Concerts

O’Sahara at Lahinch

Posted on May 8, 2015 by singersong

What a lucky man I am.

Last week it was Christy Moore. This week Luka Bloom and his new band O’Sahara.

The venue was Kenny’s Bar in Lahinch and this was the postponed concert from a few weeks back. It was well worth the wait, especially as we got some new songs that he had written since. It was an informal, relaxed gig though Luka confided at one stage he was more nervous than the previous week in Belgium playing with 80 musicians and a 20 person choir.

O’Sahara is Luka supported by Quentin Cooper and Jon O’Connell. Both are local musicians rooted deep in trad but known also for their catholic musical tastes which encompass rock, reggae, blues and various ‘world’ music. Both are highly skilled musicians and accomplished on a variety of string instruments but for this gig, Quentin stuck to his Gibson electric and Jon was on the double bass.

Luka was very much in his element. He was playing in front of his adopted home crowd. Indeed it wouldn’t surprise if he knew everyone there. They all certainly knew him and they were here to hear him. Jon and Quentin provided great support. Most of the songs had Luka playing his nylon string acoustic so having an electric guitar in the mix was risky. But in the hands of Quentin Cooper it worked brilliantly. Sometimes there was distortion and even a little feedback but it never dominated. Sometimes there was bottleneck slide and at other times delicate finger picking. But occasionally the inner rock star was unleashed and we caught glimpses of what Quentin was capable of. Jon O’Connell’s bass playing, as with his singing, is spot on. Smooth and relaxed and well and truly in the groove and his bass really added depth to the sound the boys were able to achieve.

From the first song Luka threw himself into the performance and by the end of the night the sweat was rolling down. At times Luka’s guitar playing reached such intensity that even the sound man had words with him. Much of the material was new. But there were still plenty familiar from his huge body of work. In fact the selection highlighted what a good songwriter Luka is. We heard City of Chicago, I’m a Bogman, and Don’t Be Afraid Of The Light That Shines Within You along with some wonderful new songs including an heartfelt song to a lost love from Fremantle in Western Australia, a very clever song about the population explosion on the Burren (Reels and Jig-Jig-Jig?) a song called Frugalisto about stuff and when ‘enough is enough’, a song he wrote 44 years ago and had not performed in public before O’Sahara and a song (autobiographical?) about a musical journey through Hamburg, Athens and Morocco from which the name of the band ‘O’Sahara’ seems to have come.

Luka is a consummate performer and gave a polished and rousing show in the intimate venue that is Kenny’s and was rapturously received. We are so lucky to have him living here in Clare and this concert is a reminder that we should not take him for granted. And a great way for Jon to celebrate his birthday.

Categories: Concerts, Trad Irish Music | Tags: Barry Moore, Clare, concert, Ireland, Irish music, Kenny's Bar, Lahinch, Luka Bloom, O'Sahara, photography, traditional music, travel | 3 Comments

Christy Moore at Spanish Point

Posted on May 1, 2015 by singersong

When I shop in Miltown Malbay I always go to SuperValu. Yesterday for some inexplicable reason I went to Londis. So what, you ask. Well normally it would be of no particular consequence but in the car park there I met Anne Rynne, Christy Moore’s sister. She mentioned she was heading to Christy’s concert that night at Spanish Point. You could have knocked me over with a feather. Christy was coming to my home town and I didn’t even know about it! How did I not know this was on?

Anyway fate had intervened and 8:00 pm found me sitting in the third row of the function room in the Armada Hotel expectantly waiting for the master to appear.

Christy has been an idol of mine since I bought his Prosperous album in 1973 and in particular in his Planxty and Moving Hearts days. I had seen Christy three times before. All in Australia. The first time was over thirty years ago in the opulent State Theatre in Sydney.

And now here he was on stage with the extraordinary musicians that make up the Maírtín O’Connor Band (Maírtín O’Connor, Cathal Hayden, Seamie O’Dowd and Jimmy Higgins) and I was a bit concerned that good as they are they would compete with rather than enhance THAT voice. I needn’t have worried.

Christy opened the show with one of my favourite songs; Richard Thompson’s Beeswing. From the first chord there was a reverent hush. This made for an instant connection between Christy and the audience and we knew we were in for a good night. Christy recognised this saying “Well you’re great listeners now let’s here you sing” as he launched into Missing You. The audience didn’t need another invitation and joined in at any opportunity through the night.

