Irish Session CDs and Recordings

Even if I wasn't trying to learn how to be a participant, I still think my preferred way to experience Irish music would be in the session setting. It seems as though this traditional music is best understood not on a stage but by a loose assortment of musicians gathered around a table in the corner of a pub for some tunes and a few pints.

I only know of a handful of officially released Irish session recordings.  The first one that comes to mind is Maiden Voyage, recorded in 1991 at Pepper’s Bar in Feakle in the Eastern part of County Clare.  It features Tommy Peoples: fiddle, Kevin Crawford: concert flute, Joe Bane: tin whistle, and several others.  Maiden Voyage is well captured from deep in the heart of East Clare.

Another session recording I have which I like a lot is The Sanctuary Sessions, from Cruises Pub in Ennis, County Clare.  It was recorded in May 1994 and features many of the musicians who played regularly at Cruises at that time, with some overlap of names from the Maiden Voyage CD. The tunes on The Sanctuary Sessions often sound familiar to me even if I don’t always recognize the titles. The crowd is really receptive on this one!

One of the better known session recordings is Live At Mona’s, recorded over a period of several weeks in spring/fall 2003 at a now defunct Monday night session in the lower east side of Manhattan.  Out of all the session recordings, Live At Mona’s probably best captures the magic that can be created in that unscripted environment.  Musicians include Patrick Ourceau, Eamon O’Leary, Mick Moloney, Cillian Vallely and Brian Holleran.

Late in the Night is a live recording by Christy Barry (flute, whistle, spoons), Conor McCarthy (accordion) and Cyril O’Donoghue (bouzouki, guitar) from O’connors Bar in Doolin in the Western part of County Clare.  It was recorded in 2002 during the height of the Celtic Tiger, of which the small town of Doolin felt a major impact – being marketed as an epicenter of traditional music just down the road from the popular Cliffs of Moher tourist attraction.  Even if this was more of a gig rather than a session, Late in the Night is still a prime example of lively Clare session tunes.  The sparse instrumentation allows for an appreciation of Cyril O’Donoghue’s exceptional guitar/bouzouki backup.

Another live traditional music album I am fond of is The best of Andrew Mac Namara and The Lahawns, which is a compilation culled from recordings made at Winkles Hotel in Kinvara - just north of Clare in South Galway - in 1995 and Lena's Bar in Feakle in 2001.  Of all the releases on this list, this Lahawns album probably has the highest percentage of common tunes on it, so it's a great source for those looking to hear some of the standards, including Tatter Jack Walsh, the Boys of Bluehill, Lark in the Morning, Cooley's Reel, Rakish Paddy, Castle Kelly and Humours of Tulla.  This album has a boisterous, ceili-band feel

Lastly, I'd like to include a CD called Live at the Burren Centre, Kilfenora, recorded during a 2009 lunch-time performance by Kevin Griffin, Eoin O'Neill and Quentin Cooper. Although this was part of a concert series, Eoin and Quentin are long-time veterans of the Ennis session scene and Kevin Griffin plays in the pubs around Doolin, so the tunes come directly from the session repertoire and retain that loose, unrehearsed feel.

I see that there is also a CD called Music at Matt Molloy's.  I do not have that one yet.  If you know of any Irish session recordings that I've omitted please leave a comment or send me a message.  I'd love to hear more!

Charlotte Folk Society Slow Jam Recordings

The Charlotte Folk Society has a page on their site with mp3 audio files, midi files and sheet music/chord pdfs for several old-time chestnuts in the keys of D, G or A.  You can use their mp3 recordings and notation to play along with and learn such tunes as Yellow Rose of Texas, Over the Waterfall, Spotted Pony, Seneca Squaredance, Shove that Pig's Foot, June Apple, Red Haired Boy and more.

