Adam Goldstein: “Bars that would normally have no interest in Irish folk music want a live soundtrack for their St. Patrick’s Day celebration. Of course, the holiday carries its own charms for a folk trio playing to big crowds in a pub. Specifically, folks like to drink. A LOT. Every year, we play for inebriated audiences of all ages and backgrounds. Septuagenarians join their twenty-something counterparts in pounding shots and guzzling Guinness.
“Last year, we were starting out our actual St. Paddy’s Day set early at Ned Kelly’s Pub in Littleton, one of our regular haunts. Our set started at 10:30 a.m., so we figured we had some time to warm up and get into our groove before we really had to belt it out for the big, drunken crowds. No such luck. A woman who looked to be in her seventies had clearly been celebrating early — like eight-in-the-morning early. As soon as we started our set, she started doing her best impression of a Michael Flatley dancer. She was kicking, jumping and gyrating. It was all very impressive, until she lost her balance and ended up falling into my guitar case, which we had set up in front as an improvised tip jar. The fall didn’t dissuade her; she got right back up and continued without missing a beat. I had to shell out $200 for a new guitar case after we’d wrapped up our St. Paddy’s tour around the city.”
For a full list of Avourneen’s St. Patrick's dates along the Front Range, go to the band’s Facebook page.
Editor's Note: The Denver Bootleg is a series chronicling the history of local music venues by longtime Denver cartoonist Karl Christian Krumpholz. Visit Krumpholz's website to see more of his work.
