There is nothing like entering a bar in Ireland and immediately having a wave of Irish trad music wash over you. 

Irish tunes, both trad and otherwise, were a big motivator in my trip to Ireland back in June 2015 (admittedly along with watching P.S. I Love You on repeat). It seemed every night while traipsing around Ireland my friends and I found amazing pubs with homegrown singer-songwriters to enjoy.

And by the way, if you think you can go to Ireland and somehow not hear “Galway Girl” one million times, you are sadly mistaken. By the end of your trip, you will be banging your head against pub walls because of this song, thereby spilling your precious Guinness everywhere.

You can read more about some musical surprises I had in Ireland in my Finding John Denver in Galway post.

So, without much further ado, I present to you my Ultimate Ireland Playlist!

Scroll to the bottom of the page to find my playlist in Spotify form!

1. Glen Hansard + Eddie Vedder “Drive All Night”

2. Flogging Molly “Irish Pub Song”

3. Damien Rice “Volcano”

4. Kodaline “The One”

5. Stiff Little Fingers “Johnny Was”

6. Thin Lizzy “Cowboy Song”

7. The Cranberries “When You’re Gone”

8. Rory Gallagher “Bad Penny”

9. The Dubliners “Rocky Road To Dublin”

10. God Is An Astronaut “Post Mortem”

11. Van Morrison “Astral Weeks”

12. The Pogues “Fairytale Of New York”

13. Bing Crosby “Galway Bay”

14. Steve Earle “Galway Girl”

15. U2 “Beautiful Day”

What would be on your Ireland Playlist? Let me know in the comments!