Album Notes

A year after the legendary O'Flaherty's Irish Channel Pub opened in the heart of New Orlean's French Quarter, the 1990 Christmas season rolled around. To commemorate the event, Danny O'Flaherty of Ireland enlisted Robin James-Jones of Wales to help put together "A Celtic Christmas" to celebrate the true Christmas customs of their Celtic Nations - Ireland, Wales, Scotland, Cornwall, Brittany, Galicia, and the Isle of Man.

The program became a beloved annual event and survived the departure of Robin and other regulars. In 1995, Janet Shea and Michael Cahill joined the cast. In 2001, Danny, Michael, and Janet revamped the production - encompassing both Christian traditions and their pagan roots - into a concert presentation with stories, dances, and songs, both traditional and original.

This version played the Galveston Grand Opera House, across Louisiana and Texas, and produced a second public television special. Hurricane Katrina closed O'Flaherty's Pub and put "Celtic Christmas" on hiatus for the first time in 15 years, but, like the city where it was established, it has returned and continues to evolve and play prominent venues around the world.

Michael Cahill