Sean Kelly Music

Upcoming summer gigs:
Tonight; Fri 1st Dec; Thames Workies Club with Andy Mac; 6.30pm start
Friday 8th Dec; The Claddagh, Newmarket; 8pm
Friday 15th Dec; The Clare Inn; Sean Kelly Xmas Special with Super 8's on the big screen and special guest(s) & finger food; 8pm
Sunday 31st Dec; NYE at The Currach, Aotea (Great Barrier Island) Hogmanay with Gerry O"Neil; bookings essential from The Currach.
Tuesday 2nd Jan; Aotea New Years Picnic; Claris Sports Field; the annual fundraiser for AFSG with Gerry O"Neil; 10am start
Sat 6th Jan; Summer Kauri Event; Kauaeranga Visitors Centre; Kauaeranga Road, Thames; Event kicks off 10am, music midday, dam release 1.45pm
More summer gigs to be announced in the new year.

'It was Christmas Eve babe, in the drunk-tank
An old man said to me, won't see another one
And then he sang a song, The Rare Old Mountain Dew
I turned my face away and dreamed about you'
Shane MacGowan RIP

https://youtu.be/EV47d0vhoEs?si=lgGILrKXVNWlveRX

Astral Weeks (Van Morrison) Common Room Julie Grace Baz Caitcheon & Sean Kelly Sean Kelly & Friends, Julie Grace and Baz Caitcheon perform Van Morrison's Astral Weeks at Common Room Hastings NZ Sunday 11th July 2021

https://youtu.be/_Y-a7T7S9eE?si=pYJl806dlteUOPIv

I will never forget, waking up in Pakuranga, having set my alarm to 7am for the 95bfm Micky Havoc show. This song woke me up one day and I skipped work for a morning until I drove around and tracked down this CD. Geordie Walker RIP.

Killing Joke - The Death & Resurrection Show (HD) "The Death & Resurrection Show", by Killing Joke. From "Killing Joke", 2003.For educational purposes only.

The Brian Jonestown Massacre, to be fair the clue was in the name

Join us Friday the 24th of November for a Guinness and music by the talented Sean Kelly Live from 8pm. Sláinte ☘️🍻

Tickets still on-line available in advance from [email protected] or on the door. Cash only please
Sean Kelly & The Super 8's-This Friday-Auckland Irish Club-8pm show starts

That look when someone asks to hear Dirty Old Town

November gigs, springing into summer; it's building up:
Friday 3rd November; The Claddagh, Newmarket 8pm
Friday 10th November; Sean Kelly & The Super 8's at the Auckland Irish Club; 8pm start. Thanks to Irish Gold for the large block booking but tickets still available at the club or by e-mailing [email protected]. A final announcement on door sales to be made this Monday
Saturday 11th November; Hahei Beach Resort with Gerry O'Neill 5.30pm
Sunday 12th November; Steampunk 2023; Acoustic Unplugged:
10am Paz & Co
11.30am Karangaleles
Midday Sean Kelly & Gerry O'Neill
2pm Andy Mac
4pm Finish
Friday 17th November; The Claddagh, Newmarket; 8pm
Friday 24th November; The Clare Inn, Mt Eden; 8pm

This Thursday, Teds 9pm.
I'm flying out Friday to Aotea (Great Barrier Island)
Booked to play Saturday night at The Currach, but expecting extras so you never know.
Is it more huge or huger, when I can't remember a bigger game of rugby since Soldier Field?
Not sure if I'll require an holistic therapist or a medical professional by Sunday lunchtime.

Here's my October music:
Friday 6th-The Claddagh, Newmarket 8pm
Thursday 12th-Teds 9pm
Saturday 14th-The Currach-Aotea-7.30pm
Friday 20th-The Claddagh 8pm
Saturday 21st-Hahei Holiday Resort with Gerry O'Neill-8pm
Friday 27th-The Clare Inn-8pm last Friday of the month

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AWAsI3U2EaE

Golden Brown - The Stranglers From the album " La Folie." ( 1981 ) Golden brown texture like sun Lays me down with my mind she runs Throughout the night No need to fight Never a frown wi...

