This article is from page 35 of the 2007-10-16 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 35 JPG
is the title of the DVD which features a magical night of mu- sic by Mickaleen Conlon and friends, which was recorded in Greene’s pub, Ballyvaughan, on August 17, 1994.
The 13-year gap between that famous session and the release of the recording will be bridged on Octo- ber 26 when The Roadside Tavern in Lisdoonvarna hosts the launch of the
DVD, which also features some of the great names of traditional music.
Mickaleen Conlon was born in Poulnagun , three miles outside Lis- doonvarna, and lived all his life in an area that had a rich tradition of mu- sic, particularly “box’ music.
He learned the concertina from his father at a young age and was to car- ry his distinctive ‘hob’ style of play- ing with him all though his life. He later learned to play the accordion, at which he became equally adept.
The country house dances provided the setting for Mickaleen’s music in his youth and, in later years, he played in the pubs of north Clare,
especially the Roadside ‘Tavern, Where he enjoyed music for more than 50 years.
Apart from the rich musical tradi- tion which he represented, Micka- leen was also a great storyteller and humourist who is fondly remembered as a gentle and colourful character.
Indeed, one of the musicians who featured in that memorable session in August 1994, Sean Tyrrell, recalls Mickaleen’s legacy in the sleeve notes to the DVD in which he credits the Poulnagun maestro with teaching him the “art of magic in music”.
“T owe him a huge debt of gratitude for all the wondrous nights of music
we played together and shared with another musician, Shane Holden, who, like Mickaleen, is no longer with us. Shane helped me forge the style I have in song. No matter what rhythmic ramble I took, he was always there beside me, right on the beat. They were both masters of the rhythm, the bedrock of music’, ‘Tyr- rell said.
The DVD, which was produced by Dark Horse Films, also features the music of Vincent Browne (gul- tar), Gabriel Casey (whistle), Shane Holden (guitar), Liam Lewis (fiddle) as well as Tyrrell on vocals, mando- cello and banjo.