Top of the morning I have a Triple header!!!
Last Sunday I did a St. Patty's/St. Joseph's day dinner dance........Corned Beef & Meat Ball Sandwiches Oh Yeah!!!





[This message has been edited by Dnj (edited 03-17-2009).]

Yep, me too

Just got two, but I had a triple today.

Beakybird

"Who's Gigging on St Pattys day Tomorrow?....."

Who's NOT??? ...

t.

I have a double but I've been doing St. Patty's Day parties since last Thursday. Patty and Murphy were sitting at the bar and Patty said to Murphy, "Me wife is driving me to drink." Murphy said, "Patty you're a lucky man, mine makes me walk." Don't drink too much green beer.

Joe

------------------
Songman55
Joe Ayala

[This message has been edited by Songman55 (edited 03-16-2009).]

Top of the morning to ya!!!!!

A triple...

------------------
Bill in Dayton

Very impressive that some of you are working so much. Just curious guys. where are all these gigs you book. Live music here in North NJ is getting very rare. Most places are happy with a backround CD. I played briefly at my Elks Lodge but no real job calls this year. Economy?
How about a sample of your Irish song lists. It seems most people just want to hear the few Irish songs everyone knows and just ignore you if you stray from those. Hard to fill up a few sets. I don't really like Irish music but a gigs a gig.

Bill in NJ

I'm with you on the last part except for "Danny Boy" and "I'll take you home again Kathleen" ...
No time right now to type the list, but I've got a little more than a dozen that I will mix in with other lively 'standards' like 'Bill Bailey', etc.

t.

In addition to the expected "traditionals" I throw in a couple by Elvis O'Presley and Willy McNelson.
Eddie

I'm not this day job gets in the way had to turn one down during the early afternoon hours. But I'm not really complaining I just found out I get to keep my day job 5 days per week!! YEAH!!! In today's economy that's big!! Happy St. Pat's day.

This is the first year in few where I haven't played. In the past I've played a nieghorhood with that's a mix of some fine Italian folks and Irish. I mix it up with a half dozen Irish tunes, plenty of Italian songs and of course like Eddy says, some Elvis O'Presley and Willy O'Nelson.

-Out twice today-here is a list of some of the Irish tunes-I'll be doing.-
Will You Go Lassie Go
Come in
The Wild Rover
Come down the mtn Katie Daly
Destination Donegal
Patsy Fagon
When Irish Eyes are smiling
MacNamara’s band
Black Velvet Band
Uncle nobby’s Steam Boat
Carrickfergus
Star of the county down
Muirsheen Durkin
Reillys Daughter
Galway
Donegal Danny
Goodnight Irene
Nancy whisky
Let Him go let him tarry
Fields of Athenry
Bucketful of Mountain Dew
Belfast mill
Brennon on the moor
Molly Malone
Maggie
Rollin Home
Whistling Gypsy Rover
Whiskey in the jar
Cheers!-Gord

[This message has been edited by Gord (edited 03-17-2009).]

I play just enough to keep the theme going & everything danceable with all the Irish standards....but to do it all through the gig is definitely a SEDATIVE for the audience. You gotta mix it up.

A regular dinner gig...not specifically a holiday one.


R.

Russ what Irish songs do you play.

Also a couple from Ella Fitzgerald

Jerry

Donny, nothing, other than Danny boy. Maby that's why I don't get many traditional St. Pat's jobs.

My main St. Patricks Day job (over 20 years and still running) is with a fine group called the Prarie Dawgs. We worked the parade last Saturday. It consists of five to 10 (depending on the weather and the availability and type of beverages) studio quality folks. We play on a flat-bed trailor at all parades sponsored by the city of Lexington and other selected venues. The big one is St Pat's Day. We stage the entire parade in the parking lot of my warehouse.

We pull the trailor with an old farm tractor
(a Farmall) and power everything with a gas generator...thus we're REALLY LOUD!

Atually, my membership in the DAWGS is a little shakey, since I don't drink. If they found another electric upright player who imbibed, I'd be kicked to the curb immediately.

The DAWGS don't play much Irish material either, but no one really cares!


Russ

Guys thanks for all the responses. Great reading them. Gord, that's some impressive list. Never heard of half of them HA!
Funny thing, since I last posted I just got a last minute call form a restaurant to work tonight. I'm thinking if they waited so long to book someone they can't complain about some Elvis O'Presley or
Frank Mc-natra.
Later

Bill O'Lewis

Hiding in my studio and not answering the phone...

I have enough Irish all year long with my wife..

Well Russ that sounds like a hoot for sure.....& I guess if needed you could jazz up a few irish tuines like danny boy, Peg of My Heart etc, to sound great also.
Have fun!!

