annalivia

Annalivia’s Barrier Falls

/ mrbaxteria2008 / 4 Comments

A tribute to the guessing game that has launched a thousand ships.

The band Annalivia have  an amusing history for me personally. It started out as a guessing game that my friend Jimmy gave to everyone. He took snippets of When I Was In My Prime off their debut CD.  I was partners with Tim. We took the game really seriously and worked on it doing research on the web while chatting. We won beating other competitors. For the prize we both got the sophomore CD Barrier Falls.

I think I waited weeks for it to arrive in the Philippine post office. It created problems on Jimmy’s side but in the end I really got it. A wonderful CD with awesome artwork and packaging-and of course a wonderful message from my pal.

The sound production is  exquisite and I think producers Matt Brown and Flynn Cohen did a good job in making the album sound slick without sacrificing the organic quality of the music. The thundering opening track Reynardine really set the mood for what’s to follow.  Personal favorites are songs like John Riley showcasing energetic guitar strums and commanding fiddling performance.  Early in the Spring sounds optimistic and the pizzicato, soft vocals and nice tempo really get to your mood that makes you want to open your windows and let the early morning brightness in. Time is Up on the other hand is poignant and ingratiating. I think all tracks are excellent in this album. I really enjoyed the guessing game and also getting the CD!

http://www.annaliviamusic.com/index.htm

Answer To Jimmy’s Guessing Game: Annalivia

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I told you about last night, how Tim and I were having fun finding the answer to Jimmy’s mystery tune. After  looking for the answer using Google, Bing, Yahoo, Myspace, Daily Motion and even Amazon, we found the answer.  The singer of this version of When I Was in My Prime is  Liz Simmons of Annalivia.

I mentioned the band in one of my posts.  However, it’s Jimmy’s idea that made us listen closely and even take notice of their latest CD Barrier Falls. Their music has that Americana feel with traces of Bluegrass and Irish music. The band’s  name may also refer to the following:

*103.2 Dublin City FM (Previously: Anna Livia FM and Dublin City Anna Livia FM) is an Independent Local Radio station in Dublin, Ireland

*A bronze monument formerly located on O’Connell Street in Dublin, also a name of a bridge. Check out the details of Barrier Falls here.

Here are the band members:

Liz Simmons (vocals, guitar), Flynn Cohen (guitar, vocals), Mariel Vandersteel (fiddle, vocals), Emerald Rae (fiddle, vocals, stepdancing) Stuart Kenney (upright bass, banjo)

Among the band’s chief influences are: Capercaillie, Yes,Alison Krauss and Union Station, Emmylou Harris,De Dannan, Dervish, Clannad,Pentangle, Andy Irvine and Paul Brady, The Bothy Band,Fairport Convention, Altan,  Dolores Keane, Karan Casey, Deanta,The Corrs,XTC and Steeleye Span.

More info here : http://www.annaliviamusic.com This is where you can listen to that track too.

We won the new CD from the band. My copy should be in the mail in a matter of time. Thanks Jimmy. It was a fun game-and the perks.

Ready For The Michigan Irish Festival?

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I love the fact that in the United States, Irish music is well represented. Jenne Lennon whom I was able to interview on several occasions live in the same country. Celtic Rock band Barley Juice is just around the bend. My friend Christi Broersma who is a regular reader and contributor of this blog lives in Michigan. And who doesn’t love the month of March when you are Irish and wherever you maybe ? It happens to be the month of Saint Patrick. So here’s the latest news if you happen to be in the vicinity and you just want to listen to great Irish music:

http://www.irishamericannews.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=2119:michigan-irish-music-festival-&catid=126:st-patrick-events&Itemid=353

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Here’s a Google Map of the St. Paddy’s parade in Dublin.

http://maps.google.ie/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&hl=en&msa=0&msid=212597059035793645436.00049c7b0e4730cf19734&ll=53.345914,-6.264782&spn=0.020316,0.055747&t=h&z=15

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Cornish band Dalla is out to give some great music again. Be sure to catch them in these schedules and venues:

Saturday 19th February   St.Just Nos Lowen, Town Hall, St.Just, 7.30pm,  (01736 788088)

Friday 4th March   St.Piran’s Eve Nos Lowen, The Performance Centre, Tremough, U.C.F, Falmouth, 7.30pm,  (01326 243843)

Saturday 12th March   Saints and Skinners, Seiners, Perranporth, 7.30pm:  A double celebration of St.Piran and St.Patrick,  Cornish music by Dalla,  Irish music by Alan Burton and Steve Hunt,  followed by a proper job jam session,   (www.seiners.co.uk,  01872 573118)

Thursday 31st March   Star and Garter, Falmouth,  Dalla in pub, 9pm, (01326 318313)

Saturday 2nd April   Calstock Nos Lowen,  The Old Chapel, Calstock, 7.30pm, (01822 834465)

Wednesday 6th to Sunday 10th April   Scilly Folk Festival,  St.Mary’s, Isles of Scilly,  Dalla will be in residence throughout the festival,  and play for a nos lowen at The Old Town Inn, Friday 8th April, 8.00pm,  Reduced fares on Skybus and Scillonian III for festival goers!,  www.scillyfolkfestival.org.uk

http://www.dalla.co.uk/

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Acoustic, Celtic Folk band from Boston Massachusetts Annalivia are set to perform live in  Feb. 19 at the Scottish & Irish Music Festival and Fair at the Valley Forge Convention Center. This is to celebrate the annual Mid-Winter Celtic music festival. More info here:

http://www.mcall.com/entertainment/music/mc-go-pick-irish-festival-0217-20110216,0,6196988.story

The band’s site: http://www.myspace.com/annaliviamusic