Growing up, I always felt that I was wise beyond my age. But over the last five years, maybe even ten, I feel like my age has surpassed my wisdom.

I'm not sure why I mention it. But tonight, I was invited to a Shamanic Meetup by a friend. I had no Halloween plans and thought this might be an interesting experience. So I went. And it was.

In some ways, it reminded me of my yoga experiences except with a little bit more ceremony. Well, unless you consider yogic positioning to be ceremony. Maybe I should say, external ceremony. I think of yoga as very internal. I don't use props. I just use my body and my experience to do as I need. That, in turn, helps my mind to focus on meditation.

The Shamanic Journey was a similar with less body manipulation. Instead, a drum cadence helps to guide the mind into meditation. Once there, it's not about just meditating... or maybe it feels different, it's about exploration of choices and goals and the universe or whatever.

Personally, I didn't really feel like I went on a journey. But I did feel like my mind and soul worked on some issues I've been thinking about of recent. It was rather peaceful and mentally stimulating. I had more feelings than visualizations like others had. The only visual I had were some bright lights amidst blackness, weaving and interlacing among it, sorta like a web. But more like a reverse shadow of perhaps a hammock.

Significance? Who knows? But I certainly feel a bit more centered, which is not how I've felt much over the past week or two.

I've been racing around trying to figure out what to do with my cats, manage the fraud that nearly crippled us, make my home a home, and just do the everyday things I gotta do. Focus has not been my specialty. And it doesn't help that I haven't been to Yoga in a couple weeks either.

Now I'm back. Tomorrow, I go to the dentist. I will try to bring my Renaissance Festival Podcast compilation CD to a close and try to start the second half of that compilation idea. Friday, I drive to Louisiana for the first weekend of the Louisiana Renaissance Festival. Then back to Austin to spend more time with my kitties and try to complete a few more projects before I disappear to Louisiana again.

Then I have planning for a bardic New Years celebration and maybe a gig in Germany. Yes, I finally have a confirmation. My mother is flying me to Germany for Christmas. So plans there? And then there's those other future plans. Will I move? How will I fulfill my life goals.

There's much on my mind. But at least my path seems a little clearer.

I have a lot of projects on my mind. Yes, a LOT! Most recently, I've been working on some compilation CDs to be released on my label, Mage Records. I also have a bunch of new compilations planned. So I thought I'd use this page to list compilations currently completed and those in progress or planned for the future.

In-Progress Compilations:
These compilations are currently in production. If you want to be a part of the compilation, you need to contact me ASAP. They will soon be complete.

Renaissance Festival Podcast
This compilation evolved out of a need to raise funds to support the Renaissance Festival Podcast. It features 20+ tracks of music and entertainment from bands and musicians performing at Renaissance Festivals. It's like an episode of the podcast without all the talking.


Compilations Under Consideration:
These compilations are not yet underway, but feel free to submit music for the compilation. Please specify which on you are interested in being a part of.

What Color Is Your Dragon?
This isn't exactly a compilation CD. It's another Renaissance festival CD by Marc Gunn with several guest tracks from a number of fantastic faire musicians.

Celtic Beatles
This is an aggressive CD idea I've had for a number of years. Celtic-styled covers of Beatles songs.

Celtic Drinking Songs
Another in a long line of CDs about Irish Drinking Songs.

I'm Seasick!
Okay. That's not the real name of the CD. But this is a CD of seafaring and pirate songs and music.


Past Compilations:
All of these compilations are currently available for sale.

Victims of Irish Music
Born from the struggle to keep acoustic Irish music alive and relevant, "Victims of Irish Music" gathers the finest independent Celtic musicians who are winning the fight to keep instrumental Irish and Celtic music as vibrant and meaningful as it was when musicians in Ireland were victimized for their love of music.

The Holy Grail of Irish Drinking Songs
Marc drinks. Andrew drives. This partnership has led to one of the most-productive Celtic music groups in Texas. Though one half of the Brobdingnagian Bards does not drink, this doesn't stop the duo from having a lot of fun singing their favorite Irish Drinking Songs. You don't have to drink alcohol to enjoy this fun compilation of the Brobdingnagian Bards most-popular songs about drinking.

Digital Flashbacks by Celtic Stone
Legendary Celtic music from the Renaissance Festival circuit in the 1980s. High-energy combination of traditional Celtic and American music with rock and jazz influences. This is a compilation of Celtic Stone music before they broke up.

The Circle
Love Renaissance festivals? Want to help victims of Hurricane Katrina? Now you can do both with The Circle, a new compilation CD featuring some of the best Renaissance festival entertainment in the nation. 100% of the profits go to the Red Cross for hurricane relief. Do your part AND get some great music.

