DanGem closing-down sale

Sad news for the end of 2016: the BIB notes with great regret that DanGem Bluegrass, of Craigavon, Co. Armagh, announces the holding of a closing-down sale.

DanGem Bluegrass has been a major force in promoting and sustaining bluegrass in Ireland for years. As well as holding the largest stock of banjos in the island, together with accessories, learning aids, and other instruments, Dangem held in 2009 and 2010 the first banjo camps in Ireland; founded a long-running series of monthly Bluegrass Get-Togethers in Lisburn up to this past May; promoted events such as the Bluegrass and Roots Music Night at the Spectrum Centre, Belfast, in 2011; and gave constant support and sponsorship to the annual Omagh bluegrass festival at the Ulster American Folk Park in Co. Tyrone. The Dangem staff are also individually active in bluegrass - for instance Derek Lockhart, as well as running DanGem, plays bass for the Harpers Hollow Bluegrass Band.

Without DanGem, there will be a big hole in the bluegrass scene here. The BIB thanks Derek and his crew for all DanGem has done for the music over the years, and wishes them every success in the future.

As a further benefaction, DanGem has made available to the bluegrass community the following list of good banjos available at bargain prices - and in some cases below cost - before they appear on the website. The list, predominantly of 5-strings, includes two tenors. Contact Derek by e-mail for more info; some items are open to offers. Payment can be made by credit card, with packing and postage extra.

Christmas greetings from the BIB

The Bluegrass Ireland Blog sends good wishes for a happy and peaceful Christmas and a joyful and prosperous New Year to all its readers, to all lovers of bluegrass and kindred musics, and to all people of goodwill everywhere.

Christmas greetings from Woodbine

Woodbine send the season's greetings on their Facebook:

We would like to wish everyone a very Happy Christmas & a bright New Year. Thanks to our many friends for the support during 2016 and thanks to Mel Corry & Evan Lyons for filling in on banjo in the absence of Richard on a few occasions during the year, to Dessie Crerand, Sean McKerr, & PJ Power for guesting with us on occasions, it was much appreciated. We had a great year and look forward to 2017 and whatever it holds for us.

Cup O' Joe on the Causeway, on video - and on Bluegrass Today

Bluegrass Today has just published a strongly commendatory feature on Co. Armagh's Cup O' Joe (above), centring on a video of them playing 'Tell me, darling' on the Giant's Causeway, with Tabitha Agnew's singing and banjo-playing shown to excellent effect.

'Tell me, darling' is one of six tracks on Cup O' Joe's EP Bluebirds, which was released on 1 November and can be obtained from their website for £6.00 - or for $5.94 on iTunes, where individual tracks are 99c.

FOAOTMAD news of visiting artists

The FOAOTMAD news blog reports that Mark Schatz (twice IBMA Bass Player of the Year, and musical director of Footworks) has been added to the roster of teachers at this Easter's Sore Fingers in England, and would like to play some gigs before or after it - either 13-15 April or 22-25 April. He’s also an accomplished clawhammer banjo player, Appalachian clogger, and hambone teacher. Anyone who can help should contact him by e-mail.

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The FOAOTMAD blog also carries tour dates for Bertram Levy and his daughter. They'll be at FOAOTMAD's Gainsborough festival (see the BIB for 15 Dec.) and at gigs in southern England between 9 and 19 Feb., but there is regrettably no indication of their coming to Ireland.

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The same applies to Mike Compton and Joe Newberry, who will be playing shows in Britain from 20 Jan. to 5 Feb. However, the last of these will be at the Gwesty Victoria Hotel at the Menai Bridge, North Wales - accessible to any really keen fans from Ireland.

Life after Christmas

The Dublin Bluegrass Collective held their last weekly jam before Christmas last night at Sin É, 14-15 Ormond Quay, Dublin - but this was not the last jam of 2016. As announced on the Collective's Facebook, the jam will be held next Tuesday (27 Dec.). Recover from that feeling of post-Christmas anti-climax by dropping in to Sin É that evening (from 9.00 till closing) for some of the best bluegrass in the Dublin region.

