Review: Jimmy Crowley & Máirtín de Cógáin in Calif

Subject: Jimmy Crowley-Máirtín de Cógáin-SF, Wed
From: Joe Offer
Date: 18 Nov 08 - 02:06 AM

I heard a terrific concert by Jimmy Crowley & Máirtín de Cógáin this evening at a very unlikely venue - the convent of the Sisters of Mercy in Auburn, California. They're touring California as Captain Mackey's Goatskin and Stringband. On Wednesday, November 19, they will be at Ireland's 32 in San Francisco. The bar is located at: 3920 Geary Blvd at 3rd Ave in SF's Richmond District. For directions, call [phone]. The concert will start around 9pm.

This is real, traditional Irish music - it's not likely you'll hear them perform "Whiskey in the Jar" or "Black Velvet Band," but you will hear a wide variety of the best of Irish music in the traditional style, plus a few gems from modern songwriters.

Mairtin's Website is http://www.mairtinmusic.com/ and you can hear a sampling of his recordings on his MySpace page, http://www.myspace.com/mairtindecogain.


Jimmy Crowley's Website is http://www.jimmycrowley.com

The San Francisco Concert Wednesday is apparently the last stop on their tour. If you can make it, you'll really enjoy it.

Let's see if I can glean a fairly accurate set list from my notes:

Dick Darby the Cobbler
I Know My Love
Down Erin's Lovely Lee
"Queen of the White Star Line" (a song about the Titanic, written by Crowley)
Carrigdhoun (the source of the tune for "Mountains of Mourne"
"Tom Crean" (about a sailor who went to Antarctical with Shackleton) - not sure, but it may be this song.
"Maria de la Rosa," a Ron Kavana song about an Irish daughter of the Spanish Civil War
An updated version of Kerry Recruit about an Irish brigade in the Congo in the 1960's
Who Knows Where the Wind Blows?, by Tommy Sands about Irish soldiers in the American Civil War.
"Dublin Saunter," by Leo Maguire. (Lyrics posted here (click).
Óró, sé do bheatha 'bhaile, which Martin sang in the film, The Wind that Shakes the Barley.
The encore was a request from my pastor, who comes from Cork - Jimmie Driftwood's St. Brendan's Fair Isle.

Mairtin also told a terrific story, "Darmody's Motor Car," which you'll find on his MySpace page.

The Mercy Sisters convent is a retirement home and skilled nursing facility for the sisters, many of whom come from Ireland. It was fitting to have an Irish concert in the home of these wonderful Irish women.

-Joe-

Subject: RE: Jimmy Crowley & Máirtín de Cógáin-SF, Wed
From: MartinRyan
Date: 18 Nov 08 - 03:48 AM

Joe
Sounds great! A couple of comments:
- that was probably another song about Tom Crean, as you suspected. There was one written by a fellow Corkman (I think!) of Crowley's, whose name won't come to me.... Ger Wolfe? Probably that one.

- I think the tunes for Carrigdhoun and Mountains of Mourne both derive from "The Bendemeer Stream"

Regards

Subject: RE: Jimmy Crowley & Máirtín de Cógáin-SF, Wed
From: MartinRyan
Date: 18 Nov 08 - 08:28 AM

Click here for a Youtube performance of "Queen of the White Star Line" by the pair.

Regards

Subject: RE: Jimmy Crowley & Máirtín de Cógáin-SF, Wed
From: JedMarum
Date: 18 Nov 08 - 08:38 AM

These are two great performers and great guys. I've worked a few festivals with them over the years and I always look forward to them.

Jimmy's "Queen of the White Star Line" is a wonderful. I'm not sure the Youtube Vid does it justice. And get Máirtín to do his broom dance!

Subject: RE: Jimmy Crowley & Máirtín de Cógáin-SF, Wed
From: Vic Smith
Date: 18 Nov 08 - 08:59 AM

Joe Offer said
Let's see if I can glean a fairly accurate set list from my notes:

      Dick Darby the Cobbler
      I Know My Love
      Down Erin's Lovely Lee
      "Queen of the White Star Line" (a song about the Titanic, written by Crowley)
      Carrigdhoun (the source of the tune for "Mountains of Mourne"
      "Tom Crean" (about a sailor who went to Antarctical with Shackleton) - not sure, but it may be this song.
      "Maria de la Rosa," a Ron Kavana song about an Irish daughter of the Spanish Civil War
      An updated version of Kerry Recruit about an Irish brigade in the Congo in the 1960's
      Who Knows Where the Wind Blows?, by Tommy Sands about Irish soldiers in the American Civil War.
      "Dublin Saunter," by Leo Maguire. (Lyrics posted here (click).
      Óró, sé do bheatha 'bhaile, which Martin sang in the film, The Wind that Shakes the Barley.
      The encore was a request from my pastor, who comes from Cork - Jimmie Driftwood's St. Brendan's Fair Isle.

Are you trying to tell me that Jimmy sang a set of twelve songs that didn't include Salonika? Surely that must be a first?
One of my all-time favourites is Jimmy!

Subject: RE: Jimmy Crowley & Máirtín de Cógáin-SF, Wed
From: Joe Offer
Date: 18 Nov 08 - 02:41 PM

Hi, Vic -
"Salonika" is a great song, but I think Jimmy and Mairtin may have thought it wouldn't be understood by an audience of mostly-aging California Catholics. I don't think they did it at either of their two concerts that I've attended.

