Entertainment
 Needfire www.needfiremusic.com Blending rock guitars, bass, and drums with soaring bagpipes and reeling Celtic fiddle, Needfire offers a fresh alternative rock sound to the world of traditional Irish & Scottish music. Performing at a variety of venues such as outdoor festivals, pubs, colleges, and theaters, their shows are high-energy crowd pleasers. The group has quickly progressed from regional favorite to a nationally-headlining artist at some of the largest Celtic and arts festivals in North America. |
 Murder the Stoutwww.murderthestout.com Houston based Murder the Stout (MTS) formed in 2004. They play progressive Celtic Rock music led by Scotsman, Hugh Morrison on lead vocals & squeezebox. Also in the lineup are Kevin Murphy (elec guitar) Neil DuFour (acoustic guitar) Johnny Rioux (mandolin) David Schaefer (whistles) Jason Bancroft (bass) & Carl Chambliss (drums). MTS have been compared to a Scottish version of The Pogues! MTS are about to release their 2nd full length studio album, produced by Street Dogs' Johnny Rioux, whose recent work includes Flatfoot 56 and Roger Miret & the Disasters. MTS have toured the south a few times but will be joining Boston Punk Rockers, STREET DOGS this year on their nationwide Wreck the Halls tour throughout December. MTS play many festivals across the States & have shared the stage with many national acts passing through Texas. 'Drink up, sing up & we'll see you soon' |
The 'Project' have been making waves across the states both live and Memorex with the debut of the first album, From Cork with Love. |
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 Four Shillings Short www.4shillingsshort.com The Celtic, Folk and World music duo Four Shillings Short have been touring in the US and Ireland since 1997 performing a variety of traditional, original and contemporary music on over 20 instruments. The husband and wife duo of Aodh Og O'Tuama from Cork, Ireland and Californian Christy Martin live as full time minstrels in their Dodge Caravan loaded with an ever increasing array of musical instruments including hammered dulcimer, mandolins, Renaissance woodwinds, North Indian Sitar, recorders, tinwhistles, banjo, guitar, percussion and even a bowed psaltry. In a single night, Four Shillings Short perform Traditional Irish and Scottish songs, tunes and airs, Indian Ragas, Folk Ballads, Old-Time songs, Medieval and Renaissance instrumentals and a cappella numbers as well as contemporary folk and original compositions. Their sound has been described as "wondrously diverse", "truly refreshing" and "alternative neo-Celtic folk of the first order". |
 Jim Flanagan www.flanagansongs.com A native of Ballyvourney, a small village in the heart of the Muskerry Gaeltacht (an Irish speaking area) in County Cork of Ireland, Jim Flanagan now lives in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. He has performed at major festivals and in regular pub performances over the years and established himself as a significant force in Irish music in the Southeastern United States. He provides a mix of both Irish and English language songs; songs based in the old style (sean nós) tradition as well as contemporary ballads, many of which lend themselves well to audience participation. His performances are interwoven with his compelling Irish humor, the stories of Ireland and his memories of home, leaving one with a feeling of having been entertained and enriched as well. |
The Northeast Louisiana All-Star Band Just call us “a Celtic festival with a Louisiana attitude...”! As a nod to our diverse local musical heritage, we present a round-robin set on the Main Stage made up of some of Northeast Louisiana’s most talented musicians, including Dorothy Prime, blues legend!, James Earl and Vince in a tribute to Johnny Cash, Josh Madden and Jim Steele in a tribute to Bob Dylan, and Kenny Bill Stinson in a tribute to Jerry Lee Lewis, and the Beatles, Bobby Bridger, Danny Lee and Dave, with Bruce Gay on bass will round out the show. |
