The Heart Remembers

Dear Reader - there are some memories that live in our minds, others in our hearts.

The Big Thing

And this one belongs in the second category.
One of my favourite live Theme Night memories was playing Roxanne with Niall McCabe on our Simon and Sting show back in February 2024.
And equally as special was recording the below version of The Island with him. One of those moments where everything clicks. 5 mins work and you know it’s in the bag!

Later that year Niall’s manager Colin Gillen rang me to inform me of a beautiful full circle moment. Sting (yes that Sting) reached out to Niall because he loved his music. They met in Cork and you can read the full story here.

And then last week Niall released a brand new song - The Heart Remembers - with a star-studded line-up, including Jerry Douglas, John McCusker plus Foy Vance and yes Sting on harmonies.

Scroll to the bottom of this letter to hear it.

Where else but Sligo?

Shoutout to Hugh, Grover and all involved with Moran’s in Ballintogher today - an unlikely but wonderful spot for a Monday night session.

Led by the one and only Gerry Grennan - understated, generous and full of mischief.

What’s New?

It’s like the proverbial buses - I hadn’t heard this song for years - and then three times last week one day after the next it came into my orbit.
A student wanted it written out so he could learn it, I played it at a wedding on Friday and then on Saturday two members of our Theme Night Academy picked it to sing for our upcoming end-of-year show. Funny how these things happen!

But it’s so pretty. And I’m sure the lyrics make sense if you’re watching it in the context of the show, but melodically and chordally it’s so well put together.

So Level 7 students - For Good is now on your hitlist. (And Joni’s Both Sides Now - also added to our curriculum last week)!

Finally…

This is the recorded version with the star-studded cast mentioned above, but for me the live version from the Tommy Tiernan show last weekend is every bit as good.

Till next time - Kieran.

You Might Forget The Words...

Dear Reader - So what happens then?!

The Big Thing

But first, I just LOVE this picture of Seamie strutting across the Hawk’s Well stage last November during our debut Theme Night Social show. I know many of you were there - it was so nice to have a full house for our first such gig.

The next such show takes place in less than a month - Fri 17th April in the Art Deco Theatre and Sat 18th in the Hawk’s Well.
We have been doing a lot of thinking about it in the meantime - trying to get this show to where we want it to be - which is to say to be as entertaining and fun as a Theme Night but with a more regular schedule.

And it would be great to see lots more of you this time and hear what you all think!
I’ll be telling you more about what we have planned for it in the coming weeks - but for now you can get your tickets here (Art Deco) and here (Hawk’s Well).

Where else but Sligo?

There is no doubt that musically we are spoilt in Sligo. And sometimes when people have been doing a wonderful job for a long time, it’s easy to forget how good what they do actually is.

Niamh Crowley and her Sligo Academy of Music Sinfionetta have been enriching the cultural life of our town now for over 25 years. My daughter plays flute with them and enjoys the many benefits of what playing with an orchestra can bring.
We in the Theme Night Academy collaborated with them last May for an extravaganza of Film Music (see pic below) - and indeed we look forward to doing so again in less than two months time.

But first they have their annual Gala concert - next Friday March 27th - featuring the many ensembles and soloists with whom Sligo’s children and teenagers get the benefit of working. As Niamh herself says - from O Fortuna to Rolling In The Deep, it’s going to be a night of stunning vocals and orchestral magic.
I hope to see lots of you there!

What’s New?

Courtesy of my favourite music blogger - Gabe The Bass Player…
You Might Forget The Words…

Finally…

Fun, creative - but also so impressive!

Till next time - Kieran.

Don’t Dream It’s Over

Dear Reader - we had a moment on Friday night!

The Big Thing

You may know that on each Teenage Theme Night we feature a graduate - someone who has been part of the shows previously but is still involved somehow in music.

So last weekend we welcomed back David Walsh, Ollie White and first up on Friday night were Beezies (cousins Anna, Ellie and Nicole Filan).