A Celtic Renaissance Wedding
Celtic Wedding Music Compilation features our most-romantic songs on one CD and at one LOW price. A continual best-selling CD and exclusively available online. This Celtic Wedding Music Compilation features our most-romantic songs on one CD and at one LOW price!

The Secret World of Celtic Rock
Did you enjoy music cheaper than a meal at McDonalds? You ain't heard nothing yet... The Secret World of Celtic Rock pays tribute to the incredible sub-genre of Celtic music called "Celtic Rock." With well over an hour of great music, this CD is packed full of some of the best independent Celtic Rock groups around the world, and 100% of the profits of this album benefit Celtic non-profits. Shhh! Don't tell anyone... It's a secret!

Coventina's Well
The second Celtic MP3s Music Magazine compilation CD featuring twelve hand-picked Celtic music tracks by some of my favorite artists.

I just got back from a day trip to the Texas Renaissance Festival. I miss that faire. It's my last "home" faire since Excalibur Fantasy Faire went kaput a couple years ago. The faire was packed too. The decrease in attendance from last year was no where to be seen this year--thirty thousand people. I brought out my autoharp and played a wee bit in the lanes. But aside from being a crappy busker, it was tough to be heard. But I had a few gem moments playing for individuals and of course seeing many friends. Though there are a ton that I missed too, including all the Browncoats who met there today.

And next weekend, we begin our six week run at the Louisiana Renaissance Festival. I can't to get back there. That's another wonderful faire with absolutely brilliant people! Yay!

I want to thank everyone who came out to the Space Madness event at Elysium. It turned out surprisingly well considering the idea came together a little over a week ago. There were a lot of folks dressed in costume from a Star Trek ensign to Poison Ivy. Mmm...

It was way cool fun. And for playing solo, it was ideal circumstances, meaning the fog machine was pretty heavy for most of my set so I couldn't see the audience. hehe. Normally, I like seeing the audience, but when I'm playing solo and even playing a new song, I think I like not seeing anyone. LOL. So yeah, it went well. Hopefully, the recording of it came out okay as well.

Nevertheless, the audience was really enthusiastic, and I had a great time, both playing music and listening to DJ Boba Fett spin geeky tunes.

Oh! And I did debut my new song, "Don't Go Drinking With Hobbits". Despite problems remembering lyrics, it was fairly well received. WOOT!

Here's the set list:

1. The Mining Ship the Red Dwarf
2. Jedi Drinking Song Prequel
3. A Rabbit for Halloween
4. The Psychopathic Chronic, Schizophrenic Gollum Blues
5. Don't Go Drinking with Hobbits
6. She Said Her Name Was Saffron
7. Hero of Canton
8. Angel's Lament
9. Harry Potter and the Rising of the Moon
10. Middle Earth Bragging Song
11. Jedi Drinking Song

So when will we be back at Elysium? I don't know yet. John was looking for some sort of Celtic holiday to host an event with Celtic groups. I threw out the Bedlam Bards as a group that I thought would go over well there with us. But a date? Boh? Maybe Twelfth Night? I wonder how that'd go?

Anyway, off to a late start to Texas Ren Fest tomorrow.

I seemed to have not placed a time for tonight's Space Madness: Sci-fi/Fantasy Friday at Elysium! The doors at Elysium don't open until 9:30pm. I don't know what time I go on. But I expect it is around 11pm or so... Maybe midnight....

Oh and if I can pull it off, I'm thinking about performing a new song, "Don't Go Drinking with Hobbits". I'll see how brave I feel when I get on stage.

Jen Clower-Brown (who designed the back cover of Brobdingnagian Fairy Tales) added more artwork to her Cafepress. You can check out the art now.

I've added a new design to my online shop, perfect for the upcoming holidays!
There are ornaments, cards, and other goodies available - stock up now!

http://www.cafepress.com/adragonseye/3887239





ALSO: I have two auctions on eBay ending this week. Lovely jewelry!
One is a hematite strand necklace (very lovely in appearance, and a powerful stone!), and the other is a vintage necklace that was left to me by my mother's aunt who had an affinity for really great costume jewelry.

The item numbers are as listed below, and you can simply copy / paste each item number into the search field at http://www.ebay.com and you will be taken to the listing(s)

Beaded Hematite necklace
Item number: 180172009189

Vintage blue, two-tone / two strand beaded choker
Item number: 180172075594

Let me start by saying how much I appreciate EVERYONE who's written their sympathies, support and hugs. Wow! Ya'll are amazing! While I wanted to warn other musicians, I never dreamed we would get THIS MUCH support. THANK YOU!

