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While Buffalo’s Jackdaw, the hard driving Celtic/Irish fueled rock band, has released its newest CD, it may not the most exciting event in the band’s present and near future. The six-man band will tour Ireland from Nov. 11-18, playing several shows and taking along friends and supporters.
David A, Moore, who supplies some lead and more backing vocals and exemplifies multi-instrumentalist (accordion, uilleann pipes, highland pipes, tin whistle, low whistle, button box, English concertina, hurdy gurdy and piano), discussed the band’s newest developments. He is joined in Jackdaw by vocalist/rhythm guitarist Mike Jordan, electric and acoustic guitarist, mandolin, banjo and piano player/vocalist Tim Byrne, fiddle and mandolin player Joe Davies, bassist and vocalist Tom Jordan and drummer George (yes, that’s original Goo Goo Dolls drummer George Tutuska, and no, it isn’t worth discussing here).
“The idea for the trip to Ireland came from Shawn Byrne (Tim’s brother, who handles some booking and other duties); he was in touch with the tour company, Hammond Tours. When he told us about, it seemed like a wonderful opportunity for the band and our fans,” Moore said. “Mike and I haven’t been to Ireland yet and I suspect these will be shows unlike any we’ve done before. We think of the fans coming with us more as a big family reunion with a sing-along every night.”
The trip starts in Dublin from Nov. 11-13, including a show at Whelan’s Pub Nov. 13, then to Galway city Nov. 14. Nov 15 will start with a tour of Connemara, County Galway, then back to the city for a show at the Quay. Nov. 16, Jackdaw and friends travel to Killarney, then to the Dingle Peninsula during the day Nov. 17 and play their final show of the tour that night at the Dannyman Pub in Killarney. Nov. 18, it is a drive to the Shannon Airport in County Clare before returning to the U.S.
The deadline for people wishing to accompany Jackdaw on the trip has been extended to Sept. 11, and the tour will cost $1,384, including air fare from JFK in New York City to Ireland and back, bus coach fare in Ireland, six nights of accommodations, some meals and other amenities. People can check Jackdaw’s Web site, www.brokencans.com, for full information and contacts.
Moore said Jackdaw was happily surprised how the tour gained popularity: “There was a little concern at first; this is a big undertaking and we talked a lot with the tour company. But the company has lots of experience and did this kind of tour with Black 47. Because we are going off-season, we got a great break on the rates, although we’re rolling the dice a bit on the weather (Ireland is notorious for gray, rainy fall and winter seasons). But it’s not like we’re from Miami; we’ll muddle through this somehow.”
Jackdaw is also raffling off two tickets it purchased for the tour, charging $25 per chance. The tickets will be given away Sept. 11 at the South Buffalo Irish Feis (festival) and Expo at Cazenovia Park.
The band’s new CD, “Triple Crown,” on DMH Records, is still very strong on the Irish flavored rock and roll the band is known for, but Moore said some additional sounds can be heard. “We are very happy with the new CD; it is a progression from previous recordings. There are still traditional sounds, but we’re being pushed in new directions. You can hear some country, Southern rock and 1970s-80s rock. We had a great CD release party at Charlie O’Brien’s, a free, all-ages party.”
“Triple Crown” is available through DMH Records, www.cdmountain.com, all Record Theatre stores and at all Jackdaw shows: “I usually pretty much have them in the back of my car, so flag me down,” Moore laughed.
The band, having released more than 40 songs over three-full-length CDs and two CD EPs, appears to have gone beyond its modest start in South Buffalo. “When I first joined Jackdaw, I thought it would be a one-time thing or maybe around St. Patrick’s Day. It has gone much further than I had hoped,” Moore said. “It’s amazing; we started this thing to have a good time. It’s great how much support we receive from our fans; you can go to high school football games and see our t-shirts and other things as well as at our shows. Whenever we play Cleveland, we can count on 25-30 fans following us down there.”
The Jackdaw Web site, www.brokencans.com, recently underwent a “huge overhaul. It is much more interactive, and the forum is crazy. It’s one more way to build up the community with the band.” An interesting upcoming Jackdaw show will be at 7:30 p.m. Oct. 29 for Halloween at the Albright-Knox Art Gallery.
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