Beyond the Bog Road...

My mother invited me to go with her to the Eileen Ivers concert held at the Ferst Center on the campus of Georgia Tech. She also had tickets for our good friends Suzanne and Jason (always fun at a concert). The weather cooperated intermittently. The only problem was the frog strangling downpour and being directed by a police officer in the wrong direction to get around a broken down 18-wheeler in the middle of the intersection. I said a choice word (sorry about that to my car companions), but we got turned around and in the parking deck as the rain subsided.
Eileen Ivers was accompanied by an amazing ensemble. Ms. Ivers is an energetic, genuine and consummate celtic fiddle performer. Her show has a running video behind the performers that intersperses HD video footage of places in Ireland and New York, with vintage family and historical footage. Beyond the Bog Road tour informs the audience of the history of the Irish and the reasons they immigrated to places like Canada and America.
Tommy McDonnell, on lead vocals, percussion, & harmonica was a member of the original Blues Brothers Band and boy howdy can you tell. He does that jubilant call and response that I love. His voice hits just the right notes and invites everyone in to enjoy the music.
Buddy Connolly on accordion, whistle, and keyboards was fantastic. One of my favorite parts of the show was the dueling accordion/violin he did with Ms. Ivers. There was intensity, brilliance and humor.
Leo Traversa's bass playing was spectacular. I wish my son, Aaron, was at the concert to hear and see Traversa play. Aaron would have been in awe, too.
Greg Anderson was on acoustic guitar, bouzouki, and back ground vocals. He was such a pleasure to listen to and watch as he helped meld all of these sounds to create an out of this world show.
The changes of tempo in the show were perfect and the invited guest singer, and the Irish step dancers were an integral part of the energy and flavor of the show. This was a toe tappin', hands clappin', hip poppin', and head bobbin' show. I thoroughly enjoyed myself. Having great company along for the ride was a bonus. Thanks for the invite, mom!