Today is my favorite day of the year. Well, not the day you’re reading this but the day I’m writing it, which is St. Patrick’s Day.
All year, I’ve been waiting for a chance to wax poetic about traditional Irish music and what it means to me, and today of all days should make for the easiest column I’ve written. But now I can’t figure out where to start.
Certainly, I wouldn’t be who I am today without years of near-continuous listening to artists like tenor banjoist Kieran Hanrahan and groups like Dervish. My collection of Irish music far outnumbers that of any other genre, so their work has been a perennial occupant of whatever music player I happen to be using at a given point in time.
I’ve been a performer of Irish music for about eight years. I’ve played that music around the world, including Ireland, and in pubs all across the United States.
I see the world through green-colored glasses, and I’ve done what I can to expand people’s exposure to traditional Irish folk music to something more broad than “Danny Boy” and “The Irish Washerwoman.”
Still, as cliché as it is to say, on St. Patrick’s Day, everybody receives an honorary booster shot of Irish blood. And I’m happy to have the company.
Unfortunately, for most people, the only result of that day pass to Irishdom is an excuse to drink until you drop and wear garish green clothing you’ll probably burn later.
Over the course of the weekend, I’m sure bars were packed with people celebrating their heritage, temporary or legitimate, until the bottles ran dry while listening to The Dropkick Murphys and U2.
And by the time this column debuts, St. Patrick’s Day and things Irish will be smelling dirt near the bottom of most people’s list of things that matter. This is especially sad when you consider that the number of people claiming Irish ancestry in the 2000 U.S. Census outnumbered those claiming American (non-native) ancestry by about 10 million.
So maybe the theme for this column should be all the fair-weather Paddys out there who use this day to do all the things that perpetuate misconceptions about the culture. But that would be a bitter column to write, and I love the day too much to spoil it that way.
Instead, I’ll continue to enjoy the fruits of the Emerald Isle for the rest of you during the rest of the year. Long after your comically oversized top hat and shamrock-shaped glasses are decomposing in some garbage heap, I’ll be playing jigs and reels at unreasonable hours every night.
Every night, that is, except Cinco de Mayo, when I’ll dust off my sombrero and take a shot of tequila in honor of my Mexican heritage.
* If you didn’t get enough of U2 St. Patty’s weekend, you can always check out Vertigo USA, a U2 tribute band, at Rhythm & Brews tonight. The show starts at 10, with an $8 cover.
* Or you could wait until Saturday night for a shot of bluegrass/Irish acoustic fusion with Knoxville-based Cutthroat Shamrock’s performance at JJ’s Bohemia. Show starts at 10 p.m. Cover is $5.
Casey Phillips has worked as a features reporter in the Life department for three years. He writes about entertainment, young adults, animals and people of interest. Casey hails from Knoxville and earned a bachelor of science degree in journalism and a bachelor of arts in German. He previously worked as the features editor for Sidelines at Middle Tennessee State University. Casey received the East Tennessee Society of Professional Journalists Award of Excellence for Reviewing/Criticism in ...