Last Tuesday, Nicole came out to rehearse the song she had chosen and I sent it round to the band on Wednesday morning.
Eddie Lee came back within an hour to say that his friend would love to play bass on it. I said oh great - but who is your friend?

So on Friday night Nicole sang Don’t Dream Its Over alongside current Academy members - her brother Patrick and his friend Lugh. And joining them also was Eddie Lee’s friend - founding bass guitarist and mainstay of the band who wrote the song - Crowded House!

Nick had a great time - smiling and grooving throughout and making sure all the younger performers felt at home on stage with him. He gets it - his daughter Lola is also a current member of the Academy - and so this was a real moment to cherish for all of us.

Where else but Sligo?

But Nick’s involvement wasn’t even the biggest story of the weekend - or even this song! What it was really about was Patrick and Lugh - two teenagers who made their Teenage Theme Night debuts on this song - and likewise for the other dozen or so teenagers who joined us for the first time this weekend.

We see this time after time with the teenagers - the hardest part is getting up the first time. After that what usually happens is that they are mad keen to get up again and wish they had got involved earlier. So well done to all the performers - it takes courage to do what you did and you all brought so much to our weekend.

A big thanks to the two people (pictured below) who put so much in behind the scenes to make it all happen - Éania McGarry and Mícheál Kearney!

What’s New?

And in case anyone is dreaming that it’s over (!) - it’s not - not yet anyway - preparations start this week for the big extravaganza in May in the Hawk’s Well Theatre. Teenage Theme Night #38 - with the Sligo Academy of Music Sinfionetta.

Finally…

Listen for the bass fill at 0:21…Such a buzz to hear it live last Friday night!

Till next time - Kieran.

Stay on the scene!

Dear Reader - Inspired this week by Thelonious Monk and Steve Wickham…

The Big Thing

Back in 2017 Imelda May performed her new song Black Tears with the Jools Holland rhythm ‘n’ blues orchestra big band on his New Year’s Eve Hootenanny show. The video went viral and so when it came to picking a song for Emily Meades for the end-of-year Teenage Showcase the following May I knew we had a winner.
Emily did such a good job on it that we asked her to perform it again in Vicar St in 2019 and despite it being only the 5th song in the set that night, the Vicar St crowd stood to applaud her performance.

And since then it has never been far from the surface when it came to our Teenage Theme Nights. A few years ago Imelda herself shared a video of Cara Carleton singing the song at one of our shows in The Model.

And then last Monday Imelda was in the Hawk’s Well and asked for a volunteer to come up and sing a song. Up shot the hand of current Academy member Rhona Kerlin and what did she have the courage to sing - with Imelda a matter of feet away watching her? You guessed it - Black Tears - and here’s a snippet below.

Rhona and over 100 more of our Academy members will take to the stage in The Model this Friday, Saturday and Sunday - the theme is The Power of Love and it will be a fantastic weekend as always.
You can get your tickets here.

Where else but Liverpool?

A trip to Merseyside last week got me in a Beatles mood - and it lasted all week!

When it came to Sunday evening after a busy weekend I found myself wanting to sit down and play something simple yet beautiful.

And of course the Beatles had something to fit the bill…

What’s New?

I met Steve Wickham last Wednesday at the legendary No Crows weekly session in Shoots. Eddie and Felip were there with him and the music was great as always.
I spoke to Steve afterwards and he pointed me towards Thelonious Monk’s 25 tips for musicians from 1960.

Steve said that one of the reasons he plays the Wednesday gig each week is to ‘stay on the scene’. Or in Monk’s words “Don’t sound anybody for a gig, just be on the scene”. He wrote some real gems though - read them all here.

Finally…

The original of the species! That performance by Emily in Vicar St…

Till next time - Kieran.

Playing piano…

Dear Reader - There’s really nothing like playing the piano…ask Bethany McLoughlin or Paul McCartney!

The Big Thing

Me too actually - because while I love spending my days encouraging others to play, I sometimes have to remember to do so myself.

So I’m going to try and do a bit more playing over the coming weeks.
And without going all January 1 on it and saying I’m going to play piano for three hours every day and upload a new song each week (!), I will upload some short videos if I feel I have enjoyed the weeks’ playing and have something to show for it.

