37^TH ANNUAL GEORGE STREET FESTIVAL

The biggest party of the summer returns once more as the 37th annual George Street Festival unveiled its lineup that includes trad favourites, rock stars and country crooners.

Rounding out the list of headliners is Juno winners Arkells, 90s rock staples The Tea Party, Newfoundland’s own The Navigators, Shanneyganock, and Alan Doyle, pop rockers Marianas Trench and country superstar Brett Kissel. Supporting acts include Fortunate Ones, Kellie Loder, Snotty Nose Rez Kids, Neon Dreams, Meghan Patrick, Sam Roberts Band and Women of Rock! 

Tickets at georgestreetlive.ca

STARS ON THE ROCK

This year will see a host of legendary rock stars hit NL. Mary Brown’s Centre will play host to British icon Sting (Sept. 16th) and Canadian rock gods Blue Rodeo (Sept. 10th). Bryan Adams returns with an intimate show at the Arts and Culture Centre (Sept. 5th), while Canadian metal greats, Exciter (July 23rd) and Anvil (Sept. 1st), will take the stage at The Rock House.

MUSIC COMES TO CHURCHILL PARK

The center of St. John’s is getting set for a big time musical happening with the debut of the Churchill Park Music Festival. Announced for the must-attend music showcase are hit-makers Matchbox Twenty with special guests Our Lady Peace, Gin Blossoms and Timber on August 13th, with event organizers expected to roll out more acts for August 12th and the following weekend on August 19th and 20th. 

For tickets and more key information visit churchillparkmusicfestival.com

CURTAIN CALL: NL AT THE THEATRE

It’s not just music that puts butts in seats, as Newfoundland and Labrador will play host to a series of theatre-centric performances this year.

Alan Doyle’s theatrical debut, the widely acclaimed Tell Tale Harbour, will be heading across the province in Sept. and Oct. (artsandculturecentre.com for more info.)

Jackass star Steve-O will bring his comedy routine to Holy Heart Theatre (August 29th), and Spirit of NL will celebrate its milestone 25th anniversary (July 28-29).  

COME ONCE MORE FOR COME FROM AWAY

Though Come From Away may be wrapping its historic runs in New York and London in the coming months, Newfoundlanders will get to feel the magic once more before its all said and done. Come From Away The Concert will bring the sounds of the Tony winning performance to Gander and St. John’s for a series of highly anticipated events this September.

NL’S RISING STARS TAKE TO THE STAGE

A slew of rising stars across Newfoundland and Labrador will be honing their craft in venues across the province throughout the summer. Keep your eyes open for performances by Carolina East, Quote The Raven, Justin Fancy, Fortunate Ones,  Nico Paulo, The Once and Kellie Loder throughout the second half of 2022.

NL’S TRIED AND TRUE FAVOURITES

Newfoundland’s got talent to spare, and you can find many of these gifted artists hitting venues across the province throughout the summer. Janet Cull, Adam Baxter, Kelly-Ann Evans, The Kubasonics, Sherry Ryan and Chris LeDrew are just a few of the fan favourites you will see, and hear, across Newfoundland in 2022. 

PARTY AROUND THE PROVINCE

The great thing about summer in Newfoundland? We loves a good come down. No place is that truer than at a trad show. From Alan Doyle and his Beautiful Band, to the b’ys that brings the house down in Shanneyganock, and the always fan favourites Celtic Connection, Irish Descendants or The Navigators, if there’s good times and good beer, you’ll find trad music near! 

Let us know which shows you’ll be attending and who we should spotlight as summer concert season kicks into gear!

“We know what we’re fighting for, home, boys home!”

So echoes a classic Shanneyganock cut on the ties of place and the forever-pull of the tether to home-sweet-home. It’s ironic and ever-so-fitting that the group that bleeds pink, white and green, the b’ys in the band Shanneyganock, would cap off the 2022 Iceberg Alley Performance Tent concert series, headlining the much anticipated Come Home Year celebrations among a who’s who of our province’s finest.

Yes, it’s fixing to be a come-home of epic proportions, and shaggy and soulful frontman Chris Andrews is more than up to the task. 

“It’s a great lineup of bands and lots of friends too,” Andrews shared in a sitdown with The Herald. “Ticket sales we hear are really, really good. So it’s going to be a big night, I think, for everybody. A celebration of our province.”

