On Mondays, The New York Times has a column: "Famous to a Few." Quite an interesting concept and well suited to New York City. I mention this because I went out for lunch the other day and returned to find that Art Theime and myself are now "World Famous to a Few." Art more so than me, of course.

Anyway, Liam's Sister-in-Law was telling me earlier this evening that, perhaps, I should tell you how this recording came about. It does have a story.

21 years ago, Irish traditional music was not as popular in America as it is today. For example, I recall seeing Michael Flatley dance but I don't recall many people walking over to the stage afterwards to shake his hand, let alone mobbing him and trying to jump through the windows of his limousine. Everybody who made this kind of music knew each other.

I ran a folk club at The Eagle Tavern in New York and after my band, The Flying Cloud, broke up, I got the idea to make an LP. All my old friends with whom I'd done music jobs and who'd played at The Eagle wanted to help.

The first session was in Philadelphia in 1982 with the Irish Tradition (Andy O'Brien, Billy McComiskey & Brendan Mulvihill) and Johnny Cunningham. They had never met. We recorded 3 songs and, of the lot, "The Lily of the West" with just The Irish Tradition was the real keeper. Brendan, who has recorded a number of albums for Green Linnet, is quite a fiddler. He was an All-Ireland fiddle champion in every age group but Senior and he probably placed 2nd at least once in that category. On the recording, he played the viola and the lower pitched instrument gave his work a very conducive sound. I should tell you that, at that time, the Tradition was without question the finest Irish group in America, it was a great thrill for me (and very fraternal of them) that we could record together.

The second session was in 1983. I had always liked the sound of the concertina and mandolin played together. Lou Killen was on tour in the East and Mick Moloney lived in Philadelphia so Mick booked a studio there and we put down 3 tracks. Mick and Lou had never really met before and, certainly, never played and sung together. Of course, we all knew "Paddy West," "Row, Bullies, Row," and "Leave Her, Johnny, Leave Her." I think those 3 songs have magic in them - 2 great pros in their prime making great "straight on" folk music together.

The third session was with James Keane and Robbie O'Connell. James, a great button accordion player actually played the Anglo-concertina at the session. There were some technical problems and, afterwards, it became clear that we would have a myriad of problems using those 2 cuts

Then came the Big Freeze. The pressures at my job became such that I just had to file these tapes on a bookshelf for 13 years with no futher thought about their use. I didn't even sing in the shower.

I looked around one day and realized that nearly everyone I knew was getting a "package" from whomever he or she worked for. The ice started to melt. My old buddies from South Street Seaport encouraged me to join them for a singing session once a week and, one day, I started getting curious about those tapes.

It took some time to find someone with the kind of machine that could play the older format reel-to-reel tapes. Amazingly, when I did, they sounded very clean.

I got in touch with Lou Killen and sent him a cassette of some additional songs. I flew out to Seattle, spent a few days at his home in preparation and we recorded 5 more songs. Lou is a remarkable singer. Go anywhere in the English-speaking world and people who know unaccompanied singing admire Lou's work. I presented 500 concerts at The Eagle Tavern in 10 years. We had guys from Planxty, The Bothys, DeDannan, Martin Carthy, all of the Battlefields, etc. and, as I look back, Lou along with Joe McKenna the piper and the late Peter Bellamy certainly stood out as artists of tremondous ability and power.

Andy O'Brien and I have always been great friends. I was introduced to him about 5 minutes before he and Billy McComiskey met for the first time outside the old Bunratty Pub in the Bronx. Billy and Brian Conway (All-Ireland champions on accordion and fiddle respectively in 1986) used to sub for Andy McGann and the late Johnny Cronin when they were on break. Billy was about 19 and Brian about 12 at the time!

Andy, Billy and I put down 3 songs together in Washington in 1997: "The Harp Without a Crown," "Rosemary Lane," and "I am a Maid that Sleeps in Love." I decided not to use "I am a Maid that Sleeps in Love" after I learned that Solas had recorded the same version (from my my folk song collection, A Bonnie Bunch of Roses); it seemed unnecessary - so many songs, so little time!

The last sessions were in New York with Brian Conway and the guys from South Street Seaport (including Liam).

So, the recording which started as an LP was completed as a CD, thereby missing the entire cassette era! The Paton family were a remarkable help and support. All of us engaged in the project are delighted and honored to have the CD on Folk-Legacy which we regard as the label of Paddy Tunney, Archie Fisher and other great singers whom we admire.

Thanks to Joe Offer for kindly mentioning the CD.

All the best,
Dan Milner