Galway Advertiser 2008/GA_2008_07_10/GA_1007_E1_090.pdf 

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July 10 2008

Th W e e ek
ON THE The Preservation Hall Jazz Band RECORD Preserving New Orleans' musical heritage and maintaining hope post-Katrina
By Kevin McGuire
BY KEVIN MCGUIRE Hall Jazz Band - of Cassidy's findings he is inclined to agree. "I can see how the word jazz transferred over from heat," he tells me. "In New Orleans the original spelling of the word was `jass' and it was what they used to call the brothels in the French Quarter of the city." Louis Armstrong was born in New Orleans in 1901 and throughout the 1920s was recognised as one of the most innovative cornet and trumpet music. "It's amazing how an institution like the Preservation Hall has remained relevant for so many years," he says. "It's a very small venue - it only sits about 80 people - and there's no fancy lighting or complicated sound set-up as the band performs acoustically. I've heard that it's not unlike the way people play traditional music in pubs in Ireland. Wherever we go we're extremely interested in the aftermath of one of the costliest and deadliest hurricanes in US history, it was the swift response of musicians, including U2's The Edge, through the Music Rising charity. "Edge played a huge role in raising funds and awareness for New Orleans through his efforts," says Jaffe. "It was truly a blessing for all of the people of the city. For someone of his stature to be involved really put the spotlight on our difficult plight."

Paul Brady's consistently diverse career
PAUL BRADY is without doubt one of Ireland's greatest ever songwriters. Throughout his career he has consistently diversified and his back catalogue is the envy of many a troubadour. He plays Leisureland, Salthill, on Saturday July 19. The 61-year-old's work has crossed many genres throughout his career and has produced classic songs such as `Crazy Dreams', `Nothing But The Same Old Story', `The Island', `Paradise Is Here', and `Nobody Knows'. His stints with bands such as The Johnstons and Planxty laid the groundwork for what developed into a truly successful solo career. It is 30 years since the release of Brady's debut album Welcome Here Kind Stranger (1978) which was a collection of songs that brought together his interest in Irish traditional and folk music. On the album he was joined by Donal Lunny, Andy Irvine, Noel Hill, and Tommy Peoples. The homely atmosphere of compositions such as `I Am A Youth That's Inclined To Ramble', `The Lakes Of Pontchartrain', and `Paddy's Green Shamrock Shore' captured some of the best elements of the 1970s folk boom in Ireland. Some three decades later and the songs remain timeless. "That whole involvement with Irish traditional music in the 1970s was a very exciting time for me," Brady tells me. "In a sense I probably marked the anniversary of that time when I had a reunion with Andy Irvine at the Celtic Connections Festival earlier this year. We played a lot of material from that album, as well as the album I did with Andy in 1976. I was delighted to be able to re-visit it and to see if we could still cut it!" By the 1980s, Brady was itching to do some different material and headed in a more pop vein, marking a complete departure from his past work. "Looking back on it now it seems like an even bigger departure than it was at the time," he reflects. The album cover of Hard Station (1981) sees Brady waiting at a train platform and perhaps sums up the emigrant sense of departure that was an everyday part of Irish life then. By this time Brady had moved to England but with The Troubles brewing in his homeland and the Birmingham and Guildford pub bombings it was not an easy prospect being an Irishman in Britain. He touches upon this anti-Irish feeling in `Nothing But The Same Old Story' as he angrily spits out: "In their eyes we're nothing but a bunch of murderers" and warns "But look out!/'Cause I'll tear you into pieces if you cross me". On True For You (1983), Back To The Centre (1985), and Primitive Dance (1987) Brady further tried to make sense of the political situation between Britain and Ireland. Eric Clapton, Mark Knopfler, and Loudon Wainwright joined him in the studio. Out of this intensely creative period came one of the most touching songs: `The Island'. `The Island' was seen as somewhat of a landmark at the time and showed that peace could actually be possible. "I'm absolutely thrilled with the settlement in Northern Ireland and to be honest there were times when I never thought I'd see it in my lifetime," he says. "It's a different country now to the one I wrote about in `The Island' and largely speaking I think the concerns of the song are now irrelevant. Sometimes when I'm asked to sing it in concerts I think of it more as a piece of history. However, people want to hear it and I'm compelled to sing it!" Brady signed a deal with Mercury Records and Brady recruited Steely Dan producer Gary Katz for his Trick Or Treat (1991). He then moved to Nashville to write with John Prine, Mark E Nevin, and John O'Kane. On his last album Say What You Feel (2005) he brought some of the elements of the previous two decades together with a more spontaneous live performance style. For more information on Paul's Leisureland concert contact Grooveyard on 091-779777.