Come Home Year

A treasured flag-bearer of our province’s tried-and-true trad sound, Shanneyganock have been there and done it all in nearly three decades in the business, with the Come Home Year night headline slot alongside NL staples The Ennis Sisters, The Irish Descendants, The Celtic Connection, The Navigators and Carolina East yet another in a long line of honours for the rowdy and rearin’ crew.

“We’re looking forward to headlining ourselves this time,” Andrews shared proudly. “We got some legendary Newfoundland acts like The Ennis Sisters, Celtic Connection, Irish Descendants, Carolina East and The Navigators. It’s fantastic with all those artists coming in, but I can’t lie, it’s great to see the Newfoundland night always sell out. The original Irish Descendants last year, the Alan Doyle show, people are coming out and supporting the performers from here. And I think that’s fantastic.”

Songs sung & gigs of old

Reminiscing on songs sung and gigs of old, Andrews laughed at the realization that the bands’ 2002 record Scallywags, celebrates a 20th anniversary this year, remarking with his trademarked laugh, “We were scallywags. At that time we were a bunch of scallywags. We were what you thought of a touring trad band, having a time, spreading music, loving the music. I think the only difference now is that we’re probably not scallywags anymore. Take the partying side of being on stage out of it and you got still the same dudes who love music and love having a good time and love making the audience enjoy themselves.”

Rain Drizzle & Fog

Of course classic discography milestones aren’t the only cause to celebrate this year, as the band recently uncorked their latest party-ready single, Rain Drizzle & Fog, written by newly minted bandmember Patrick Moran. 

“Rain, drizzle and fog is all that I hear, I think I’ll stay in the shed and go right on the beer,” Andrews recites with a laugh.

“It was a song written by Patrick Moran, the one and only. Patrick is playing with us full time now. The band keeps growing with Ian and Brad and Craig has moved back to the province and he’s playing shows with us, so we’re a six piece now. So it’s great because we get the influences from the different people in the band. 

“Patrick came to me and said ‘b’y I wrote this song, it was in my mind.’ And as soon as I heard it I was like yep! That will work perfectly.’ So we recorded it up at Tuck’s studio and we just shot a video now with The Outhouse guys and Karl Wells. Karl does a cameo with us and of course he’s mentioned in the song, being one of our most famous weather folks. It’s a catchy song, and it just hits at things that we all sorta know, being from here in Newfoundland. The weather is a part of us whether we want it to be or not.”

‘Still nervous’

Andrews, Mark Hiscock, Ian Chipman, Craig Young, Brad Tuck and Patrick Moran continue to pack houses from one corner of the island to the other and beyond. You’d think, after 25 years and counting, that Andrews and co. would be long rid of the pre-show jitters.

“Still nervous. Every show you’re only as good as your last show, right? So every time you’ve got to give ‘er, give ‘er, give ‘er, and we pride ourselves on that,” Andrews remarked honestly. 

“We work hard. We take it very seriously. Even though we’re having fun, we take it very seriously. Because people are paying a lot of money for this. It’s not like they’re coming in and getting it for nothing or anything. So people are going to spend their hard earned dollars on us. We’re going to give ‘em everything we got.”

Newfoundlandia staple

Perhaps serving as the unofficial ambassadors of Newfoundland and Labrador’s own Come Home Year in 2022, Shanneyganock’s status as a symbolic staple of Newfoundlandia remains unquestioned. Home, boys, home indeed!

“I’m looking forward to people being able to get back to being what we’re known for,” Andrews says warmly. 

“Internationally, Newfoundlanders and Labradorians are known as good people, fun people, love their culture, love to accept people in, to enjoy things with them and are open to other people’s cultures and just for everybody to get together this year and have fun. That’s what I’m looking forward to.”

Follow Shanneyganock on social media for live event dates and much more!

It’ll take more than mother nature to defeat the power of music! The Iceberg Alley Performance Tent rolled out its highly anticipated 2021 lineup last September, kicking off with global music icon Melissa Etheridge on Wednesday, Sept. 8th. 

Hurricane Larry

Two days later, and Hurricane Larry ripped through the province, devastating the Avalon and leveling the tent in Quidi Vidi. The possibility of recovery from such a traumatic blow seemed minimal at best, much less a return to the stage only days later.