So here’s a hornpipe called the City of Savannah. Taught to me over the course of many Mondays by Seamie O’Dowd and any strange chords you hear are probably courtesy of Gerry Grennan.

Here’s to more playing everyone!

PS this new enthusiasm for playing has been partly motivated by a really interesting book called The Practice. I have a spare copy - first person to contact me gets it.

Where else but Sligo?

Congratulations to our hugely popular and versatile piano teacher Bethany McLoughlin on being crowned recently as Sligo Rose.
Delighted to hear that playing piano helped her win the title too.

Next stop Tralee!

What’s New?

I have read many Beatles books over the years (see below!) - but none as good as the most recent one - John & Paul by Ian Leslie.

He focuses on the relationship between the two Beatles through the prism of 43 songs, exploring male friendship in all its complexities as he does.

Below are some of my favourite discoveries.
If you want to know more go online - or better still read the book!

• It was John’s band originally, but year by year he grew to be more insecure around Paul.

• He explodes certain myths - for example that John was the rebellious one and Paul the more superficial PR guy - and shows that in fact their characters were more nuanced.

• Hey Jude gets better every time I hear it (see below). And while the story goes that Paul wrote it for John’s son Julian, I love Leslie’s take that at its heart it was also about John - written by one friend looking out for another.

• John’s Jealous Guy was written not about Yoko but Paul.

• And I just loved the opportunity to go back and listen to these great songs again with new context for the history of the song and also the music itself.

Finally…

As mentioned above…go on give it a whirl - but this time listen for the following (thanks Ian Leslie for the guidance):

• The minute of messing at the start - I love hearing them jam like that!

• 1:04 the melody note on the word ‘song’ - an F on a C chord - it shouldn’t work but somehow it does!

• 3:37 - John’s backing vocals on Verse 3 (sometimes higher sometimes lower) and Paul’s smile!

• 4:05 - the sheer joy from band and audience as the na na na na chorus kicks off.

• The importance of the piano in the track - Paul grew up in a house where the piano and sing-songs were central to social gatherings. So hence Paul chose piano as his preferred accompanying instrument for his best singalong songs - such as Let it Be and Hey Jude.

Till next time - Kieran.

Stories are king

Dear Reader - for the first time in a while The Big Thing this week is not Theme Night-related!

The Big Thing

I got to visit the Aughamore Day Care Centre for the first time last week, to present a cheque to the Alzheimer’s Society of Ireland on behalf of the Coolera Car Treasure Hunt.

It was great to meet some of the staff and lovely to hear that the money will be used locally - to continue to improve the garden and other facilities at the centre.

Thanks to all who took part in the Treasure Hunt and to all who donated to this worthy cause. Congrats to the Harte family too who were crowned champions for the very first time!

And I’m already scouring the roads for clues for next Christmas - so look forward to seeing lots of you there!

Where else but Sligo?

Multi-skilled Creative Rory Maitland gave the 5th in our series of Theme Night Academy Masterclasses last week.

Rory spoke to the teens regarding his experience making films, shooting music videos, lighting shows, and writing fake Ed Sheeran songs! He also explained how he came to be a barber, and how his business in Collooney has been so important in allowing him to fulfil his creative instincts.

We all left with the following lessons:
- Create more than you consume.
- Stories are king - always be listening for good ones.
- Don’t be afraid to be sh*t at something for a while.

What’s New?

Theme Nights in the Art Deco!
New but familiar I guess.

There is so much potential in this place and if anyone can squeeze it out, it’s the Hawk’s Well Theatre team.

We had a magic night there last Saturday and I really hope it’s the start of something for us, for the theatre and for the people of Ballymote and South Sligo.

Very much looking forward to returning on Friday April 17.

Finally…

Sinéad Conway and I were listening to this recently and vowed to do it someday soon. Thanks to Scruffy Duffy for introducing me to it in the first place!

Till next time - Kieran.

Same era, different story!

Dear Reader - it was a truly momentous week…thank you for helping make it so.

