This past Saturday John joined the folks on the Topless Burrito Bar radio program for a special two hour episode of live performances, conversation & the U.S. premier of “Come Gather All” The links below (2 parts) will take you back in time…a few days any way so you can tune in if you missed it!

http://www.toplessburritobar.com/you-sound-delicious-5-18-13-part-1-of-2/

http://www.toplessburritobar.com/you-sound-delicious-5-18-13-part-2-of-2/

Saturday night Chicago Street Pub played host to a very special event. The Dean Comerford Memorial Concert was a wonderful evening of live music & stories bringing a fantastic crowd together from all walks of life to remember & celebrate the amazing life of one of our dearest friends. Thanks to everyone involved! There could’ve been no more fitting a tribute.

“Come Gather All”, The song co-written & produced by John, Mickey Harte & Paul Brady for The Donegal “Gathering” was officially released on Monday & is available NOW on iTunes! visit the link below to listen & download…Thanks for the support!

https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/come-gather-all-single/id637825407

A great week of musical happenings kicks off Wednesday night w/ the weekly Acoustic Open Mic @ Tribes Alehouse in Mokena Il. Get there early, space is limited & the list fills up quickly! Thursday night the venerable Chicago St. Pub plays host to the first performance of a monthly “Acoustic Residency” ; The exhuming of old tunes, The potential birth of new ones, friends stopping by to lend a hand & as always some of the best company in the world! Friday morning it’s off to Black Mountain NC for a two days of performances & mayhem @ the “Cabin Creek Ceilidh” w/ Cutthroat Shamrock, Davy Morrison & Colm O’Brien
Check back to find out how it all turns out & don’t forget to join John &the Old Gang Orchestra for Mustache Fest on May 4th @ Chicago St. Pub!

This past Friday marked the official release of the song “Come Gather All” which was co-written & produced by Paul Brady, Mickey Harte & John Condron. Click the link below to hear the song & read a little bit about the project!

https://soundcloud.com/hoobadooba/come-gather-all-mastered

This coming Friday marks the highly anticipated return of The Old Gang Orchestra along with good friends The Regressors, to the Chicago Street Pub in Joliet Il, for what promises to be an amazing night of music & mayhem!

https://www.facebook.com/events/141263099388858/?fref=ts

More updates on O.G.O. & solo performances to come, as well as news on a live recording this summer & the Flipside Works release of “…if any or at all” on Vinyl…plus special offers on music & merchandise for Facebook fans…Check back soon!

The gang “gathering” for a press photo in Donegal @ Attica Audio!

Hello All! What a month March has been so far…There’s been festivals & performances, reuniting with a few old friends & a trip back to Ireland! Thanks to everyone who’s been involved in such an amazing few weeks…great to see some fantastic ideas coming to fruition! The sessions for “Come Gather All” the song that I was involved in writing w/ Mickey Harte & Paul Brady for ”The Gathering 2013,Donegal” began on a Saturday morning @ the beautiful Attica Audio Studios in Termon Co. Donegal & I was fortunate enough to team up again w/ Mickey & joined this time by Rory Gallagher, who flew in from Lanzarote to be involved in the project. @  the helm of the sessions were engineer Michael Keeney (Van Morrison, INXS,Troy Vance, etc.) & a familiar face from the Greenroom performance in Letterkenny, back in September, by the name of Orri McBrearty assisting. The talent & characters that floated in & out over the next few days would be hard to match in any circumstance! Declan McClafferty from In Their Thousands stopped by to play a little lap steel &  Our good friend Gary Porter (GP) rounded out the first day’s tracking with some inspired percussion parts before Mickey & I headed off to judge the Opportunity Knocks talent contest in Donegal town! Sunday morning saw the sessions intensify & the groundwork for what would become the final track begin to settle in. Martin Tourish was kind enough to answer a last minute request for his accordion skills on Sunday afternoon & gave the song it’s “anchor”. The gang worked fairly late into the evening preparing for the final day of tracking w/ Paul Brady himself & a slew of talented Donegal musicians…as well as some press & the event organizers on hand to document the happenings!  The Monday session went beautifully & everyone was in top form…in spite of the chaos of so many performers & the added pressure of the camera crew, the job at hand was quickly executed & the amazing Paul Brady lent his talent & arranging skills to the song that he had co-written w/Mickey & myself. The Henry girls provided some lovely vocal harmonies & a wonderful sense of elegance to the track & were joined on the choruses by the likes of Pat Gallagher (Goats Don’t Shave), Declan & Aiden McClafferty (In Their Thousands),  Rory, the fantastic Paul Tully & of course I snuck in there! Rory impressed everyone in the room by delivering the perfect drum performance as his final nod before heading off to his home town of Kilcar.  Paul, Mickey & myself stayed on & worked on the finishing touches before calling it a night & heading out for a celebratory pint! What a pleasure & I look forward to seeing what comes of the song that started as a little jam back in September! The trip wasn’t over yet…but we’ll leave that for next time as well as a number of pictures & updates on the recording…See you all soon,

