Half way and raining.

Well, Dublin was good. Had the first pint of Guinness; played a show with a family in the front row that clapped to everything...occasionally in time; reluctantly turned down the chance to go to the late night disco with a couple of 18-year old Dutch guys who happened to be crashing with the same guy we were; then slept on on couch that would have been perfect if I were 3 1/2 feet tall...and used my jacket for a blanket. Yes folks, this is what we call living the dream.
Next day we hired a little gray Ford Fiesta and drove to Tipperary which is about half way between Dublin and Galway. Amazingly I remembered the twisty turning backroads that lead to the McGrath house above Lough Derg where we'd be spending the next couple days. Donnie and Kay and the crew are fantastic people, which would be implied by their being Irish but also helped along by the fact they are related to our good friend Tim Quigley.

 the beautiful scenery of County Tipperary (notice how narrow this "two lane" road is!)

Larkins, Garry Kennedy-Tipperary, was a two part show. Friday and Saturday.
Friday-nice crowd with two fireplaces burning, a couple pints of Guinness, and a fantastic after hours jam with a couple local guys by the fireplace...again, a couple pints of Guinness. In my brief time here I've learned that when offered a pint, one accepts the pint and the one that follows.
Saturday- Now this was the kicker. It was Brenden O'Connors 50th birthday and it turns out the multitudes that didn't come to the show the night before were waiting for Saturday. The place was jam packed and there was a live band. Since it was Brenden's birthday he hopped out of the guitar spot pretty early and replaced himself with me. Which was awesome. I played with the band for a good part of the night and re-learned that part about being offered Guinness. Then just when I thought we were leaving (around 1 am), I ended up back with the band for a few more. To say the least, Garrykennedy was fantastic.

Now, Killarney and a day off to explore the Ring of Kerry...in the rain. But hey, it's awfully green.

Trains, Ferrys, and Buses...oh my

Well. We've retired the Panda for a while and gone to bigger transit. First, we took the high speed train to Edinburgh. Have you ever heard of such a thing? You get onto a train, it begins to move very smoothly and soon you're traveling at 80 mph past loads and loads of traffic that is stuck in grid lock. Then, almost as though you're on an airplane, an attendant comes by with a cart of coffee, soda, tea, snacks, and even a beer if you'd like for a reasonable price. Then, if you need to use the restroom, you get up...take a walk, stretch your legs, and use one. All this while taking in the countryside, reading, getting some work done, or surfing the web as they also provide free WiFi. Those of you from Wisconsin know where I'm going with this. 

Edinburgh, or Leith rather, was great. I played on Jim Welsh's radio show, which you can listen to online Sundays at 2pm local time....or 8 a.m CST. Then we continued on to Glasgow for two shows, a great tour of the city by Mr. Eric Young, and then back to Leith to play at the Leith Folk Club Tuesday night.

That was where the charter coach came in and we headed to Ireland. We had a great trip to western Scotland where the ferry was waiting. It turned out to be a floating hotel of sorts with a restaurant, coffee bar, sports bar, and internet lounge(kind of) and all of this while listening to a BMW's car alarm going off....for 3 1/2 hours.

Here's to Belfast and a quick jaunt to Dublin tonight to play at the Swan. Until next time....

Berwick-Upon-Tweed....the gig.

Last night was in a great venue in Berwick. Now, to say it properly you musn't pronounce the W....much like not using the L when you say Milwaukee. If you do use the W, you will be corrected. The venue was in the lower level of a pub called the Barrels Ale House and was very much like a rathskeller kind of place. The crowd was great and believe it or not they were drinking ales and scotch. I should mention that Berwick is located 1 mile south of the Scottish border and has been fought over for hundreds of years over whether is was an English or Scottish town. Currently the English are maintaining control.

After the show I was invited to Dave's house (Dave is originally from Mississippi) which was across the street from the hostel where we stayed. He used Laphroaig 10 year and a 1935 Gibson Advanced Jumbo. I bit on both

Two things about this guitar other than the fact that it was amazing. First, it's worth somewhere in the ballpark of $50,000. Second, the last dude to play it was Mark Knopfler. That's right, Mark Knopfler. Apparently Mark was in the market for a new acoustic guitar but decided the Advanced Jumbo he already had was enough. As you can imagine....it was awesome...see photos.

Now, we're in Edinburgh and about to head out. I'll keep you posted.

Hello England

Hey there,
Well, it's been an interesting first week of the tour. Where to begin.....
We flew in a week ago today and it seems the jet lag has just now let go. However, the jet lag has not been so forgiving with my watch as it appears to have died. We spent the first night in London and rented a B&B's broom closet for the evening. The  place was called the Good Wood and they even offered a boiling pot for water...for the tea, of course.

We rented an adorable little Fiat Panda and on my first day of driving, I was amazed at the number of roundabouts. . . I was just starting to think I'd figured out mostly how they worked when I entered yet another one. The SatNav(English for GPS) informed me that I needed to take the 3rd exit rather than the 2nd. I figured that since I was out of the way of the fast moving traffic in the second and third lanes I could continue on to my desired exit. However, the following screeching of tires,  blowing of dust,  abrupt turning of the wheel, and the stearn announcement from the navigator led me to believe something wasn't quite right. It was then I realized I'd nearly smashed into another car that was exiting the roundabout. Now, you might think crash averted so everything is just fine. The same thing was in my mind until I noticed the car I nearly hit was a police car and by this time the lights were on.
At this point an annoyed and somewhat perplexed looking police man and his partner came walking towards the Panda and I figured I'd be deported shortly. Instead, he took pity on me and offered a tutorial on the intricate workings of the roundabout.
Since then things have gone pretty smoothly- I've had great radio sessions with Mick Smith in Nottingham and also with Barry Everett in London on the House Of Mercy. Both sessions will be available very soon and I'll put up a link for anyone who'd like to check them out.

 Hanging out at the House of Mercy, London

The Square and Compass is one of the best pubs in the UK and is the only venue I've ever been to that provides it's clients and musicians the opportunity for a 3 mile seaside hike should you like the adventure.

 The Square & Compass, Worth Matravers

Monday night came Sheffield and the Greystones with Rod Piccott. Rod is a great writer and player from Nashville, TN and I suggest you seek him out quickly.

That brings us current and I'll be back with more tales of adventure and roundabouts when we get to Berwick-Upon-Tweed for the next show on the 21st!
take care
Josh