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Operating in a crowded market, the Celtic Soul Podcast stands out

celtic am
28 February 2021

 

Operating in a crowded market, the Celtic Soul Podcast stands out from the rest. It is put together with care and professionalism by Andrew, Ronan, and the team, who clearly take pride in their work and create a quality production whilst keeping things real and independent. This is fan media at its very best.

The Celtic Soul doesn’t cover topics by the mainstream, it doesn’t indulge in gossip and it certainly doesn’t make sensationalised comments for hits. Instead, it is building an audience based on the unique topics, superb guests and engaging discussion that it delivers.

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Always an intriguing listen, with guests from the Celtic fanatic on the street to former players and the odd celebrity Celt, the latest episodes have really stood out as being particularly enjoyable. In episode 52/53 we were treated to a two-part discussion with The Shamrock editor, Paul McQuade. Paul is a fine example of a fan with a thirst for the history of Celtic. His publication is essential reading, and it covers the social history of the support as well as the story of the club itself. Paul bequeaths us with some of these fascinating historical tales and discusses his Walfrid Walking Tour, which visits many key sites from the club’s early years around Glasgow.

This is a genuinely interesting project led by a fan for the fans, and the fact that Andrew explores this for listeners is a credit to the Celtic Soul podcast. Paul goes on to discuss his various books, which leads to some hilarious stories about Johnny Doyle, and he talks about his involvement in the Celtic Graves Society, alongside his own memories as a Celtic fan. The conversation ebbs and flows between two Celtic supporters with a real love for the club.

Following those back-to-back podcasts was always going to be a tough ask, but there was no let up when Jonny Owens was announced as the next guest. What a listen. Jonny comes across as a proper football man. The conversation weaves in a bit of everything, from working class life, the music scene in recent decades and of course football. Jonny put together the quite incredible Three Kings documentary, which explores the lives of Jock Stein, Matt Busby, and Bill Shankly. These Scotsmen transformed the game and achieved greatness with Celtic, Manchester United and Liverpool, respectively.

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Naturally, much of the discussion was about those men and the thinking behind the film. Jonny gives a fascinating insight, and his enthusiasm was so infectious that it prompted me to immediately sign up for Amazon Prime and give the documentary a watch. It goes without saying that Stein was the man I was most interested in when talk of the Three Kings began, but as the podcast rolled on, I found myself developing an increasing level of admiration for the way in which Busby rebuilt Man Utd after losing his young team in tragic circumstances.

Although, I was left with an outright love of Shankly when Andrew and Jonny discussed his character, the hilarious comments he made in his career and the extreme level of devotion that he had for the sport. I think this episode would appeal to anyone who has a working-class background, mining roots, a love of football, an interest in boxing, a passion for music, or just support for Celtic, Manchester United or Liverpool.

Looking out for the Celtic Soul being released on a Friday night has long been a habit of mine during lockdown. But that habit must have increased ten-fold after those episodes. We got our wish on Friday, when after a week full of discussion about Neil Lennon’s resignation, Andrew broke the mould and delivered some unique content again. Indeed, the most recent episode’s guest was Charlie Fealy of the Blarney Pilgrims. It doesn’t get much better than that.

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On a personal level, I am extremely interested in the culture of supporting Celtic – in terms of the music, the atmosphere, and the politics. Sadly, I am too young to have heard the Pilgrims perform live, but I have always listened to them throughout my life. I used to love the band’s recording live in McNees from one St Patrick’s night back in the 90s, meanwhile Marching Down Sackville Street and Granda Was A Celtic Man are two of the group’s albums that I often enjoy on Spotify. Therefore, it was great to hear about how the band came to be, how they revolutionised the Irish music/Rebel scene in Glasgow and why they were inspired to do so.

The experience of the Irish diaspora in Glasgow was wonderfully captured and it demonstrated just how far we have come. Perhaps more poignantly, the discussion shows what an important role Celtic Football Club plays, and has played, in giving the Irish and their descendants a place to freely express their identity and restore pride in who they are. It’s a romantic listen, but with an educational message behind it. Little snippets of information stick in my mind such as the fact that the guitar was only introduced to traditional Irish music in recent times. I also found it interesting when Andrew and Charlie explored the reasons as to why the Glasgow Irish are not such a recognised diaspora, when compared to Irish America and London Irish.

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It was another faultless hour and a half, rounded off with the Pilgrim’s Fans of St Pauli song playing us out…

Roll on Friday night and the next episode of the best Celtic podcast out there. The subject matter doesn’t only seek to be different from others, but it is always top class in doing so.

Hailing from an Irish background,Liam Kelly was born in Bournemouth in 1996, with the good fortune of watching Celtic during the Martin O’Neill era. Still living on the south coast,He has a season ticket in the Lisbon Lions Stand and travels to European away matches when possible.
At the age of 19, he published his first Celtic book (Our Stories & Our Songs: The Celtic Support), which focuses exclusively on the Celtic faithful throughout the club’s history. Last year he published his second book (Take Me To Your Paradise: A History Of Celtic-Related Incidents & Events), which has now sold out in Waterstones and Official Celtic stores. His third book (Walfrid & Bould Bhoys), which he co-authored with Matt Corr and David Potter, was published in September 2020 and is stocked in all official Celtic stores.

 

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More than 90 Minutes Issue 113 Digital Edition

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