 Bobby Bridger www.bobbybridger.com A distant relative of premiere nineteenth-century American mountain man, Jim Bridger, Bobby Bridger began work on his epic trilogy A Ballad of the West over four decades ago. Since 1974 Bridger has traveled the globe performing this historical epic as a one-man show to audiences in America, Canada, Europe, Australia and Russia. There’s so much to tell about this amazing performer...visit www.bobbybridger.com for his complete biography and body of work. |
 Beth Patterson www.littlebluemen.com Multi-instrumentalist Beth Patterson is foremost a player of the eight- and ten- stringed Irish bouzoukis (adaptations of a traditional Greek instrument). This native of Lafayette, Louisiana now integrates into her style her experiences of playing Celtic, Cajun, rock, jazz, blues, country, gospel, classical, Latin, and folk music. Her performances are chock-full of drive, energy, and passion, laced with humor, with an eclectic repertoire of Celtic, roots, and contemporary songs. |
 The Jackson Irish Dancers www.jacksonirishdancers.org JID was organized in 1998 by a group of friends who had stumbled across Irish dancing several years earlier and quickly found themselves addicted. They are now a membership-based organization that includes dozens of folks of all ages! Members of JID have competed and won various prizes in feiseanna (Irish dance competitions) in the United States and in Ireland; but they’re not primarily competition-oriented. Their main objective is to have a good time and share their enjoyment of Irish dancing with the folks they meet. |
 Jeff PhillipsJeffery Phillips is a versatile and talented singer with a rich, powerful voice. Equally at home singing traditional ballads and rousing pub songs, Jeff evokes both the stark beauty of his native Nova Scotia and the beguiling charm of his ancestral County Clare. Jeff began singing and playing the guitar and bodhran as a teenager. Upon leaving Nova Scotia, Jeff performed on various cruise lines before landing in New Orleans in 1995. Jeff then set out to perform "on the road" throughout the United States. Once a regular performer in New Orleans’ French Quarter, Jeff now lives in Dallas and has set out to regain “the road” for which he enjoys. |
 Davey ArwineAn accomplished Celtic musician, Davey has played with bands such as Black Jack Davey, Compass Rose, The Smokin’ Shamrocks, and 33rd County. He currently also leads traditional Celtic band, Donnybrook. In 1995 and 1996, Davey won the Midwest regional “Fleadh Ceol” on mandolin and Irish tenor banjo. After playing nearly every Irish pub in the Midwest, Davey was determined to create a band that could play to “both sides of the aisle – Rock and Celtic” hence the formation of Napper Tandy. Davey began his illustrious career during fifth grade playing in a Monkey's cover band called "Ray Reardon & the Sun Rays" (go figure). And for those more adoring fans....Davey likes long walks on the beach, honesty, and bad puns. |
 Red River Pipes and Drums www.redriverpipesanddrums.org Red River Pipes and Drums is a marching band based out of Shreveport, LA but with members throughout the region. With a wide variety of tunes in their repertoire they perform at parades, Highland Games, and bagpiping competitions, and at smaller events where only one or two pipers are required. Look for them at the festival this year to participate in the opening ceremonies and in various places throughout the day. |
 Tim Glennon Born and raised on New York’s Long Island, Tim is the eighth child of twelve and the son of a first generation Irish New York City Policeman. Tim began singing and playing the piano around the age of five, playing mostly for family and relatives. It was in high school that Tim started singing with his oldest brother Jack. While attending St Edward’s University in Austin Texas, Tim honed his craft as a solo artist. After graduation from college, marriage, and four children, Tim resumed his solo act playing and singing in Irish establishments in the Northeast. In 1999 he moved to Shreveport and established himself as a “Celtic Artist” among the local musical establishment. He has played, and continues to do so, at various pubs and clubs of Celtic themes from Dallas to Monroe and Corpus Christi to New Orleans. |
PLUS: CHILDREN'S SHOWS, STORYTELLING, CRICKET MATCH, HIGHLAND GAMES DEMO, WORKSHOPS, FOOD, BEVERAGE, CELTIC WARES, BUSKERS, AND SURPRISES! |
The Máirtín de Cógáin Project 
Jimmy Crowley