Vive la france

A few days before this column went to press, I caught a brilliant gig by French chanteuse Caroline Moreau at Bewley’s Café Theatre, a grand little venue that deserves to be far better known than it is – excellent sound and light systems, but in a lovely intimate setting with candles on the tables... perfect for listening to theatrical renditions of songs by Jacques Brel, Edith Piaf, Serge Gainsbourg and others of that ilk. She’s in residence at Bewley’s every Friday through 6 June.
While there, I ran into folk band manager extraordinaire Des MacCullagh, who used to manage the Russian gypsy band Loyko and is now looking after its successor, Kesha, as well as Caroline.
With a line-up featuring ex-Loyko violinist Oleg Ponomarev as well as Scottish guitarist Nigel Clark (formerly of Hue & Cry and now also playing with the Scottish Guitar Quartet) and fiddler Lev Atlas (occasionally replaced by guitarist Drazen Derek of Café Orchestra fame), Kesha are kept busy with gigs in the UK and elsewhere; look out for Irish dates in June. Oleg himself is in Russia at the moment, playing in the backup band for his mother, the celebrated (or so I’m told) Russian singer Valentina Ponomareva. Des also does a bit of work with Cork-based Cajun band Two Time Polka, who are currently working on a new CD.
The Wexford-based singer, songwriter, guitarist, mandolin player, general bluegrass maestro and sometime hotpress scribe Niall Toner has been nominated as one of ten candidates for the Country Music Association’s first-ever Global Artist Award. Due to be presented during CMA’s Fan Fair, taking place June 5-8 in Nashville, Tennessee, the award recognises outstanding achievement by a country artist who has both furthered the popularity of the format and brought attention to country music in the relevant foreign-based territory. Other nominees include Tom Astor, the first German artist invited to perform at the Grand Ole Opry stage; Anchise Bolchi (Italy); John Brack (Switzerland); Heidi Hauge (Scandinavia); Ruud Hermans (Netherlands); Lee Kernaghan (Australia); Jason McCoy (Canada); Charlie Nagatani (Japan); and The Replete Brothers (Greece). Congratulations, Niall, and good luck! Catch Niall live at Finnegan's in Wexford town every Sunday from 2-4pm.
Last March, when Martina Goggin of the group Dordán was on tour in Austria and Northern Italy with Connemara flute player Marcus Ó hIarnáin and other musicians, she decided to make a film of the expedition for an Údarás na Gaeltachta-sponsored television production course she was undertaking at the time. The 30 hours of film she shot during the three-week trip have now been condensed down to a half-hour documentary, entitled Ó Oileán Fhínse go Fánaí na nAlp (From Feenish Island to the Alpine Slopes), set to be broadcast on TG4 at 7.30pm on May 7.
Speaking of music on TV, I was mightily impressed with Damien Dempsey’s performance on Network 2’s Other Voices television programme a week or two ago. Accompanied by Rob Keaveney on banjo and low whistle, Dempsey put in a stormer of a gig, as he generally does. It’s a mystery to me why he isn’t a bigger name by now, but his recent support slots with Christy Moore at Derry’s Millennium Forum should help to raise his profile; he’s heading out with Christy again in May, playing the Ulster Hall and Andersonstown Leisure Centre in Belfast. Keep an eye out for Damien’s upcoming single, Negative Vibes, to be followed by a new album, Seize The Day, on May 16.
American folksinger/songwriter and former Irish resident Jim Page returns to these shores for a short tour from May 7-21, by way of gearing up for a full Irish and UK tour in September/October. Best known for having written the anti-nuclear anthem and 1981 Irish No. 1 hit Hiroshima Nagasaki Russian Roulette for Christy Moore back in his Moving Hearts days, Jim is currently receiving death threats and hate mail as well as having his website repeatedly hacked into – apparently as a result of his opposition to the war in Iraq, not to mention the content of his current album, Collateral Damage.
Gerry O’Beirne is just back on the auld sod after a long solo tour in the States and an appearance at the Folk Alliance conference (succinctly described by Gerry as the “Folk Annoyance”) in Nashville. He’s in Dingle at the moment, producing a CD for Eoin Duignan: “A concept album in a way, inspired by the six stained glass windows by Harry Clarke in a chapel in Dingle,” says Gerry, whose other recent production work includes albums for Australian singer Kavisha Mazzella, Texas piper E.J. Jones and New Orleans singer Betsy McGovern. In the pipeline are a project with Maura O’Connell, about which Gerry’s not at liberty to say much (“It’s a secret or something”), and a Holland tour with Andy M. Stewart. Naturally, Gerry’s still composing away – notably a new song about Ned Kelly, based on his own writings and on paintings of Kelly by Australian artist Sidney Nolan. For more info on Gerry and his doings, or to order his current CD Half Moon Bay, check out .
Frankie Gavin has also been Stateside recently, playing two shows with the Rolling Stones – one in Oakland, California, the other in Nashville. “Had a blast... esp the police escorts to the hotels!!” he writes. Gavin has recently recorded a new album with the 4 Star Trio, consisting of Arty McGlynn, Brian McGrath and Gavin himself; look for it sometime over the coming months on Tara Records.
Following the disbandment of the group Dúchas, its former frontman Michael Casey has formed a new Pogues-influenced band to be known as Michael Casey & The Reservoir Hogs, with a lineup featuring John McCarthy on tenor banjo, Noel Coyne on bass, John Guillaume on 5-string banjo and guitar, ‘Banger’ (that’s what he likes to be called, says Michael) on the drums, and Michael on guitar and vocals. They’ll be doing their first international tour next month in Norway, as well as various gigs in Ireland during the summer season.

Musicians and singers with news to share can e-mail Sarah on [email protected]