O'Brien Family Band

Music hasn't always been a commodity. Long ago, it was a more collective and intimate art form played with friends, neighbors and relatives -- a tradition that the O'Brien Family Band keeps alive and kicking. Comprising father Dan on guitar, mother Janette on bass and kids Maura and Kyle on...

By Jason Heller

January 5, 2006

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Music hasn't always been a commodity. Long ago, it was a more collective and intimate art form played with friends, neighbors and relatives -- a tradition that the O'Brien Family Band keeps alive and kicking. Comprising father Dan on guitar, mother Janette on bass and kids Maura and Kyle on guitar, fiddle, mandolin, dobro and banjo, this Evergreen-based quartet has been stirring up a rootsy stew of country, folk, gospel and bluegrass for the past three years. In that time, the O'Briens have crisscrossed the continent, performing at numerous festivals and garnering a slew of accolades, including Dan's recent nomination for a Western Music Association Crescendo Award and even a national prime-time appearance on Trading Spouses last spring. The close-knit clan will celebrate the release of its new disc, The Official O'Brien Family CD and Boardgame, at Swallow Hill Music Hall on Friday, January 6, with opener Liz Masterson and nearly a dozen guest instrumentalists, all on hand to share in the hootenanny. Now, that's real kinfolk.

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