A tourist haven? Tommy Makem thinks so and he held a festival there to prove it. ℘℘℘ June, 2000. A bus packed with American tourists pulls out of Newry and takes the road to South Armagh. On one side it passes a British army observation post, currently being dismantled. On the other, a large poster advertises the first Tommy Makem International Festival of Song, which is … [Read more...] about Hibernia: South Armagh
Music
Music: Rockin’ 15
The musicians who made being Irish "cool." The year was 1985. At roughly about the same time that U2's Bono was stage-diving into the massive crowd gathered for Live Aid, the charity concert organized by former Boomtown Rat Bob Geldof to help eradicate world hunger, the first issue of Irish America was being prepped to roll off the presses. It's been a wild 15 years for … [Read more...] about Music: Rockin’ 15
The Great Victor Herbert
By Jack Callahan
The city of New York erected a statue of Victor Herbert in Central Park. In 1939, Hollywood paid homage to him with the aptly titled biographical film "The Great Victor Herbert. On May 13, 1940, the United States government also honored him by issuing a postage stamp bearing his likeness. Still, the most timeless legacy of this remarkable man remains the catalogue of his … [Read more...] about The Great Victor Herbert
Derry: The Town I Love So Well
By Mary Pat Kelly
May/June 1995
Mary Pat Kelly talks to Phil Coulter, one of Derry's most famous sons. Often during the years of the "Troubles" in Northern Ireland, when the"end of the day" brought political conversation, someone would sing PhilCoulter's "The Town I Loved So Well." And if the singer was from Derry they knew, too, "the gas yard wall" where soldiers had replaced school boys playing ball. … [Read more...] about Derry: The Town I Love So Well
Music Q&A: A Wake Up Call
The Cranberries performed to a small audience at the Bowery Ballroom in downtown Manhattan on August 22 to promote their new CD Wake Up and Smell the Coffee. Less than a month later New York would be the focus of the world's attention with the horrible events of September 11. Drummer and founding member Fergal Lawler talks to Elizabeth Raggi about violence, new life and … [Read more...] about Music Q&A: A Wake Up Call