DATES: July - August - September 2010

[MacRua]

Sunday, July 25, 2010 - Merriman Festival

Address: Canny's, Killanena, Co.Clare , Ireland
Phone: 061 925148

Each year for the last 13 years, the festival attracts visitors from all over and has gone from being an event that was solely focused on set dancing and céilí bands to one that is open to popular mainstream acts, as well as alternative acts. Sharon Shannon with Shane McGowan and Dessie O’Halloran will headline on Sunday night. For further information or to book tickets for the Sharon Shannon gig, contact Canny’s on 061 925148.

Thursday, August 12, 2010 - Bulmers Live

Address: Leopardstown Racecourse, Foxrock, Dublin 18, Ireland
Phone: 01 2890500
Web: http://www.leopardstown.com
E-mail: info@leopardstown.com
Tickets: €15

Bulmers Live at Leopardstown - summer evenings with a difference: superb horse racing and live music. The event runs eight Thursday evenings through June/July/August. Its €15 in. Get your night at the races, which start at 5:30pm, and see a top act following it.

Sunday, August 15, 2010 - Ceili Culture

Address: Meeting House Square, Temple Bar, Dublin, Ireland.
Web: http://www.ceiliculture.com
E-mail: info@ceiliculture.com
Tickets: €35

Ceili Culture a unique new event for Ireland. A 2 day festival that celebrates the roots and future of Irish music taking place on Saturday 14 August and Sunday 15 August at 8pm til late in Meeting House Square Temple bar which will be covered and host a full bar.
Sunday headline acts include Sharon Shannon Big Band with Shane MacGowan and Damien Dempsey, who will perform together and apart for the first time live on the same stage in Dublin.

Saturday, September 18, 2010 - Navan Live

Address: Teach na Teamhrach, Trim Rd., Navan, Co.Meath, Ireland
Web: http://www.navanlive.com/
E-mail: navanlive@gmail.com
Tickets: €34

Navan Live is Co. Meath’s latest Music Event. Held on Friday 17th & Saturday 18th September 2010 with Sharon Shannon & The Big Band (Shane MacGowan & Guests) headlining Sat 18th Sept. Both shows being held in Teach Na Teamhrach (formerly Balreask Arms), Trim Rd, Navan, Co. Meath. Limited capacity!

[MacPaddy]

Now see, this is the reason why I find myself wishing I lived in Ireland! By the way, I didn't know it was you, Joey, who ran "shane-macgowan.co.cc". That's great though!

[MissWalshy]

Its you !

Now sit, .... stay...... there's a good boy ! welcome back ! x

[firehazard]

Hey MacRua!

[Quick, Walshy, tie him down. Don't let him escape.]

[MissWalshy]

haha ! Hey you yourself - how's it going? Have you seen that concert for kirsty in the others talk? you should come down for it ! looks immense !

back on topic - would love to pop over to Temple bar for ceili culture ! fantastic

[firehazard]

...Have you seen that concert for kirsty in the others talk? you should come down for it ! looks immense !
...

Yes, it looks like a great evening, and all for an excellent cause too.
I don't have a great record of getting down to the metropolis for gigs these days. Last time I tried, I got stuck in the ice and snow (I want to add "and the whale fishes blow" there for some reason). But this does look good. I'll talk to my people about it and we'll see...

The gigs MacRua's listed above look pretty fine things too. Shane's having a busy summer if he's doing all those as well as The Pogues' European tour...

[MissWalshy]

Tickets go on sale in the morning ! anyone who is anyone is going !

let me know !

[pms]

Just ordered our tickets! Not really sure where the venue is - it says Temple Bar which we know really well but someone else told me it wasn't there. Think it must be near there!

[pms]

Just checked on website - it is at Temple Bar!

[Christine]

Hey MacRua, been a while! How's the bog?

[RoddyRuddy]

Musicians Shane MacGowan and Damien Dempsey were the star attractions at the first Ceili Culture festival that took place over the weekend.