Sean Kelly returns to The Claddagh 'used to play this place decades ago'. Come along for the craic

It's definitely not true that the Irish will celebrate anything that involves a drink. Happy mid-year St Patrick's Day. RWC2023 & Go The Warriors! Enough?

Sad news to wake up this morning. Sinead O'Connor RIP. I saw her perform at the Hammersmith Odeon just before the madness of Nothing Compares to you and she was already a complete performer. Her song Troy (which I later found out was about her mother) had a very large theatre, full of Irish people in absolute awe and silence. Her voice filled the theatre like a well trained opera singer. Her earthly struggle is now over 'You should have left the light on'.

Woohoo! Looking forward to this one, up close and intimate at the Kauaeranga Hall this Saturday

Thames muso back on home turf for gig Kauaeranga Music is delighted to welcome back Thames musician Sean Kelly.

Sean Kelly at Kauaeranga Hall - April 29 @ 7:30pm
=================================
Kauaeranga Music is delighted to welcome Thames local musician Sean Kelly back to the Kauaeranga Hall following his successful Summer Tour through New Zealand.

Originally from Derry City, Ireland, Sean started his musical career in London and has been a regular feature of the New Zealand music scene since his arrival here.

At Kauaeranga Hall, Sean will be bringing an intimate evening of twenty years of his original music, all of which has been written since his arrival in 1990 our fair shores.

Seeking a new beginning after the world didn't actually end with Y2K, Sean wrote his first ever song with lyrics and music, "Weary". This song was written when Sean discovered the Eminor chord on his relatively new first guitar in 2003.

Throughout the 90’s Sean mostly played other people’s music in the Irish pub scene with his band ‘Roisin Dubh’, sometimes putting lyrics to traditional Irish tunes as with "The Rainbow Warrior", a song dedicated to Greenpeace with music from the traditional Irish reel "The Musical Priest".

Now, twenty years after writing that first song, Sean has an original repertoire that he would like to get off his chest before the next 'end of the world' event.

Sean is proud to return to the legendary Kauaeranga Hall on Saturday, April 29.

WHAT: Sean Kelly
WHEN: Saturday 29 April @ 7:30pm
WHERE: Kauaeranga Hall, 437 Kauaeranga Valley Rd, Thames
TICKETS: Door sales $25
Pre-book $22 txt: 021912993 or [email protected]
or Lotus Realm 714 Pollen St, Thames

Happy St Patrick's Day, even to Rangers supporters

Young mass-goer teases Rangers supporters during Donegal church service Young mass goer teases Rangers supporters during Donegal church service

Let the madness begin:
St Patrick's Day this Friday,17th March, a genteel start at Tararu rest-home, a private concert
Father Ted's, Auckland 4-7pm with Julie Grace on fiddle
The Clare Inn, Auckland 8.30pm with Julie Grace on fiddle
St Patrick's Festival this Saturday, 18th March, parade down Queen Street then music festival, Fort St midday start with Gerry O'Neill and the St Patrick's Festival Rolling Irish band featuring a plethora of artists from the local Irish music scene.
Also advance notice of our return to CultureFest, Mt Roskill War Memorial Park Sunday 2nd April with Julie Grace and Caleb Chia; event starts midday, Sean Kelly & Friends headline 4pm.

