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Touchline Archives

February 2007

In case ye may think that I don't exist at all; it's high time that I said, hello, to the people who have been so good to me along the bumpy road of life, to quote Mr. Irving Berlin. Just to assure my faithful fans who have regularly referred to this website in search of fresh evidence of my existence and where the hell they might catch me live-be of good heart; the worse is over! I promise to talk to ye on a monthly basis from now on to give ye the lowdown, like.

I'm going to call the "article", "communication", "newsletter", "The Touchline", because it touches with people who are interested in my work, travel and aspirations for whatever reason from the margins of my life and I'd want to be a very cynical cove to act the recluse. Not that I don't love a bit of quiteness now and then. I seldom log in to other fellow- artists's sites; but I'm told that they have forums and things allowing people to make comments and ask questions and I'd be glad to ask Tim Canniffe, my mighty webman and adviser on these hi-tech conundrums that I know so little about if such a device can be installed. Anyway, we'll bring ye "The Touchline" regular, as a kind of monthly diary and see where that takes us. I apologise for being remiss betimes relaying my gig diary to Tim Canniffe at the site; paradoxically because I'm too busy or focused on other things, benign things, I hastfully add; and I'll touch on some of 'em.

A three week trip to America knocked the month of January a right dawk ( I'm from Cork and we have our own version of the English language and the Irish, so I'm not going to dumb down words like "dawk"-look it up in Seán Beecher's wonderful Dictionary of Cork Slang. I hung out with Donie Carroll and his old doll Theresa and stayed in their cosy appartment in Queens,NY while Donie used all his wonderful aquaintances to sort out many of my woes. Lucky the man who has Donie Carrol as a friend; paltry the man who hasn't. Took a few pensive strolls around Sunnside; tried to find Sally O' Brien's Pub where I wrote The Green Island .Like the emigrants,the pub is no longer to be seen, but I have good memories of my days in NY in the eighties and nineties when the place was full with young Irish. My second favourite diner in America is Alpha Donuts in Queen's Boulevard,cross street 45, I think, and they have mighty,chape grub and 'tis a unique, friendly place open all night too. We did a couple of gigs:- in Paddy Reilly's and Clancy's in Manhattan and I contributed to one of the wonderful lectures on Celtic Music given by my friend Dr. Mick Moloney at NYU where we talked about the origins and function of the bouzouki in Irish music. My dear friend Peggy Marks from Manhattan took me to see the Druid Theatre's production of Friel's Translations in Broadway and 'twas wonderful and my first experience of an Irish drama in Broadway.

Took a long, snowsmitten train ride up through Syracuse, Albany, Buffalo and thence to the Windy City and then southward to Kansas city where I was taken care of by the gregarious, talented and kind Eddie Delahunt, proprietor of Cafe And where I did a gig , all accoustic; played me bouzouki and sang and borrowed Eddie's new Martin guitar for a few. While in Kansas, I met the irrepressible Máirtín de Cogáin, a fellow Corkman who showed me around the place, took me to guitar shops, second -hand book shops,fifties- style diners and to counteract the bill of fare and maintain health and fitness to a wonderful swimming centre where I managed twenty laps of slow crawl each day- very slow, mind you, and enjoyed a welcome sauna and jacussi, mighty balm for the bones of the weary troubadour. Fell in with Eddie Delahunt's band for two nights at O' Malley's out in the sticks in Winston, 'twould remind you of Barr a' Chuma, for all the world, on the Cork and Kerry border and we had good steam. Seven inches of snow saw us pushing cars, making snowmen and batterin' (that's another Cork wan) each other with snow balls and the lovely sight proclaimed a world not common to those of us who live betimes in the track of the gulf stream on the Dingle Penninsula where snow is scarce. Máirtín and meself shared a gig another night and he really impressed me with his passion and knowlege of the Irish tradition; be it singing, inventive bodhrán playing and storytelling. The man has a natural,engaging way with people and with The Fuscia Band, Máirtín is set for great things.

Thanks to Amtrack, arrived safely in Philly where Tom Brett,brother of my manager Damian Brett took care of me and showed me around and promoted a nice concert for me at the Shanachie in Ambler, PENN. Took off for NY again to sink a few sounder moorings for the future and to hook up with Mick Moloney at the University down in the village. On returning to Ireland, I had a few lovely days in my Kerry home in Feothanach on the Dingle Penninsula, took a few nice walks up Mount Brandon and around Cuas a' Bhodaigh to see the choughs and ravens and old monastic settlements and called into Pat Connors, a neighbour of four score plus over in Baile Dháith, agus sin agat fear go bhfuil an seanachas agus an Ghaelinn ar a thoil aige. Phléamar an t-iascach mar a bhí agus an meath ar a lán chúramaí traidisúnta ar nós na bradáin,an turas go dtí an "kreamery" ar maidin, an cosc ar dhóiteán, thobac, thiomáint agus ól; agus bheartmaíomar ar saol nua i gcéin gan lancaise Mhicheal Mc Dowell ag triall orainn! It is wonderful to have a home in one of the last bastions of the Irish language in Munster,go maire sí go deo.