NEW ORLEANS on the mouth of the Mississippi was founded in 1718 by French explorers and was later populated by Louisiana Creole, African-Americans, Haitian, English, and Irish immigrants to create a truly unique melting pot. From this potent mix of cultures musical styles such as jazz, cajun, zydeco, rhythm and blues, and delta blues developed. Legends such as Louis Armstrong, Jelly Roll Morton, Fats Domino, Benny Goodman, Count Basie, King Oliver, Ray Charles, and Dr John all served their apprenticeships in The Big Easy. In the late 1950s The Preservation Hall performance space was established by Allan Jaffe in the city's French Quarter and from that hall (in which Louis Armstrong said "where you'll find all the greats") The Preservation Hall Jazz Band were born. Since then they have toured the world and as part of their current European tour they play the Big Top at Fisheries Field on Friday July 18 at 9pm as part of Galway Arts Festival.

Jazz and the Irish
In his book How The Irish Invented Slang the writer, filmmaker, and musician Daniel Cassidy argued that the word jazz came from the Irish word `teas', meaning heat. He wrote: "Not a single musician in New Orleans - black, white, or Creole - used the word `jazz' for hot music, until the Original Dixieland Jass Band, a motley crew of Irish, Sicilian, and working-class white boys from the back streets of the Big Easy, hit the music-biz jackpot in March 1917 - when they recorded the first "Jass" record in history in New York City. In the red-light districts of San Francisco's Barbary Coast, Chicago's First Ward, New York's Tenderloin, and New Orleans' Storyville, where the hot new music had been born, that old Irish word `teas' also meant sexual `heat, passion, excitement'" When I inform Benjamin Jaffe the current musical director of Preservation players. His music was seen a typifying what made `ragtime' or `jazz' the most exciting style to come from the city. "The music Louis Armstrong played and participated in the 1920s was the oldest form of New Orleans jazz," says Jaffe. "What we do with the Preservation Band is a continuation of that musical tradition - you can really hear the unbroken line from that period right up until the present day. "Actually Louis Armstrong's original drummer Paul Barbarin played at Preservation Hall many times and now his great-nephew Lucien Barbarin plays trombone with the band. I know he and the rest of the band are very curious to see Galway - they've heard that it's incredibly picturesque and pretty rugged. They've all being counting the days down on the calendar like kids coming up to Christmas!" Jaffe draws many parallels between the music that Barbarin and co play and traditional Irish discovering local music and to see how that serves social functions in the area. There's a common thread there." For his own part in helping the people of his city Jaffe coordinated the Made In New Orleans: The Hurricane Sessions CD and DVD. Among those also involved was Galway Arts Festival 2006 headliner Allen Toussaint. "I literally saw Allen five minutes ago," Jaffe states."This city gave the world Allen Toussaint, Fats Domino, The Neville Brothers, Dr John, and Professor Longhair and everybody who lives here is interconnected. Even Ray Charles and Little Richard performed here for years. They are a real tribute to what the Preservation Hall and New Orleans represents."

Hurricane Katrina
The Preservation Hall Jazz Band leave behind a home that is still reeling from the natural disaster that was Hurricane Katrina. "We're still in recovery but we don't feel like we're behind the eight ball as much as we were six months ago," says Jaffe. "It was a very difficult time, especially because of the initial response of the government, which made the situation much, much worse than it needed to be." I suggest that Jaffe and other New Orleans people will not be sad to see the back of George W Bush when he leaves office in November? "Yes, that's true!" he replies. "There are a lot of people we'd like to see in that line out the door!" If there was a high point during

For tickets contact the Galway Arts Festival Box Office, 1-5 Merchants Road, on 091-566577. Online booking is through www.galwayartsfestival.com

Disconnect 4 @ De Burgo's
BY KERNAN ANDREWS DISCONNECT 4 will bring their new wave with attitude sound to the Sub/Stance night at De Burgo's with two shows next week. Disconnect 4 - Leon Butler (guitar/synth/vocals), Yvonne Ryan (bass), Keith McCaffery (drums), and Eoin Reilly (guitar) - play Sub/Stance on Wednesday July 16 with New Amusement, followed by a DJ set from Keith. The band return to the St Augustine Street venue on Wednesday 23 with support from Philtre, followed by a DJ set from Keith. The songs on the band's Myspace page `Running With Scissors' and `Say what You Said' showcase the band's trademark echoing guitars; metronymic, danceable beats; and driving bass riffs. It's infectious and hints at Joy Division, early U2, and 17 Seconds-era Cure as influences. More songs are now up on the site so do check them out. Both shows start at 9pm. Admission is 5. See www.myspace.com/thedi sconnect4