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The UK's Best Ceilidh & Covers Bands
What Sort of Music Do Ceilidh and Covers Band Perform?
A ceilidh and pop band will perform a wide mixture of classic ceilidh dances (Strip The Willow, Dashing White Sergeant, Circassian Circle, Gay Gordons, for example), as well as some pop and rock covers.
The pop covers will include songs from the 50s and 60s, right through to the 90s and present day cover songs.
The usual format of the evening will be to have a set or two of ceilidh dances to begin with. This gets your guests up off their seats and – crucially – on the dance floor!
After this, the band would take a break and play some music through their PA system (this can be chosen by you in advance). Then the ceilidh and covers band would move into the covers and pop music part of their repertoire.
We find splitting the night into two sections like this – ceilidh first; pop covers second – to be the most effective way of keeping your guests dancing throughout the night.
Some clients request the bands to intersperse ceilidh dances with pop covers within a set. Many of our bands find this to be a bit too disruptive to the flow of the wedding evening.
That said, it's your wedding so if you have preferences for how you want the evening to flow at your venue, then you can always discuss with the band and the band manager will always be happy to advise.
View Some of Our UK Ceilidh and Covers Bands Performing Live...
Reviews from local events in the UK
“Stunning band and wonderful musicianship. Suited our party really well, mix of styles with their unique Celtic fusion style. Perfect, set up, loved their lights and provided a friendly atmosphere. Thank you Serena and band members, would book you all again in blink! A🌟”
Booked High Step Ceilidh for a retirement party at The Ravenshead in Lincoln, UK
“The Glasgow Ceilidh Band were fantastic! They arrived/set up etc exactly when they said they would. Their music playing was so good - very lively and enjoyable and sound level perfect and their rock versions of traditional tunes went down a storm. They explained the dances well to a mixed group of party goers. The only thing I regret is we didn't get enough time with them. I had arranged for a disco after the buffet (which they supplied as well)... next time I'll have them play all night. Organisation (via Fix the Music) was simple and queries were always responded to quickly. ”
“Dear Lilac, Thank you I have recovered, just two more parties to go, I have allowed for a couple of days between each I’m so pleased the band enjoyed the day as well. Your team did a lot to help make that great atmosphere. I have had a lot of thank you messages from guests; “good food, good company, great ceilidh”, “the ceilidh band were excellent”. Just two of the many complements. Isabel, my wife, and myself were delighted with your playing. For me you helped make the perfect party.”
“Lovely people and a great ceilidh band. Really patient with all of the English people who had no clue and fun had by all!”
“Circassian Ceilidh Band kindly came and played at our party this summer in South West Scotland. They were fantastic in every way. They are approachable, friendly and organised, and their music was outstanding. They really made our party, and we are very grateful to them and wish them all the best. We could not recommend them more.”
“We were absolutely delighted with The Willow Ceilidh Band. The music was lively and fun and tailored to suit our mixed audience. Louise as caller made sure that everyone had a great time and we all went home smiling. There was a good mixture of dances and guests from 2 to 82 were helped to join in and have fun. They were very adaptable and relaxed and we enjoyed meeting them all. I think we were so lucky to find them and would heartily recommend them to anyone thinking of hosting a ceilidh. Best wishes, Barbara.”
“Ceilidh Fire were great! They really are wonderful musicians - they were helpful and enthusiastic and very easy to work with. They somehow managed to get 200 Yorkshire folk engaged in Scottish dancing...most of them for the first time. Thank you very much for all of your help and professionalism in pulling it all together. I look forward to working with you again in the future.”
“Absolutely tremendous! Ceilidh Fire made our son's 18th birthday just amazing ...... fantastic sound… Foot stomping… Got everybody up on the floor from a huge crowd of 18-year-olds to a couple of 80 year olds, and everybody in between!! Our feet hardly touched the ground all night… An absolute privilege to have you talented musicians play for us…....... your sheer energy and passion for the music is exceptional… thanks guys!!!!”
“Dear Simon, Just a wee Thank You for providing the music at Ken's 60th birthday. The band was brilliant. We had great feedback and everyone really enjoyed themselves. You were great for beginners and experts alike - we had a couple of guests from Australia and NZ and it was great to show them some traditional hospitality. Thanks again, Laura.”