“Last year when the hurricane hit, we weren’t really sure what we were going to do,” recounts Iceberg Alley’s Shawn Basha. “We had decided we were going to cancel the show, but within those few hours we had an amazing outpouring of support from all these local people. Local music fans, local businesses, Mile One came on board. Everybody and anybody wanted to help.”

‘We’re 100 per cent in’

That outpouring of support from the community at large led to a frantic turnaround, where the re-jigged Iceberg Alley lineup would emulate from then Mile One Centre in downtown St. John’s.

“With all of that help from everybody we decided we were going to pull it off. So I went to all of the local team on site, everybody who puts everything together and said ‘we’re going to move this to Mile One. Is everybody in?’ And every body was like, ‘yep! We’re 100 per cent in.’ And a lot of those people worked 24 hours in a row. And we pulled everything we could out of the tents and pulled it into Mile One. And the really important part was to try to make Mile One have the same feel and vibe as the tent.”

The turnaround – from a devastated festival grounds on Friday to a packed stadium show on Monday, was miraculous, with eager concert-goers flocking to the festival for the remaining dates. None of this, according to Basha, would have happened without the dedicated crop of volunteers.

“None of this would have happened without that local crew of people,” explained Basha, impassioned. “The whole community came together and made that happen last year and that’s the only reason why we decided that, you know, maybe we should go look for another tent because it’s a big undertaking. This festival is a huge undertaking and a huge expense. When we got that big outpour of local support we were like, okay, well, now people get this. They considered us their festival, which is amazing.”

June 15-25 at Quidi Vidi

Moving from their usual September time slot, 2022’s Iceberg Alley Performance Tent schedule runs from June 15-25 at Quidi Vidi, featuring an eclectic who’s who of music’s finest including Stone Temple Pilots, The Band Perry, Alexisonfire, Tom Cochrane, Everlast, and the much anticipated Come Home Year celebration.

“We try to make it so that the lineup is as diverse as it could possibly be in every type of way” explains Basha, sharing that the band puts out over 100 feelers annually before eventually locking down a confirmed lineup. 

“But I think this year we got lots of great acts from all over the world. We’ve got lots of female acts, lots of male acts, lots of local acts, which is very important to us. I mean, our most successful night is our local Newfoundland kitchen party. It’s huge. And it’s always been huge.”

Of course, the entertainment is only part of the experience, as the now established concert series under the world class Iceberg Alley Tent truly needs to be seen to be properly articulated.

‘Oh my God’

“I love watching when people come into it,” Basha shared with a laugh. “They walk into that small tent and they go through those tunnels and they walk into the big tent. If they haven’t been there before, you see them look and they’re just in awe, and if they’re with somebody who’s been there before, they’re just waiting to see what their reaction is when they come in. 

“You don’t expect it. And that’s like one of the biggest challenges that we’ve had and we still have. There’s an awful lot of people who’ve never been in this tent and they don’t really understand what it is. And anybody new who comes in they’re like, ‘Oh my God, I can’t believe I’ve never been out here before. I have to come down here at least two or three times more.’ But it’s just getting those people in through the doors and understanding what the experience is.”

Overcoming the elements to roll out one of the most anticipated entertainment events of the year, the Iceberg Alley Performance Tent is primed to create memories once again in 2022, bringing together fans of all genres in this pandemic era for the binding communal experience of music.

“The thing that I love the most about going to a show is, no matter what genre it is, when the audience and the musicians connect, the night is magical,” Basha shared. “I’ve seen so many magical nights happen down at this tent with regards to local acts and international acts. Just something happens, a click happens here or there and it’s been with all genres. It opens up your appreciation for music.”

From Shanneyganock and Fairgale to the trappings of a successful solo career, Brad Tuck is one of Newfoundland and Labrador’s most tireless artists.

Whether behind the drum kit or standing center stage, Tuck has earned well deserved clout as a multi-talented musician and entertainer, with his first two solo efforts On These Waters and The Rocky Isle earning critical adoration.

Now Tuck is back once more with his latest collection Stages, sitting down with The Herald for our latest album deep dive series for an in-depth exploration into the songs, stories and meaning behind the music.

