Great Big Sea<\/a> is great big fun.<\/p>\n They\u2019ve been described as\u00a0a \u201c<\/span>Canadian\u00a0<\/span>folk-rock<\/a>\u00a0band from\u00a0<\/span>Newfoundland and Labrador, best known for performing energetic rock interpretations of traditional Newfoundland folk songs including\u00a0<\/span>sea shanties, which draw from the island\u2019s 500-year-old Irish, Scottish, and Cornish heritage,\u201d and that pretty much nails it. Especially the \u201cenergetic\u201d part.\u00a0<\/span>I can\u2019t remember when I first heard them, though I suspect it was the folks at Pandora<\/a> who slipped\u00a0\u2019em out of the\u00a0Great Unknown box<\/a> and into my musical life to wreak havoc<\/a>. But no matter their origin, I\u2019ve loved them\u00a0for years. They play the sort of folk-tinged, up-beat music that\u2019s perfect \u201cOutside Working Music\u201d for me. (That\u2019s why the somewhat-similar UpBeatIrish-y groups\u00a0The Bothy Band<\/a> and Gaelic Storm<\/a>\u00a0find their way into my\u00a0\u201cMost-Played\u201d list in iTunes.)<\/p>\n Now, I try to avoid working outside as much of possible, so I don\u2019t end up listening to any of these groups as much as I (probably) should\u2026or as much as my wife (I suspect) would like. But when I do finally work\u00a0my way outdoors, I am very often accompanied by GBS\u2019 tight harmonies<\/a> and high-octane<\/a>\u00a0melodies.<\/p>\n Of late, it\u2019s been their \u201cHeart of Hearts.\u201d I don\u2019t quite\u00a0understand what the lyrics are getting at<\/a> (though I think I can\u2019t\u00a0entirely endorse them, since my heart-of-heart\u2019s got plenty of shame in it) and I have no idea what\u2019s going on in the music video (because\u00a0NUNS STEALING CARS???<\/a>), but the melody\u00a0and the energy get me every time. So here\u2019s a live version, which really helps to showcase the exuberance\u00a0and humor\u00a0and personalities that make them so much fun:<\/p>\n