The Cabin Sessions, Dundrum, Dublin, 29 Dec. 2016

Gerry Fitzpatrick, organiser of the Cabin Sessions series, 'Acoustic Music at its Finest', announces the Session for this month:

Hey Y'all !

Just a quick e-mail to say Happy Christmas to all our supporters and to let you know that we'll have a December Cabin Sessions on Thursday 29th! Guests will include Emma Butler (contemporary), Tom Horan (Americana), and Neal Ryan (contemporary).

Hope to see you there and best wishes to y'all for Christmas and the New Year.

The Sessions are held on the last Thursday of every month at Uncle Tom's Cabin in Dundrum, south Dublin (not far from Dundrum Luas station, in the city direction). Shows run from 9.30 to 11.30 p.m. and admission is FREE. If you or someone you know would like to perform at the Cabin Sessions, let Gerry know by e-mail. The Sessions are particularly interested in featuring local musicians and singers.

A good year for Ear Trumpets

On 2 Nov. the BIB mentioned the distinctive microphones used in Ireland this year by Old Drake, the Foghorn Stringband, and Betse & Clarke, together with the excellent sound quality at their shows, for which the mics from Ear Trumpet Labs of Portland, OR, are largely responsible.

In five years in business, Ear Trumpet Labs have forged a strong reputation with their hand-made microphones, which are used and praised by leading performers in bluegrass and old-time music. In 2016 sales have doubled and they've introduced two new models, 'Josephine' and 'Nadine'. Read more in their latest e-newsletter.

2nd Bluegrass Camp Ireland, 28-30 July 2017

Headfort School, Kells, Co. Meath

Welcome news from Simon Humphries of the organising team of Bluegrass Camp Ireland (also on Facebook):

Bluegrass Camp Ireland 2017 will take place at Headfort School, Kells, Co. Meath, next July, Friday 28th-Sunday 30th (weekend before Bank Holiday weekend). We'll have a lineup of US and Irish-based tutors. Lineup will follow in the new year.

Banjo Babes 2017 calendar now out

Thanks to Bluegrass Today for the news that the fourth edition of the Banjo Babes calendar is published, with twelve splendid images of women banjo players, and their music on an accompanying CD.

The theme this year is 'Vote for Banjo!' but none of the images or tracks is likely to prove politically divisive. Full details, together with methods of ordering and images and tracks from past years, are on the Banjo Babes website.

Get your Shannonside Festival brochure FREE by post

On Saturday the BIB published the news that the full-colour, 36-page brochure for the 18th Shannonside Winter Music Festival (19-23 Jan. 2017) in Sixmilebridge and Bunratty, Co. Clare, is now available. Brendan Walsh, head of the festival organising team, sends word that hard-copy brochures are available free by post. Just text the word 'Brochure', followed by your name and address, to 086 8464509.

Two Time Polka: last gigs of 2016

Ray Barron of Two Time Polka sends this news:

Just to update you on an extra gig next week:

St Stephens Day, Mon. 26th: The Briar Rose Bar, Douglas Rd., Cork. 6.30-8.30 p.m. Adm. free. Tel. 021 4291686

... and a reminder of our last gigs of 2016:

Fri. 30th: DC Music Club, 20 Camden Row, Dublin. Start 9.00 p.m. Adm. €15 (Musiclee.ie production)

New Year's Eve, Sat. 31st: The White Horse, Ballincollig, Co. Cork. Start 10.15 p.m. Adm. free. Tel. 021 4871388

In January we'll be playing in Sixmilebridge at the Winter Music Festival; Clashmore, Co. Waterford; and in the White Horse, Ballincollig. Full details in the next mail.

Happy Christmas to everybody.