This was a happy Christy. Although a native of Kildare much of his family lives in Clare so he is a regular visitor and many of his songs reflect this. This was a Christy sharing his songs with his mates. Every time Miltown Malbay was mentioned there was a little cheer. And there were plenty of mentions as many of Christy’s songs echo this love of Clare. Even as a ‘blow-in’ I felt chuffed to be part of this. Indeed that line in Lisdoonvarna where he extols all those looking for music to “come to Clare” could well have been the theme for the night.

Some of the best moments however were when he veered off the programme and responded to requests from the audience. In particular a rousing rendition of St Brendan’s Voyage got the biggest applause of the night and the beautiful Butterfly was a treat. There was even an internet request for Don’t Forget Your Shovel (from a man who said he was travelling to the concert all the way from Quilty) with which Christy was happy to comply!

The sensitive and often exquisite accordion of Maírtín O’Connor and Cathal Hayden’s fiddle provided a tasteful backing. The superb sound on the night (well done to the anonymous sound guy) allowed every note and every nuance to be clearly heard without detracting in the slightest from Christy’s magic voice. Delicate guitar and mandolin work was a feature of Seamie O’Dowd’s playing – just filling the odd space here and there, never distracting. I particularly liked his use of harmonics on one song. Jimmy Higgins’ percussion was also wonderfully restrained. Indeed the balance of all four musicians was so perfectly constructed as to let Christy’s voice shine. But both Maírtín and Cathal had their moments in the sun. Cathal, putting his own stamp on Mountains of Pomeroy and Maírtín paying homage to Joe Cooley.

We had plenty of old favourites including Ride On, Lisdoonvarna and Delirium Tremors and even an homage to Planxty with Raggle Taggle Gypsy. It was also great to hear him acknowledge the song writing talents of his brother Luka Bloom with City of Chicago and the Bog Man and the wonderful Shane McGowan song A Pair of Brown Eyes. There were humorous songs such as Little Honda 50 and also sentimental favourites such as Cliffs of Dooneen.

Called back for an encore he did, appropriately the song from Smoke and Strong Whiskey, If I Get an Encore, with some slight modifications, somehow working in references to Mullagh, Quilty and Coore. It was very well received.

The audience went home completely satisfied and they were treated to Christy at his very best with one of the best trad bands in the country thrown in for good measure. I was amazed that he is still performing at the highest level after nearly fifty years. A truly fabulous night. I am so glad I went shopping at Londis!

Categories: Concerts, Trad Irish Music | Tags: Armada, Cathal Hayden, Christy Moore, Clare, concert, Concert review, Ireland, Irish music, Jimmy Higgins, Luka Bloom, Mairtin O'Connor, photography, Seamie O'Dowd, Spanish Point, traditional music, travel | 4 Comments

Stocktons Wing Concert Ennis

Posted on March 18, 2015 by singersong

There was one vinyl above others which rested nearly permanently on my turntable in the early 80s and that was ‘Light in The Western Sky’. I loved the freshness and the energy and the post-Planxty inventiveness – they were my favourite band. Then I saw them live during the Guinness World Tour (of 1984 I think) in Perth, Western Australia and I remember them as being standouts on a bill that included Mary Black and Christy Moore.

Fast forward now to Treacy’s West County Hotel in Ennis in March 2015 and I am sitting in a crowded room hearing those same songs and tunes being belted out and sounding just as fresh thirty plus years later. It is the Stocktons Wing Reunion tour and they have returned to Ennis where it all began for them in 1977. The locals are excited to have them back and they did not disappoint. The concert focussed around that seminal album so we heard Walk Away and the Belltable (which Maurice informed us was written upstairs in Brogans) and the Golden Stud as well as other hits such as Take a Chance. Of the original line up Paul Roche, Maurice Lennon and Tommy Hayes remain but it was brilliant to see Steve Cooney and Mike Hanrahan back in the line up too. For me the unique sound of the band rests on the driving guitar of Cooney and the brilliant percussion of Tommy Hayes which elevates the music and takes you along for the ride. Maurice Lennon has lost none of his fiddling prowess and weaved his magic brilliantly with his long time collaborator Paul Roche on flute and whistle and essential to that original sound was the familiar vocals of Mike Hanrahan. And I shouldn’t forget Cooney’s didgeridoo which back then was such a revelation but still works so brilliantly to enhance the music. There was plenty of energy on stage and it was clear they were enjoying being there as much we were; this despite some issues with the sound, which was frustrating to band and audience alike.

