Oh, Listen to the Band by Caldwell and Molloy CD Cover

Available June 27

Oh, Listen to the Band!

Conor Caldwell & Ryan Molloy

Conor Caldwell (fiddle) and Ryan Molloy (piano) imagine the lost sounds of the Roaring ‘20s in Ireland. The arrival of jazz culture, spread by recordings, radio and through a wave of new jazz cafés and dance halls, sent shock waves through Irish society. It was soon embraced by traditional musicians in all corners of the country happy to play these new songs and tunes for enthusiastic and youthful audiences. 

Archival fragments from legendary musicians, such as John Doherty, Josie McDermott and Con Cassidy, are brought to life in an exciting and creative way. Ben Castle (clarinet/saxophone) and Matthew Jacobson (percussion) provide soaring jazz-infused counterpoint to Caldwell’s and Molloy’s dynamic duet. 

Conal O’Kane (guitars) and producer Dan Byrne-McCullough (mandolin/banjo) add layers of harmonic complexity, while Cathal Ó Curráin (vox/bouzouki) breathes new life into long-forgotten songs.

‘Oh, Listen to the Band!’ celebrates what we know about the music of 1920s Ireland and imagines the things we don’t. It offers new perspectives on Ireland’s musical past while being firmly rooted in the present-day spirit of innovation.