Robbie O'Connell

I was saddened yesterday to hear of the death of Barney McKenna, the great banjo player and founding member of the Dubliners. It brought back a memory of hearing Barney play Roisin Dubh in my parents house when I was about twelve years old. He put so much emotion into the tune that the tears flowed freely down his cheeks as he played. Whenever I heard Barney’s name over the years, I always saw that picture in my mind.

Happy New Year! I have some unusual shows coming up in the next few weeks, starting on Friday, January 13 in Cumberland, RI when I get together with two of my favorite singers, Dan Milner and Ed Miller for an evening of Irish, Scottish and Maritime songs. It’s at the Blackstone River Theatre, 549 Broad St. at 8:00 PM. Info 401-725-9272

Then on Saturday, January 14, Dan Milner and I are doing an afternoon concert of Sea songs at the Cape Cod Museum of Natural History, 896 Main St. (Rte 6A) in Brewster, MA at 2:00 PM. Reservations required.
Info 508-896-3867 ( Mon-Fri 10:00 AM – 3:00 PM)

I will be in my hometown of Bristol, RI on Saturday, January 28 at the Stone Church Coffeehouse, 280 High St. 7:30 PM

On February 2, I will be in Leicester, MA at the Hezekiah Stone Coffeehouse at Christ Episcopal Church, 1089 Stafford St. 7:30 PM

Then on February 25, Aoife Clancy, George Keith and I will be in Reading, MA at the Ivy Chord Coffee House, Unitarian Universalist Church, 239 Woburn St. at 8:00 pm

Details of these and other shows can be found on my calendar.

The May 2012 Celtica Heart of Ireland Tour is available for booking. This time we will explore the Northwest of Ireland, starting in Donegal and winding our way through Sligo, Mayo, Connemara, Galway and Clare-some of the most beautiful countryside you will ever see. We will visit all the interesting sites by day and have a great traditional music session every night. Please don’t leave it too late if you want to join us for the trip of a lifetime.

Clean Cabbage in the Bucket, the book I co-authored a couple of years ago is now available as an eBook from Amazon.com. If you prefer a paperback version, it’s available at Celtica Music Shop.

You can find a wide selection of CD’s at Celtica Music Shop.

There are several concerts coming up in the next few weeks, beginning with a series of Celtic Christmas Concerts in Massachusetts. I’ll be joined by Aoife Clancy and George Keith at the Circle of Friends Coffeehouse in Franklin, on December 3, the Homegrown Coffeehouse in Needham on December 10, and the Old Ship Coffeehouse in Hingham on December 11. Accordion wizard, Jimmy Keane will join Aoife and myself for shows in New Hampshire and Maine on December 12, 13 and 14.

Details of these and other shows can be found on my calendar.

The May 2012 Celtica Heart of Ireland Tour is now available for booking. This time we will explore the Northwest of Ireland, starting in Donegal and winding our way through Sligo, Mayo, Connemara, Galway and Clare-some of the most beautiful countryside you will ever see. We will visit all the interesting sites by day and have a great traditional music session every night. Please don’t leave it too late if you want to join us for the trip of a lifetime.

Clean Cabbage in the Bucket, the book I co-authored a couple of years ago is now available as an eBook from Amazon.com. If you prefer a paperback version, it’s available at Celtica Music Shop.

Irish Music makes a great Christmas present. You can find a wide selection of CD’s at Celtica Music Shop.

As an early Christmas present to you all, there are 3 FREE MP3s of my Christmas songs available at robbieoconnell.com. There is also a video of the Wren Song on Facebook from last year’s Celtic Christmas Sojourn.

I’ll be joining Mick Moloney and friends on Sunday, November 6 for a fundraising concert at St. Malachy’s Church, 1429 N. 11th St. Philadelphia. It starts at 2:00 p.m. and it is always a wonderful afternoon where you can expect the unexpected.

The concert at the Hurdy Gurdy folk club in Fair Lawn, NJ is on Saturday Nov 5 and not as listed in my concert calendar on Nov 4. There was a mix up about this date going way back to the beginning and I only noticed it today. Anyway, Aoife Cancy and I will be there on Saturday. It’s at the Fair Lawn Community Center, 12-10 20th St. Fair Lawn, NJ. Info 201-794-5372.

I have some concerts this week and next in Oklahoma and Texas. Also some shows in Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and New Jersey right after that. All the details can be found at my calendar.

This Friday, September 16 I am playing in Princeton, NJ at the Princeton Folk Music Society at 8:15 p.m. http://princetonfolk.org/
On Saturday September 17 I’ll be at the Irish 2000 Festival in Ballston Spa, NY with Aoife Clancy, George Keith and Erik Wendelken. We have a one hour set at 4:00 p.m.

The Blackstone River Theatre Summer Solstice Festival returns tomorrow, June 18 at Diamond Hill State park in Cumberland, RI. Aoife Clancy and I will be performing at 2:15 PM and again at 5:00 PM. It is a great festival with a wonderful line-up in a lovely location. Info here: http://www.riverfolk.org/brtssf/index.html

Next weekend, July 25 & 26, Aoife and I, along with George Keith and Erik Wendelken, will be at the Connecticut Irish Festival in North Haven. We will be on at 1:15 Pm on Saturday and 5:30 PM on Sunday.

I hope you can make it.