I left the hall humming the Belltable Waltz which I couldn’t get out of my head and, in the mood for music, managed to squeeze in some tunes at Kelly’s before heading home well satisfied. I look forward to seeing the band again at Doolin in July.

Categories: Concerts, Trad Irish Music | Tags: Clare, concert, didgeridoo, Ennis, Irish music, Maurice Lennon, Mike Hanrahan, Paul Roche, photography, steve cooney, Stocktons Wing, Tommy Hayes, traditional music, travel | 1 Comment

Burren Backroom Series Concert Ennis

Posted on March 3, 2015 by singersong

A concert of traditional Irish music was held in Ennis on Thursday 26^th February at the Queens Hotel, not a usual venue for this style of music but those who braved the cold February night were well rewarded.

The concert was staged by Tommy McCarthy, from Galway and Boston, in aid of the Walk in my Shoes campaign to support the St Patrick’s Mental Health Foundation. This Foundation helps vulnerable young adults with a need for mental health services. This is one of a series of concerts which Tommy has staged under the banner ‘Burren Backdoor Series’ and it follows on from an earlier successful Facebook campaign involving traditional musicians in Ireland and the US.

Tommy gathered together an extraordinary array of talent mostly from Clare but with a few welcome blow-ins from places such as Donegal, Galway and Tipperary, all who generously gave their services to the cause. What a night.

The evening was very ably hosted by Paula Carroll, one of the presenters on Clare FM’s West Wind programme (which by the way is unquestionably the best nightly Irish traditional music show in the world and a showcase for music from Clare and elsewhere). The show began with the Tulla Junior Ceili Band, all aged between 11 and 14 and displaying a maturity way beyond this. They certainly captured that Tulla sound and this augurs well for the senior band in years to come. Their act had plenty of variety with a shortened brush dance and a delightful recitation from young seanchaí (shanachie), Naois O’Sullivan entitled ‘The Restaurant’. Great to see this fading tradition being handed down from her grandfather, who is also a shanachie. This well and truly set the scene.

There were too many acts and too many wonderful musicians to describe individually. So what were the highlights? A good mix of songs from Mullagh’s own PJ Murrihy and, the internationally renowned Sean Tyrell singing of his native Galway and at the end of the evening a beautiful rendition of Beeswing, but the night belonged to traditional instrumental music. There was a group of local musicians led by Siobhan Peoples who called themselves simply “The Ennis Trad Musicians”, with that energetic sound that regulars at Faffas or Dan O’Connell’s would be very familiar with and there were delicious counterpoints from groups such as the Boruma Trio (Andrew MacNamara, Eileen O’Brien and Geraldine Cotter) with their self-deprecating description of the band as the ‘RTE Light Orchestra’ (though they showed they could pump it out too with a rousing rendition of the Bucks, Rakish Paddy and the High Reel to finish their set!) and the sweet combination of the harp and concertina of Eimear Coughlan and Francis Cunningham. In between we had the McCarthy family Tommy, Louise, daughter Rose and from Miltown, Tommy’s sister Bernadette, a group from Lissycasey, who call themselves ‘In Tune’ (and they were!), which spanned the generation gap, and I have to say my favourite of the night, some gorgeous fiddle playing from Yvonne Casey with tasteful bouzouki from Eoin O’Neill. There was a group called Moher (another ensemble of Clare musicians), some strong representation from Miltown Malbay with regulars from Friel’s Pub and the incomparable Frankie Gavin for good measure. Frankie was worth the 20 euros alone and it was great to see him with just Geraldine Cotter’s piano and without the distraction of other instruments. His effortless bowing and vivacious playing, though definitely not “Clare-style”, was undeniably music from the top drawer and the product of a musician who has been at the top of his game for over forty years.

For those lucky enough to attend, despite the cold inside and out, which even with numerous layers left me with cold knees and toes throughout (God knows how they could play in t-shirts!!), it was a memorable evening with well over four hours of class music.

Another reminder why so many of us call Clare home!

Well done Tommy.