Madeline’s Might

Madeline’s Might is the first song I wrote for this album. It was written about two years ago, and recorded shortly thereafter. It tells the story of a reliable, old fishing vessel hailing from Fortune Bay, NL. 

The boat may not be new and shiny, but when push comes to shove its crew knows she’ll always guide them through any storm or trouble at sea. Fishermen are some of the toughest, bravest people on this planet, and they rely on their vessels, big and small, old and new, to guide them home after each trip. 

This was my inspiration for Madeline’s Might, a sturdy longliner that will always see its crew returned home safely to their families. It turned out to be a fun, upbeat song, and I figured it was a great way to start the album.

Irish All Along

This song features a melody I had been working on for quite some time. I could never find suitable lyrics or the right song idea to fit this melody so I sat on it for a couple of years. A good friend of mine, Ryan Snow, recorded a song several years ago with his band, Shiela’s Brush, called Irish All Along. 

We were speaking about that song one day and I began humming those words to the melody I had been banking for a while. That night I started writing lyrics focused on a hardworking Irishman, a jack of all trades, who had relocated to Boston. A young lady finally discovers his secret one evening, that he had indeed been Irish all along. It was a really fun track to record, with a unique instrumentation section in the middle featuring Kitchen Parti’s Terri Lynn Hickey on tin whistle.

Stages

This is the final song I wrote for the album. I had been stuck on nine songs for a while and knew I needed to write one more song to round out the album. My fiancée was seven months pregnant at the time and was off having her baby shower in New Harbour. I wrote this song on my father in law’s guitar as I passed the afternoon away.

The opening line of this song is particularly important to me. A lasting childhood memory for me growing up in Hant’s Harbour is the sight of bed sheets blowing in the wind on my mothers clothesline, which ran from her steps down to a pole in her garden, where two lilac trees bloom each spring. 

My father’s old blue Ford F150 would sit in the driveway next to the steps, and in the breeze the bedsheets would often flail across the hood of the pickup. I don’t know what was so pivotal about that but it always stuck with me, and I’m happy to have that memory included in this song.

The title, Stages, touches on two points. First, there’s the obvious nod to old fishing stages and the role those buildings played in many of our childhoods, mine included. Many life lessons were learned in those old buildings, passed down from one generation to the next. 

Secondly, the title refers to the stages of our lives. From child to parent, from parent to grandparent, and so on. It all happens so fast, and it’s up to each generation to eventually pass the things they learned as children onto their own children. 

So as we all make that transition from student to teacher, “It seems we all wind up back in stages after all.” I thought this message was pretty powerful, and after some thought I decided to name the album Stages as well.

The Red Violin

I had been wanting to write a song about the life-cycle of an old instrument for a while. I decided to focus on a violin and with Remembrance Day approaching in 2020 I tied the violin’s story to that of a veteran. In the lyrics, this violin had been passed from the veteran’s grandfather to his father and then to him, and he played it with pride. After a war injury prevented him from playing any longer the violin sat on a shelf for years, only to eventually get a second chance at life due to a chance meeting.

It’s the first song I’ve written in 3/4 timing and it was a new approach for me. I’m quite happy with how it turned out – perhaps my favourite of all the songs I’ve written thus far.

Battle Harbour Bound

“Just a family man with two keen hands for a waltz around the stove.” My Grandfather, William Pitcher, was a cook by trade. He would travel on The Kyle to Frenchman’s Island and Battle Harbour, a thriving fishing port during those days off the coast of Labrador, to cook for the fishermen there. I thought It’d be a neat idea to write a song about that. 

Most Newfoundland songs revolve around fishing and fishermen, so I thought it’d be a unique angle to write a song about the people who fed the fishermen. Although he had passed away before I was born, my mother and Uncle often speak of my grandfather’s trips to Battle Harbour when they were children. 

Today, Battle Harbour is a raging tourist destination. I’ve been in contact with the Battle Harbour Trust and I hope to visit there next summer to perform.

Tie Me Down

I worked on an album with Jacob Lewis a few years ago, a terrific singer/songwriter from Bay Roberts. 

We became great friends through that process and I was eager to collaborate on a track. One day Jacob played me his version of an old Ryan’s Fancy song that caught my ear. Penned many years ago by Allister MacGillivray, the song was right up Jacob’s alley. I began working on my own arrangement and asked Jacob to sing it with me, and thankfully he was quick to agree. I’m very happy with the end result and I hope to team up with Jacob for a live show sometime soon.