Tales from the road, 5th and final leg. Monkey House re-scheduled from January. Eddie & Jono arrived at Thames for a single car drive to Whitianga, uneventful drive but somewhat surreal seeing the damage for the first time left by cyclone Gabrielle. Great set-up, thanks to Kaspur and Molly. During our pre-gig fish-n-chips the rain started and to put it mildly, it didn't stop. We could hear the rain falling on the roof for the entire gig and hoped that we could get back to Thames. The Monkey House was a fitting end-of-tour gig a real party atmosphere, a surprisingly large crowd (due to the weather) and the good people of Whitianga, Cook Beach (never make the mistake of telling someone from Cooks Beach that they're from Whitianga) a bit like the Derry side and Waterside back home. By the time we hit the road the rain had momentarily stopped. We came across our first tree down on the outskirts of Whitianga and felt a bit stink getting out of our car to chat with the chainsaw and 4wd crew, only to get back in our car and drive around the fallen tree, that'll learn us. We're 10km from Coromandel town and the driving becomes treacherous, high winds, torrential rain, floods on the road and then clay & rocks all over the road. I'd already stated that this is starting to look a bit too much like a disaster movie. We continued only to come around the corner and there it was, a huge slip at the top of the Kūaotunu hill. This wasn't just a slip; it was a mountain collapse. We quickly turned, afraid of a further slip in the flood and rocks, my poor, fully loaded Toyota Wish didn't know what hit us. We drove back, concerned that another slip in front of us could leave us trapped on the hill for the night. We remembered a beautiful soul at the gig, Michelle, telling us that if we had any problems getting back to Thames that she could put us up for the night. We contacted Molly who put us in touch with Michelle & Tony of Paradise Airbnb who stayed up until we got to their place and very welcome beds for the night, great hospitality and a truly dramatic end of the 'Summer' tour. A couple of lessons from the road, I will never brag about 'the luck of the Irish' again and most importantly, there are an awful lot of beautiful people out there in Aotearoa and it's great to get out every now and then and meet some of them. The End.

Last gig of the tour......

Sean Kelly & Friends Summer Tour Sean Kelly & Friends Summer Tour, Sean Kelly returns to The Monkey House Theatre for a ..., Monkey House Theatre, Whitianga, The Coromandel, 24 February 20

Sean Kelly & Friends Summer Tour Sean Kelly & Friends Summer Tour, Sean Kelly returns to The Monkey House Theatre for a ..., Monkey House Theatre, Whitianga, The Coromandel, 24 February 20

Tales from the road, leg 4. Aotea (Great Barrier Island) where it all began. We'd heard about impending weather so hey, let's get on a small plane and fly to an island in the gulf and sure what could possibly go wrong? Solo gig, so solo set up upon arrival at The Currach, Fri 10th Feb, easy set up on the deck and then just wait for the punters to arrive, the punters arrived but so did the rain. We'll weather it, cover the desk with our room towel and sure the speakers will be fine and I'll just take my mic off the stand. Then the real rain arrives, everybody clears off the deck and it's time to re-locate to the inside bar. Slightly flustered and damp, the show must go on and so it does and it was all uphill from there, great night with beautiful people and the Currach crew, happy days. It was great to catch up with the O'Reilly side of the family from Okiwi but sorry that we had to cut the trip short with a Sunday flight back home owing to the impending, not so angelic, Gabrielle. That was the plan. No flights Sunday, Monday, Tuesday and then Wednesday, the sky cleared and we have an uneventful flight back home. We cannot be any more grateful to the O’Reilly’s for their stupendous hospitality, if I’m ever called on to do that, I hope we can be at least as half as good as you were. The tour continues, Sean Kelly & The Super 8’s at The Clare Inn, Friday 17th Feb (one month to St Patrick’s Day) and it was a cracker, I love that venue. No rest for the wicked, up to the Puhoi Centennial Hall for a sold-out private concert, merci beaucoup to our incredibly beautiful hosts Eloise & Tim and a line-up that I wish that I could play with every night, Julie Grace and Jon Sanders. Next up and end-of-tour gig, The Monkey House, Whitianga, next Friday 24th February, this end-of-tour gig needs an end-of-tour ending and I think Whitianga needs a bit of light relief as well, Beat Fairy i.e. Molly & Kaspur are great hosts and we’re looking forward to being hosted and we’re not driving anywhere after this night, bring it on, this tour has to end somewhere and sometime and I’m delighted that it’s at The Monkey House in Whitianga. Be there or be somewhere else...