Tons of people got the word out about our distress and these internet scammers in LJs, Myspace, Blogs and websites. The FuMP (The Funny Music Project) took a HUGE stand passing around the word. A HUGE thanks to Tom Smith, Sudden Death and Rob Balder! Ya'll are Amazing!

Ren Radio and Wander Radio put the word out on the netwaves. Rennies and even some music groups showered us with emails and phone calls. And the Nagians went above and beyond the call of duty with hundreds of dollars of donations and pledges, some asking Nothing in Return. Wow! Wow! And Wow!

I haven't done the full calculations today, but I'm fairly certain we are now back in the black. So THANK YOU! THANK YOU THANK YOU!!!!

I am so very grateful to everyone who donated their money and energy to spreading the word about this scam. I think we Really Got the word out. I heard four other Celtic groups were contacted with the same offer and narrowly missed out on losing thousands of dollars too. Your efforts have worked. And I'm leaving open http://www.marcgunn.com/fraud/ to hopefully warn others about the dangers of internet scams. Feel free to post your stories and suggestions there as well.

All that said, I don't think we even went through all 30 DVDs that we offered to release. So my thought was to leave the donation button open just a little bit longer, at least until those 30 DVDs are gone, and donate all the surplus to a non-profit.

Do any of you know of any non-profits who help folks scammed like us? if so, please let me know.

Again, thank you a million times over. Your support in this stressful time was overwhelming. Thank you.

So this is for our musician friends:

I'm miserable right now, and $2500 poorer. My band was the subject of internet fraud.

So rather than totally wallow in my own misery, I want to educate you on how it happened and how You can avoid this same problem. Because Your band may be next.

In September, we go an email for a wedding gig from "Pitt Andre". They found us through our wedding website. It was a little difficult for Andrew to work out the details with the folks getting "married". But we negotiated payment--$1500. And we would drive to Oklahoma.

We ask for a non-refundable 50% up front. So we waited and contacted and followed up with them to get payment. Finally they sent a check... for $2500. Then they called and told us their accountant sent the wrong amount. Could we send them the back the difference?

Sure, once the check clears. But before that happened. They canceled the wedding. The mother-in-law had a heart attack. They were pissed. They asked if they could have back the non-refundable money. We agreed. And after three days, the check seemed to have cleared. And Andrew sent money back via a Moneygram.

Today, five business days after the initial deposit, the check bounced. A little research revealed this is a typical scam.

So what are the lessons to be learned?

1. Even in this day and age, it can take 7-10 days for a check to clear.
2. NEVER send money back hastily. If they are that urgent to have their money, then tough luck.
3. Even YOU can be scammed by something this stupid. So be on your guard. Lean on the side of caution to avoid losing big money.
   

Now time to wallow in my own broke misery...

And if you care to help us recover from this financial hit, we are accepting donations.

Yes, folks, it Elysium's first ever Sci-fi/Fantasy event! A night of music from/inspired by all your favorite Sci-fi/Fantasy movies & TV shows. Featuring a live music set from the Brobdingnagian Bards (well, one of them at least), dance music from DJ Boba Fett, and a costume contest at midnight. Think Star Wars, Star Trek, Lord of the Rings, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, Battlestar Galactica, FarScape, Stargate, Doctor Who, Harry Potter, Dungeons & Dragons, Flash Gordon, Space 1999, Buck Rogers, Andromeda, and so on. All aliens, demons, faeries, princesses, Starfleet personnel and nerfherders welcome! But, ABSOLUTELY NO F@*%ING CLOWNS ALLOWED! SERIOUSLY!

Time: Doors open 9:30pm
Location: 705 Red River
City: Austin, TX 78705
Phone #: 512.478.2979
Age: Must be 21 or older to attend.
Website: www.elysiumonline.net

I'm finally reviewing the Ren Fest Podcast CD I was hoping to put together. As I was looking through the tracks of my own and those from others, I realized I had about enough music for two CDs. So depending on how the mixing goes for my own tracks. I might just go ahead and release those albums simultaneously.

However, if I am to do that, I'll need a few more submissions from bands. If you are interested in being on a compilation CD, email me marc @ thebards.net with REN_FEST_PODCAST_COMPILATION in the subject. And I will tell you more.

Thanks. Slainte!
-Marc

A little catchup. Indie rockers, Radiohead, known for songs like "Creep" and "Karma Police", ditched their record label and recorded their new album. They decided to release it exclusively through their website. Here were their options:

1. Buy a box set for 40 pounds which included vinyl records, a CD and artwork, or
   
   
2. Make a donation and you can have the album for free as a high-quality download.

The band got a helluva lot of publicity from this promotion. Bands and marketers were buzzing for the last couple o'weeks. One week after the official release of the album and the results are in. The band sold 1.2 million albums. At an average of $8 per album sold, they made a gross profit of over $10 million dollars. Wow! That's amazing!