The Big Thing

Our Theme Night #37 wrap party was in the foyer of the Hawk’s Well last Saturday night. Seamie McManus was our DJ, and inadvertently inspired the choice of theme for our next show.

First of all - he was amazing. Most of you will have experienced a set of his before, but somehow I had never done so.
And he was just class! That smile, the energy, his choice of songs.
And he deliberately played nothing from our show.

And slowly but surely Rory Maitland’s idea from the previous night made sense.
Because there were so many songs we didn’t touch. So many more great pieces of music for us to interpret.
So - with thanks to Seamie and Rory…

Theme Night #38 - The 80s!
Hawk’s Well Theatre
April 15-17 2027
Tickets on sale (for letter readers only) at 10am tomorrow morning (Friday 13th).

Same era, different story, great music.

Where else but Sligo?

But first - this Saturday 14th sees our first ever Theme Night gig in the Art Deco Theatre, Ballymote.

Kieran Griffiths and his team in the Hawk’s Well Theatre are trying something daring out there - by incorporating a second theatre under their name - and I am informed reliably that on Jan 31st, less than a month into this joint venture, they had two sold out houses - one in Temple Street and one in Ballymote.
What an achievement!

The last time I was out there was in June 2013 with Sinéad Conway I believe - when we played some music for the prestigious Baroness of Ballymote event!
A lot has happened since then, and this time we will arrive with a team of 15 ready to rock the place.

It’s part of the Deco Sessions series, and we will return in April, and indeed later in the year too. It would be great to see some of you there on this historic occasion!

Still some tickets left here.

What’s New?

This car is - that’s what!!
Delighted to be teaming up again with Kevin Egan Cars as a brand ambassador for 2026.

Excited too to be driving this Peugeot 3008 - as always the spec is fantastic and it’s a treat to drive.

It was lovely to get to know all the great staff in the garage during 2025 and am looking forward to working with them all again this year.
Cheers Kevin and the gang!

Finally…

There’s always one earworm from a Theme Night…

Till next time - Kieran.

All we have is now…

Dear Reader - There’s only one show in town this week!

The Big Thing

And yesterday morning we got in to an empty stage (well almost - Rory Maitland and his lights beat me in as you can see below).

But I love the sense of promise when walking into an empty theatre. All your hopes and dreams for the show are yet to be realised.
Because so much will unfold this week. So many plans will change. So many on-the-spot decisions will be made. So many moments will surprise. So many emotions will be brought to the surface.

That’s Theme Night week. And it’s here once more - for the 37th time.
I wondered this morning if the Theme Night number will ever pass out my age.
Who knows - time will tell.

But all we have is now - and right now it’s time for no. 37. The 80s.
There was a great sense of excitement among the musicians yesterday I felt - so many great numbers in this show. But we have some surprises too. We’re taking you all back to the 80s in more ways than one.

We know it’s a special decade for so many of you, and while we can’t play all your favourites, we’re promising our very best in energy, nostalgia and entertainment.

Can’t wait to see lots of you there! And if you haven’t bought your tickets yet - there are still some left for tomorrow (Wednesday) and Thursday here.

Where else but Sligo?

But in the thick of it all, this week also sees the release of a brand new Sligo Rovers song.

I was delighted to be asked by the club to put together an anthem for the club - and it was great to see it released yesterday just in time for the new season…

Inspired by a supporters banner, and brought to life in collaboration with Tabby Callaghan and Luke Devaney - it’s called Red Club Rising.

Available on all streaming platforms now, including here.

What’s New?

I have managed to get to both of Sligo’s league games so far this year. They were unlucky against Westmeath and then beat Fermanagh comfortably in the end last Sunday in Markievicz Park.

There is new management in place - with old teammates Dessie Sloyan, Eamonn O’Hara and Con O’Meara at the centre of it. And there is optimism around once more - lovely to see it.

The very best of luck to the team and management and hopefully they can continue this positive start into the rest of the season.

Finally…

This song has all of a sudden become crucial to our show!

Till next time - Kieran.