Of course the big story of the month beside the trip to Amerkay is my new album, which I must tell ye about. It's a bit different and I'm really excited about it. The album to be called Irish Eyes, is a fresh look at the corny Irish -Ameri can songbook; songs that have been shunned by purists for years but are imbued w ith so much sentiment and fond affection not to mention gorgeous melodies that I couldn't resist any longer. I had the good fortune to hook up with a wonderful guitar player and arranger from Australia, Ian Date, who with his brother Nigel would give Django and Josef Reinheart a good run for their money. They played lovely Maceferri, swing jazz style guitar and I pursued the errant blue notes and chord sequences which sets these songs apart and guarantees their immortality. Ger Harrington from Castletownbere in West Cork joined us on double bass, a brilliant, consumate young musician and we wiped out the foundations of the album in a day and a half while Donagh Long (Spain Towers Studio, Baltimore, Co. Cork) used sylish mics from the thirties and forties to capture us live. Pat Mac Namara from East Clare came down next day and blew us away with some sensitive,passionate accordion calls and fills and we took a break. I've been back to Donagh Long's studio twice to clean up the vocals and lay down my own bits on the mandolin family instruments: my old black Gibson mando-cello, christened the "Bull Mc Cabe" purred to me on Innisfree and I worked out a mandolin quartet on "Mary Coffee" an old Gibson A4 for the chorus of Lough Sheelin.l sneaked in a few riffs on my Gibson mandola, christened "Mary Blonde" and played a counterpoint to Pat Mac's accordion on "The Darling Girl from Clare" and played my sweet, Farmiloe, shellback bouzouki on a few. I was happy to stay out of the really fast, jazzy ones like Mrs Murphy's Chowder and Mc Carthy's Party because I'm simply not good enough in that area----yet! Then we were joined by a mighty lap steel and dobro player, Clive Barnes who breathed new life and induced a hypnotic, Hawaian element to Danny Boy, That Tumbledown Shack in Athlone and Cottage by the Lee which suited the sentiment and blended with the Emerald All-Stars , the name I'd like to call the band if we ever get out on the road with this repertoire.

With God's help, we should be mixing soon and I was going to keep it a secret but can't: Mary Black is going to do some guest vocalizing and I'm really delighted. Mary and me are neighbours in the Kingdom of Kerry but our friendship goes back a long time before Kerry. I'm hoping to have Irish Eyes available be early May if not before.

Thanks to all the generous people who found their way around the on-line shop to purchase the box set (my first three albums unavailable for years) they have sold very well so far . Had a great night at the Moat Threatre, Naas, Co Kildare last Saturday, and I hope the Lily White people enjoyed the mix of old songs and new and I hope I wasn't too Cork! I did however tell a few yarns about Christy Moore and Larry Thomkins, two Kildare men who are much revered in the Rebel County of Cork. I'm delighted with me "new" 1970 Martin New Yorker, a guitar purchased from Gryphon strings, a capital music store in Paulo Alto, California. I love to pick this baby because it has a wide ,almost Spanish fretboard to accommodate my rough, former -carpenter's hands.

I'll leave ye, in God's name and I'll talk again at the end of Feb or early March. Don't forget the wonderful Ballymaloe Music Festival in East Cork from Feb 19 to 24 and I might see ye there on the Friday when my special guest will be John Spillane. Have a gawk at the Ballymaloe web site to catch the full programme.People living high up who don't suffer from altitude problems will see me at the arts centre in Tinahealy in the county Wicklow in Feb 24 and I'll be in John Benny's ,Dingle (at home ) on Feb 17. Cork people, be aware of a really nice session going a long time now each Wed at the Moonduster tavern in the fishing village of Crosshaven with Dave Hennessy on melodeon, Katrina, his lovely wife on flute and whistle and yours truely whenever I can be there. First subs are Tony and Mary Canniffe who between then possess one of the nicest ballad repretoires in these islands. Mary plays along on bodhrán and Tony plays mandolin, mandola, guitar and banjo.. Don't be shy about keeping in touch with Touchline with suggestions etc.

Le meas mór agam oraibh, with every good wish, Jimmy Crowley.