Unless you're really trying to get into the nuances of a particular fiddler or source musician's version, a simple, slowly paced jam recording is a great way to get better acquainted with a standard tune and make it your own.  With the slower speed you can practice until perfect and then take it up a notch or two, if you like, or continue playing it at a stately pace which may bring out different qualities of the melody.  I enjoy playing tunes at a medium tempo.

Here's a link to Charlotte Folk Society's recording of the classic Girl I Left Behind Me.

Live Session Recording - 3/16/13 at Midnight Brewery

Trae Cairns, the owner of Midnight Brewery in Rockville, VA, asked Laura and I if we could play some tunes there the day before St. Paddy's Day.  I recruited some excellent players to join us: Kathy Whittle (wooden flute and whistle), Andy Cleveland (violin), Lee Owens (guitar) and Chris Hale (mandolin).  Justin Joplin also joined us on clawhammer banjo for some of the tunes.  Like the other two groups I had assembled for music at Midnight, it was the first time that all of us had played together as an ensemble, but it turned out OK and was a lot of fun.

I recorded the session using my Olympus LS-14 recorder.  Below is an embedded player so that you can listen to the recording as you read this post.  If you'd like to view the whole recording, click here.



We set up around some picnic tables in the newly expanded back room/beer garden of the brewery.  It was just Kathy, Lee, Laura and me at first. The first tune we played was Whiskey Before Breakfast. Andy arrived during the tune and joined in on his fiddle, instantly lifting the mood of the music.

After that warm up tune and a few sips of beer, we next played a set of jigs - Tobin's Favorite, Kesh Jig and Connaughtman's Rambles.  I didn't instantly recognize the first jig or the third jig in the set but I kinda got them eventually.  Laura admits to being nervous, but her bodhran playing was spot on all day long, including on these jigs. It's not always audible though, drowned out by foot tapping, due to where I had the recorder placed.

Next I asked Andy and Kathy if they'd like to do the reels Merry Blacksmith and Sally Gardens.  It's a pairing I've heard done before, but I wasn't as familiar with Sally Gardens as I thought I was. Kathy sounds really good here.

We followed with some more jigs - Tripping Up the Stairs and My Darling Asleep.  I remember thinking that was the best I had ever played Tripping Up the Stairs without looking at the music - the recorder may or may not agree!

I then suggested we try playing My Love is In America, a reel that I learned from Eamon O'Leary from a lesson when he was in Williamsburg recently.  Andy went from My Love is in America into a reel that I was unfamiliar with called the Bank of Ireland.

Chris Hale had definitely arrived by this point in the session, and for the next tunes we tried putting Drowsy Maggie and Cooley's Reel together.  Chris isn't real familiar with Irish music, but is a professional level musician and I've heard his band Scattered, Smothered and Covered do Drowsy Maggie so I figured it was a good tune for him to start moving his fingers on.

The next tune was a quick jig played by Andy.  I think he called it Tommy People's Jig.

By now Justin Joplin had his clawhammer banjo out.  He was tuned to D and called for John Ryan's Polka, which he knows from an oldtime jam we both attend.  At the local Irish sessions, John Ryan's often comes after Britches Full of Stitches and Dennis Murphy's Polka.  So we did all three of those polkas, with Justin able to play on the last two since they are in D.

Staying in D, I requested the fiddle tune Liberty, which I think everybody in our impromptu band somehow knew how to play.

Kathy and Andy then dueted on the six-part jig Strayaway Girl (or Strayaway Child), which I have yet to even attempt to learn!  A six-part jig is almost like learning 3 separate tunes.  Maybe some day I'll work on that one.

After that we did the set of Jerry's Beaver Hat and Mug of Brown Ale, which is a popular pairing of jigs.  I used to have to play the B-part of Mug of Brown Ale in a lower octave because I couldn't finger all those high notes cleanly, but I've re-learned it in the higher register and am getting better at playing it that way.

We followed those jigs with an unusual merger of June Apple and Red Haired Boy.  I had been thinking that those would go well together, and it sounded OK for a first time effort.