And the summer tour rolls on, tonight, where it all began, The Currach, Tryphena, Aotea (Great Barrier Island)

Tales from the road, leg 3. Fork & Tap, Arrowtown 27th Feb was a lovely outdoor garden gig, love outdoor gigs, thanks Jeannie and the crew, then the big one, Lake Hawea Sat 28th. Baz advised he might not make over what sounded like a silly excuse to me, 'the airport was under water', that's a new 'can't make the gig' excuse. After mild panic on my part, breathing in through your nose and out through the mouth was quite ineffective, thankfully Baz advises that he was on the first plane out of domestic after the midday review, I watched from the carpark as the crowd came out shortly after the 1:50pm arrival time, no sign of Baz. I entered the airport only to find Baz and another flyer enquiring about their lost luggage, in Baz's case his guitar. The Air NZ rep. apologises and tells us that the guitar is arriving at 4:20 and that they will have it couriered to us to Lake Hawea. 7pm and the guitar is duly delivered to the venue and is met by a round of applause from the guests and then it was game on. As Auckland and beyond was being inundated with rain, we played an outdoor gig in a parched dry Otago and it was a cracker. Then the drive of all drives, Sun 29th, Lake Hawea to Picton, Mon 30th, Wellington to Thames. Tues 31st Jan, recovery day then Wed 1st Feb, bus (no more driving for me) and ferry to Waiheke. A real folk club, Rocky Bay and great to play original music acoustically to an attentive full-house, great floor performers, great home-brew, thanks to Alan and great to have Baz join me for the last few numbers, thanks Emma & Sam for the opportunity to do want I want to do. I had a couple of relaxing days on the rock before the beautiful wedding of Ella & Sarah at the stunning Goldie Estate, great to blast out our traditional Irish & Scottish music to the wedding guests, thanks Meg & Baz for the very kind hospitality as always. 'Gee but it's great to be back home'. This weekend it's back to The Currach on Aotea, Friday night. Looking forward to catching Nadia Reed at The Wine Cellar, Thu 16th, then Sean Kelly & The Super 8's, Clare Inn Fri 17th Feb, private house party Sat 18th at Puhoi and the last gig of the tour, the re-scheduled Monkey House Theatre, Friday 24th Feb, Whitianga, what a great summer of music and great prep. for the normal March St Patrick's madness.

Tales from the road....leg 2 of the Sean Kelly Summer Tour kicked off with a return to my old haunt Father Teds (next gig there St Patrick's Day 4-7 with Julie Grace on fiddle) great to be back and a great turn out (thanks to Marlon & Nadia playing next door) also first showing of the Super 8's at Teds. Then the next night we got as far as The Monkey Theatre in Whitianga, only to discover that I had, what could only be described as dysentry, back home for one of those nights that you will never forget but wish you could wipe from your memory (gig postponed until further notice and many thanks for the understanding of Molly & Kasper). Still feeling very groggy I had to get under way otherwise I'd miss my ferry to the South Island so I sat down and took it very easy through an entire wedding ceili at Windy Ridge in Ohaupo, Saturday night, carried by the rest of the band, Julie, Ciaran, Sonia and the inimitable Noel Armstrong. Finally a good nights sleep and I was off to Marton for another seated gig at the Marton Players Theatre featuring again the Super 8's with Jono & Brian. Up at 4am to catch the first Interislander for yet another sit down gig on the Kaitaki, great gig, great crossing. I still had a 4 hour drive to get me to Takaka and sanctuary for final recovery over the next couple of days with special friends John & Inge where final recovery was swift and very welcome. Last night, back at it at Molly B's where outdoor set-up was complete but foiled by a downpour so all hands on deck and the gear was moved inside for a great night's craic altogether, thanks to Amy and her crew. I'm now rested up at the Top 10 Holiday Park at Fox Glacier. Tomorrow night it's The Fork & Tap, Arrowtown and then Saturday night is the big one, Lake Hawea Hotel with the one & only Baz Caitcheon, flying down especially for the gig, phew! Probably only one more tour update to follow as I head back up and over to Waiheke Island next week.

Summer Tour 2023 extended, thanks for the support, getting back to Aotea, where it all began and The Clare, happy days

Mulroy Bay Sean Kelly & Friends lash out an original song Sean wrote about exile from his favourite part of the world in Donegal.