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Jeff Meade

Getting the Last Word In

There’s the buildup to the Delaware Valley Irish Hall of Fame Dinner. Nominations. Selections of honorees. Meetings. Jobs handed out. More meetings.

Finally, there’s the night itself, when all of the honorees gather together in the ballroom at the Philadelphia Irish Center to receive their awards and their richly deserved applause.

Honorees this year were Mary Frances Fogg, Dr. Denis Boyle, Kathy DeAngelo and Dennis Gormley, along with the Philadelphia Emerald Society Pipe Band, recipients of the Barry Award. Joe Tobin, pipe major emeritus, accepted on behalf of the band.

November 20, 2015 by Jeff Meade

Music, Videos

Watch: Two Great St. Malachy Concert Videos

You can read about Ed Reavy on Wikipedia:

“Ed Reavy was an Irish-American musician, composer of numerous traditional Irish dance tunes. Born in Barnagrove, County Cavan, he emigrated to Philadelphia in 1912 where he settled in the Irish-American enclave of Corktown.”

Or you can just get out of Wikipedia altogether and listen to some of the finest traditional Irish musicians play Reavy’s music. We recommend the latter. One note is worth a thousand words.

Mick Moloney and friends, playing at the 28th annual Irish Concert at St. Malachy Church last Sunday, ripped through a bunch of Reavy tunes as their last full set. We have the video here. You’ll be listening to Mick, uilleann piper Jerry O’Sullivan, accordion player Billy McComiskey, local fiddle phenom Alexander Weir, four-time All-Ireland fiddler Dylan Foley, concertina great Brenda Castles, and fiddler Liz Hanley.

November 6, 2015 by Jeff Meade

Music, Photos, Religion

28th Annual Mick Moloney & Friends Concert in Photos

Every year someone says it, and every year it seems true: “This is the biggest crowd ever.”

Since virtually every pew in St. Malachy’s Church, the historically Irish church in North Philadelphia, was full, and there were people standing in the back, you can take it as read.

Also present in spirit, was Sister Cecile Anne Reiley, SSJ, a force of nature who did so much for so many years for the parish and its highly regarded school. One of her many labors of love was organizing the annual Irish concert. This year’s event was dedicated to her.

November 6, 2015 by Jeff Meade

Music, News, People, Videos

Video: The Emerald Pipe Band, from Then Till Now

It started out as a police and fire band—only there weren’t really enough cops and firefighters to fill out an entire band. So membership in the Philadelphia Emerald Society Pipe Band was opened up to civilians.

From that point on, the band has moved from its humble beginnings in an American Legion hall, marching in parades throughout the Delaware Valley, to its longtime practice hall in the ballroom at the Philadelphia Irish Center/Commodore Barry Club. After that move, the band became an integral part of the Irish community, playing for everything from county banquets to the annual Joe McGarrity memorial in Holy Cross Cemetery to—of course—the Philadelphia St. Patrick’s Day parade.

October 23, 2015 by Jeff Meade

News, Videos

For He’s a Jolly Good Fellow

When the Delaware Valley Branch of Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann (CCE) presented County Tyrone-born accordion player Kevin McGillian with its Lifetime Achievement Award, we captured video of his big moment.

CCE Chairperson Katherine Ball-Weir presented opening comments, and led the tribute.

October 17, 2015 by Jeff Meade

News

Irish Heritage Theatre Takes on a Big Challenge

Sean O’Casey’s “Juno and the Paycock” is a staple of Irish theatre. Of all the plays of that genre that could possibly be presented onstage, it is one of the most difficult.

Compared to the Irish Heritage Theatre’s recent production of O’Casey’s “The Shadow of a Gunman,” “Juno and the Paycock”—the second play in O’Casey’s Dublin Trilogy—is a very different play, says producer, playwright and actor Armen Pandola.

For one thing, “there are a lot of different characters,” Pandola explained one night earlier this week as he awaited the start of a rehearsal at Plays and Players Theatre, where “Juno” is now playing through October 31. “Nobody wants to do plays with 14 characters. This is a very communal effort. It sounds cliché, but those chains are only as strong as their weakest link.”

October 16, 2015 by Jeff Meade

How to Be Irish in Philly

How to Be Irish in Philly this Week

The Philadelphia Irish Center wants you … to visit!

It’s time for the annual Irish Center Gathering on Sunday. If you have difficulty knowing how to be Irish—frankly that’s hard to believe, given these handy weekly instructions—consider the Gathering a one-day total immersion class. Not the school kind of class, with Sister Frances Joseph slapping you on the hand with a ruler and calling you a brazen article—this is the fun kind.

By “fun”we mean lots of music, including an appearance by incredible local songstress Leanne McGrory, Irish dance, tunes from the Philadelphia Emerald Pipe Band, a live broadcast of Vince Gallagher’s Sunday Irish radio show, plenty of activities for the kiddies, vendors, food and drink, and more.

October 2, 2015 by Jeff Meade

News

How to Be Irish in Philly This Week

The papal visit is upon us at last! If you’re going downtown, go with our good wishes. It’s been so easy to get caught up in all of the pope-ageddon hoopla. You can’t so much as stop for bag of chips at a 7-11 without seeing Pope Francis bobble-head dolls for sale on the counter. But let’s set all of that nonsense aside for now. This truly is a meaningful moment for Philadelphia.

There’s really no smooth way to segue from that particularly historic moment to the other big weekend event.

We’re talking about the Irish Fall Festival down in North Wildwood. Irish people from Philadelphia have been migrating down to the shore every year to close out their summer with one big last celebration. If you’ve never been, the whole Wildwood resort area is awash, so to speak, in Irish things to do.

September 25, 2015 by Jeff Meade

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