So what does all this mean? Is it the end of paying for music forever as some assume?

Hardly. Bob Baker pointed out one of the more important points of this promotion, namely the upselling factor. Seth Godin points out the value of permission marketing, namely that the band now has one million people they can contact to sell to when their next album comes out as well.

I've been giving away music downloads for eight years now. As a music marketer, I try out a ton of promotional ideas to try and build my own fan base. And if my downloads were half as successful. I'd be a rich bard. But alas... I'm still struggling.

Does that mean I won't try something similar? Ye never know. As I said, I try a lot of promo ideas. Let's see...

• MarcSongs Podcast. Began as an idea I saw Roger McGuinn do. Jonathan Coulton refined it with the Thing-A-Week. I took the idea and focused it on a niche, Irish songs, until I decided to change it into a me thing.
  
  
• I've had live recordings and bard bootlegs available for a donation for a while.
  
  
• I also started Song Henge as a way to help other bands, where once a month, subscribers get ZIP file packed with Celtic mp3s from a wide variety of artists.
  
  
• I never expected that podcasts, in general, would earn me so much traffic and popularity, but after listening to the Celtic Music News Podcast and DragonPage WingingIt, I decided to give it a try.
  

I have a TON of ideas I've seen and learned and implemented from other marketers. Not all of them are successful. The live recordings and bootlegs, have yielded minimal sales. Whereas Song Henge is a nice bonus to my monthly income. My Celtic and Ren Fest Podcasts generate a lot of goodwill and build fans. But thusfar, MarcSongs Podcasts has yielded no noticeable response.

Ultimately, Radioheads success is the tip of the iceberg. They were the first to generate the publicity and make a splash in the world with this technique. A lot of copycats (including me) will jump on the bandwagon at some point or another. But none will see the results that Radiohead has seen. The trick is to make it fit for what you have to offer.

For instance, this is something that appeals greatly to me for the release of my next solo CD, A Tribute to Love. I've been looking for an idea like this with a proven response. Though my ideas are not quite together on it either. So fortunately, I still have time before it is released. So stay tuned for amazingness!

As for Radiohead, I commend them on an outstanding promotion and pretty dang good album too!

I'd love to hear your thoughts on it.

by Hagar using music from the Brobdingnagian Bards

I'm watching Season 2 of Buffy, the Vampire Slayer. I love this show so much. But the commentary by Joss Whedon on "Innocence" made an interesting point that I thought rang true as well for my CD, Irish Drinking Songs for Cat Lovers.

In it, Joss said,

"The show works only if it resonates... People like to talk about the horns, the fangs, and the makeup..., but the fact of the matter is, the only thing that separates this show from any other... is the kind of emotional resonance that we can get to by playing the entire thing as true life, just a little bit wonkier."

That quote sorta rang with me on a few different levels. On the one hand, I think the reason Irish Drinking Songs for Cat Lovers has done so well is because my goal with it was to make it as traditional sounding as possible. I wanted it to be Irish trad music first. And a CD about cats separate.

Consequently, I've received a lot of comments from people who listen to it and remark on the high production value (special thanks to my producer Ari Koinuma, who has a new CD out!). The CD goes beyond the novelty of music about cats and provides fun, traditional music.

Now, that raises an interesting thought. I was privy to a recent discussion about the Austin Celtic music scene and the lack of traditional music, which is sort of bollocks. Yes, The Tea Merchants are going their separate ways next year, I believe (so get their CDs while you can). But they fit the mold of trad music. Whereas, if you lack a fiddle or flute (I was seriously lectured once by a Celtic musician who told me these were essential qualities of "good" Celtic music), or you don't sing with a brogue, then often you are shunned, or at least brushed casually under the rug.

Perhaps for trad music he was right for now. But there are many different styles of "Celtic" music. And personally, I would hate to see good music, Celtic or otherwise, dismissed because they don't have have those qualities. Great music has emotional resonance, whether it is wonky cat music, typical pub songs, or finely tuned fiddle.

I think I got sidetracked in my thought process. Oh well...

I got a call late last night from John at Elysium asking to have us out for some Sci Fi Halloween party at Elysium. No details yet. All I know is Andrew won't be able to make it, but this would be GREAT opportunity to release my new single!

Elysium is Austin's premiere Goth club and industrial haven. It was voted Best Dance Club for 2003, 2004, 2005, and 2006 in the Austin Chronicle Readers' Poll. And it is well-deserved. It's a great venue for dancing, drinking, and listening to great music. Now and then, you'll even find the music of Brobdingnagian Bards, Celtic Geek Comedy at it's best. Add a bit of drinking songs and some mystical Lord of the Rings inspired-music and you have an idea of what we're about.

