When you have Christy Moore telling the world that your songs always raise his spirits and John Spillane lauding you as the ‘poetic soul of Ireland’ then you’re obviously doing something right. Oh, and your name is going to be Ger Wolfe, because it is the Macroom man who has drawn such extravagant praise from these two masters of the song.
With a new album, The Velvet Earth, to promote Ger is taking to the road with the New Skylarks, his loose assemblage of musical allies. It’s not exactly a backing band, more like the musical equivalent of the Chelsea squad – strength in depth being the key attribute. The band doesn’t hinge around any one individual and although there are mainstays and regulars there are, as often as not, a few exotic instruments thrown into the blend as well. John Spillane lends a voice on one of the album’s tracks as does Annette Buckley. The tour which kicked off with a gig in the Cobblestone in addition to visiting Kilkenny, Wexford, Clonakilty, Ennis, Ballina, Ballaghadareen, Galway and finishing up with a show in Cork’s Cyprus Avenue on April 21.
Madness is apparently about to grip Buncrana with the reformation of the good time band The Pyros – legendary in their day for wearing hard hats onstage. Drummer Laurence Doherty regularly kept time on the heads of band members Ciaran Tourish (Altan), Kevin Doherty (Four Men and a Dog), John Cutliffe, Paul Rodden and Michael Gallanagh.
The Ar Ais Aris festival, which will overrun the town from Friday March 31 to Sunday April 2, has tempted them out of their various states of concussion. The festival will also honour the contribution of the fiddle player Dinny McLaughlin, and feature other musical notables from the town such as Dermot Byrne (Altan), Liz Doherty (trad arts guru with the Arts Council), P.V. O’Donnell, Michael Rodden, Michael Carey and many more.
In fact, word has it that Buncrana will use the weekend to stake its claim to the title of “Most Musical Village in Ireland”.
It is, of course, comfortable enough with such a distinction to invite visitors like Steve Cooney, Sean Óg Potts, Brian McGrath, Arty McGlynn and more to join the fun. Just remember to use protection!
There are a few people on the music scene in Ireland for whom my respect will probably never wane, my personal greats as it were, and there has been a tick against the name Niall Toner on that little mental list for quite some time now.
He may not actually hail from the southlands that he sings of but there is a steadfastness and a sincerity in his writing which carries him into an imaginary land where the blues and bluegrass skirt around each other.
Getting a cut on a blues legend’s album is a pretty major achievement and having Albert Lee record one of your songs is about as straight down the line as it comes. Good then, as they might get to duet on ‘Working On Love’ when both feature on the bill for the Midlands festival at Ballinlough Castle in late July, at which Kenny Rogers, Emmylou Harris and Glen Campbell will be going up country.
A definite date for the calendar is Art Garfunkel’s visit to Vicar Street on June 29. He was originally revered for his Grammy-winning, chart-topping music with fellow Queens, NY native Paul Simon.
Their greatest hits collection, which includes ‘Mrs. Robinson’, ‘Scarborough Fair’, ‘The Sound Of Silence’, ‘The Boxer’ and ‘Bridge Over Troubled Water’ is the biggest selling album ever by a duo.
Their body of work earned them the Grammy “Lifetime Achievement Award” and induction in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
That must have been a hard act to follow and Garfunkel’s subsequent career path has been idiosyncratic to say the least. He even took time out between solo albums to get a degree in art history and to follow it up with a masters in architecture. He’s done a fair deal of acting too, published a book of poetry and in 2002 he teamed up with songwriters Buddy Mondlock and Maia Sharp, made a critically acclaimed record and toured extensively in Europe and the US.
And you always thought Paul Simon was the grafter in that duo.
The legendary Malian musician Ali Farka Touré passed away in his sleep at home in Mali on March 6, after a battle with bone cancer.
Ali Farka Touré was a true original.  An exceptional guitarist, he transposed the traditional music of his native north Mali and single-handedly brought the style known as desert blues to an international audience.
Last month he won his second Grammy, for the album In the Heart of the Moon with Toumani Diabaté, and work had just been completed on his new solo album.
Karine Polwart, songwriter of choice for many of the most gifted singers around, releases a new album Scribbled in Chalk on April 14, following on from Faultlines, which scooped Best Album at the 2005 BBC Radio Folk Awards.
Baltimore will host its annual Fiddle Fair from the 11 – 14 May. The festival will feature some of the greatest names in the international traditional and folk music scene, including Tim O’Brien, Kevin Burke and Liz Carroll.
The festival, which started out in the legendary Declan McCarthy’s Bar, has now grown to encompass all the main venues in the village and is one of the most anticipated events on the folk music calendar.
Other highlights include Fiddlers’ Bid from Shetland, The Foghorn String Band from Portland, Oregon, The Polskadots from Finland, Madviolet from Canada, Buille from Armagh, Haugard and Hoirup from Denmark and Siobhan Peoples with Michelle O Brien from the County Clare.
This will be Tim O’Brien’s second visit to the festival and will be his first gig in Ireland since recently winning a Grammy for his album – Fiddler’s Green.
Tim’s career has seen him explore all kinds of American folk music as well as Irish traditional on the landmark album The Crossing and the follow-up Two Journeys. He will be joined for this gig by Scottish fiddle virtuoso John McCusker and guitarist John Doyle.
Former Bothy Band and current Patrick Street member Kevin Burke will be making a rare Irish appearance at this year’s festival.
Now based in Portland, Oregon, Kevin has been one of the most influential and respected traditional fiddle players of the last 30 years. He will be joined for this gig by fellow Patrick Street member guitarist and fiddle player Ged Foley.
Liz Carroll will also be making her second visit to the festival, having been the highlight of the event in 2004.
The Foghorn String Band have been gaining a worldwide reputation as one of the best Old Timey bands in the business while Fiddlers Bid from Shetland absolutely electrified the place at their only previous visit to the Fiddle Fair and are a must-see.