Regards,
Ray & TTP

Two Time Polka's latest CD, New road, is available at their gigs and from Music Zone, Douglas, Cork, and Custys Music, Ennis, Co. Clare; or on line from both outlets, www.musiczone.ie and www.custysmusic.com. You can also contact Ray directly.

More on workshop day at Bühl, 21 May 2017

For readers with a European perspective - the BIB reported on 7 Dec. that there will be an extra day of workshops at the 15th International Bühl Bluegrass Festival at Bühl (Baden), Germany, in May next year.

Though held in conjunction with the festival, this is a separate enterprise by Adiaha Bürkmiller‎, who has been organising annual bluegrass instruction camps among the stunning Bavarian mountain scenery for years now. (A video giving some of the flavour is on Adiaha's website and can also be seen on YouTube.) The next main Bluegrass Camp on her schedule will be on 6-8 October 2017, when our friends from Red Wine (with Jürgen Biller from 4 Wheel Drive also teaching banjo) will form the core of the teaching staff.

At Adiaha's Bluegrass Day at Bühl on 21 May, the instruction will come from Chris Jones & the Night Drivers (USA), plus Röbi Brunner of Switzerland on dobro. The charge for enrolment appears as €180 (it was announced on 2 Dec. as €170, so check with Adiaha if you're thinking of going).

Don't forget Bluegrass Camp Ireland (also on Facebook) this summer, after a very successful launch in July 2016. Details will be on the BIB as soon as we receive them.

11th Westport Folk and Bluegrass Festival, 9-11 June 2017

Thanks to Uri Kohen and his organising team for this announcement:

Westport Folk and Bluegrass Festival will take place for the eleventh time at the weekend of 9-11 June 2017, in Westport, Co. Mayo. As always, the festival will bring some of the best local, national, and international folk and bluegrass acts.

Alongside regular festival favourites like the Big Session, the main concert, and the gospel show, the committee are working on new events such as a kid show, special workshops, and a few other surprises.

2017 will see the most 'international' lineup for the festival, with no less then eight acts from overseas already booked.

The festival's website will be updated in the coming weeks, and for any more news please visit the Facebook page. Tickets for the festival will be out around April and it is very much recommended to book accommodation as soon as possible.

Here are some of the acts that already have been confirmed:

The Horsenecks (UK/USA)

Jock & Vera (UK)

The Vanguards (UK)

Cardboard Fox (UK)

Jaywalkers (UK)

Fox & Branch (USA)

The Old Yellers (USA)

The Original Five (Sweden)

Greenshine (Ireland)

The Rye River Band (Ireland)

Corner Boy (Ireland)

The Rocky Top String Band (Ireland)

Tim Rogers (Ireland)

Evan Lyons (Ireland)

The Festival's committee are very much looking forward to seeing you all in Westport in the summer.

Shannonside Festival brochure now available

Following the BIB post of a week ago, Brendan Walsh and his team in the Sixmilebridge Folk Club announce that the full-colour, 36-page brochure for the 18th Shannonside Winter Music Festival (19-23 Jan. 2017) in Sixmilebridge and Bunratty, Co. Clare, is now available. Weekend tickets, giving access to all events including admission to the Folk Park, are only €50, and are on sale in time to make good Christmas presents. Brendan adds (for Sixmilebridge Folk Club members):

Our autumn newsletter went out by e-mail this year, so apologies to some members who have not received a copy. A final decision in relation to how we comunicate with our members will be made at our AGM next March/April so let us know what you think.

If you don't get this communication ('I won't know!' Someone might tell you!) it means that we decided that you had ready access to a festival brochure locally or at Club events. PLEASE take an omission as a compliment, as it means you're a regular supporter.

Once again I want to say a big thank you to all our official 'Festival Friends': your donations really boosted the Festival committee's confidence and ensured a bigger and better Festival this year.

Happy Christmas and a prosperous New Year to you all.

Update 20 Dec.: Hard-copy brochures are available free by post. Just text the word 'Brochure', followed by your name and address, to 086 8464509.