Yeah sure ...I got a Hot Red Hair Green Eyed Irish Lassie here too.....two small gigs down so far today & in two hours is the big Irish Club Dinner & Dance!!!



[This message has been edited by Dnj (edited 03-17-2009).]

I'm getting set up at my afternoon gig today and the president of the club I'm playing for tells me he is Italian and so is the treasurer ... I said I would play a couple of Italian songs in honor of St. Joseph's day on Thursday ...
So when the staff is passing out the soup, I see it is 'Italian Wedding Soup' - chicken escarole with little meatballs for the non-converted - I tell the audience I have to play an Italian song to go along with the soup ... did the same thing when they served the macaroni - 'pasta' to the non-converted - ... OF COURSE I played only Irish songs while they were eating the corned beef and cabbage - BTW, some mix of foods, eh ??? ...

Ended up playing about 12 Irish tunes among the usual standards...

Bill in NJ, here's my full list:

Danny Boy ...... It's a great day for the Irish ...... When Irish Eyes are Smiling (It's because they married an ITALIAN!!! ......Kerry Dance .... I'll Take You Home Again Kathleen .... McNamara's Band .... Peg O' My Heart .... Peggy O'Neill ... Rosie O'Grady ...Daughter of Rosie O'Grady (quite a family )... Same Old Shillelagh.... Toora Loora Loora ... My Wild Irish Rose .... Rose of Tralee ...Wearing of the Green .... and OF COURSE... The Irish Jig, The Irish Washerwoman (JIG) and Stack o' Barley...

And they are now all retired until NEXT year [img]http://www.synthzone.com/ubbs/biggrin.gif[/img] ....

Godere la festa di San Giuseppe a tutti -
Enjoy the feast of St. Joseph everyone (for the non-converted [img]http://www.synthzone.com/ubbs/biggrin.gif[/img] ...

t. [img]http://www.synthzone.com/ubbs/cool.gif[/img]

Finally its over!....
so how was your St.Patty's Day gigs?
I had a ball at my three yesterday, plenty of dancing, corned beef & cabbage, soda bread, green beer & happy times!!

10:00am - Gig #1- real nice Assisted Living: Started off with McNamara's Band, did my usual mix of standards/big band/country/oldies/latin. Also played Danny Boy, My Wild Irish Rose and When Irish Eyes Are Smiling by the time I finished.

Of note during this performance I saw the longest single piece of carpeting I've ever seen. They were laying the carpet in a new wing they just added on. About 20 minutes into my thing, I see about 15 guys carrying a long...long piece of carpet. IT WENT ON FOREVER...it was the full length of the hall. It must've weighed a ton! As the last section actually was carried into the hall I hollered, "Hey guys, wrong hall---sorry!" and got a big laugh...

2:15pm - Gig #2 - Nursing Home - big crowd, not much dancing but everybody had a great time. It was the first time I'd played here with the Bose L1 and the Activity staff was blown away...

5:30pm - Gig #3 - Assisted Living - Was supposed to play after dinner, which would've been great for this Family Night event, but the staff decided they wanted me to play during dinner. They were concerned everybody would just leave after dinner. (I suspect actually, the staff didn't want to stay any longer than they really needed to, lol) I wasn't overly happy about the change but I did my thing and everybody seemed just dandy.

I was home in time to watch the Penguins pummel the Thrashers and have a relaxing evening.

All in all, a nice day...

------------------
Bill in Dayton

[This message has been edited by Bill in Dayton (edited 03-18-2009).]

Nice to hear you all had a good day. Fran, I like your plan for St. Pats the best! You playing in Wildwood this weekend 3/20-21? We'll be in Cape May. love to meet you.

My last minute restaurant gig (I played in the small cozy bar area) went well. Surprized myself on how many Irish songs I actually had put in my homemade fakebook. After about an 1/2 hour and some polite appaluse from the bar crowd my first request came in. "You play great, how about no more Irish songs" HA! Loved it!
Spent the rest of the night mixing it up.
I don't do a lot of bar/restatrant gigs anymore but my one dream is to play one where there in NO TV!!
The manager sat at the bar transfixed with Anerican Idol with the sound off and subtext on. Even thought there was a small crowd I didn't ask him if he wanted me to go overtime. I knew he was dying to turn the sound up.
Thanked me, paid me cash, so like I said a gigs a gig.

Bill NJ

Bill, bad timing....I will be back in Wildwood, atarting April 3rd, at Alfe's..

Fran
Too bad. We'll be back the weekend of 3/17-18. Hopefully you'll be there then.

Bill NJ