St. Patrick’s Day is the day that the Irish commemorate the death of St. Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland. Founded back in the 17th century, the holiday is celebrated in various countries throughout the world and is extremely popular here in America. We embrace the customs of wearing green, donning shamrocks and celebrating with a pint or two on this day. This year, St. Patrick’s Day falls on a Saturday, which makes it the perfect day for a party — and like any party, it is better with live music.
As always, there are a lot of St. Patrick’s Day celebrations happening here in Franklin County You can choose from full-out rocking parties to those shows that will feature traditional Irish jigs and reels.
Let’s start by looking at a celebration that combines two of our favorite things: food and music.
The Warwick Arts Council, Wooden Fender and the Trinitarian Congregational Church of Warwick are going to present a St. Patrick’s Day dinner and concert.
Both events will be held at the Warwick Town Hall. The dinner will feature your typical St. Patrick’s Day fixin’s like corned beef, cabbage, potatoes and more. The meal begins at 6 p.m. and costs $10 for adults, $5 children 12 and under (and 3 and under are free.) Then at 7 p.m., you can head upstairs to the music hall for a night of dancing and listening to the Tommy Filiault Band. A longtime fixture on the local music scene, the band plays blues with a bit of rock on the side, and considering the occasion perhaps a reel or two will be slipped into their set. Suggested donation of $5.
The Warwick Town Hall is located at the Warwick Common on Route 78 Hawks and Reed Performing Arts Center in Greenfield are hosting a couple of shows (albeit very different from each other) on St. Patrick’s Day. The main room will feature the return of popular, Greenfield-based cover band Jimmy Just Quit whose St. Patrick’s Day Bash will begin at 8:30 p.m. The band hosted last year’s St. Patrick’s Day party at the venue and they were such a hit that they are having them back this year. (They also hosted a Halloween party at the venue.) Jimmy Just Quit is the perfect go-to party band as they play a wide range of popular tunes from the last 40 years — everything from the Foo Fighters to Stevie Wonder to Katy Perry. For this show the band will debut their first music video, and for those of you who go full out green on this day, we hear that they’ll even have green beer on tap. Enjoy! Tickets are $5.
Upstairs at the Perch at 7:30 p.m. it will be a more serious affair when harpist Rosemary Caine and Wilde Irish Women present “Rise Again” a reprise of the 1916 Rising Commemoration Concert, that was first performed in 2016.
Easter Rising was an armed conflict in Ireland that sparked Ireland’s independence from Great Britain. It’s fitting that on this major Irish holiday that through music, image and story, we take a look back at this important event in the country’s history.
Founded by Rosemary Caine of Ardee, Co. Louth, Ireland, Wilde Irish Women is a collaborative performance group based here in Western Massachusetts. This ensemble of musicians, actors, and singers has been together since the early 2000s. This promises to be a powerful night of music that honors and pays tribute to this pivotal event in Irish history. Advance tickets are $15, day of show $18.
The celebration will continue at Hawks and Reed when the Young Irelanders appear at the venue on Tuesday, March 20 at 7 p.m. The group, which are in the middle of a U.S tour, will present an evening of traditional Irish music and dance. Each year the Irish Cultural Academy puts together a group of young artists who are all-world and Irish National champions in their disciplines and they call them the Young Irelanders. The Young Irelanders have performed throughout the world to great acclaim and we are lucky to have such an accomplished group of artists performing in Greenfield. And if you are interested in traditional Irish music and dance, this is the show for you. Advance tickets are $25 and $40, Day of show tickets are $30 and $45.
Hawks and Reed is located at 289 Main St. Tickets can be purchased at hawksandreed.com. Doors open a half hour before show time.
The Rendezvous isn’t about to let St. Patrick’s Day go unnoticed and are hosting a party of their own with the Paddy Ramblers. A lot of magic happens on St. Patrick’s Day and this year the Roland Lapierre band from Greenfield are being transformed into the Paddy Ramblers. And as we might expect from a band with the name the Paddy Ramblers, they’ll be treating the crowd to a selection of Irish tunes guaranteed to have you dancing the jig. The music begins at 9:30 p.m. and there is no cover charge. The ’Voo is located at 78 Third St. in Turners Falls.
You won’t hear any Celtic music at the Root Cellar, but they are getting into the spirit and will be hosting a St. Patrick’s Day party beginning at 7 p.m. If you like your music on the loud side this is the place to be. They will be bringing in local punk/hardcore band Gay Mayor, noise band Jubilee and more bands to be announced. Admission is $5. This is a special weekend for the club, which is under new ownership, as they are hosting a very rare club show with Dinosaur jr.
Unfortunately, this show is sold out and there will not be tickets sold at the door. But they recently announced a rare club date with Speedy Ortiz which will be held on May 16 and tickets are on sale now at rootcellarbar.com
The Root Cellar is located at 10 Fiske Ave. in Greenfield.
Sheryl Hunter is a music writer who lives in Easthampton. Her work has appeared in various regional and national magazines. You can contact her at soundslocal@yahoo.com