Oh, November. You always do this to me. We get toward the end, and I’m like, “Oh good, only a week left!” and then that week lasts two or three weeks. Time dilates in November, I’m convinced of it. There’s way more than there needs to be.

This year’s Quest for the Cure (for November) brings us back, as is so often the case, to the sublime Iarla Ó Lionáird. Here he is when he was young, already the prince of singers:

I find sean nos – Irish “old style” a capella singing – particularly suited to gloomy days. It’s music to be sung in company, cup in hand, around a fire. It’s the musical equivalent of a fire burned down to the mournful embers, to my mind. The bitter winds may blow, but here is understanding, humanity, and warmth.

Here’s the somewhat earthier voice of Lillis O Laoire, who I also enjoy. I wish there were more songs of his to choose from on YouTube, but we take what we can get.