Location: 705 Red River
City: Austin, TX 78705
Phone #: 512.478.2979
Age: Must be 21 or older to attend.
Website: www.elysiumonline.net

If you're not at Elysium, what are you doing?

by Julian Jensen

Since we are on the topic of removing pants: My first encounter with the kilt phenomenon this Pennsic.

Anyone who has ever worn a real kilt knows instantly that there is no dignity to be salvaged from kilts. I am not talking about those wimpy little kilts that you simply buy and strap on. Bah! I am talking the real deal here. Why do we wear them? Because the women want us to. Actually, a pretty good reason. So after much consideration and soul-searching (and a few friendly polls) I decided to join the ranks of kilt wearers.

What were the Scots thinking? Were they even thinking at all? No wonder they got the shit kicked out of them on a regular basis. They were probably late for all their battles. I think it is all a huge cosmic misunderstanding. Someone on the armourarchive has this tagline that I think explains the kilt admirably: Kilt is a verb, as in 'I done kilt him'.

Somehow women got us all fooled into believing it is actually a skirt and supposedly soooo sexy. Oh, and that guys wearing a skirt are extra cool.

First, there is the shocking purchase of the kilt itself. See, there is no such thing as a period kilt. It is actually not a garment but rather 10 yards or more of very itchy wool. I know the sheep were glad to get rid of it. Once the price shock has faded and a normal color has returned to you face you break down and buy the darn thing under the watchful and appreciative eye of your lady on account of whom this whole escapade came to be in the first place.

Lugging the mass of fabric back to your pavilion you are now faced with an even greater affront to you highly esteemed dignity. The kilt application.

A kilt requires some serious preparation to put on. First, you put down a belt. On top of this belt you then lay the evil fabric itself. It must then be carefully pleated. Yeah, pleated. Makes you feel really warrior-like and battle ready. "Don't start without me, guys, I am pleating my kilt!" The proper length of fabric must be left at the ends and folded properly.

Now comes the real humiliation. In order to actually get the infernal garment to stay on your body you are now required to lay down, take of your pants, and underwear if worn, and then roll around lifting up the ends of the kilt. This procedure is invariably observed and judged by your lady's smug eyes and smirking face. She can't believe she got you to do this. All she had to do was mention Liam Neeson and Mel Gibson and off you went to the store. And now, here you are, 20 minutes later with you dangly bits flopping around crazily while trying to get the thing to not look like you are wearing hotpants.

Now the fun really starts. Having properly festooned yourself with yet another belt, a dagger and a huge claymore hanging on your back from a baldric you feel ready to face the world of Pennsic head on hoping that you won't meet any really short people. Walking around you think of all the advice people gave you regarding your thighs rubbing together. Somehow you couldn't get yourself to smear olive oil on the inside of your thighs and walk around Pennsic leaving a trail like a slug. This is when you realize that it is not the thighs you have to worry about. It is the fact that in a matter of minutes you will find yourself in possession of a hairless scrotum. As much as this may intrigue your lady you really don't want the other Scots to get the wrong idea. Not to mention upsetting the sheep. Since you are already tired from walking back up from the bog you decide to take a quick rest on the slope in front of the Spotted Pony and consider this new disturbing turn of events.

This is the moment when you realize a few other facts regarding the kilts. You sit and realize how wonderfully cool it is. So cool... You lean your head back and relax for a moment. You look at the people passing by. They are all looking at your kilt. Maybe this thing isn't so bad after all. You look down and realize that you are at this point completely and fully expose to the environment. Not just a little exposed. Not the kind of exposure that could be explained away as a trick of light. Part of your anatomy is severely and irrevocably protruding into the hot Pennsic day.

You suddenly remember that somebody once explained to you why the Scots have those pouches hanging down in front of the kilt. You lean forwards and scramble to once again enclose the offending member. At this point you also realize that sitting down with a heavy claymore on your back has solidly staked you to the ground. Your embarrassment now closely matches the entire getting-dressed event.

You hastily retreat back to your pavilion hoping no one saw your face. Which is probably a good assumption in this case. You take off the kilt while shaking your head. You vow to never wear dreadful thing again. You then look up at your lady and notices how she looks at you removing the kilt and realize one thing: Yeah, you'll probably wear it again.

---

Story by Julian Jensen, a patron of Pennsic, the big SCA war that takes place every year in Pennsylvania. Used by permission of the author.

--

If you like Scottish music, check out the Brobdingnagian Bards new CD,
Real Men Wear Kilts, as well as their free bumper stickers that read "Real Men Wear Kilts", Marc Gunn's solo CD Soul of a Harper, and find lots of great Celtic music with The Secret World of Celtic Rock.

