It’s a slow month and I’m working on getting caught up on lots of things, recordingsome, and developing a new project that I’ll discuss at some point down the line.

Stop and smell the flowers if you can find them under the snow!

This is the month of Irish music, of course – and I have a number of fun gigs that I’ll be doing with some area players, everything from singing to seniors, to private parties complete with haggis and whiskey.  Haggis is Scottish, not Irish, but it all falls into the same Pan-Celtic realm.  And if you’ve never had the pleasure of haggis – let’s just say you REALLY need the whiskey to wash it down.  And if you just need to know what it is, Google it.  It’s…interesting…and survival food, for sure.

I’m heading back into the studio next week – here in Michigan this time – to continue work on ‘The Irishman’s Daughter’.  I’m sure there’s an end in sight somewhere…

St. Patrick’s Day is on a Sunday this year and if you’re out and about, stop into a local pub and support the band that’s doing their best to keep the crowd entertained.  And tell them you appreciate them, even if you have to shout it over the head of some guy in Guiness underwear sporting a giant styrofoam leprechaun hat.   oh ick…

till next month then – sleante!

‘winter’s as cold as a well-diggers bum’

From a new song called ‘Abe Lincoln’s Army’, going on the Irish American CD. And yes, it does seem to be that cold.  After all of my lamenting the lack of winter and snow, it’s ba-a-a-ck.  Although I hear spring birds when I go for my walks - I imagine they’re confused, too.

I’ve switched from recording in Chicago to this area for now, and am looking forward to working again with David Mosher, Tyler Duncan and a slew of other great local players.  No release date in sight yet, but moving forward.

I’m kind of laying low these months, concentrating on working through new material, working on my fiddle playing (which needs a LOT of attention) and hanging out.

That’s it for now ~ stay warm and in tune!

My plans to set up a cold frame in my little garden bed so I could grow something green over the winter never happened, and now that spot is covered with several inches of snow.  But I never bought the seeds anyhow, so…so much for that big vision!
There’s always next year.

Within a week or so there will be new press info on my Press Kit page, including some video from my ‘40 Years in the Music Biz’ Ark show in December.  It was a lot of fun and I may do another one 40 years from now.  We’ll see how I feel about it then.

Stay warm and don’t forget to read something good and listen to music.  Or better yet, make it yourself!

I think I’ll make one more trip to Chicago this month to work on the CD and then bring the next phase of recording back here to Michigan.  Working with Dennis Cahill and Victor Sanders has been a treat.  They’re pro’s and they’re fun – what else do you need? And I’ll do more there later on in the year.

I’m posting our version of ‘Star of the County Down’ on youtube as my December song offering.  It’s very sparse with just me on piano and legendary violinist Maurice Lennon trading off with me on melody and harmony.  At first I thought I wanted to add more instruments but I’ve changed my mind.  The starkness really appeals to me.

I’m looking forward to collecting my first frozen CSA next week.  CSA is Community Supported Agriculture and it’s a cool concept.  You pre-buy shares in fruits and veggies from area farmers, which they harvest and make available to you.  CSA’s are usually fresh foods but this one is for frozen berries, pumpkin, veggies and more…which is perfect for me with my big empty freezer hogging up the basement!  I can’t wait.  And I like knowing that the money helps keep small farms going, doing what they love.

I guess that’s it for now – I wish you all the best for the rest of 2012 and even better in 2013!

I’m heading back to Chicago this month for recording sessions and just laid down tracks for a new song called ‘Love Gone Wrong’ that I’ll be launching a video of within the next week or so – hopefully.

Needless to say, there’s an election coming up and we all need to vote.  I want to say ‘whoever you think should be in the White House’, which is true – voting is a right that we’ve fought for – but I’m scared to think it might not be Obama.  Nonetheless, excericise your right!  If you can’t get yourself to your voting place, someone will drive you there.

All for now – thanks for checking in.

Musically, I’m taking a break from recording for a few weeks to figure out another batch of tunes and songs for ‘The Irishman’s Daughter’ and to put my energy into a new venture that I’m starting and hope to launch before the end of the year.  More on that later!

I do have a couple of September gigs and the details are on the In Concert page.

Thanks for stopping by and for supporting local artists.

And speaking of the heat, I’ve posted a slideshow of my old song Prayin’ for Rain on youtube; as well as my Kid with a Gun , something I’ve been wanting to do since Columbine, given the Aurora, Colorado massacre. I guess there’s no reason to go into why it’s still relevant.

Well, the IndieGoGo campaign is finished, and again a huge Thank You to those of you who contributed or passed the word on to others.  I didn’t reach my funding goal but I have started the record and am making frequent trips to Chicago to do that.  I’m really enjoying working with Dennis Cahill, he’s a great guy – and Victor Sanders, another great guy, who owns the studio at the top of his house.  I’ll be posting some of what we’re getting done in the near future.  One cut features my son Jesse singing ‘Bonny Blue-eyed Nancy’ with wonderous fiddler Maurice Lennon adding lovely touches. My daughter Callie will be doing some harmonies with me a bit down the line.

I love the mellow light of August, the buzzing of the cicadas, and the first BLT.  May there be one before the squirrels wipe me out!

enjoy the rest of the summer and thanks for checking in

After our summer fling in March, with temps in the 80’s, it’s now struggling to reach 70 most days.  I decided to put some new/old tunes to fit the season on the Listen button.  ‘No One on this Road’ was written one March on my way home from gigging out east – I had the windows down and could smell the earth warming up even in the dark of night. ‘Evangeline’s’ is a tune I wrote for my grandmother (on the first CD) that just seems to fit; and ‘100% Chance of the Blues’ is my nod to Earth Day and/or saner living.

I’m still working on the new CD and will be for awhile -  and I’m looking forward to some trips to Chicago soon to keep it moving forward.  St. Patrick’s Day being on a Saturday this year is rare and I’ll be doing most of my gigs with Lance Wagner,  a young man who plays fiddle and piano divinely.  I think it’ll be lots of fun. Lastly, racks of flower and vegetable seeds are catching my eye in the hardware around the corner and I’m getting anxious to start planting soon.  I never give up.  sleante!