Three Fishers

These lyrics were originally a poem, written by English poet and Priest, Charles Kingsley in 1851. The poem was adapted to music many times through the decades, and I heard a lovely version by Stan Rogers a couple of years ago. I thought the song would be a perfect finishing track to this album. It’s a somber tale of three fishermen who go to sea never to return, and the resulting impact their loss has on the ones left behind. 

It’s a reminder that although we may sing plenty of light-hearted sea shanties, when it comes to earning a living from the sea, there are numerous tales of loss and sadness as well. I was happy to have Gabie Toner-Godbout perform cello, and my good friend, Stephen Green, perform piano on this track.

• Thursday, July 28 – soon to be revealed!
• Friday, July 29 – The Tea Party and Sam Roberts Band w/ Women of Rock
• Saturday, July 30 – Family-friendly matinee and Kitchen Party with The Masterless Men, The Navigators, Celtic Connection, and more!
• Sunday, July 31 – Alan Doyle and Fortunate Ones w/ Kellie Loder
• Monday, August 1 – Arkells and Snotty Nose Rez Kids
• Tuesday, August 2 – Shanneyganock and Signal Hill w/ Rum Ragged
• Wednesday, August 3 – Brett Kissel and Meghan Patrick w/ Justin Fancy

The George Street Association will release ticket sales online in the coming weeks, so follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and online for all the latest Festival updates!

She is perhaps one of the foremost masters of the zheng in North America. Jing Xia, born in Hunan, China, has been studying and practicing the storied instrument since the age of six. 

Decades of study, tutelage and meticulous hours of dedication have made Xia one of the leading zheng performers of her age, with a thirst for knowledge that includes degrees in music performance, arts management, a drive that brought the impossibly talented world-traveler to Newfoundland and Labrador, where she is now on the final leg of her PhD degree in ethnomusicology at the Memorial University of Newfoundland.

“I arrived in Christmas time in 2015,” Xia shared in a sitdown with The Herald, sharing she has just finished her PhD defense at MUNL, though this place and its cultural prowess have made a lasting mark on an artist who has seen her share of performances.

“I feel so fascinated by the multicultural music scene here. The people are so open, especially musicians. When they first see you play your instrument and they invite you to jam with them it’s like ‘let’s just pick up an instrument and start to play.’ OK!

“That’s the biggest thing that I feel is so unique in this province is that the people are just so open minded for any kind of music collaborations. That’s why I enjoy my music journey here. A lot of things that I never imagined when I was in China I would be doing in the future, at that time.”

‘It’s Been Decades’

Diving in to her earliest lessons with the zheng, Xia recalls that she was pushed by her parents to put study and diligent training above the fair-weather leanings of a child, something she appreciates as she only grows in her craft decades later.

“I started to learn this instrumental when I was six-years-old. So yeah, it’s been decades and I guess it’s almost like a piano. It’s kind of easy to learn at first … but then you feel once you get to a higher level, you of course have to practice a lot,” she shared.

“I remember when I was little my mom always locked me in my practice room and asked me to practice instruments for my performance and all that stuff. My mom was kind of that tiger mom, you call this Asian parenting (laughs). Actually, now I feel thankful that she did that for me, because as a child you always just want to play with the other kids and you don’t want to work and all that stuff. But she pushed me to work hard and then I could get what I have now, get to this level.

“My parents are not working in the music field, but many of my relatives are musicians or they’re working with organizations, even in music departments and government music departments,” she adds. “And so I guess that’s why I started my journey in music, because many people in the family are doing music.”

Continuing to grow

Xia’s travels have brought her in the company of some of the preeminent artists across the globe, including renowned zheng virtuoso Mei Han, multi-instrumentalist and composer Paul Bendzsa, flutist Ellen Waterman, the Vancouver Intercultural Orchestra and even a performance alongside Newfoundland’s own trad-rock band Shanneyganock.

She has performed at the Newfoundland Folk Festival, Nashville Chinese New Year Festival, and Vancouver International Jazz Festival, explaining that  the rise of the Chinese diaspora of music only continues to grow here in North America.

