So I’ll be in Dingle, Galway, and Dublin the first week and a half of June, I’d appreciate suggestions on places to go.
Live music, music shops, generic tourist sites. The usual.
Oh boy oh boy oh boy! This is gonna be fun.
Thanks,
Eddie
In Dublin, check out sessions at The Cobblestone and at Hughes’s Pub. Go to the Claddagh record shop in Temple Bar or to Celtic Note or Mulligan Music to find concert announcements and session venues. (I haven’t been to Dublin in three or four years, so hopefully these recommendations are still good).
In Galway City, check out sessions at Taaffe’s pub; there’s at least one other pub in town with regular sessions as well but the name escapes me at the moment.
If you’re spending time in Co. Galway, I’d get out of the city and head for some of the smaller towns – Spiddal to the west and Kinvara to the east, for example. Great musicians in both towns, and ask around for sessions.
also arus na gael (lower dominic street) for weekend sessions &
the crane/tig colis for nightly (& sometimes early evening) sessions
You might be talking about the Roisin Dubh (good thing I don’t have to pronounce it!), there’s two sessions on sunday and many sessions the rest of the week.
In Galway, I didn’t get a chance to really explore, but the Crane pub was great. Noisy and crowded, but Tim Lyons (singer and accordian player) runs a very nice, amiable session there, and foreigners are welcome. There’s music 7 nights a week there, so I’m told.
If you fly in to Shannon, go to Ennis. There’s music everywhere, but I would avoid the most common spots (the Hotel, Cruises Pub, etc). Right down the street from the hotel, go to Fawls Railway pub. The music there is wonderful, and tourists don’t usually go there. They play in Eb a lot, but it’s great music.
Somewhat near Galway is a town called Kinvara, and Winkles Pub (run by the wonderous Philemena) has great, great music, and it’s a cool little town.
If you get a chance to go to Gurteen, do it. Great sessions, a great little concert hall and record store, and nice people. My first night, I ran into the Kane sisters, half of Danu, Peter Horan, the entire Swallow’s Tail Ceili band, etc etc. It’s also beautiful countryside, and fun to hike around in.
Good luck. Record everything.
Thanks for the suggestions, I’ve put them in my notebook.
Eddie
Roisin Dubh…close enough to Russian Dove that you’ll be understood
I swear I’m going to open an Irish bar and call it the Russian Dove.
Ehhh ehh good one! True, it’s pronounced about the same, now that I remember it. I remember getting lost in Galways trying to find this pub, only to find out I passed in front of it like 10 times before realizing this “Russian” pub was in fact “Dark Rosalie” or something in Gaelic.
If you’re gonna be in Dingle, try Dick Mack’s, the Little Bridge (An Droichead Beag), O’Flaherty’s, or An Conor. There’s a couple of good pipers in town worth hearing, Con Durham and Cillian O’Brien.
Try to get over to the Blaskets if the weather is favorable. A lot of what the geezers are trying to express in their crappy old mono recordings might become a bit clearer.
PS - If you’re hiring a car, drive the Conor Pass. You won’t regret it. 
PPS - If you’re in the Blaskets, you may want to ask after a song called “Port na bPucai”. If no one knows it, try to get hold of Drones and Chanters vol II on Claddagh records. The last cut is the air to Port na bPucai, and a great rendition of same. You won’t be the same person after hearing it.
