"The farming community no longer want to hear these songs"
A strange thing has happened here Steve,
The local interest in song in this area has never really disappeared - what went were the venues to sing.
The rise in popularity in music has prompted a spread of sessions in which singing is welcomed - our local Wednesday night one being the main one - at the others, if you are spotted, you will probably asked for a song, but the Westbridge makes a feature of singing.
The company is a mix of ages and abilities, a balance of Clare people blow-ins like me.
Thirty years ago, if you sang an English song, you would be responded to politely - of late, there has been an apparent rise in the interest of narrative songs (no longer prominent in the Irish repertoire), with people commenting on the stories of the songs, particularly those dealing with the land.
I snag MacColl's 'Tenant Farmer' one night and when I came to the verse about the family being evicted, an elderly farmer standing next to me roared in my ear "the bastards!" - rather have that than a standing ovation any day.
This area has a strong song-making tradition - we've managed to pin-point approaching 100 of them which have been made here since the beginning of the 20th century or a little earlier - all unpublished and virtually all anonymous.
Hopefully, we will draw out more when our collection goes on line.
Tonight, we'll be attending an open evening at out local musical heritage centre - it will feature a octogenarian local piper/whistle player/singer, Michael Falsey, who will be interviewed in front of an audience - the interview will hopefully cover his playing and singing and his experiences as a navvy in London in the 1950s - the golden age of Irish music in England.
This is the first one of such events - another two, with other locals are in the pipeline.
As much as I miss the clubs, the situation that is developing here is the one I find extremely satisfying - and it's been arrived at by people deciding on the roots of the music and building on them.         
was interested to read an interview with an established woman concertina player, Mary MacNamara, on her issuing an album of her playing - it illustrates the intelligent approach that has developed to the music here.
Her statement of taking inspiration from your roots says it all for me.
"make a list of my posts which have offended y"
Don't be daft Al - I'm quite capable of overstepping the mark myself - that's how these arguments go.
The only time I get offended is when I am accused of being offensive instead of putting forward an argument - not guilty of that one - ever, I hope.
One of the few privileges of getting old is you are allowed to be a cranky old git.
Bounty
Off the top of my head, I have a couple of references to 'Fighting Chance' in Palmer's 'Valiant Sailor' and Roy Mackenzie's 'Ballads and Sea Songs of Nova Scotia' - will pass them on with anything else I can find.
Whether I like what you do is immaterial - I wish you and everybody working in music well - it's what stops us all being ants and drones .
Jim Carroll

Note for Note Mary MacNamara
"I am looking forward to the launch. I was encouraged by Peadar O'Riada to do it [solo], and his belief is that unaccompanied music is music that will last forever, it's individual and solo and you are more exposed and you are really hearing the music and the mu¬sic comes from the heart. Initially I found it difficult and took me a few months to get used to listening to myself on my own, but it is very natural - nothing added and nothing taken away. I played with my eyes closed and played from the inside out, and having recorded loads of tracks we chose and recorded 16 tracks," Mary said…………
"I am very pleased with it and it has given me confidence as a solo player. I've been getting extremely good feedback, particularly because it is a solo album. The feedback has been amazing and many people have said they love listening to the solo music, they love the tune choice and the key change and to hear it uninterrupted. It's raw, just me and the concertina and it's very pure. I have really enjoyed doing it and I'm really happy with what I have achieved. I think people are beginning to go this solo route and they are beginning to look at the pure music. There is lots of progression in music, it's changing all the time, but at the same time we have to look back and see where it came from and what is it really made up of and that's what a solo recording is all about," she said…….
Mary's last solo recording The Blackberry Blossom was held in Minogue's Bar in Tulla in October 2001 and was a memorable occasion for her, with some well known musicians present. Among those that came to support her that night was Mary's lifelong mentor and great friend P Joe Hayes. Although he has passed away since then, P Joe's influence lives on in music and in the many musicians that drew inspiration from him. Mary's new CD Note for Note is one such testa¬ment to the wonderful influence which P Joe had on the next generation of East Clare Musicians."
Clare Champion Article 19.9.14