I noticed that Mairtin sang "my wife is the divil, she's cracked," in "Dick Darby." I think maybe they figured "she's black" wouldn't go over with a California audience.

Oh, and Mairtin is a regular user of Mudcat, and he likes us very much. He says Jimmy doesn't do much on the Internet, and that it's funny to watch Jimmy try to deal with a laptop. However Jimmy was rightfully proud of the technology behind his sturdy guitar case, which holds two Martin guitars, each in a separate compartment. He grinned when I told him he was a brave man to check two Martin guitars in airline baggage.

-Joe-

Subject: RE: Jimmy Crowley & Máirtín de Cógáin-SF, Wed
From: JedMarum
Date: 18 Nov 08 - 04:31 PM

I just saw Jimmy a couple weeks ago at a festival in Monroe LA - where I lost my paycheck!! Wasn't Jimmy's fault, though.

;-)

Subject: RE: Jimmy Crowley & Máirtín de Cógáin-SF, Wed
From: GUEST
Date: 18 Nov 08 - 07:56 PM

Perhaps the Tom Crean song is the "Ballad of Tom Crean" by Cliff Wedgebury, a Londoner long resident in Cork.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7NswTNvSdpo
http://homepage.eircom.net/~cawedg/biogpage.html

I think it more likely that "The Mountains of Mourne" was taken from "Bendemeer Stream" lyrics by Thomas Moore. Carrigdhoun has a slightly different air.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qJtzpVw4qHA

Ádh Mór

Learaí na Láibe

Subject: RE: Jimmy Crowley & Máirtín de Cógáin-SF, Wed
From: GUEST,pattyClink
Date: 18 Nov 08 - 08:29 PM

Can't recommend these performers highly enough--we've been lucky enough to have them come to our neck of the woods, God knows how we got so lucky, and they are The Real Thing.

Drop what you're doing and see/hear them if you are anywhere within striking distance! You will come away energized and full of the ver best music, and the patter between Crowley's songs is like a short course Irish literature and song.

Subject: RE: Jimmy Crowley & Máirtín de Cógáin-SF, Wed
From: MartinRyan
Date: 19 Nov 08 - 02:11 AM

GUEST Learaí

That's probably the one alright - by Cliff Wedgebury. I think I've heard Jimmy sing it at the CObh festival a few years back.

Regards.

Subject: RE: Jimmy Crowley & Máirtín de Cógáin-SF, Wed
From: ard mhacha
Date: 19 Nov 08 - 04:36 AM

Jimmy Crowley and his outfit formerly Stokers Lodge, they can be hear singing on YOU TUBE, The boys of Fairhill, one of their best.
Jimmy and co great entertainers.

Subject: RE: Jimmy Crowley & Máirtín de Cógáin-SF, Wed
From: ard mhacha
Date: 19 Nov 08 - 04:38 AM

Jimmy and co on you tube, [lorgain2],singing I know my love.

Subject: RE: Jimmy Crowley & Máirtín de Cógáin-SF, Wed
From: Bonnie Shaljean
Date: 19 Nov 08 - 07:46 AM

>That's probably the one alright - by Cliff Wedgebury. I think I've heard Jimmy sing it at the CObh festival a few years back.

So have I - Cliff is a friend of mine and his song is very popular around here, and it's has also had radio airplay. The two lads would know each other, at least casually from the local music scene (when Jimmy was based in Cork). It's a great number -

Subject: RE: Jimmy Crowley & Máirtín de Cógáin-SF, Wed
From: Joe Offer
Date: 19 Nov 08 - 06:53 PM

Jimmy lives in Ennis now, isn't that right, Bonnie?

Time to refresh this once more so the San Francisco folk see it.

-Joe-

Subject: RE: SF Tonite - Jimmy Crowley & Máirtín de Cógáin !!!
From: michaelr
Date: 19 Nov 08 - 08:06 PM

Dammit! I have a recording session tonight. Hate missing Jimmy - again.

Subject: RE: SF Tonite - Jimmy Crowley & Máirtín de Cógáin !!!
From: Seamus Kennedy
Date: 20 Nov 08 - 12:41 AM

Joe - in his later years, Tommy Makem who popularized Dick Darby (the Cobbler) also sang "she's cracked".

When he first sang it years ago, he sang "she's black", and it had no race connotations; however, it's liable to be misinterpreted nowadays, hence the change.

Although someone who has a politically correct attitude towards terms referring to mental instability would raise an objection to "she's cracked".

So we'll have to change it again.

Seamus

Subject: RE: Review: Jimmy Crowley & Máirtín de Cógáin in C
From: Bonnie Shaljean
Date: 20 Nov 08 - 06:27 AM

>Jimmy lives in Ennis now, isn't that right, Bonnie

I think it was Killarney he went to after leaving The Rebel City, but he has now moved to (I think) Florida, or somewhere in the States. As far as I know he's still there.

Lucky you guys. Poor us guys. I used to play with him in informal sessions occasionally, and he's a sad loss. Send him love from Bonnie in Cork if anyone talks to him -

Subject: RE: Review: Jimmy Crowley & M�irt�n de C�g�in in C
From: GUEST,pattyClink
Date: 20 Nov 08 - 01:00 PM

Apparently he lives in Dunedin Florida when not traveling around.