NTB mission statement and plan for 2008

The NTB reports:


2008 sees the Niall Toner Band celebrating five fruitful and successful years performing as a three-piece string band, and to mark our musical, artistic and creative achievements, we are setting out our plans for the coming year.

Mission statement

Niall Toner, Clem O'Brien, and Dick Gladney are committed to the composition and performance of original songs and tunes in bluegrass, blues, swing, and old-time country styles, as evidenced by our two CDs, There's a better way and Mood swing, our live performances, and our success at having our songs recorded by other artists. We firmly believe in making a positive contribution to the wider body of material in the field of bluegrass and acoustic country music.

This commitment will continue in 2008 with the release of our third all-original collection, and the NTB will make every endeavour to pursue our stated aims with appearances at many of the leading festivals in Ireland, Europe and the USA.

We have also always believed that we should bring our music to the widest possible audience, and to this end we have performed at many non-folk, non-bluegrass events, such as the Midlands Festival in Mullingar, and the opening slot for Kenny Rogers at the Point Theatre, Dublin, and the Kings Hall, Belfast, as well as appearing at places as varied as the Dundrum Town Centre, the Hollow in the Phoenix Park, and the open day in St Enda’s park in Rathfarnham. We are also honoured to have been included on the bill for Ireland's oldest bluegrass festival in Athy, its newest festival, the Ulster-Scots Fest in Derry, and the annual Johnny Keenan Banjo Festival in Longford.

Plans

Plans for 2008 include the release of We believe in clean endings on Avalon Records (AVCD 006), the third all-original, all-acoustic CD from NTB, which includes gospel songs, blues, swing tunes, a Jimmie Rodgers tribute song, a couple of bluegrass standards of the future, mandolin and guitar instrumentals, a co-write with Peter Rowan, a Christmas song, and a few surprises! NTB will also be appearing at the EBMA Festival in Voorthuizen in May and at the IBMA Festival in Nashville in September.

2008 will also see the publication of Nuts and bolts, a songwriters’ guide by Niall Toner, with particular emphasis on writing and pitching in the bluegrass and country fields of music. NTB will also be publishing the Niall Toner Band songbook, containing the lyrics to over one hundred songs composed by members of the band and songwriting partners from around the world, and this will be available in hard-copy and in pdf downloadable format. We are also making our gig list, containing contact details for over 200 venues, festivals, and promoters available to any other bands and solo artists who wish to avail of it for their own promotional purposes.

Thanks

NTB have received huge support from a whole variety of people over the past five years, and we want to thank our colleagues and friends in IBMA, EBMA and IMRO, as well as Richard Hawkins, Dan Hayes, Nancy Cardwell, Paolo Dettwiler, Richard Hurst, Ronan Collins, Sandy Harsch, Aidan Butler, Tony Moore, Tom Stapleton, Ronan Collins, Peter Bardon, Keith Johnson, Peter Browne, Paddy Glackin, Ana Leddy, RTE Radio One, Chris Keenan, Kathy Casey, Mick Daly, Chris Twomey, Keith Sewell, Sam Bush, Tony O'Brien, Jim Rooney, Barry and Holly Tashian, Bob Doyle, Pete and Joan Wernick, Bill Keith, Richard Greene, Clive Barnes, PJ Curtis, Tony Trischa, Dave Howard, John Murphy, Jim Lauderdale, and the many others who have helped along the way.

We would specially like to thank the 5000+ fans who have bought our CDs, and the 3000+ who have taken the trouble to send us comments, suggestions, and good wishes to our website.

We would also like to pay tribute to the wonderful artists who have recorded our songs, including the Nashville Bluegrass Band, Albert Lee, and Special Consensus. We also currently have songs ‘on hold’ with a wide variety of bands, including Del McCoury, Rhonda Vincent, Ricky Skaggs, and more.

Roots Freeway

Niall Toner broadcasts Roots Freeway on Ireland's National Radio Station, RTE Radio One, on Tuesday evenings, and to quote Hot Press magazine, ‘He knows what he's talking about.’ The show is an eclectic blend of music that falls under the roots banner, and includes lots of bluegrass, folk, traditional Irish, blues and old-timey, and singer-songwriters, with occasional live bands and solo artists in the studio. Recent guests have included the Carter Brothers, Eleanor McEvoy, Prison Love, Bray Vista, and Jim Lauderdale. Niall is also working on a documentary project for RTE Radio, similar to his Bela Fleck project, produced by Aidan Butler, and featuring interviews with established and up-and-coming songwriters and performers in the field of bluegrass music, and he will be conducting interviews at the 2007 IBMA Convention in Nashville, as well as the Jerusalem Ridge Bluegrass Festival in Kentucky. These interviews will be broadcast on Thursday nights on RTE Radio One.

Further information and contact

There are now as many ways of getting in touch with NTB as anyone would ever need. Our website has recently been updated, and includes full listings of our gigs, as well as reviews of our CDs and downloadable photos.

Our booking agent is Madeleine Seiler, and she can be reached at The Headline Agency: tel. +353-1-2602560; fax +353-1-2611879; e-mail.