Needing to use up a ferry reservation, I found myself in Boston again recently. "Where are you going?" "My usual haunts: churches and bars." Indeed, Boston is a haven, and heaven, for me - home of St. Paul's Catholic church, my church home away from home, and an Irish music scene that rivals Ireland (so I've been told). My original plan was first, on Saturday afternoon, to try Emmet's, which I'd heard was a fine session (and I wasn't disappointed), hit St. Paul's on Sunday morning for 9:30 Mass, head downtown for the Hennessey's session, then up to Reading to Bunratty's. Turns out the Bunratty's session was canceled due to football (football didn't seem to bother anyone at Hennessey's, however, as you may notice the musicians' eyes glued to the television over my shoulder as they played; multi-tasking at its finest), so I got an early start back to the Island. Good thing, too, since a bit of a snow squall was working itself up as I neared the bridge. By the time I got to Woods Hole, it was a full-fledged snow storm and the stand-by lot was a mess. It was a great weekend, but my own warm bed never felt so good.
Emmet's is on lower Beacon Street, a stone's throw from the state house.
Hello, Emmet's.
Welcome!
It all starts innocently enough.
Pat, Emerald, Elias, and Bob.
Pat and Emerald.
Bob and Ricky.
Pat, Emerald, Elias.
Elias, Bob.
Elias.
Lovely Emmy.
From the phone.
Kathleen
Goodnight, Emmet's - it was fun.
Good morning, Cambridge. Mt. Auburn Street, St. Paul's bell tower.
And, hello Hennessy's (a home base of sorts), and my favorite "break-fast" after Mass: Irish stew and a Harpoon.
Having not been off the Island since early November - and suffering a serious craving to do so - the stars aligned perfectly for my making a break on Friday, January 1st to Boston for the annual New Year's Day session - this year for the first time (since the Littlest's recent closing) scheduled to take place at The Merchant, downtown on Franklin St. It was an easy trip - easy to get a ferry reservation because of the holiday, plus smooth sailing on the highway, all the way in to Boston - also because of the holiday. Seriously, if you ever want a traffic-free trip, plan your travels on the actual holiday itself. Gotta say, the new red Grand(Ma) Caravan also made the trip very pleasurable. Not only was the drive to Boston a snap, but I managed to get home on an earlier ferry than I'd planned, which had me walking back in my door exactly twelve hours - practically to the minute - after I had left home that morning (8:45am - 8:45pm), with barely a hair out of place. Here's some of what took place within those twelve hours - all in all a mighty session, made all the more joyous by having been reunited with many friends. Having recently celebrated my sixth year of playing music with these folks, we're all just one (mostly) happy family at this point. Cheers! Slainte!
The Vineyard/Boston contingent. Colin and Avi are regulars at my Edgartown sessions. Colin, relatively new to Irish music, is going gangbusters on whistle, flute, and most recently, box. I ran into Avi on the ferry in the morning (also on his way to Boston, as it turned out), mentioned the session, so he and his friends dropped in for lunch and tunes. I love it when connections happen.
Cliodhna, Avi, and Colin.
Eamon McGrath
Alex
Avi
Colin
Lady trad musicians rock...
Leslie and Sean
Leslie
Beth, Eamon.
Wynter's concertina.
Sean
Dan
Tommy
Proud grandpa, Mike.
Tony ( whoop!)
Lovely Cliodhna.
The Irish pub is very much a family affair. I love it.
