"Donald Baker" redirects here. You may be looking for the plaintiff in Baker v. Wade

Baker v. Wade

Baker v. Wade 563 F.Supp 1121 , rev'd 769 F.2nd 289 cert denied 478 US 1022 is a federal lawsuit challenging the legality of the sodomy law of the state of Texas. Plaintiff Donald Baker contended that the law violated his rights to privacy and equal protection...

Don Baker (born 26 August 1950) is an Irish

Irish people

The Irish people are an ethnic group who originate in Ireland, an island in northwestern Europe. Ireland has been populated for around 9,000 years , with the Irish people's earliest ancestors recorded having legends of being descended from groups such as the Nemedians, Fomorians, Fir Bolg, Tuatha...

 blues

Blues

Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...

 musician and actor.

Baker was born in Whitehall, Dublin

Whitehall, Dublin

Whitehall is a Northside suburb of Dublin City, Ireland.Whitehall is on the northern outskirts of Dublin's inner city, located on the N1 road leading to Dublin Airport, Swords and Belfast, between Santry and Drumcondra. North of Whitehall, the N1 becomes a motorway, the M1...

. He is a singer-songwriter

Singer-songwriter

Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...

 who plays the harmonica

Harmonica

The harmonica, also called harp, French harp, blues harp, and mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used primarily in blues and American folk music, jazz, country, and rock and roll. It is played by blowing air into it or drawing air out by placing lips over individual holes or multiple holes...

 and the guitar

Guitar

The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...

. He appeared in several films, his most notable appearance being in In the Name of the Father. He also published harmonica instruction books and videos.

In August 2008, he starred in RTÉ

Raidió Teilifís Éireann

Raidió Teilifís Éireann is a semi-state company and the public service broadcaster of Ireland. It both produces programmes and broadcasts them on television, radio and the Internet. The radio service began on January 1, 1926, while regular television broadcasts began on December 31, 1961, making...

's reality show Fáilte Towers

Fáilte Towers

Fáilte Towers was an RTÉ reality TV show that was broadcast as a one off during August 2008. The concept of the show involves thirteen celebrities running a hotel for sixteen days and nights in order to win money for their designated charities. The show format was not repeated nor was it exported...

, finishing in a respectable third place, earning huge amounts of money for his charity "Health Action Overseas". After the show, Baker asked fellow contestant Donna (from Donna and Joseph McCaul

Donna and Joseph McCaul

Donna and Joseph McCaul , also known as The McCauls, are a sibling musical duo who represented Ireland in the Eurovision Song Contest 2005, which was hosted by Kiev, Ukraine...

) to perform a concert with him at the Helix the following month.

Discography

• Almost illegal
• Duckin' & Divin
• Miss You
• No Regrets "Live in Concert"
• Four for the Road with Jimmy McCarthy, Mick Hanly and Finbar Furey
• Born With the Blues
• Just Don Baker
• No Nonsense

Filmography

• In the Name of the Father (1993)
• On the Nose
  On the Nose (film)
  On the Nose is an Irish / Canadian comedy, fantasy film released in 2001. It was written by Tony Philpott and stars Dan Aykroyd and Robbie Coltrane in a magical comedy where a long dead Australian aboriginal's head is used to predict winners in horse races...
  
  (2001)

External links

• Official website
• Rattlebag Don Baker in conversation with RTE's Myles Dungan
• Under the Influence Don Baker in conversation with Joe Jackson

Blues related links

• Beginning Blues Harp with Don Baker DVD
• Famous Harmonica Styles
• J'Apprends L'Harmonica Blues
• Methode Intégrale des Différentes Techniques de l'Harmonica