.s3.amazonaws.com/0000012750722c8a1c156ccd007f000000000001.%2820091012%29International_Sensation%2C_Celtic_Woman_Singing_Group_Signs_Treaty.jpg" alt="Celtic Woman" width="250" height="250" /></a>I've been a lover of music for a long time. People who know me best are those who know I was raised on <span class="removed_link" title="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X_rCiY3SgRQ">Neil Diamond</span>, <a id="aptureLink_GuldzGh4cA" href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HkGS263lGsQ">John Denver</a>, and <span class="removed_link" title="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=znEePD1nJxo">Sousa</span> marches. In regards to my own tastes growing up, I wasn't like most of my school friends. Instead of listening to pop sounds of my youth in the 1980s and 90s, I became lost in the classic sounds of Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald and, later on, doo-wop. I recall nights with my boom-box on my bed, right next to my ear... and falling asleep to "Doo-Wop Sunday Nights" on Denver's KXKL-FM.

And, as an adult in my thirties, nothing's changed.

Enter the ever-powerful Celtic Woman.

Are you familiar with <a id="aptureLink_YX4hnBgN3N" href="http://www.celticwoman.com/">Celtic Woman</a>? In short, it's a musical group of five women: Chloë Agnew, Lynn Hilary, Lisa Kelly, Máiréad Nesbitt and Alex Sharpe. And, as luck may have it, I was recently privileged to review the group's latest CD and then see them performing in New York City at <a id="aptureLink_Hw6v6bbW6j" href="http://www.radiocity.com/">Radio City Music Hall</a>.

[I almost missed the show, due to a massive snowstorm that broke through the area the day before which meant getting in an out of the city would likely be difficult. I called the theatre to see if they would reschedule the show; even though they acknowledged the snow, the show was to go on.]

As a viewer of the PBS special, I felt confident going in that the performance at Radio City would be just as good, if not better. My mom joined me as we sat down in our seats, which were perfectly aligned with center stage, and watched the "magic" unfold.

Okay, dream sequence over.

The venue itself was fabulous, but the production was a little overwhelming for me. Each piece was superb on its own but, put together, it was too loud and too flashy. In fact, I'm still trying to figure out if Máiréad was actually playing the fiddle while she was flitting around the stage.

The singing was lovely, but what really stole the show for me was the bagpipers. Holy moley, were those guys good! And, I'll concede with other reviewers who have complimented the percussionists enthusiasm and vigor.

That being said, while I am grateful for the opportunity to experience going into the city and my first show at Radio City, and although these girls have been wildly popular for many tours, I would encourage people to really think about spending their hard-earned money on this show.

I would have just stuck with the CD.

<em>I was provided with a CD and two tickets to the NYC show at Radio City Music Hall in exchange for a review.</em>