JC

      A last minute opportunity to return to Ireland at the end of February has been confirmed! John will head across the sea once again this week to help produce a song he co-wrote w/ label mate  Mickey Harte &  the legendary Paul Brady! John & Mickey wrote what became the “skeleton” of the tune while on tour together in Ireland in September & Paul Brady has continued working on & developing the track w/ Mickey over the last few months . The song is set to be used as the anthem for Donegal’s part of “The Gathering” 2013! Updates from the trip will be added as they happen.

      Flipside Works has announced that it will be releasing John’s latest CD “…If any or at all” on VINYL this year & will release the details shortly! Unofficially, an April date has been discussed to coincide w/ recently added performances in Chicago, Boston, NYC, Philadelphia, Washington DC & Durham NC during the month…Please check back for details & confirmed dates!

     Festival season will be here before you know it & confirmations have already come in for multiple dates @ ENO-fest in Durham NC as well as a return to both the 2nd annual Hopstring Fest @ Silver Cross Field in Joliet IL & the annual Mustache-Fest @ Chicago St Pub…the latter two will feature performances w/ the Old Gang Orchestra! 

So far it’s shaping up to be a pretty good year to say the least! More news & information on the possibility of an “Old Gang Orchestra” live release later in the year will be posted in the coming weeks. Thanks for the support!

It was a very special kind of trip back to the east coast this past weekend to participate in the “Musicians for Sandy Relief” benefit. There were re-connections with old friends in Boston & new friends made in NYC, but the highlight of the trip was a return to the “old neighborhood” of Tacony in Philadelphia as part of a wonderful event to help the victims of Hurricane Sandy. Thanks to event organizer Danny Quimby for a fantastic example of community through song & to all who particpated in any way…it was a pleasure all around. 

Check back soon for news on an upcoming special release, festival appearances & a surprise return to Ireland! Be well -JC

Just a quick hello to say Happy New Year to you & yours! 2013 promises to be a banner year & the latest schedule of shows & events will be posted shortly! Thank you all for a wonderful 2012…looking forward to being in your company again soon my friends-JC

The debut performance of The Old Gang Orchestra @ Chicago St. Pub on Dec. 15th was met with fantastic revues & the promise of more to come! John was joined onstage by Pat Otto (mandolin & mandola), Tom Maslowski (Bass Guitar) & Doneco Nudi (Drums) for a highly anticipated performance of the material off of “…if any or at all” as well as a few surprises, including a rousing rendition of the Stones’ “Street Fighting Man”!  The night kicked off with excellent sets by area songwriter Ted Slowik, & Vaudevilleins frontman Jeff Julian. The packed house was then treated to a no-nonsense high energy set by John & friends that joyfully announced the arrival of this vibrant collective to the world!  Live video & pictures as well as news on upcoming solo & band performances will be posted in the coming weeks! Have a safe & music filled holiday season!

John performs for the first time with the newly touted “Old Gang Orchestra” this Saturday night 12/15 @ the venerable Chicago Street Pub in Joliet IL. The band, consisting of Chicago-land  performance veterans Pat Otto, Tom Maslowski & Doneco Nudi is set to breathe new life into the songs that John has been performing on the “solo” circuit since the release of “…If any or at all” in September.  The inaugural performance kicks off w/ solo performances by Ted Slowik & Jeff Julian & promises to be one of the highlights of an unprecedented musical year for John & the entire Flipside family! Tickets are available only @ the door & the event begins @ 9pm!

The 15h Annual Jeff Buckley Tribute @ Uncommon Ground in Chicago was held on 11/13 & 11/14 2012. This year’s talent was unbelievable to say the least & matched only by the kindness & sincerity of the hosts, performers & audience! New friends were made & old ones reconnected with. Both evenings saw brilliant performances & were captured on video which will be posted in the very near future…hats off to everyone involved! In the wake of such an incredible few days another amazing opportunity has surfaced to help those effected by Hurricane Sandy. I am thrilled to be heading back to my home town of Philadelphia to perform on Jan. 27th 2013 as part of the “Local Musicians for Sandy Relief” @ Currans in the Tacony neighborhood where I was born & raised. I’m really looking forward to playing a small part in a wonderful event for such a great cause. More details & ticket information will be posted as they become available in the coming weeks. Be well & I hope to see you all soon-JC