Fiddlers at Kelly’s

Photograph of violinists at the pub

’Pong and I are having dinner at Kelly’s on King, and voilá, there are musicians at our table. It almost makes up for the free Wi-Fi running out at 7pm and having to roll our our Internet connectivity via my phone (which also took the picture).

2 Replies to “Fiddlers at Kelly’s”

  1. It would have been more impressive if it was voilá, THE CORRS, at your table. A quick look at their wiki reveals they are doing nothing worthwhile at the moment (raising children, solo careers — pffffft).

  2. Well yes, The Corrs would have been nice — then again pretty much any Irish band would have been acceptable except U2. While I’m a big fan of Brian Eno, I will never forgive him for turning that obscure Dublin pub band into a global phenomenon — and fuelling Bono’s disturbingly large sense of self-importance.

    Two things to add:

    1. I do love the fact that Irish folk culture has sustained itself in the face of modernisation, especially given Ireland’s status as a high-tech work centre. Even the young lads and lasses knew the dances.
    2. The two violinists were only a small part of a larger jam session that eventually included another two violins, a mandolin, a banjo, flute, recorder, bodhrán, Irish bagpipes and an 81yo accordion player from Galway named Kevin. They meet upstairs at Kelly’s on King every Tuesday night, and at Scruffy Murphy’s in Paddington on Sunday afternoons.

    ’Pong is making noises about going back with a real camera so he can add to his portfolio of community pictures and portraits.

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