Brooksie Wells & Round Hill (USA) in Ireland, 2-8 Apr. 2017

Brooksie Wells & Round Hill: (l-r) Wally Hughes, Brooksie,
and Lisa Kay Howard

Thanks to mandolinist and radio presenter Lisa Kay Howard of Virginia for the news that she is preparing a tour in Ireland this coming April for singer/songwriter and Americana artist Brooksie Wells, accompanied by Round Hill - Lisa Kay and her husband Wally Hughes on fiddle and resonator guitar.

Lisa Kay hosts 'The Old Home Place' radio show on WAMU's Bluegrass Country. She and Wally both perform with Valerie Smith & Liberty Pike (featuring Bluegrass Hall of Fame member Tom Gray on bass) and with the band East of Monroe. Lisa Kay also leads her own Lisa Kay Band; Wally plays fiddle and Dobro with Randy Cook & Commonwealth. 'BUT for this tour,' Lisa Kay says,

... it will just be Brooksie, Wally, and myself performing Brooksie's wonderful original music as Brooksie Wells & Round Hill. You can hear entire songs here or find out more about Brooksie at www.brooksiewells.com.

Dates so far confirmed for the tour are:

Sun. 2nd Apr.: Dublin Unitarian Church, 112 St Stephen's Green, Dublin 2
Mon. 3rd: Mick Murphy's Bar, Ballymore Eustace, Co. Kildare
Tues. 4th: The Red Room, Cookstown, Co. Tyrone
Wed. 5th: Matt Molloy's Pub, Bridge St., Westport, Co. Mayo 7.00-9.00 p.m.
Fri. 7th: Tech Amergin Arts Centre, Waterville, Co. Kerry

Thursday 6th and Saturday 8th April are still available. For bookings, contact Lisa Kay by e-mail.

PS: Through hosting WAMU's Bluegrass Country, Lisa Kay met singer/songwriter Gary Ferguson (whose tour of Ireland last July with Colin Henry was his eleventh tour here). Thanks to Gary for advising Lisa Kay to contact the BIB!

Cardboard Fox (GB): a PS

Cardboard Fox (see the BIB post of Monday this week) took part in the official showcase schedule in the 'Bluegrass Ramble' section of this year's IBMA World of Bluegrass. This photo, showing them in front of the statue of Sir Walter Raleigh (with ornamental arch of Deering banjo parts) in Raleigh, NC, can be seen on their Facebook, together with some very complimentary comments.

Europe's largest old-time music festival, 10-12 Feb.2017

The Friends Of American Old Time Music And Dance (FOAOTMAD) publish this poster image for the 23rd Gainsborough Old Time Festival, 'Europe's largest and best old-time festival', which will be held in just under two months from now (10-12 Feb. 2017) at Queen Elizabeth's High School, Morton Terrace, Gainsborough, Lincolnshire, DN21 2ST. Weekend tickets (£50 for FOAOTMAD members, £60 for non-members) and day tickets will be available soon.

The FOAOTMAD news blog reports that there are vacancies for exhibitors/sales at the Gainsborough Festival. Interested? If so, please contact Tim [this is not Fiddlin' Tim Hawkins] by e-mail.

We note from the poster that Bertram Levy (right; see the BIB for 29 Sept. for his Irish connection) will be taking part, in a section of the festival devoted to the fiddle tunes of Henry Reed.

This is a unique opportunity to hear and meet a musician who learned directly from a traditional master, and has himself been a major moving force in the old-time revival.

Cardboard Fox (GB) in Ireland, early June 2017: update

Thanks to Laura Carrivick for the news that her band Cardboard Fox (above), based in Bath, England, will be touring Ireland in early June 2017, and will be glad to fill out their schedule of gigs.

