Anyone with more than a passing interest in Celtic music should be familar with the name Gerry O'Beirne. This singer/songwriter raised in County Clare has had his songs recorded by such stellar musicians as Maura O'Connell, Mary Black, Andy M. Stewart and Cathy Ryan. A self-taught guitar virtuoso, O'Beirne has collaborated with such artists as Patrick Street, the Sharon Shannon Band, Midnight Well, The Waterboys, Andy M. Stewart, Kevin Burke and Andy Irvine, to name just a few. And were this not enough to keep him busy, he is also a producer of note, his newest project beginning soon with Jennifer Hamel of Clandestine.

In 1997, O'Beirne finally released a CD of mostly original compositions, and it shows his many talents. Half Moon Bay was recorded with a minimum of backing musicians, mostly just a keyboard or bass here and there. All of the vocals were done by O'Beirne in his clear, soothing voice. Of the eleven tracks on the CD, four are instrumentals to show off his various guitar stylings.

While O'Beirne was indeed born on the west coast of Ireland, he spent his boyhood in several places, including Ghana. He has also spent much time in the United States and has an amalgam of styles so I would hesitate to call this simply Celtic traditional music. "Contemporary Irish folk" might be a more appropriate label.

The nearly fifty-three minute CD opens with "The Holy Ground," a song that has been recorded several times by others. (The most notable recording was by Mary Black, who titled her CD The Holy Ground.) It is a ballad about his boyhood in Ireland, but also speaks of how adventure called him to other places. Like much of his work, while there is a note of hope, there is often underlying pathos as in this song where he speaks of "fields where the guns did play."

"Long Beating Wing" is another beautiful song which speaks of the urge to find freedom. The instrumental break has a Spanish feel to it. "Darkness Now" is a beautiful song about a relationship gone wrong, and the desire to get it back to where it once was. This song features some nice slide playing.

My second favorite song on the CD, "Western Highway," has been recorded by Maura O'Connell. I am not certain if he had Ireland or the U.S. (where he spends a lot of time) in mind when he wrote it, but I expect it works for either. It is a song about traveling (something O'Beirne does a lot) and the desire to be with a loved one.

"Angel Angel" has a blues feel to it, and features more excellent slide playing. However, it soon breaks into almost a bluegrass song before returning to the blues. One thing that impresses me so much about O'Beirne is that his songs do not follow conventional patterns. One is constantly being surprised by a chord that most writers would not think to use, or by rhythm changes that other writers might be reluctant to use.

"Silver Line Sarah" is another song that mixes sadness and hope. This is another example of how O'Beirne uses interesting chord changes in his melodies. There is even a really nice ukelele part in this song.

"The Shades Of Gloria" alone is worth the price of admission to me. I must confess I fell in love with this song the first time I heard it on Maura O'Connell's Stories CD. This is an absolutely beautiful song that gives me chills every time I hear it. This is probably the most traditional song on the CD, and in it there is a tribute to the late Micho Russell, Ireland's great whistle player.

The last song with vocals is the title track, "Half Moon Bay." Again there is the theme of unrequited love and again there are interesting yet rather "odd" chord changes that work very well. Again, his clear, soothing voice is in excellent form.

The remaining four tracks are all instrumentals. They are "Off the Rocks of Clahane," "Caperucita" (a Mexican waltz, the only non-original piece on the CD), "The Glass Boat" and "When You're Gone I Say Your Name." While all of these feature very nice guitar playing, to me they are the weakest part of the album. Not that there is anything wrong with any of the instrumentals. It is just that I would have enjoyed more of his vocals.

Gerry O'Beirne is a largely undiscovered treasure for anyone who likes the contemporary Irish folk music. Why he lacks major distribution I don't understand, but I hope the music lovers will go to the trouble of finding Half Moon Bay. I don't believe anyone will be disappointed.

[ by Robert Buck ]