The series of events -- aimed at celebrating the roots and future of Irish music, arts and culture -- took place in the Meeting House of Dublin's Temple Bar.

Among the performers were Irish band Kila and singer Paddy Casey, who appeared on Saturday.

Accordion player Sharon Shannon, meanwhile, was joined by Pogues lead singer MacGowan, soloist Dempsey and flute player Conor Byrne yesterday.

Organiser Paul Davis said the idea for a city-based festival with Irish music at its core had been brewing for several years.

There were also free, family-oriented workshops, offering crash courses in the bodhran, uileann pipes and flute.

"We want to create a platform for the Irish music that we love, that is accessible musically and in a reasonable price range," said Mr Davis.



Read more: http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/ ... z0wsQgL500

[PaulMcC]

Better late than never, but I was at the Ceili Culture festival the other night and here's what I thought.

Shane was brilliant. Believe it or not, it was the first time I was at one of Shane's shows with Sharon and her band. Obviously, I'd seen clips on You Tube etc. but it's not the same as being there. Shortly before 11pm, Sharon announced that Shane would be coming onstage. Joey came on first and she introduced him as Shane's friend. A few seconds later, Shane walked out wearing a dark suit, white shirt, sunglasses, and his top hat. The first number was 'The Irish Rover'. Maybe I'm wrong, but I reckon Sharon's band play the backing music slightly slower than The Pogues do. Perhaps as a result, Shane's vocals were very clear. I have rarely heard him sing so well. He looked in good shape and, better still, very happy. Shane removed his sunglasses to reveal a patch over his left eye. He left this on for the rest of the show. The second song was 'Rainy Night'. He sang that beautifully. He came in late on one verse but I'd say very few people noticed. Then came a big surprise, Shane announced the next number would be 'Rake At The Gates of Hell'. Naturally, I was amazed by this as he hasn't sung this live for years. Anyway, Shane started to sing the song. His timing was fine but he forgot some words in the first verse. I reckon only serious Pogues fans would have spotted this. His memory for the lyrics improved with each verse so the song turned out fine. Shane was helped by the fact Sharon's band are so great. The musical arrangement for the song was unbelievably good. Shane finished his set with 'Sally' and 'Fiesta'. 'Fiesta', in particular, was blindingly good. Shane sang it strongly and performed many of the 'dance moves' from the 'Fiesta' video. The audience reaction to Shane was fantastic. Shane looked as if he was really having fun. He was doing his usual 'party tricks' such as playing with microphone stands, trying to pour drink down his throat but spilling it etc. Shane appeard to me to be very relaxed with Sharon and her band.Most of the crowd went wild for 'Sally' and even wilder for 'Fiesta' and Shane left the stage to really loud cheers.

About 10 minutes later, after some instrumentals, Shane, Damien Dempsey, and Joey(who was playing tin whistle througout Shane's set) returned to the stage. Shane and Damien shared vocals on 'Dirty Old Town'. You could see how thrilled Damien was to be singing with Shane and how fondly Shane regards Damien. It was wonderful. The final song of the night was 'Galway Girl'. One of Sharon's band sang the verses. Shane and Damien did backing vocals and generally messed about onstage during the instrumental breaks in the song. All in all, it was probably one of the most memorable performances I've seen by Shane.

PS: Apart from the bottle of Bulmers, much of which got spilt, Shane had a large bottle of water. He actually arrived onstage brandishing said bottle and a small glass of water. I'd noticed the presence of water in his stage kit back at The Olympia in December too.

[Villajohn]

Great write up young Paul!

[RoddyRuddy]

http://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&source ... KSKA0uqtXw

http://www.eveningtimes.co.uk/news/shan ... -1.1081460

[RoddyRuddy]

24 Jan 2011

"Pogues front-man Shane MacGowan had to pull out of a Celtic Connections festival gig in Glasgow last night..."
http://www.eveningtimes.co.uk/news/shan ... -1.1081460

http://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&source ... KSKA0uqtXw