Get caught up in the mischief and malarkey of Shilelagh Law
By MIKE FARRAGHER
Irish Voice Columnist
Published Sunday, June 21, 2009, 10:26 AM
Updated Sunday, June 21, 2009, 11:00 AM
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“We play the song ‘1 and 9’ that Rich wrote. There are people in the audience that know all about the experience of hanging around 242nd Street under the train. A lot of Irish fans we have settled in Inwood, Washington Heights, and around Manhattan College in the seventies and eighties.
“We sing about them and their experience. Our neighbors and friends are in those songs.”
If the “1 and 9” song is the embodiment of the band’s spirit, then the following track captures the essence of seeing the band live:
“I had a rough night/to cap off a rough week/I woke up spitting blood and a couple of teeth/my swollen right hand ain’t got no more skin,” they sing on “Bare Knuckled Man.” “Whatever life throws at you, the booze will take away,” they advise on “The Liver Song,” a fantastic jug band ditty.
Like the city that birthed them, the songs on “1 and 9” offer a tasty musical melting pot of rock, folk, bluegrass and Irish traditional melodies, all served up with an attitude that would give a cranky Manhattan taxi driver a run for his money.
In fact, the original songs are so good that this reviewer would advise the band to dispense with parochial readings of trad songs like “The Parting Glass” on their next record. It’s the weakest cut in this collection, which is a testament to this great new CD of songs.
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This is a standup group of public servants that keep us safe, so let’s hoist a pint to that! With the great songs on 1 and 9 and their ferocious live performances, Shilelagh Law keeps a love of Irish culture and music alive in Yonkers, Woodlawn, and all of Manhattan. I’ll drink to that as well!
For more information on tour dates and to sample their music, check out http://www.halfthebottle.com/
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They will be playing the Brooklyn Irish Festival (Floyd Bennet Field on 3159 Flatbush Avenue) on June 27 and 28, along with Patty Smyth, the Wolfe Tones and the Pat McGuire band, and they can be found most Sunday nights hosting an open session at the Rambling House (4292 Katonah Avenue, Woodlawn).
“It’s madness in a pint,” jokes Kilkenny man and guitarist John Walsh. “It’s Irish music with an open attitude, or Irish music for the rest of us, if you like.”
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