Don your shamrocks and favourite shade of green on March 16 as Longevity John Falkner celebrates St. Patrick's Day at the Duncan Showroom a wee bit early on March 16, with Victoria's own Hounds of Cuchulain as they present Paddy Rolling Stone: Tribute to Shane McGowan and the Pogues.
Lead vocalist Wolf Edwards performed with a couple of Celtic bands over the span of a decade, the last falling apart due to COVID, before forming the Hounds of Cuchulain in 2022. He first recruited vocalist and Irish harpist Madeleine Townley who he'd played a few shows with over the course of the pandemic. Fiddler Briana Kennedy, who was working for Edward's neighbour at the time, was the next to join the ranks.
"I asked them both to play in a new group specializing in Irish and Scottish music, as well as old English sea ballads, and Madeleine found the name, which reflects our Irish, Scottish, Welsh, and English heritage," said Edwards. "Since, we've performed over 200 shows together, many festivals and special events all up and down Vancouver island. The band is now a nine piece Celtic group which has become quite popular around the island."
Among their 200 shows, they have played the 39 Days of July and this will be their second time at the Showroom where they will recreate the powerful music of British-born Irish singer-songwriter MacGowan, who was the front-man and main lyricist of the '80s London-Irish Celtic punk band The Pogues, and won much acclaim for his song lyrics focusing on the Irish emigrant experience.
"I've always liked The Pogues, not just their rowdy stuff but Shane was a great writer of the times he lived in," said Falkner. "We must remember how much the Irish labour contributed to the building of North America as well as their cultural value which they so willingly share."
The Hounds of Cuchulain performed their first tribute concerts to The Pogues under the name 'Fairytale of New York' last December to commemorate MacGowan's birthday, which is Christmas Day, and performed two sold out shows in Victoria. They have decided to call their St. Paddy's Day Showroom concert 'Paddy Rolling Stone', which was one of MacGowan's song titles when he played with the Pope's after his tenure with The Pogues.
"My favourite part of this tribute is hearing the band bring the songs to life," said Edwards. "Songs that I, and many others, love and cherish. And of course sharing these excellent songs with the public, thus spreading awareness about Ireland's greatest songwriter after Dominic Behan, and what better time to so then just in time for St. Patrick's Day."
Attendees can expect to feel the Irish spirit with the sounds of traditional Celtic instruments such as accordion, fiddles, whistle, Irish tenor banjo, mandolin, harp, and of course, drums and bass. The Sunday night concert will be live-streamed, and the band will again pay homage to MacGowan and the Pogues on the City Square Stage on July 4 for this summer's 39 Days of July.
"As always we are looking to enrich island culture and bring music to the people," said Edwards. "Especially those in small communities on and around the island. We love to bring the joy and share the excitement of a live performance. Being a band steeped in Irish music, I felt we'd be the ones to do a good job playing Shane's songs. And I think we do it very well."
The Hounds of Cuchulain take the Showroom stage on March 16 at 7:30 p.m., tickets are $25.
"This is a concert with very fine musicians taking us all on a musical journey, as they show how exquisitely passionate Celtic music can be as a listener," said Falkner.
"We hope our audience has a special and rare experience that they wouldn't have expected," said Edwards. "Who would have thought a West Coast Canadian Celtic group would put together a Pogues tribute? It's very exciting and I hope they take away a truly rare and joyful experience."
