Happy St. Paddy’s Day! I hope you’ll join me for a pint of stout over this vintage footage of the Emerald Isle, set to the John McCormack favorite “The Garden Where the Praties Grow.” McCormack was one of the great tenors of his day, by all accounts a weak stage actor, but with a clarion voice and superior diction that pleased in both the opera house and in recital. For the latter, he was always sure to include Irish songs, many of which he recorded. These feature prominently in my St. Patrick’s Day playlist.