Cardboard Fox was formed in 2013 by four young but very experienced players, immersed in bluegrass and old-time music and keen to follow those leads further afield. Out of mind, their first full album, was released in May this year. Their bio page mentions

... the extraordinary talents of young mandolin player Joe Tozer and the driving and technically demanding double bass playing and harmony vocals of John Breese. With a focus on original songs with a strong pop sensibility and energetic live shows, this is a group of musicians who are very, very excited about what this lineup can create, and that’s what makes this acoustic quartet so special.

Laura and her sister Charlotte, both multi-instrumentalists and songwriters, with characteristic sibling harmony singing, played six shows here as the Carrivick Sisters in Oct. 2009, took part in the 2012 Shannonside Winter Music Weekend (as it then was), and were back later that year to perform in Derry and Dublin. Promoters and event organisers interested in booking Cardboard Fox should contact Laura by e-mail at her Bridge Music Agency.

Update 14 Dec.: John Breese and Charlotte Carrivick are also instructors at the Bath Bluegrass School.

Have your questions ready!

A month from today the Special Consensus will begin their 2017 tour in Ireland, in concert at the Pavilion Theatre, Dun Laoghaire; details of the tour are on the band's website and the BIB calendar.

By coincidence, the current issue of Bluegrass Unlimited magazine includes 'Bluegrass bass: the final frontier' by Dan Eubanks (above right), the Special C.'s bass player (and a former jazz bassist). It's Dan's answer to the most common question he gets asked as a teacher at bass workshops: 'How do I get better at bass breaks?' He deals with two aspects: getting melody notes through the ears into the left hand by scale practice, and adjusting right-hand position to make playing melodic phrases easier. Dan ends by writing:

I'm always available and open to your questions and, for further study, I'm also all over the country and the world, performing with Special Consensus, so don't be shy if you see us!

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This issue of BU also includes a review of the Special C.'s latest CD, beginning with the words: 'If you want to know how Special Consensus have managed to stay in business for 40 years, all you have to do is pick up a copy of Long I ride.' Neither the review nor the article are on BU's website, so you'll have to order the issue; but that's all right, as you will then get Pete Wernick's guest editorial on the place of bluegrass in the hi-tech 21st century, and much more.

Burton, Jones, & Brownlie (GB) in Ireland, early June 2017

The Dude Coopers: (l-r) Richard Eyres, Mark Jones,
Howard Burton, Charlie Ogunremi

Thanks to Mark Jones in England, who sends news of a tour preparing for early next summer:

I play with the Dude Coopers [also on Facebook], a well established bluegrass band on the UK festival circuit since 2007.

Our biography can be found on our website, and to get an idea of our live sound please see this YouTube clip of us at the Orwell Bluegrass Festival in 2013.

Howard Burton (banjo player with the Dude Coopers) and I (guitar player with the Dude Coopers) have a new musical project as a trio with bass player Asa Hardy Brownlie, for next year's festival season. I am currently arranging festival appearances for the new ensemble and have three festivals who have confirmed bookings for the 2017 season.

We are hoping to arrange some gigs, over a week in Ireland. We have a tentative booking in Ireland on 9 June and are looking to arrange some gigs either side of that date (we have a festival booking in England the weekend prior [2-4 June]).

BIB editor's note: As shown on their website, Howard and Mark (like all the Dudes) have impressive credentials as pickers. There is plenty of video evidence of the Dudes' impact as a band. Promoters and event organisers interested in booking the trio in Ireland can contact Mark by e-mail.

18th Shannonside Winter Music Festival, 19-23 Jan. 2017

Thanks to Brendan Walsh and his team from the Sixmilebridge Folk Club, the 18th Shannonside Winter Music Festival will feature over seventy acoustic music events at fifteen venues from 19 to 23 January 2017 in Sixmilebridge and Bunratty, Co. Clare.

As usual, the programme ranges widely through different genres of music, with a strong emphasis on both Irish traditional music and the blues - which should interest those who see bluegrass as a blend of those two genres. The actual bluegrass element in the Festival will consist of the Special Consensus (USA), Cup O' Joe from Co. Armagh, and Greenshine from Cork; plus the Fake McCoys string band from East Clare, whose country blues repertoire includes songs by Bill Monroe and Hank Williams.