I'll be Julie Blake's guest for a one-hour conference call titled "Turbo-Charge Your Music Career with a Guerrilla Marketing Mindset." Should be an hour of power thinking.

That call will take place on Tuesday, Oct. 16, starting at 12 noon Central (CST). That's 1 PM Eastern and 10 AM Pacific. Register for the call here: www.getmusicsuccess.com/GuerrillaMindset.html

Then on Tuesday, Oct. 23, I'll host a "Find Your Riches in Music Niches" teleclass. My guest will be savvy Austin music maverick Marc Gunn (www.marcgunn.com), who is a master of online marketing and finding gold in the strangest musical places. Find out the true story behind his hilarious "Irish Drinking Songs for Cat Lovers" CD.

Joining us will be Shannyn Kelly of the Limeybirds (www.limeybirds.com), who turned a funny musical idea into a lucrative franchise.

This call is part of my Indie Music Marketing Insiders Club teleclass series. You can join us on the live call, but you have to be a member to access the MP3 download of this and all previous teleclasses. Learn more at www.MusicMarketingInsiders.com

Here are the call-in details for Tuesday, Oct. 23:

Starting time: 9 PM Eastern (8 PM Central, 6 PM Pacific)

Dial-in number: 1-218-339-7800 (a Minnesota number)

Access code: (enter this number when prompted) 37251

There's no cost to access the call. Only your regular long distance charges will apply. The number of participants is limited, so call in near the top of the hour to make sure you get in.

Check the www.TheBuzzFactor.com home page for more details and a registration link soon.

No. This really isn't some sort of perversion. Last week, we were featured in Jennie Breeden's web comic, The Devil's Panties. But then many of you prolly already know that. I had over fifteen people mention it to me. Sorry it took so long to post.

Success Tips for TNR

Our efforts are working. Alley Cat Allies hears from advocates across the country about the progress they're making with changing the archaic and entrenched animal control system in their community. Trap, Neuter, and Return (TNR) is making a very real difference for feral cats in communities just like yours. Below are some tips to help you better help the cats.

Tip #1
Identify who your city council members are and how to contact them. Search for your city government's website on the internet. If your city does not have a website, look in your local white pages and call the city clerk's office. You can also stop by your local public library to get the information. Make sure to write down their full name, title, mailing address, and phone numbers (and e-mail if they have one listed). Take the time to introduce yourself to your city council members and start a line of communication with them. See more information about changing your community.

Tip #2
Start your own Trap, Neuter, and Return group! Alley Cat Allies has broken down the steps necessary for you to create your own organization dedicated to bettering the lives of outdoor cats through a Trap, Neuter, and Return program. If you are interested in creating a new clinic in your area, click here.

Tip #3
Organize! Feel like you are all alone in your town and trying to single-handedly help the outdoor cats yourself? Don't. Getting the word out about your work will help encourage and inspire others to help you in your mission. Educate other people by holding a class about Trap, Neuter, and Return at your local library. Tell people about the steps involved in the process, and make sure to get the attendee's name so you can contact them to help you in the future.

Tip #4
Talk to your local animal control officer about Trap, Neuter, and Return. Set up an appointment with him or her and bring some goodies. These officers are the people who you will need to work with in order to seek change in your community. If you are worried about what to say, download this PDF to learn how to best get the message across to your local officers. Just remember -- stay positive!

Tip #5
Trap, neuter, and return works! Wondering who else in the animal protection movement has a position on Trap, Neuter, and Return? Click here to read other organizations' perspectives. Using the perspectives of the other nationally respected organizations that support the humane method of outdoor cat population management may help you change the minds of important figures in your community.

Tip #6
Know the facts. With some time and a little research, you can be fully prepared for any question that may come your way. Alley Cat Allies has compiled scientific studies online, many with commentary. You can check out our past newsletter articles or read some scientific studies to help you get the facts straight and get the truth about feral cats out to your community.

Tip #7
Stand out in the crowd! Wear an orange ribbon, and encourage your supporters to do the same. This is an effective method of showing your support when attending a town hall meeting. Council representatives often want to know how many in the crowd support the issue in front of them. Make sure to have your speaker, if you are allowed to give a presentation, point out that all the people in the audience wearing an orange ribbon want Trap, Neuter, and Return in your community. Click here to order your own orange ribbons.

Tip #8
Get political. Read the paper, listen to the news and follow the actions your local government is taking on issues relating to animal care and management. Take the time to get to know your local laws and any pieces of legislation your governemnt officials are considering. Want to learn more about the implications of various animal laws? Learn how to organize to change these antiquated laws.