“There is growing Chinese musicians in this continent, in North America. And I just want to contribute to this field and let more Chinese musicians voice be heard. They’re minority musicians here.”

Xia released her debut album, The Numinous Journey this past April, integrating a wide range of musical elements including traditional, contemporary, experimental, popular, improvisational, and intercultural music.

“That was kind of also inspired by my research,” Xia shared of the record. “For my research I’ve met a lot of musicians. I did my fieldwork in the States, Tennessee, New York City and Vancouver, and I stayed in several cities for, gosh, almost a year in 2017. So basically the idea was just meet people, interview people, attend their concerts and work with them. I was so inspired by what they do in these places and their music projects. I feel like when talking with them, I realize my own diasporic experience is so diverse. And at that point I really wanted to have something concrete to record the diversity of my music experience in Canada.”

For more on Jing Xia and ‘The Numinous Journey’ visit her official social medias and pick up the album on your streaming service of choice.

There’s nothing that can stop the power of music and a good ol’ fashioned party, not even a worldwide pandemic.

Timing, as they say, is everything. Until it isn’t. For the trio of Justin and Terri Lynn Hickey and Tyler Humber, opportunity presented itself in the bleakest of circumstances.

You may recognize the names Justin and Terri Lynn Hickey, both established names in Newfoundland and Labrador’s music community. Combined tackled projects and collaborations  include but are not limited to The Irish Descendants, Owen Mac, Janet Cull, Quote The Raven and Weight of the World. 

The husband and wife duo, alongside rising star and current student of music Tyler Humber (Terri Lynn’s brother no less), formed the trad trio Kitchinparti in December of 2019, with a mandate to sling out upbeat, party-ready tunes that mix the best of our traditional Irish/Newfoundland background with an addictive modern touch.

‘Sold out Show’

“We were booked to open for Shanneyganock in January of 2020 at the Flatrock Community Center, which was great. A sold out show, it was awesome,” shared Terri Lynn in a band sitdown with The Herald. 

“Then we booked a slew of dates for Paddy’s Day 2020. We got to play one show down at Quidi Vidi Brewery and then the next day the world shut down and all of our gigs were gone.”

The trio would pivot, taking to social media for a series of weekly streamed performances in – where else – their own kitchens – that quickly led the upstart outfit to amass a wide and ever-appreciative following.

“Yeah, it was pretty cool,” recalled Tyler with a smile. “I think what kept people intrigued was we did it regularly, every Tuesday. We planned it out. Even if we all had a bad day at work or whatever, we’re like that’s it, nope, we’ve got to do it. Tuesday night we’re going to the kitchen, we’re in our bubble. 

“And even now, thankfully, the people that were tuning in to us on the live streams are coming down to our live shows and they’re saying like,’ b’y you got us through COVID Thank you!’ And I’m like jeez, thanks for watching us man!”

Double-bubbled and performing alongside your family members for the adoration of those starved for a slice of entertainment provided the boost to propel Kitchinparti to immediate need-to-see-status, while also further cementing the bonds between both the artists and people behind the music.

“Tyler and I … I never got to grow up with a brother. And jeez, now I’ve got myself a little brother and he’s awesome, and I kind of get to mentor him through some of his musical career,” Justin shared. “And honestly, he gets to choose and learn to not make some of the mistakes. And he’s on his own journey. And he teaches me too, and it’s awesome.”

Back to Normal?

“I’m definitely taking advice like every day of the week from the two of them,” Tyler adds with a laugh. 

“And now that we’re coming up on everything kind of getting back to normal it seems, I’m asking and looking for even more. I’m 22 now, so when I turned 19 and started playing downtown, I’d never seen a full bar of people, essentially. They’re teaching me about live crowds and how to deal with them.”

Not content to rest on their laurels, Kitchinparti would set to work on their debut album, the riotously entertaining Got Me Drove, which features collaborations alongside The Navigators own Fred Jorgensen, renowned fiddler Patrick Moran, with mixing and mastering from jacks of all trades Peter Green and Robert Kelly. 

“We recorded that album in our living room and our good friend Peter Green, he coached us how to use pro tools, how to edit, how to edit tracks and record,” Terri Lynn explained. 

“We recorded that all ourselves, so it was the first time we had done any of that. For it to get played on local radio it was like, Whoa, that was our living room!”

