Otherlands Collaboration #7
Location: Doolin, Ireland • Date: November 19, 2019
*To hear more of Blackie O’Connell and Cyril O’Donoghue, check out their group, Dubhlinn.
Six years ago, I was traveling down the western coast of Ireland with my mother, towards the Baltimore Fiddle Fair, and we stopped for a night in Doolin. We may have been there to see the Cliffs of Moher (which we did), but I'm not positive. I inquired about local places to hear music, and we landed at McGann's Pub for the evening. Playing that night were Blackie O'Connell on uilleann pipes and Cyril O'Donoghue on bouzouki. I brought my fiddle with me and they took this stranger in for a few tunes. It was a special night on that trip that I've always remembered.
For the sake of serendipity and how life is connected, let's suppose they asked where I was headed next and recommended that we stop in Dingle on our way to Baltimore. I should check in at the Courthouse Pub, which was known for music. (As I write this, I feel it's all coming back, like fragments of a dream 30min into the morning...but did it happen this way? unknown, but it makes sense in retrospect.) We did stop at the Courthouse Pub six years ago, which is where I reconnected with Tommy O'Sullivan...leading to my later visit and collaboration with him...but more on that in a future blog.
Fast forward to present day. I'm staying outside of Galway. Every local I'm talking to asks if I'm going to the Ennis Trad Fest. I didn't know about it, but I'm certainly heading there now. Looking at the festival program when I arrive, the name of a session catches my eye and I make a point to check it out first: "Piper Heaven / Piper Hell." There are eight uilleann piper and one bouzouki playing tunes for 3 hours. On one of the breaks in the music, milling outside the pub, Blackie, Cyril, and I recognize each other from our long ago night in Doolin. We catch up and I receive a special dispensation from Blackie (who runs this session) to join in as a non-piper.
On Saturday I head down Lucas Bar to catch a session on recommendation from Galway accordionist Alan Kelly who's brother John will be playing flute. (Interested in my collaboration with Alan?) I find Blackie here and we have a pint and conversation, talking about how he's running this festival and about my Otherlands travels. I tell him we're headed back to Doolin (where he and I first met), and it turns out that he and Cyril have a gig back at the very same pub, on one of the two nights that we'll be there! So, we hatch a plan to relive our first meeting.
A little over one week after the festival, the Driessen's arrive to our B&B in Doolin. On our first night, we have dinner at the pub so I can get an idea of the scenario for recording. The next night, we're back for music, even leaving the kid at "home" now that she's getting older, and we can have a night out.
And what a fantastic night it was. In the dimly lit pub, we exchange tunes in the corner for about three hours. When we play, it feels like we are playing just for ourselves. Between tunes, we converse with each other and the other folks in the pub. The tunes are wild and energetic. Cyril creates endless variations with his harmonies while Blackie does the same with his melodies. It's clear they are a duo who have played lots together, sounding as if they are one instrument. Three weeks into Ireland, I have some more tunes under my belt, but I'm still barely holding on at times, thrilled to just be along for the ride. We have an absolute blast. Cyril does a bit of singing. I play some "American" tunes with Scots-Irish roots. Blackie tests out a new set of "C" pipes that he just acquired. We only take one break.
In a way, this is not unlike many of my session nights in Ireland — dimly lit, a few tunes I know, a buzz of energy, and countless others I don't…and delicious pints. But as sessions get bigger in numbers of people, the intimacy can diminish. With just the three of us, there was constant connection, at all times.
The tunes I'm sharing here are our final set of the night, instigated by suggestions of tunes I actually knew: “Musical Priest” and “Lucy Campbell's” — but Blackie threw one in between and surprised me. When the night is through, we high five, hug, and promise ourselves that it won't take another 6 years before we play again. This trio is just too fun.
CREDITS
Song: Musical Priest / Toss the Feathers / Lucy Campbell's (All traditional)
Music Arranged by: Casey Driessen, Blackie O'Connell & Cyril O'Donoghue
Uilleann Pipes: Blackie O'Connell
Bouzouki: Cyril O'Donoghue
Fiddle & Audio/Video: Casey Driessen
Production Assistant: Molly Nagel
Additional Musical Excerpts: The Frieze Britches / The Miller's Maggot (Intro, traditional); Red Haired Boy (Outro, traditional)