Tonight we saw Celtic music legends Altan performing at The Cut. We have seen them several times over the years, but the last time was in 1998! When we saw that they were playing at one of our favorite local venues, we knew it was time to check them out again, and they didn't disappoint. They are great stewards of historical Celtic music. They played ballads as well as rollicking jigs and reels that had the crowd clapping an singing along. Their banter was hilarious, with Mark making dad jokes and puns, and the rest of the band giving him grief. They even talked about an annual tour of Ireland that they do every year, partnering with an American tour company. Hmmmm...that got our mental gears spinning...
The show was originally billed as two sets (and appears as such on the set list) but instead they played straight through, with "the young ones" (Clare and Máirtín) taking a break partway through, as Mairéad joked.
After the show, all 5 band members were at the merch table, greeting fans and signing autographs. We spoke with Mairéad, Mark, and Ciarán. Craig was talking about the venue with them, and they said that they were pleasantly surprised. They had thought that it might be a standing-room-only club, but they were happy to find that it had seats and people were very attentive. I told Mark that I really liked his jokes (which the other members of the band had been teasing him about), and he said "Can you record that?" They were very gracious, and they all signed our set list and the two CD's that we purchased. Craig also got a T-shirt.
It was a great night out! What a great way to cap off St. Patrick's Day week!
Band:
Mairéad Ní Mhaonaigh - fiddle
Clare Friel - fiddle
Ciarán Curran - bouzouki
Máirtín Tourish - accordion
Mark Kelly - guitar
