It's that time of year again--St. Patrick's Day. People are getting ready for and searching out the wazzoo for everything Irish. So Irish drinking songs are popular once again.

That's good news to me because Irish drinking songs is what I do. Whether it be Irish Drinking Songs for Cat Lovers, Irish Drinking Songs: The Cat Lover's Companion, The Holy Grail of Irish Drinking Songs, A Collection of Irish Pub Songs, or even the Pub Songs Podcast, this year I practically have a monopoly on Irish drinking songs... or at least the term.

Because exit the internet, and no one has heard of Marc Gunn or the Brobdingnagian Bards. They're still hung up on The Dubliners, the Irish Rovers, The Clancy Brothers, The Wolfe Tones, and other groups who've given a name to the drinking songs of Irish music. And with good cause. Those bands are awesome. Those are the groups from whom I learned many of the Irish drinking songs I sing today. So raise a glass to them.

Yet where they made a name for Irish music in middle of last century, I'm trying trying to do the same in the digital era. No one is out promoting Celtic music. That's why I started the Celtic MP3s Music Magazine and the Irish & Celtic Music Podcast. My goal is to keep Irish folk music alive. So I have all those CDs above, plus, I have a traditional Irish music compilation CD and try to promote Celtic groups as I am able.

That said, St. Patrick's Day is almost here. And you can bet I'll be doing a lot for the Irish holiday. Keep an ear open for podcasts and MP3s and magazines and of course new CDs of Irish drinking songs, because that's what I do when I want to promote St. Patrick's Day music.

And why shouldn't I? It's my birthday after all.