Andy then played a slow listening piece which I believe is called Coyle's Field House.  I could have the name wrong.  It's a Scottish tune.  I remember thinking that Lee was doing a great job backing that one up, picking it up on the spot. I have to commend Lee for being a standout player all afternoon long.  He wasn't always familiar with the Irish tunes we were doing, but he hung right in there with some really tasteful accompaniment.  Unfortunately the recorder didn't always capture what he was adding to the music.

I then jumped into one of my favorite tunes - Road to Lisdoonvarna - and medleyed it with Star Above the Garter.  Andy added a third slide...either called O'Keeffe's or Denis Murphy's.  It was soon revealed to me that others don't share the same affection for Road to Lisdoonvarna.  I still think it's a great tune though!

I got up to get another beer and while I was gone Lee introduced the theme to Bill Cheatam, and Justin, Chris and Andy all picked up on it, busting into a full-on version of the tune.  I chatted with some folks and listened while they were playing this one.  I knew I recognized it but didn't realize it was Bill Cheatam until they told me.  That would be a good one to learn.

After my brief break, I put down the tenor banjo and got out the tenor guitar, which I would play for the rest of the session.  Since he was now tuned to A, I asked Justin if he could play Road to Malvern on his clawhammer banjo.  It took a few go rounds for us to get in sync on this "new" oldtime number, but the tune was definitely there.

Chris Hale asked if we could play Flowers of Edinburgh.  It had been a long time since I'd played that one, but I was reminded of how good of a tune it is.

That started a string of more Gmajor barndances.  Andy and Kathy played Peach Blossoms, which is one I have got to learn.  Kathy then started into Kilnamona Barndance, which I have been fumbling around on as of late.  I didn't do this one justice, but Kathy played it well. It got going a little faster than the speed she likes to play it at.

I asked Chris if he knew the one called Jimmy in the Swamp and he said yes so we proceeded to play that one, which was a lot of fun.

Next I played the jig The Eavesdropper, which is one that I have recently learned.  I'm hoping others learn it too so that we can play it more.

After that tune, Chris asked if we could play Mooncoin Jig, so we did.  Chris knew it as a two-part tune, but  we play it as a 3-part tune. The three part version prevailed, and it all worked out in the end!  Mooncoin was the only tune for which I looked at the music all day.

Nobody had sung a song yet, and there were starting to be more people in the brewery by this point, so I asked Chris if he wanted to sing one.  He chose the song Roving Gambler and Andy fell right in with some improvised soloing.  It's on songs like this that I become painfully aware of my weaknesses as a player.  I did nothing but just sit there and listen due to my unfamiliarity with hearing chord changes and knowing what to do on a bluegrass song like this.  It should be super easy but it's very difficult for me still.

It was then time to have Andy let loose on a couple of high-energy reels - Boys of Malin and Gravel Walk.  I love these two tunes and they are two that I hope to keep practicing until I can play them well enough to do them justice.

I had brought my new Ten Years of Tunes tunebook, and Andy looked through it and played Lucy Farr's Barndance from the notation in the book.  I had heard Owen Marshall play that tune the week before in a concert with Ari and Mia Friedman, so it's one of those tunes that I know I've got to learn.  In fact the next time that one comes around I'll be ready to play it.

One of my favorite tunes to play is Congress Reel, so I did that one next.  I think it came out OK.

It was getting near the end of the session by this point, but we hadn't yet played the trio of Silver Spear, Maid Behind the Bar and High Reel, so we knocked those out with some enthusiasm and velocity.  I think you can hear Laura's bodhran playing on these!

I had no idea at the time what the next tune was, and kind of played along on auto-pilot. I found out afterward that it was Fisher's Hornpipe, which I supposedly hate, although I recall enjoying it this time.  The act of playing along to a tune you don't know can be very satisfying in some situations, because you are reacting to what you are hearing rather than simply playing rote notes.

