San Francisco Irish band, The Gas Men,have been gigging around the Bay Area and beyond since the mid-ninties. Their new CD, Clement Street, includes dance music, (jigs, reels, polkas) and a variety of songs by the many singers in the band. Tracks include, the song Argentina, composed by Vincy Keehan , jigs composed by Tommy Peoples and Joanie Madden, reels composed by Billy McComisky and John Nolan. The Hills Above Drumquin is followed by the Hanrahan/Lennon composition, The Belltable, and the song, Up Mayo, was composed by Padraig Stevens. There are many more tunes and songs and a blast of lilting to finish off .
Starting out as Vincy Keehan and friends, the band were joined in 1995 by singer Orla Morrison and her guitar playing husband Richard Morrison (Orla penned the name The Gas Men). Orla and The Gas Men released a CD in 1998 called Minding Mice at Crossroads . The band had nine members. Orla Morrison, vocals ; Richard Morrison, guitar, vocals; Vincy Keehan, mandolin, guitar, vocals; Kenny Somerville, banjo, guitar, vocals; Jimmy O' Meara, octave mandolin, guitar, vocals; Dana Lyn, fiddle; Vinny Cronin, flute, whistles; Colm O' Riain, fiddle; and Cormac Gannon, bodhran and vocals. Orla, Richard and Jimmy moved back to Ireland and Dana and Colm went on to work on other musical projects. The remaining members became The Gas Men. From 1998 to 2000 Michael Stack played fiddle with the band. Accordion player Barry O' Connell joined the band in 2001. John Caulfield, fiddler, mandolin player and singer, found his home with The Gas Men in 2002.
Band Members: Vincy Keehan, (mandolin,guitar,vocals) comes from County Galway and has lived in San Francisco since 1982. As well as playing mandolin, Vincy has composed many songs and hosts a very popular singing session at The Plough and Stars Pub once a month. Kenny Somerville, ( banjo,guitar,vocals) comes from County Fermanagh and moved to San Francisco in 1993. Kenny started out playing guitar and singing at the popular holiday destination of Bundoran, County Donegal. Cormac Gannon, (bodhran,vocals) comes from County Mayo and has lived in the Bay Area since 1991. He began playing in sessions while living in England. Cormac also has the distinct pleasure of trying to organize the affairs of The Gas Men (Minding Mice at Crossroads). Vinny Cronin, (flute,whistles,vocals) comes from Boston and moved to San Francisco in 1978. Vinny began playing with his dad, well known fiddler, Paddy Cronin and his uncle Johnny Cronin. Barry O' Connell, (accordion,vocals) from County Cork moved to th e Bay Area in 2000. Barry started out playing sessions in his native Cork. John Caulfield, (fiddle,mandolin,vocals) has been in many bands and has played gigs with Johnny Moynihan in Amsterdam, Dublin and New York, where he moved to with his family from County Louth. Since moving to the Bay Area, John has played with The Mild Colonial Boys, 42 and The Core.
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