Tip #9
Get the truth out to the masses! News reporters are not intimidating, and speaking to them should not cause you hot sweats. Take your cues from the politicians you see on TV -- have a few talking points and repeat them over and over again. Stay positive, smile for the camera, and tell the truth. For more tips on working with the media -- click here.

Do you have a business? Would you like to help promote the Marc Gunn, the Brobdingnagian Bards or Mage Records, in general? Did you know you can buy CDs from Mage Records at wholesale prices for resale?

Yup! You can. You need to purchase a minimum of 30 units (aka CDs) to take advantage of the special offer. From there, you can start selling the CDs at Irish festivals, Renaissance faires, record stores, Celtic shops, Highland Games, veterinarian offices, pet stores, on eBaby, at Amazon, or wherever you want. Just sell them and order some more to keep selling.

Buy Celtic Music CDs at Wholesale Now!

My new solo CD A Tribute to Love is now here. Tonight, I autographed a whole bunch of CDs. And they should be in the mail this week. So if you reviewed the CD, you should expect yours next week. Thank you all for your help and I hope you'll help out a wee bit more by posting reviews on iTunes and CD Baby when I finally get it up there. Though I think that'll be a couple months at the earliest. But thanks!

Hey and while you're supporting the Top the Celtic Charts promotion, I just found out that LIVE: Nex Monoceroti, Per Risibus and Three Movie and TV Songs for Geeks Like Me are now both on iTunes!

Feel free to post your reviews of those CDs while you're there. Thanks!

Another faire comes to a close. I had good time hanging out with folks at Middlefaire. The Drunken Damsels, Bedlam Bards, Stonhenj Players, and the rising young talent, Melanie Gruben. Melanie had an amazing new song called "Irish Fire" which she wrote on Friday and touched the heart of everyone at the faire. And at the age of 15, we all expect great things from her. Hopefully, the recording I made will come out okay. Same with the "The Virgin's Conniption". I'll find out when I get back from the dentist.

In other news, A Tribute to Love arrived from the printers today! Woohoo! So for everyone who helped review the CD, I'm gonna try to get you a copy in the next couple o'weeks. Thanks!

It's that time. The Irish & Celtic Music Podcast is running a special promotion called "Top the Celtic Charts". The goal of this promotion is to push an independent Celtic music group to the top of the charts on iTunes.

This month's feature is for Mactalla Mor. They have a fantastic song called "Chi Mi Na Morbheanna" from their new CD, The New Collossus.

How can you help us push Mactalla Mor to the Top of the Charts

1. Go to iTunes and purchase Track 1, "Chi Mi Na Morbheanna" TODAY, October 15th.
   
2. Then keep an eye open on the Top 100 World Music Songs on iTunes, and we'll see if we made an impact.

Why should we do this?
Independent artists don't get much attention. Celtic music artists even less so in the grand scheme of things. If we work together towards a common goal, we will make a great impact on the world as whole. And you can make an impact on our musical genre specifically.

So if you use iTunes, please help us change the face of music by supporting the Celtic Chart Topper of the Irish & Celtic Music Podcast.

Find out more at http://celticmusicpodcast.com/topthecharts/.

I just purchased my copy. How about you?

We did it. Our new CD LIVE: Nex Monceroti, Per Risibus hit #1 on CD Baby today! Woohoo!

Thank you to everyone who purchased a copy of this fun new album. You ROCK!
Thank you! Thank you!

And as an extra special gift, it looks like The Holy Grail of Irish Drinking Songs also climbed into the Top 40 at #30. Way cool!

I hope you all have a brilliant weekend! Ours is extra nice.

We almost made it! LIVE: Nex Monoceroti, Per Risibus climbed to #2 today! (I thought the charts changed more than once a week... is it twice a week?)

Whatever the case, the CD is now just a pinch away from #1. Just a few more days until the sale ends next Monday. So pick up your copy asap!

The Bards sparkle live
author: Lynn McKinney
If you're a fan of live music, this is the album for you! On this album there's a lovely selection of Bard Banter, with audience participation and comedy improvisation. The guys were really on their highest level of wit when they recorded these songs, and the recording is a feast of humor and pop culture references for the media fan. But there's plenty of music too, in fine Bard Style! I've always maintained that the guys lose a certain something if you don't hear them live, and this is as close as you can get to being at a Live Bards Concert without actually being there.

Speaking of topping the charts. I updated the Celtic Top the Charts feature at the Irish & Celtic Music Podcast with a new artist. If you remember the summer promotion with Cady Finlayson, my goal was to help push and independent Celtic music group to the Top of the Charts on iTunes. I finally made time to pick a new chart topper for October 15th.

This month's feature is for Mactalla Mor, a Celtic fusion group out of New York. Their new CD, The New Collossus is fantastic! The goal is to push their song "Chi Mi Na Morbheanna" to the Top of the Charts on iTunes.