The full lineup is on the Festival website, together with the concert and gig schedule, a guide to accommodation in the area, and general Festival information including location maps for all the venues.

Rayna Gellert & Co. in Ulster, 1-5 Feb. 2017

Thanks to the FOAOTMAD news blog for the news that Rayna Gellert (USA) will be touring in these islands in the new year, together with Kai Welch and Jamie Dick and a new album, Workin's too hard, scheduled for release on 27 Jan. The album can be pre-ordered, and a very brief preview video is on Rayna's Facebook. Rayna was a headliner of the 2015 Westport Folk & Bluegrass Festival, and played in Ireland way back in 2006 as a member of Uncle Earl.

The tour begins with five dates in Britain, and continues with these shows, all in Ulster:

Wed. 1st Feb.: Strule Arts Centre, Omagh, Co. Tyrone
Thurs. 2nd: Bangor Castle, Bangor, Co. Down
Fri. 3rd: Island Arts Centre, The Island, Lisburn, Co. Antrim
Sat. 4th: Roe Valley Arts Centre, 24 Main St., Limavady, Co. Londonderry
Sun. 5th: Crescent Arts Centre, 2-4 University Rd, Belfast

Online booking facilities are on Rayna's website. The bad news from FOAOTMAD: though Mike Compton and Joe Newberry (USA) will be touring in Britain about the same time, they are not scheduled to play any dates in Ireland.

Extra day of workshops at Bühl 2017

Chris Jones & the Night Drivers: (l-r) Mark Stoffel,
Jon Weisberger, Chris Jones, Gina Clowes

Ten days ago the BIB carried news of the 15th International Bühl Bluegrass Festival, to be held next May in south-west Germany. Our good friend Walter Fuchs, longtime director of the festival, now reports:

Next year the Bühl festival will have an appendix, 'cause the Chris Jones Band will stay a day longer and on Sunday [21 May] from 9.00 a.m. till 5.30 p.m. they will have a 'Bluegrass Day' giving lessons to musicians about picking and singing and improvising. You see the festival is improving.

Chris (a former lead singer and guitarist for the Special Consensus) founded the Night Drivers in 1995, and to date they have won eight IBMA awards. Mark Stoffel, originally from Munich, has been the band's mandolinist for nine years and recently became an American citizen. Though Chris has shared the stage with the Chieftains, he and his band have yet to tour in Ireland (verb. sap.).

In February 2017 Walter's son Patrick, who succeeded him as director of the festival, will be in Berlin as its representative at the annual Country Music Messe.

Update 9 Dec.: Made to move, the new twelve-track album by Chris Jones & the Night Drivers, will be released on 17 Feb. 2017. It can be sampled and pre-ordered on iTunes.

Rex McGee

The BIB editor writes:

Since the beginning of last year Bluegrass Today has been keeping track of an invaluable video series made by Bud Bennett at Eadford University, VA. These are interviews of two hours or more with eminent people in the banjo world - pickers Butch Robins, Sammy Shelor, and Jens Kruger, classical player John Bullard, and maker/designer Tom Nechville. The videos appeared on Bud Bennett's Appalachian Music and Culture blog and are now grouped as the Banjo Masters series.

The latest in the series are two hour-long videos on Rex McGee of North Carolina, a highly eclectic player: his grandfathers played banjo and fiddle, and he himself plays a strong old-time fiddle style and compiles a fiddle-tune video archive; but on the banjo he also plays jazz and Irish music and uses a tuning (gFGCD) that facilitates playing in those genres as well as giving a 'mixolydian' sound to bluegrass. He met the late Bill Keith in Ireland at one of the Johnny Keenan Banjo Festivals, and plays with Ryan Cavanaugh. And his band 'Kripplekrunk' includes Nate Leath, who was over here in 2015 playing fiddle with Tom Mindte's Patuxent Partners.

