Good Friends, Good Times

Once upon a time, in the tiny hamlet of Loudonville, stood a ramshackle little pub run by a ramshackle little man. Every night the little man would put on his colorful sweater and climb up on a bar stool with his guitar and sing out Irish songs. The people came from all over to hear the little man sing. One young man from a far away city came to see the little man sing. He had never heard Irish music before and the melodies and lyrics put him under a spell. The young man started to spend more and more time at the side of the little man and he learned all the tunes. One day, the little man told him, "You will play on Sundays". So the first Sunday came along and the people came to the ramshackle pub to see the little man sing but no, it was the young man singing. Magic happened that day as the young man invited people to join him in song. Soon everyone was coming on Sundays and joining in with the young man. A silver haired tenor singing , a young man playing bodhran, a fiddler, a little fellow playing tin whistle, a tin whistler blowing bubbles from his whistle, everyone was joyous and singing. Every Sunday the crowds got bigger and the music got better. One day, the ramshackle little man passed away, everyone was sad. The young man, now older and wiser, kept the Sunday music going. The people sang and sang, the music and the guinness flowed and the people were happy again. One night a terrible thing happened, the ramshackle pub burned to the ground, never to be again. Today if you go to Loundonville to where the pub stood a new bright and shinny building stands in the place of the old pub. But what of the music and song? The now older man has taken the songs on the road to nearby villages of Troy or Albany and the people have followed. Sunday afternoons are still filled with song and laughter and friendship.

This may sound like a fairy tale to you but it is true. Yesterday I went to the Hibernian Center in Albany to see and hear Frank Jaklitsch play. The funny thing about going to see Frank is that you never know who or how many friends are going to join in. The people that come to hear the music are almost a private club, but a private club that is open to anyone and everyone. All you have to do is smile and join the fun and the people will welcome you with open arms. Yesterday, joining Frank on stage were Amy Collins singing one of my favorites, The Dutchman, (You can see Amy at the Moon and River Cafe in Schenectady on July 14th, check out www.amycollinsmusic.com for more dates), Bill and Tom Flynn (The Brothers Flynn at Anna O'Keeffes on June 29th, www.thebrothersflynn.com has all their dates), Chris Gill, Mike Roche, Erin Harkes singing the Sally Gardens, (Erin will be at the Dinosour BBQ in Troy Friday July 1st. www.erinharkes.com has all her dates), Keith Barney and Steve Hrubin just to name a few.

So check out Frank's website at, www.frankjak.com for upcoming shows and join in the fun, everyone needs a little magic and fun on a Sunday afternoon.