sarahillis's blog

Yes, it is a long weekend here in Canada, a weekend on which we give thanks for the harvest and celebrate by eating a lot of food and having a lovely time with family and/or friends. I think that having an attitude of gratitude, as some self-help books put it, is very important all year round, but I'm reminded this weekend of how thankful I am for the ability to do this show. Mushroom Fm has allowed me to live a small dream that I've had, that of doing a show about the music I love most in the world, and for that I'm very grateful indeed.

come by the Hills is back for another week, and we've got some new music that will stretch the boundaries of the show's primary focus. It is described as a Celtic Music Show, but the Celts lived in so many places and traded and fought and dealt with so many different cultures during their rovings across Europe that there is likely no such thing as a purely Celtic kind of music.

Sunday is a great day on Mushroom FM! That's because there are three fabulous hours of folkish fun on Come by the Hills, Mushroom FM's Premier Celtic Music Show! We'll have a great set of bands and artists and all our usual features this week, and I guarantee that you'll have a wonderful time.

Ahoy ye land-lubbers! As September 19 has been designated as Talk like a Pirate Day for some years now, I've decided to cast off my inhibitions, throw caution overboard, and sail into the next episode of Sara Smiles in my piratical persona as Captain Sara of the dreaded ship Castigator, terror of the Mushroom Main! I'm going to attempt to do all my voice-breaks using pirate lingo! Trust me, this is an event you won't want to miss! We've even got a special Talk Like a Pirate Day song courtesy of a loyal listener!

on September 16, 2017, my best and longest-lived friendship changed dramatically when Shannon Marie Smith (1977-2017) died suddenly in her home, no definitive cause known, having recently reached her forty-first year. I remember recording a couple of episodes of Come by the Hills in the days and weeks following her death, including one which I recorded mere hours after hearing the news for the first time.

Mushroom FM's premier celtic music show is back yet again for another week with three hours of magical music from awesome artists as well as mindless maundering from yours truly. All our features are in their places and everything's set for a fun time. So, if you're feeling folkish, then feel free to tune in on Sunday night at 8:00 pM Eastern, following Steve Cutway and The Early Years, or catch the replay on Friday morning at 4:00 AM Eastern, 9:00 AM in the UK and Ireland. But wait! There's more!

Yes, Mushroom FM's premier celtic music show is back this week with a brand new episode. I'm all vacationed out and ready to get back into the swing of all things Mushroom-related, and Come by the Hills is no exception. All our features are in their proper places, and there are a couple of songs in honour of the Labour Day Weekend here in Canada, as well as our usual fine range of folk and celtic favourites for your listening pleasure.

You can't accuse us of not being environmentally friendly here at Mushroom Fm, and to prove it, I've decided to try recycling. This week, we're revisiting an episode of Come by the Hills from June 17th of this year. It has all the usual features and of course a lot of great music. I'll be back next week with a brand new episode, but for now, I hope you enjoy this trip into the recent past.

On August 21, 2016, Mushroom Fm's Premier Celtic Music show, known colloquially as come by the Hills, premiered! It was a momentous day indeed, filled with great celtic music and so-so banter by yours truly. Well, tonight's show is as close as we can come to that anneversary, so we're going to have fun reflecting on the past two years and playing the best in Celtic music from around the world.

We'll be having some more new music (new to the show at least) this week on Mushroom Fm's Premier Celtic Music Show, but we'll also have our usual features: Me Music, Fiddlin' Around and Celtic Covers. It'll be a great show! Catch it tonight at 8:00 PM Eastern, right after Steve Cutway and The Early Years, or if you miss it, catch the replay on Friday morning after Jonathan Mosen and The Daily Fibre. Also, you can find the archive of the show at: http://www.mushroomfm.com/sarahillis. Enjoy!