John Lawless on Bluegrass Today writes: 'Banjo players should absolutely be required to schedule the time to watch all of Bennett’s videos, and they are worth the attention of anyone with a fascination for the instrument.' The McGee videos should be specially interesting for anyone playing Irish music on the 5-string, but there's much more. Watch the introductory video and explore the other links on the Bluegrass Today feature.

Woodbine at Bob's Bar, Durrow, Co. Laois, 18 Dec. 2016

Thanks to Tony O'Brien for this news:

After another successful year for the band, Woodbine will play their last gig of 2016 in Bob's Bar, Durrow, on Sunday 18 December at 8.30 p.m. Hope to see some of our old friends there to wind up the year.

Evan Lyons will be playing banjo for Woodbine at Bob's; the photo above shows Woodbine with Evan at this year's Omagh festival at the start of September.

Shane Sullivan at Red Wine Bluegrass Party #8

Shane Sullivan of Athy, Co. Kildare, was an honoured and featured guest at the Eighth Red Wine Bluegrass Party, held last Saturday (26 Nov.) at the Teatro della Tosse in Genoa, Italy. The hosts were our friends Red Wine, who have visited Ireland twice this year; the photo above shows (l-r) Silvio Ferretti, Martino Coppo, Shane, Lucas Belotti, and Marco Ferretti, with Fabio Biale (fiddle) on far right.

The Party's theme, 'Bluegrass & Songwriters', is described by Martino in a feature on Bluegrass Today:

... a blend of songs written by some of the greatest songwriters we love and admire, many of whom with very limited or no connection with bluegrass music. These included Bob Dylan, Leonard Cohen, James Taylor, Paul Simon, Bruce Springsteen, Norman Blake, Steve Young, Jim Lauderdale, Brad Davis and Liz Meyer, as well as originals from our special guest Irish songwriter Shane Sullivan and our banjo man Silvio Ferretti.

More details from Martino and more photos (all by Stefano Goldberg) are on Bluegrass Today. Work on next year's Bluegrass Party has already begun!

Finale at the Teatro della Tosse

New session in Tubbercurry, Co. Sligo, this Sunday: UPDATE

Wendy Connolly posts this news on 'Bluegrass in Ireland' Facebook:

Claire Bradshaw is hosting a country/ bluegrass session/jam in Cawley's Hotel, Tubbercurry, Sligo this Sunday, 4 Dec. ALL MUSICIANS WELCOME! Try to turn out, as they hope to make it a monthly event, and they need YOU to make it a success! It'll be a great time, I'm sure.

The session will run from 3.30 to 5.30 p.m.; thanks to Sharon Loughrin for the info.

'Roots Freeway' returns to RTE Radio One, 3 Dec. 2016

Niall Toner reports today on his blog:

I'm delighted to say that 'Roots Freeway' returns to RTE Radio One on this coming Saturday, December the 3rd, for another thirteen-week run. If you're not already a listener, tune in at 11.00 p.m. on Saturday night to hear a great selection of roots music, including many new releases that you will not hear anywhere else. Artists like No Crows from Sligo; Shane Hennessy, a great young acoustic guitarist from Carlow; the Stargazers from Cork; Pete Cummins from Dublin; as well as tracks from Seth Lakeman, Hot Club Of Cowtown, Brendan Quinn, and more. Also, if there's stuff that you'd like to hear on the 'Roots Freeway', or if you have a new release, you can get in touch with us at rootsfreeway@rte.ie/.

The general philosophy behind the show is to bring you as much of the kinds of music and song that you will not hear elsewhere, with a strong emphasis on home-grown Irish singers and songwriters, as well as a wide variety of blues, bluegrass and old-time music, and a list of up-coming live gigs around the country. Roots Freeway: 11.00 p.m. on Saturday nights, on RTE Radio One with Niall Toner.