How do we do that?

1. Go to iTunes and purchase Track 1, "Chi Mi Na Morbheanna" on October 15th.
   
2. Then keep an eye open on the Top 100 World Music Songs on iTunes, and we'll see if we made an impact.

Why should we do this?
Independent artists don't get much attention. Celtic music artists even less so in the grand scheme of things. If we work together towards a common goal, we will make a great impact on the world as whole. And you can make an impact on our musical genre specifically.

So if you use iTunes, please help us change the face of music by supporting the Celtic Chart Topper of the Irish & Celtic Music Podcast. Click here to get started!

The new Brobdingnagian Bards CD LIVE: Nex Monoceroti, Per Risibus is still selling fairly well at CD Baby, though it has begun to slow down a lot. Right now, we are about 30 CDs away from my goal. As I recall CD Baby's Top Now Charts update once a week on Monday. So if we can pull in enough CDs over the weekend, we might chart a little bit higher. But I'm not certain at present if we're gonna have enough to top the charts.

Coming soon to the Renaissance Festival Podcast and the Ren Fest Podcast CD.

Posted on SoundClick.

Every week, I give away free music through my MarcSongs Podcast. You can download music to your heart's content. But today, I want to highlight Three Celtic MP3s from a few different CDs.

"Patriot Game"
Listen: LoFi
Recorded by Marc Gunn
From: Irish Drinking Songs: A Cat Lover's Companion
Read Lyrics: "Patriot Game" Lyrics

Download MP3: 128 kbps
Buy MP3 for 99¢: 192 kbps
Donation: Make a Donation


"Star of the County Down"
Listen: LoFi
Recorded by Marc Gunn
From: A Tribute to Love
Read Lyrics: "Star of the County Down" Lyrics

Download MP3: 128 kbps
Buy MP3 for 99¢: 192 kbps
Donation: Make a Donation


"The Foggy Dew"
Listen: LoFi
Recorded by Irish Stout
From: A Collection of Irish Pub Songs
Read Lyrics: "The Foggy Dew" Lyrics

Download MP3: 128 kbps
Buy MP3 for 99¢: 192 kbps
Donation: Make a Donation

You can find more of my Celtic songs here.

The MarcSongs Podcast is a weekly podcast where you can download one free MP3 from Marc Gunn. Most of the music is Celtic based, because one of my goals in life is to promote Celtic music. And I like to do that by sharing MP3s.

To subscribe to the podcast download a podcast client and point it to this URL: http://www.irish-song-lyrics.com/podcast.rss

Subscribe in iTunes -

Places where I post Podcasts:

• Complete List of MarcSongs Podcasts
  
• Livejournal
• Myspace Blog
  
• MarcGunn.com
• Podsafe Music Network
• SoundClick
• ReverbNation
  
  
• Marc Gunn's Celtic Songs & Folk Music Downloads

About the Podcast
The MarcSongs Podcast is really what my Pub Songs Podcast started out to be, before I got scared. It's strange giving away a free MP3 every week. You can't help but wonder if people will actually buy your music and support your craft or if they'll just take your music and run.

I should know better by now. I mean, how many years have I given away music? I started that on MP3.com in 2000. By giving away more music than any other Celtic band, I kinda took hold of the genre. Now I continue to give away more music than any other Celtic band, and I am always grateful to everyone who supports me by buying my CDs, MP3s, making donations, joining Song Henge, buying t-shirts and wooden mugs. It all helps me in my goal to continue making music.

The podcast was formerly known as the Irish Song Lyrics Podcast, but with the new slight change in format. I now call it MarcSongs. I hope you subscribe and enjoy my songs for years to come.

I need to pat myself on the back for a short moment. The latest Irish & Celtic Music Podcast has had more people voting for different artists than Any other Celtic podcast I've done before. Wow! That's awesome!

In other news, I got the lyrics to "The Virgin's Conniption". This song is the virgin's response to the "Do Virgins Taste Better Medley". It was written by the Drunken Damsels who performed it at Middlefaire last weekend.

Last, I'm listening to Mactalla Mor's latest CD "The New Collosus". Gotta say, this is really damned good CD. Fantastic fusion of a number of different styles of music with Celtic music. Very engaging. And to think they were one of the first bands I featured on Song Henge. They've come a helluva long way!

by Drunken Damsels

The Drunken Damsels were getting sick and tired of poor mistreated lassies being eaten by dragons in the song "Do Virgins Taste Better" and "The Dragon's Retort" so they wrote their own parody with the same "Irish Washerwoman" melody.

Oh, I am a virgin with something to say
I'm quite tired of being mistreated this way
I've got a complaint, you might have a hunch
I really don't like being o