May 2011 - Irish American News

May 2011 Irish American News “We’ve Always Been Green!” 21Life is full of ups and downs, and the pastmonth has been no different. We were all saddenedto lose Kay Dietz on March 26th, when she losther battle with lung cancer. Kay was always thelife of the party, a friendly happy lady who madesure everyone was pulled into the festivities. Shewas also mother of one of my closest friends, MikeDietz. She will be missed, but she will always beremembered.A wonderful bright spot was the debut at theMidwest Fleadh Cheoil of Chris and Mary AnnBain’s new twins, Ronan & Deirdre. Beautiful andtiny, they were brought round to meet everyoneand everyone immediately fell in love with them.Jackie Moran pointed out that little Deirdre wasnodding her head in time to the music, so it seemsthat the family musical genius has been passed onto another generation. What a blessing!This has been a great month for traditionalmusic as I sit here looking at six new releasesthat you will want to hear. First off, a CD thatI’ve been anxiously awaiting since Paddy O’Briensent me a rough cut promo a couple of monthsback. I hinted at it in previous columns, but it’shere now and well worth the wait. The Sailor’sCravat features Paddy O’Brien’s incomparablebutton accordion, Tom Schaefer on fiddle, PaulWehling on bouzouki, and the lovely vocals ofErin Hart. This CD contains some of the beststuff Paddy’s ever done, and we’re talking aboutan already pretty impressive body of work. Therecording comes to us from New Folk Records, alabel that is really making its mark in traditionalmusic circles. While playing it in the store, I’vehad nothing but positive comments from customers,most of whom bought it. That’s always a goodsign for me. I expected to hear great music fromPaddy, and wasn’t disappointed, but the delightfulsongs sung by Erin Hart were a wonderfulsurprise. Sorry to say I wasn’t familiar with herwork before but now—I’ll certainly keep her onmy radar. This girl can sing. Together the groupfunctions like a well oiled machine to deliver thebest kind of traditional music, the kind that picksyou up, physically and emotionally, and carriesyou along with it.Another recordingI havebeen anxiouslyawaiting is KathleenKeane’sWhere the WindMeets the Waterand I finally gotit! What a joy!Anyone who hashad the pleasure to sit and listen to Kathleenperform knows what an accomplished musicianshe is. Her CD captures all the intensity ofher performance and all the feeling that shehas for her music. She is the music and themusic is her. Okay, words are failing me herea bit. There are musicians to whom the musicisn’t just something they play, but instead themusic is a part of them. It’s what they are, notjust what they do. Kathleen Keane’s one ofthose. Her fiddle, tinwhistle and vocals aresimply outstanding. Added to this, she is surroundedby some of the finest trad musiciansin the industry, Dennis Cahill, guitar, JamesConway, harmonica, William Coulter, guitar,Jimmy Moore, bass, bouzouki and guitar andJackie Moran, the king of the bodhran. Thetunes are a mix of traditional and original,that’s right, she also writes lovely music! Shealso takes one of the iconic cheesy songs,“When Irish Eyes are Smiling,” and, with heroriginal arrangement, turns it into a lovely ballad.I love it! The CD finishes with a recording of herGranddad playing his accordion, sweet, lovely,fun… Kathleen. She is what she is and that’s oneof the best.Need to get the Scottish oar in the water hereand there’s no one better to do the job than JimMalcolm. Accomplished Scottish solo singerJim Malcolm has nine CDs to his credit withthe release of Sparkling Flash, his latest, not tomention all the CDs he did with Old Blind Dogswhen he was the band’s vocalist. I have rhapsodizedon Jim’s honey-velvet voice in the past andthat quality is still there. Nice to see more of hisoriginal song writing skills being highlighted inthis CD. Jim has a way with words, using his witand intellect to weave some heartfelt lyrics in thetitle song and a soon to be classic bit of humor inhis piece called “American Accent.” Did I mentionthat his guitar work and harmonica are beyondreproach? Well, they are. Jim loves to do houseconcerts and is in his glory with a small intimatesetting. If you get a chance to see him, don’t passit up, you will love this man and his great voice.On the new CD we also get to hear the vocaltalents of his wife, Susie and his daughter, Beth.One talented family, for sure.Speaking of great voices, one dropped by thestore the other day to bring his newest CD in forme to listen to. It was Andrew Calhoun, one of themost original voices I’ve ever heard, and one ofthe most original wits it’s ever been my pleasureto converse with. He has made a living crankingout the most outstanding collections of songs youcan imagine. If you haven’t heard his voice, don’twait for me to try and describe it, I don’t havethe words. Is it deep and rich? You betcha. Is itsmooth and harmonious? Yeah that too. Does thisguy know his way around a folk song? Yeah, likedamn few others. His new CD, Grapevine windsits way thru the folk tradition tying together songsfrom a lot of different places and doing them in away that will cause them to become your favoriteversions in future. You’ve got to hear this one; it’stoo good to pass up.Andrew also brought the newest release fromKate MacLeod and Kat Eggleston, called Lost andFound. Their second release together, it gives thesetwo fantastic musicians, Kat on guitar and Kateon fiddle, a chance to blend their vocal talents,creating a truly lovely experience. I’ve often saidthat I’d pay good money to hear Kat read the phonebook, well she’s one-upped herself by teamingwith Kate MacLeod. Another new release fromWaterbug Records, this CD shows us that newand innovative folk music is still being performed.The folk tradition is far from dead!Lastly a quick mention of a really good dealfrom New Folk Records, their new SamplerII. Twenty tracks to give you a taste of twentyartists, a total running time of 74:16 minutesof fine music for a fair price. Here’s a chanceto expand you horizons and hear some of theartists that this innovative label has found. Areal deal!Finally, at the Fleadh the other day whereI was selling CDs, four ladies came up to thebooth and bought a CD that was an independentproduction by a traditional artist. Theythen stood there discussing how they weregoing to burn copies for each other and theirfriends! Come on people! Traditional artistssure as hell don’t get rich on the sales of theirCDs, and this crap just makes it harder forthem to keep recording their music. Supporttraditional music and traditional artists. Burningis stealing. At the Fleadh for crying outloud, they should know better. Now I will put mysoapbox away till next month.Thanks to all of you who read my stuff andgive me your feedback. I probably won’t get anybetter at writing but it’s nice to know you’re reading.Thanks also to my wife Gayle who proofreads,retypes and generally keeps me in line. Contactme at pipingitin@comcast.net or call the store at630-834-8108. Slainté.