The Banshee is a tune Chris had been working on in preparation for this gig, and so he called for that one.  I'm starting to really like that tune again so I'm glad that one came up.

The Banshee was the last tune of the day for the group, although I asked Andy if he knew of any tunes to pair with it, and he quickly played one final tune, which he referred to as "The One That Goes With It".

There you have it.  A tune by tune rundown of our somewhat impromptu session on 3/16/13 at Midnight Brewery.

L to R: Laura Fields, Kathy Whittle, Lanny Fields, Lee Owens, Justin Joplin,
Andy Cleveland (fiddle) and Chris Hale (not pictured)

The above picture is the only one that I know of which was taken that day.

Dusty Banjos Ten Years of Tunes (book) and Live At The Crane (CD)

When I received my copy of Dusty Banjos Presents Ten Years of Tunes by Mary Lovett and Heather Greer with 400+ Irish session tunes arranged in sets, my first reaction was that this could be the best trad tunebook I've ever come across!  But let me back up for a minute and explain what Dusty Banjos is and what they do.

Dusty Banjos is a series of classes and sessions designed for adult learners (AKA improvers) who want to learn and play traditional Irish music with others.  It's a supportive, non-competitive atmosphere where all players and instruments are welcome to participate, regardless of level of ability (kind of like my Ashland jam/session, I hope).

The first Dusty Banjos session took place in Galway, Ireland in 2002, run by Mary Lovett of Community Music Crew.  Over the years additional Dustys sessions have been set up in Clifden, Ennis and other locations in Ireland.  Dusty Banjos also hosts the annual Cleggan Music Weekend each summer in the fishing village of Cleggan in Western Connemara, which looks awesome by the way!

The book Ten Years of Tunes was created to document the Dusty Banjos versions of tunes and sets from the repertoire accumulated over its first decade of existence.  The result is a broad-ranging snapshot of tunes that you're likely to hear in sessions in and around Galway and the rest of the world.  Tunes are organized by type - jigs, slip jigs, reels, hornpipes, polkas, slides, barndances, strathspeys, mazurkas, waltzes, marches, set dances, flings and airs. From there the tunes are further divided into sets of two or three - with sets grouped together on a single page whenever possible - or as single tunes.

Dusty Banjos session in Oliver's Bar, Cleggan music weekend 2012

The tunes are written in both music notation and ABC.  There's a brief section on how to read the music, as well as a number of photos, posters, articles and other content that I found interesting.  The book is printed on sturdy, glossy paper held together by heavy-duty spiral binding, making it easy to turn to the page you want to look at.  My favorite tune out of the book so far is Lucy Farr's Barndance, although I'm sure there are many more gems to be found in its pages.

Dusty Banjos also does public performances as a band.  One of those performances was recorded in January 2009 to become the CD Live at the Crane.  Officially released live session recordings at a tempo conducive to playing along with are rare, so this recording is a valuable learning tool for student musicians.  These high-energy ceili band style settings are a little percussion heavy (snare drum and bodhran), but that makes it easy to tap your foot to and keep in time with. 

Although Live at the Crane was recorded independently from the tunebook, the CD does contain close to 40 selections from Ten Years of Tunes, in the same sets as the book, so it’s a great learn-by-ear add-on to the written notation.  I’ve immediately taken a liking to two jigs on the CD – The Black Rogue and The Blackthorn Stick – but there’s a whole slew of session standards on the disc.  I don’t know of a better individual practice CD for Irish music.

Dusty Banjos recording session, Crane Bar, Galway Ireland

The book Ten Years of Tunes and the CD Live at the Crane would make great additions to anyone's Celtic music library, but are especially suited to those who are just starting to attend sessions or who have been too shy to do so thus far.  The book can also help provide the framework for starting your own learners session, designed after the Dusty Banjos model!  You can order Ten Years of Tunes here, and Live at the Crane here.