In a bit of breaking news, the band shared that recording has wrapped on their sophomore record, which once again saw the trio utilize the talents of Peter Green for an album that’s set to toast community as well as local history.

“We actually just finished recording a new album with Peter Green,” shared Terri Lynn.

“So we wrote a few new songs about things that we grew up with in Newfoundland, like our friends having to move away for work and our dad having to work away. But the real focus of this album was to take songs from our community and put a new spin on them or take recitations from our community and turn them into songs. So it’s really highlighting Flatrock and our community. It’s pretty cool.”

Tear the house down!

With a new album on deck and the light at the end of the long and winding COVID tunnel seemingly in view, Kitchinparti are primed and ready to do what they do best: tear the house down!

“Oh my God. Like, it might sound conceited to say, but I cannot wait for the applause,” Terri Lynn laughed. “And to watch people dancing again? Like, it’s the best. I really can’t wait.”

For all things Kitchinparti visit kitchinpartimusic.com. Got Me Drove is available now on all major music streaming platforms.

She looks every bit the Irish maiden, and standing behind the bar she founded over 25 years ago, the ageless Brenda O’Reilly – one of this province’s most well-known redheads – beams. 

O’Reilly’s Irish Newfoundland Pub is glowing on the day we arrive – all polished wood and sparkling memorabilia – but O’Reilly’s Irish eyes are smiling even more brightly than the lights above the bar as she opened up about the last 25 years. 

‘About Nostalgia’

“I can’t believe 25 years went by so quickly. We’ve been in two locations and survived a pandemic, so we’ve been through a lot over 25 years,” she opened with a laugh.

O’Reilly, OZFM’s Danielle Butt and Butt’s fur baby, Stevie Nicks, pose for a few photos around the pub as O’Reilly talks. Every inch of space in O’Reilly’s seems to hold some sort of memory, she said with a smile. From boat replicas to paintings to signed photographs to the stage where so many famed bands and individuals performed to the dance floor where her late mother used to kick up her heels a time or two – O’Reilly is sometimes lost for words reflecting on how blessed she’s been. 

“This place is about being comfortable and it’s about people and the music and it’s about the atmosphere. Many places you go in and you’ve got beer signs here, there and everywhere else, but we want it to be about memories. We want it to be about nostalgia.”

The boat that hangs in O’Reilly’s, the Mayflower, was given to them by her husband Craig’s grandfather, Nick Flynn. Ironically, Nick was born on St. Patrick’s Day. “He proudly gave it to us and we restored it and we hung it where it could be seen when you come in, in the area we call the session booth.”

The session booth  was actually moved from the pub’s first location, a touching way to link the two. 

“We made the back of the stage look like the old O’Reilly’s, and the bar top is the same, we moved that from the old location. We wanted it to feel the same, to look the same, and, where we could, we wanted it to be the same,” she said.

The Strand

There’s bits of history from other locations too, including an old favourite St. John’s watering hole known as The Strand.

“The clock down there on the wall, we bought that from the old Strand. And there’s a few things here that we got from there because as they closed we were opening and they had all their things for sale and we went and picked up some things like the Guinness sign here. That clock. I don’t know how old it is, but we’ve had it for 25 years and I don’t know how long it was in The Strand so it’s pretty antique. And those pink tables you see are from The Strand as well,” she said.

But, there’s new additions as well, like a painting of a fisherman. 

“We commissioned an artist years ago to paint that from a picture I found in a magazine and it’s beautiful. It’s two fishermen and you can just get a sense of Newfoundland from that picture, and that’s what we’re about,” she said.

But while the atmosphere is stunning, it is about the people and the music as well.  “We’ve had some really great people come in over the years. One night I was here Michael Burgess, who did Phantom of the Opera for years in Toronto, got up and sang. He was here on tour and he got up and sang O Holy Night. We’ve had Great Big Sea on stage and Alan (Doyle) has done a few appearances on stage.”

Doyle, on O’Reilly’s fifth anniversary, surprised many when he asked if the band could come and practice on their stage. “He called me up and said, ‘Do you think we could come down and practice our new album before we go on the road?’ And I said, ‘Oh my God, Yeah!’ So they come down and it was a Tuesday night, and we cancelled Open Mic night for them, and while on stage they announced the fact that the Junos were going to be in Newfoundland that year. So it was a couple of exciting things going on that night.”

