The third volume in the series essentially repeats the formula of the first two, with mostly Irish music performed by gentle female singers, several of them very well-known. It's hard to fault, since the performances are uniformly excellent, and the material is definitely time-tested and proven -- it's impossible to criticize songs like "The Star of County Down" and "Down by the Salley," for instance. And with singers like
Mary Black,
Cathie Ryan, and
Maura O'Connell, you're not going to go wrong either. Although
Celtic Woman, Vol. 3 never treads any new ground, the disc does satisfy, and might send you in search of something deeper -- although the longer this series persists, the happier it appears to be to go for the familiar. ~ Chris Nickson