Folks, the freight train of tour dates to report keeps rolling along! This time it’s about Dublin tenor Paul Byrom, who you may remember as an original member of Three Irish Tenors and also Celtic Thunder. Byrom will embark on his own solo “Songs and Stories” tour in March and will visit Wooster, Ohio, Jacksonvill, Fla., Portland, Maine, Canton, Mass., Chambersburg, Pa., Ellicott City, Md., Philadelphia, Spring Lake, N.J., Kansas City, Mo., Mason City, Iowa, and St. Paul, Minn. If Irish tenors and grand songs are your thing, you’ll want to keep these shows in mind. Learn more and get your tickets at https://paulbyrom.ie/.
https://paulbyrom.ie/. In the media yoke this week I’ll be writing about the sort of tasty traditional music – or “chunky,” as the kids would say – to which readers of this column have become accustomed. “Chunky Business” is the new album from button accordionist Gary Curley and banjoist Stephen McKee. It features the kind of accordion & banjo pairing that I love, and when it’s as well done as it is here it’s an especially easy one to enjoy. If you love great, honest music played with a lot of heart, this is an album for you.
Hailing from Boho, Co. Fermanagh, Curley is a formidable musicians who specializes on button accordion, but also plays concertina and melodeon. His music was initially shaped at the weekly sessions his parents hosted that attracted respected players who provided early mentorship. This led him to work with Dinnie Leonard and the influence of folks like Finbarr Dwyer, Darren Breslin, and Oliver Deveney. With this background, he attended Ulster University, graduating with a first class honors degree in music, later completing a Postgraduate Certificate in Education that structures his busy teaching practice.
Like Curley, McKee was also raised in a musical family. His development was shaped first by his musical siblings, particularly his sister Lisa, who pushed him toward the path that would eventually lead to his distinct playing style. Later on, work with Aoibheann Devlin, the Armagh Pipers Club, Mark Mohan, and the influence of influence of Adrian McAuliffe and Brian McGrath honed his approach. He’s a banjo player, who also happens to play fiddle, mandolin, and guitar, with serious drive.
The pair have incredible rapport. Both have had considerable success in Fleadh competition and as a result have appeared on Irish television numerous times, including “Fleadh TV” and “Sruth” (TG4), “Fleadh Cheoil,” “Céilí House,” and “Ceol Binn ó na Beanna” (RTÉ), and “The Repair Shop” and “Folk Club” (BBC).
Besides Curley and McKee, the album includes several musicians who join at different times throughout, including Eoin McKee (bodhrán), Ryan O’Donnell (bouzouki / tenor guitar, Rachael Masterson (keyboard), John McCartin (guitar), Gerry McMahon (guitar), and Murdoch McKibbin (fiddle). Each of their contributions is solid and represents a clear expression of the Ulster sensibility that Curley and McKee are putting forward.
From it’s first tune, “Paddy Cronin’s Own” (one they got from Aidan Connolly, whose source was New York City’s own Tom Dunne, one of Cronin’s longtime friends), the album is quick out of the gate. Curley and McKee’s music is characterized by its strong rhythm and driving lift, with the sonic characteristics of their particular instruments making an easy blend. This, I find, is most pleasingly heard in tracks like “Two Mile Gate / …” (which includes some lovely fiddle playing from Murdoch McKibbin), “The Boyne Hunt / …” (where they credit the great Shane McAleer with “Crock of Gold,” the second tune in this set, which is a nice one), “The Green Fields of America / …,” and “The Creel of Turf / …” (where again, McKibbin joins them) all of which are just lovely.
Curley takes a solo feature with “Boys of Tandragee / ….” What I love about Curley’s playing here is the easy drive that comes in contrast to the duet tracks. His smooth approach excellent phrasing really accentuates the stylistic element of the duet tracks and is a very welcome bit of variety.
McKee’s solo feature comes with “Rannie MacLean’s / …,” which is outstanding. I love the deep tone McKee pulls from his banjo (which is clearly an Epiphone, for you connoisseurs out there) but the rhythm is what I find most enjoyable here. Just great playing! (Incidentally, Eoin McKee and Ryan O’Donnell provide backing on both of these tracks and do an admirable job.)
This album is “Chunky Business,” indeed! Curley and McKee are superb players. Their album’s strength lies in how effortlessly they balance cool composure with a sense of burning urgency, creating music that feels both grounded and charged – great stuff from top to bottom. One for the collection for sure – for more information and to enter the “Chunkyverse,” visit https://garycurleystephenmckee.bandcamp.com/.