At the end of the evening, O’Reilly’s husband presented the band with bar shirts, jokingly saying they won Open Mic that evening, she shared with a chuckle. 

Doyle has also been on the O’Reilly’s stage with pal, actor  Russell Crowe. 

“The most famous appearance is when he appeared with Russell Crowe on stage. He called me up and said, ‘Do you think a buddy of mine can come down and jam out some tunes?’ But he didn’t tell me who was coming.”

In a small town like St. John’s word got around, she continued. “It made O’Reilly’s famous for sure. We were already very popular for locals and tourists but this made us very famous and we got all kinds of buzz and all kinds of publicity from that.” 

Crowe signed a few things that now hang on the wall at the pub, more proud moments in O’Reilly’s history. Hockey star Lanny MacDonald’s been there too.

“My husband don’t care, he’ll say, ‘Do you mind if I get a picture of you behind the ball pullin’ a pint?’ None have said no. So we’ve had some great pictures. Dougie Gilmore, Lanny McDonald, Bryan Trottier, Michael Ryder and Alex Newhook and Danny Cleary.”

Cleary lives in Detroit, obviously, but when he’s home in the summers for his hockey camp he visits. O’Reilly shared that  Detroit just happens to be her dad’s favourite hockey team. “One night he was here and I told him my dad was a huge fan and the next day he came in and gave us a signed jersey. So (Cleary’s) jersey hangs here in our bar and whenever he’s home, he sits in front of his jersey.”

O’Reilly’s legacy

Musical legend Ron Hynes was a welcome addition to the O’Reilly’s legacy, she added. “Ron, over all the years, he hadn’t played here, and around the 20th year we were open I was like, ‘You know, we’re going to ask Ron to play here this year.’ We asked and he agreed and we did a showcase with Ron Hynes and it was a magical show. He was very accommodating. He sang every song anybody wanted to hear. And at the end, he played Sonny’s Dream and he stayed around and signed things for people, and he signed a poster that I had done for the show. That was the first time he had played here and as it turns out, it was one of his last gigs ever.”

O’Reilly gets emotional thinking about The Man of A Thousand Songs. “I was really charmed that I didn’t let life go by without having one of the greatest Newfoundland musicians, one of the most iconic musicians ever, play here. We’re so happy that we had him on our stage.”

As part of O’Reilly’s 25th celebrations, they’ve commissioned some artwork by artist Sailor Danny depicting some famed NL musicians.  

“We’re rolling it out in April, an installation of portraits of musicians who have played here or have influenced the music of what we do here at O’Reilly’s,” she said.

Hynes is one.  Alan Doyle is another. Fergus O’Byrne. Shanneyganock front man Chris Andrews, who was part of the house band when O’Reilly’s first opened. 

Peggy Gordon, O’Reilly shared, is her favourite Shanneyganock song. “(Shanneyganock) is perhaps my personal favourite Newfoundland band when it comes to Newfoundland music. Peggy Gordon is still my favourite song to this day. My mom loved it too,” she said.

O’Reilly’s mom worked at O’Reilly’s for 10 years, she continued. 

“No one loved Irish music more than my mom, Theresa. She passed away four years ago, but I can tell you it was very nice to have my mom working with me every day.”

Sometimes her mother would be there in the daytime cleaning or doing whatever and she’d be there dancing with the broom as she swept.

“She’d always have the music on and delivery drivers were coming and going, and she’d be dancing. Sometimes I’d see mom come out of the kitchen after making muffins for someone who’d stop by. I loved it,” she said.

 So many memories, like Ryan’s Fancy. “I hosted a reception for Ryan’s Fancy when they received their East Coast Music Award and they got up and sang together for the first time in 21 years.”

Next week, find out more about O’Reilly’s, including the bond O’Reilly has with OZFM’s Danielle Butt. 

Local trad legends Shanneyganock have unveiled plans for their annual Shanneyganock Christmas performance at the Delta in St. John’s.

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Special guests The Valley, The Craig Young Band and Celtic Connection.

Tickets go on sale Tuesday Nov 30th at The Mary Brown’s Centre box office at the cost of $50 plus HST and applicable service fees.

All Covid protocols in effect and proof of vaccination is required. Limited tickets available.