“We were looking for something more than a normal wedding band to sing at our anniversary (surprise wedding) ceilidh/party, after looking at many bands, Sound Castle stuck out as from their videos they seemed to do a decent job of doing our lineup justice. When they arrived they were relaxed quick to set up and felt like a seasoned group who knew what they were doing. Scottish dances were explained to everyone with patience and precision with no one left behind along with the usual fun gentle ribbing for those who seemed to be having trouble grasping simple moves because they had enjoyed too much wine. If you want a ceilidh band who will do every possible dance but also want some rock and roll, stop reading now and book them. For the rest of you, it's important to underline that they played the Beatles with love, affection and care covering more than just Twist and Shout and Hey Jude (I feel fine / all you need is love / got to get you into my life were part of the line up... Fantastic). Not a dry eye in the house when they played Wonderful Tonight and Rose of my Heart, the latter was learned especially for us. Thank you Sound Castle, thanks Stuart, all our guests agreed you made an amazing night unforgettable. Grant and Dyanne.”
Booked Sound Castle for a party at Best Western Plus Keavil House Hotel, Crossford, Dunfermline, Scotland
“Seafolk Ceilidh Band are excellent musicians and I guarantee will do everything in their power to ensure your night is a great success. Their unique blend of traditional music with a modern twist gets everybody on the dance floor - they even have the power to drag students away from a free bar! The band adapts their music to the venue & number & ability of the guests so by the end of the evening your party will be jumping and guests will be exhausted - I assure you that a Seafolk ceilidh will be remembered for months if not years!”
“Just saw them at Whistle Binkies. They are absolutely amazing. Lots of talent and very lively. Made my last night in Edinburgh a memorable night!!!”
3 Reasons to Hire a Ceilidh & Covers Band for Your Wedding
This year, we’ve noticed a significant increase in the number of bookings for bands that perform a mixture of ceilidh and covers at weddings in England. In this blog post, we explore some of the top reasons to hire a ceilidh covers band for your own wedding.
A ceilidh and covers band is one that does exactly that: performs a mixture of ceilidh dances as well as regular pop and rock covers.
There are numerous bands like this in Scotland, where a lot of the local ceilidh bands have a decent repertoire of upbeat pop, rock, indie and soul covers that they play alongside the ceilidh music. But it’s becoming increasingly popular for ceilidh bands south of the border in England to offer this service.
Ceilidh bands on FixTheMusic have public liability insurance and PAT tested equipment.
So, why hire a ceilidh covers band for your wedding or event?
1. They are guaranteed to get your guests dancing!
By its very nature, a ceilidh is designed to get guests dancing. With a caller at the front of the room instructing guests on the steps to follow, it’s easy for guests of all ages to join in.
Having spoken to our wedding bands that play a mix of ceilidh and covers, they’ve found that once your guests are up on the dance floor for the ceilidh part of the evening, they are much more likely to stick around for the cover songs too. So it’s a perfect way to keep your dance floor full all night and bring all of your guests together.
2. They’re popular with guests both young and old
Many of our couples looking to book their wedding band tell us they want a group that will play music that will appeal to guests of all ages. They worry that bands that play only modern pop music (Ed Sheeran, Justin Bieber covers etc.) will alienate the older guests, who would prefer to hear more 60s and 70s classic hits.
One of the great things about a ceilidh & covers band is that the ceilidh tunes they perform are timeless – popular with kids, millennials, middle-aged folk and the older generation alike. What’s more, the cover songs they perform will usually be a selection of only the very best hits from the sixties to current chart toppers. The wide variety of music they perform never fails to impress.
3. They’re more interesting than the usual function band
Although ceilidh covers bands are becoming more popular at English weddings, they are still booked far less often than standard function bands. So you can pretty much guarantee that almost none of your guests will have been to a party before that had a band performing classic covers as well as a ceilidh set.
That will keep your friends and family talking for months and years after your wedding.
One of our most popular and experienced ceilidh and covers bands is Paragon Ceilidh Band. They consistently receive rave reviews from our clients and we're always delighted to recommend them.
About FixTheMusic
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Founded in 2015 by two brothers who share a passion for great live music, FixTheMusic is a new way to find and book hand-picked bands for weddings, private parties, corporate events and charity events.
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