| Atlantic Crossroads Newfoundland 2005 |
| Jim was up next and Clare came in right from the airport before he started singing and sat down with us in the back. He opened with Rising of the Moon and went right into Rhythm of the Goat, which he dedicated to Mick Flannery. Both of those songs are from Jim�s first album, Gypsy.
The next song was from his next to last CD, Musaik:In This World. It was Mr. Ambassador, which had some musical ideas from his old Pressure Drop days in it. I first heard that song in 2001 or 2002 at the Folk Festival and it worked its way into my memory for a while. Reilly�s Daughter was next, and I enjoyed it a lot. He takes the middle and inserts various other songs into it, songs you�d never suspect would go with Reilly�s Daughter. In Ireland it was Paul Simon�s Late in the Evening. Here it was Little Drummer Boy. Unbelievable! And it worked! Jim likes DADGAD tuning but he had to retune to standard tuning for the next song � A Song For Newfoundland. He has a deep-seated love for Newfoundland that comes out in all his music. It�s obvious he loves his homeland. This song will convince even the best skeptic exactly where his allegiance lies. The words are meaningful and relevant. He closed with one of my favorites, Downtown Girl. Everyone sang along. Everyone! Good set, Jim! (insert imaginary photo) This was a night I really enjoyed Mick Flannery. He did a very bluesy set and sounds like Tom Waits. He had a setlist written down tonight and said that it was arranged to tell a story. I think his notes were on there. Opened with Birds and the Bees and I forgot to write down the second song title, I was so enthralled by his performance that evening, I didn�t write much more than the song titles down, period. He really was mesmerizing! A song called Jealous came next and after that, Innocent Song, A very bluesy one after that called Tender, I think. He ended with In the Gutter. Now THAT was such a powerful song to end with! Wow! This song would be one that the whole group of songwriters would end up singing often. This b�y is going to be big someday. He�s so unassuming and shy in person, but just oozes talent. Darrell was the last on the docket this evening and I was perfectly content to listen to him again. He opened with We Know What We're Fighting For, a song for those who know and love Newfoundland. This goes well with Jim�s Song for Newfoundland. �We believe in what we�re fighting for - Home, boys, Home!� Some people were not hearing it for the first time and quietly sang along. When Johnny Came Back From the War was a sobering song, as powerful now as it had been in Ireland in March. Darrell described the process of writing it, �Some songs you struggle with, this one just wrote itself.� His description of the next song made me think the idea for it came up while he was on tour with Great Big Sea. �You turn a corner and see someone from home. There are not that many people left in Outer Cove/Middle Cove/Logy Bay that I know anymore." The lyrics �Seeing you just takes me home again�� were from this song called Old Friend. Darrell�s fourth song was partly completed in Ireland in March on �a long walk down Oliver Plunkett Street in Cork. The dream is the same as it�s been for years � to make it In America" (the name of the song). �Hopin� to find it in America.� That�d probably be as true for the Newfoundlanders as it is for the Irishmen. After all, Vic and I have been to see Darrell, Niall and Clare perform in America already. Perhaps one day my countrymen will wise up and realize what treasures lie up here in music. How surprised was I to hear the �Power Metal Rock Band version� of Great Big Sea�s As Fast As I Can next! It was great! Definitely a different flavor rocked up a bit. Darrell quoted Ger Wolfe for the intro of the next song, Simple Life. He said that Ger had made a comment that �we�ve forgotten how to be wasters of time.� And Darrell wrote a song that addressed that. It was the first time I had heard it! Didn't surprise me that Ger had been an inspiration to Darrell. I bet it works the other way, too! Darrell�s wife, Sandy, was the subject of Song for Sandy. Obviously he loves his wife. He�s a special guy who retired from a successful band, Great Big Sea, to spend time with his wife and kids. He�s doing well and it�s apparently been for the best. Both Darrell and Sandy are lucky to have found each other and fallen in love. They must love his being home now, after 10 years of 250 days on the road each year. He closed with a song called Push, written after he had driven someone to Grand Falls-Windsor for treatment to get off oxycontin. �Sometimes a little push is all you need.� I had a grand time sitting with the Irish musicians that evening and was particularly happy when Clare arrived. Her flight was uneventful, thank goodness. I heard both Jim and Darrell, two of my favorite musicians, and enjoyed conversations carried on with my tablemates. After Darrell was done at 2 AM, I went down to Erin�s for a bit, drove Ger home to the hotel because he was exhausted and went back to Erin�s to relax with Jim and Lillian and Doug. Graham drove the rest to the hotel later because everyone was exhausted! We stayed till the end and left for home about 4 AM. I felt as tired as Ger looked and went right to bed. |
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