'Twas Many a Wild Night, a CD by Alan Finn, Joanne Quirke, Paul Clesham & Fionn O' Hanlon

 

By chance I came across this CD on bandcamp a few months ago but forgot to mention it here on the blog. Fine bouzouki playing here. I especially like the polkas and slides.

I asked chatgpt to write a short text about the musicians, here's what came out (hope the information is correct ;)

Alan Finn, Joanne Quirke, Paul Clesham & Fionn O’Hanlon

This quartet brings together four of Ireland’s finest young traditional musicians, each with deep roots in the music of their home counties.

Alan Finn (Buttevant, Co. Cork) is a renowned button accordion player and founder of the Shandrum Céilí Band, celebrated for multiple All-Ireland titles and his lively, driving style. Joanne Quirke (Co. Cork) is a versatile multi-instrumentalist on whistle, flute, fiddle, piano, and harp, and a graduate of University College Cork who was awarded the prestigious Seán Ó Riada Prize. From Hollymount, Co. Mayo, Paul Clesham is an All-Ireland champion on concertina and a highly skilled accompanist, equally at home on fiddle, accordion, melodeon, and piano, with a strong academic background in ethnomusicology. Completing the group is Fionn O’Hanlon (Boherbue, Co. Cork), a bouzouki player whose roots in the Sliabh Luachra tradition bring rhythmic energy and harmonic depth to the ensemble.

Together, their 2025 album ’Twas Many a Wild Night captures the joy, drive, and spirit of Irish traditional music today.

Here's a video of them playing at Custy's in Ennis.

Here's the link to their bandcamp site