“Florence and The Machine” to play at Camp Bestival July 24th, Lulworth Castle, Dorset.

June 10, 2009 | Filed Under Music | Leave a Comment 

One of the hottest bands and much hyped by many as their latest top find in the new performers league “Florence and the Machine” to play at Camp Bestival July 24th, Lulworth Castle, Dorset. I have just heard them for the first time so I’m a bit out of the trendy loop. Then again I’m just getting into Amy Winehouse. Of course when un-trendy folks like myself get to know a band the uber cool then blame the band for selling out. “I remember when they were great before they released a single, and look at them now they’ve sold out.” “I saw her play in my mates flat before they toured beyond London. Wicked.” ” I was there when she was conceived and she sounded fantastic. I always new she’d be a star.” “I was hanging out on the street corner, in a kind of “Waiting for Godot” moment and I knew from the beginning she was going to be big. This was on a Tuesday, I remember clearly as it was a couple of days before “The Big Bang.”

Photographs of Traditional Irish Musicians for Sale

September 21, 2008 | Filed Under Music, Photography | Leave a Comment 

Last weekend John (one half of Wessex Weddings) was invited to photograph some traditional Irish musicians at Tull, East Clare, Ireland. As many of them are traditional music legends he jumped at the chance!

Thus sepia toned prints of traditional Irish musicians, including Martin Hayes, Dennis Cahill, Liz Carroll, Ged Foley, Catherine McEvoy and Joe Burke playing live in East Clare, Ireland can be purchased from John. Take a look at them here

Martin Hayes at Feakle Church 2008

August 13, 2008 | Filed Under Music, Photography | Leave a Comment 

Yes there really is a place called Feakle!

Yesterday I returned from Ireland which I visited for the Feakle music festival.

Now for most people in the world this will mean absolutely nothing but this particular little corner of East Clare is one that I’ve grown to love for it’s wonderful music. Whilst much of the Irish tradition is gradually being eroded it still has a firm hold here.

The principal (but certainly not the only) reason to visit the festival was to see the virtuoso fiddle player Martin Hayes play in his local church along with his long time musical partner Dennis Cahill. I know Martin would make light of the virtuoso tag; I once heard him question the word genius applied to his playing at a major London festival when he exclaimed that playing the fiddle in Ireland was probably something to do with being too stupid to do anything else.

Martin’s family is well known in Feakle not least for his father P. J. Hayes a fiddler who led the famous Tulla Ceili Band. His sister Helen is also a fine singer. Whilst some may argue that he has strayed from the tradition - for me Martin has grown to become the best living Irish fiddle player. What makes Martin Hayes stand apart from the rest is the pure emotion he brings to the music, when he plays the world stops - nothing else matters. He takes you to a higher level. It’s hard to explain (especially as I’m tone deaf!) but there is no one else in the world who can take me on that emotional journey and believe me I’ve seen some fine musicians from Led Zeppelin to Dylan through to the finest of traditional Irish players.

Martin Hayes and Dennis Cahill at Feakle Church August 2008

Martin and Dennis Cahill have played together now for quite a few years and their playing is as one. Dennis plays guitar with such subtlety that many may not even realise what he is doing but the two play as one, the sit very close and watch each other like hawks. It is two minds playing the most uplifting music as one being.

Now Feakle would appear, at first sight, to be the ‘back of beyond’ a small village in a forgotten part of Ireland. But don’t be fooled some of the finest musicians in the world live here. They, of course, wouldn’t describe themselves as anything out of the ordinary - they just took up an instrument as soon as they could stand and started to learn to play in the slow lyrical way they do in East Clare. The list is almost endless; Mary McNamara’s is a fine concertina playing, her somewhat ‘contrary’ brother Andrew’s is a fiery accordion player, Martin’s uncle ‘Paddy’ who died a few weeks back was a legendary fiddle player, Mark Donnellan a local farmer is also great fiddle player and so the list goes on. Then every year the little village has a festival; not a festival in the U.K. sense of regulations and structure but one where the four pubs, become the venues, a wet farmer’s field the camp site and people just turn up from all corners of the world to share this wonderful music.

Sessions like this one at Pepper's Bar go on all through the festival

There is of course much more to the festival and there were legends everywhere like Frankie Gavin, Ged Foley, Jackie Daley, Máirtín O’Connor and Róisín Elstafty. There was the final Ceili in the small marquee behind Pepper’s Bar where Martin rejoins the Tulla Ceili Band where dancers’ feet whirled all night. However, for me the highlight was the concert in the church, decorated with candles and flowers and filled to bursting point, where Martin and Dennis played the finest, most uplifting music you will ever hear in your life.

John Burton