Although we would not normally seek out a bluegrass music festival, we have truly enjoyed the bands that have come to Westport over the last weekend. Westport would certainly be considered to be a relatively small town, but the number of arts and music activities held here week after week is just astonishing. For this weekend, bands and individual musicians came from all over, including A Band Like Alice from Great Britain and the Dustbusters hailing from Brooklyn, NY. That’s right, Brooklyn, NY. At least one of these young musicians was Jewish and after his set on Saturday I approached him and we talked for a brief moment of our shared affection for klezmer music, the mournful east Europe music played by old Yiddish bands. We knew of some of the same bands, such as the Klezmatics, and he said he enjoyed playing this “roots” music as well.
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| The jazz session at McGing's Pub |
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| The gent in the blue sweater handled the Satchmo vocals like a pro |
Friday night, the festival kicked off at the Clew Bay Hotel, which adjoins our apartment, so we went down to enjoy the music of The MacEvillys, Westport ‘s own homegrown bluegrass band. Padraic and Marion know the family and enjoyed seeing them play. As last year, they kicked off their set with Rocky Top, and played traditional songs such as Keep On The Sunny Side, Man of Constant Sorrow, and several other familiar and highly singable songs. There were two constants in each song - terrific instrumental virtuosity and wonderful tight harmonies. It was obvious that the members of the band honed their skills in traditional Irish music and easily adapted to this different genre of roots music. Padraic and I agree - the music first traveled with emigrants from Ireland and Scotland to the American foothills, and has returned with a distinct twang but with many of the same instruments and the same rhythms intact. Speaking of twang, it’s still disconcerting to have the music introduced in a wonderfully rich Irish brogue only to be replaced with a nasally high-pitched twang as the vocals begin.
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| At the Wyatt |
Saturday, we started out in McGing’s Pub and caught the tail end of a bluegrass pickup session. But we really went there to hear the once monthly jazz session. Padraic felt we should mix our music up a bit, and it was a great suggestion. The normal jazz quartet expanded to include a number of musicians wanting to sit in and the group swelled to eight players at its most formidable. Trumpets, trombones, a sax, keyboards, guitars, and banjoes all made their presence known. Some Dixieland, some Louis Prima, lots of Louis Armstrong (with properly “growled“ vocals), some blues, and loads of high quality improvisation. Everyone played for the pleasure; no money was exchanged. Payment was obtained in full from the bar; I offered to buy the rhythm guitarist/banjo player/lead vocalist a Guinness and he demurred, saying all drinks were on the house for the players.
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| The Dustbusters |
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| Tim Rogers and the Clew Bay Critters |
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| A Band Like Alice |
After McGing’s, we headed to the Wyatt Hotel on the Octagon (center of town) for a bluegrass concert, the only event requiring a paid ticket. That’s where we enjoyed A Band Like Alice, the Dustbusters, and Tim Rogers and the Clew Bay Critters. Tim’s an American and could be easily mistaken for Larry the Cable Guy. The rest of the band are indigenous, including the wickedly good fiddle player, an ex-priest (he was also the superb sax player with the jazz combo earlier in the night). And, oh yes, the weekend’s promoter and organizer is a local resident - Uri, an Israeli Jew with a thick Irish accent. Westport’s quite a town. Just a great and most interesting night out.
