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Musicians' Spotlight for August 01, 2007
11:00 PM - 11:30 PM
Today's Highlight: "Brian Kopper hosts Dublin Gulch"
“Dublin Gulch” is an acoustic band from Butte, Montana specializing in traditional Irish folk songs and Celtic tunes. They take their name from one of the numerous Butte neighborhoods populated by expatriate Irish miners and their families. The band has been playing in various configurations since 1991. The current members of the band are Mick Cavanaugh, who plays guitar, mandolin, tin whistle and banjo, and Tom Powers, who sings and plays the bodhran, a traditional goat-skinned Irish drum. Helena’s Jim Schulz adds both vocals and instrumental accompaniment on mandolin, Irish bouzouki, and guitar. Missoula’s John Joyner plays banjo & fiddle and sings. Tom and Mick have been at the core of the group since St. Patrick’s Day 1993, while John and Jim started contributing their talents in 2002.
The band draws many of their songs from the stores of material that re-emerged during the folk music revival of the late 1950s and early 1960s. They also perform songs by a variety of contemporary Irish songwriters and tunes from the Celtic traditions. The group’s songs cover both serious and humorous topics and tell stories of Irish people and Irish history. Many of them lend themselves to “painless” singing-along. The band accents heir straight-forward performance style with historical and cultural context and encourage audience participation.
They currently have two recordings: “Any Day Above Ground is a Good One” recorded live in June of 2002, and “A Celtic Cowboy Christmas Concert” recorded with their friends “Willson & McKee” in 2003. At long last and after much encouragement (nagging?), the band is spending some time in the studio to produce another CD.
Artist website & contact:
Tom Powers: 406-494-1203
dublin_gulch_tp@yahoo.com
Upcoming MT performance dates:
Dublin Gulch is scheduled to play on Saturday afternoon, August 11 as part of the Montana Gaelic Cultural Society’s An Ri Ra Irish Festival in Historic Uptown Butte.
Festival performances start Friday the 10th at 4:00 p.m. through 11:00 p.m. and continue Saturday the 11th from noon to 11:00 p.m. More festival info is available at mtgaelic.org
Contact information for producers:
Brian Kopper | mspot@kopper.com
John Floridis | jfloridis@aol.com
Shawn Colvin, Patty Larkin, and Leo Kottke have all stopped by the Montana Public Radio studios to play a little and talk with Brian Kopper and John Floridis. Performers talk about the inspiration behind their music and what it's like to both create and perform the music.
Montana artists like Zoe Wood and Wilson & McKee get equal time. Each week, hosts Brian Kopper and John Floridis, composers and performers themselves, give listeners a glimpse into the lives and art of the modern day troubadour.
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