It’s the last week of January and the year ahead is looking good with gigs of all shapes and sizes coming in.
So far there’s been a really enjoyable trip to Sixmilebridge Festival in County Clare where I made the second appearance of my life in a Court House, this time to do a gig.
Tomorrow night it’s closer to home, The Community Centre in Laurencetown County Down, a wonderful spot where storytellers emerge from the shadows of the old converted school house as the night goes on. 
In the month ahead there’s a trip to Strib Festival in Denmark, a gig with The Sands Family in Cookstown and then back to home soil for the Belfast Nashville Songwriters Festival.
As well as covering the miles it’s always great to see how some of the songs I’ve written turn up in all kinds of places and appear in all shapes of cover versions.
Let me steer you towards an amazing recording of “The Night is Young” by the USM Concert Choir in the USA
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zXzxP03lyxk&feature=related
well worth a look and a listen if you have the time!
Still in the time of year where plans are being made and there’s a bit of time to look at what other artistes are up to…from time to time I’d like to do just that here.
So, if your vision is blurring from looking into screens and your mind is numb at what’s coming out of them, you might like to take a few minutes to hear Wee Wise Words, the story of the world according to some very young children from my part of the world, illustrated, with inspired animation, I think, by a Belgian artist now living in Belfast, Joel Simon
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-aGbb2ytbaM
Hope you enjoy having a look!
More gigs going up here all the time, I hope you’ll look in here now and again, and better still, that you might find your way to one of them!

It’s a clear frosty morning on the shores of Rostrevor…the 7th of January.
I hope you have all waltzed the Christmas tree out of the house for another year without feeling like you’ve been attacked by a giant green porcupine in the process.
Yesterday was the 6th of January, or Old Christmas Day as it’s called, when we nod in the direction of other times and other calendars. Whichever calendar you’re going by, Happy New Year and welcome to the work in progress of this new website.
Rambling through the debris of this early version, I appreciate more than ever the construction work and maintenance that was done on the original dot net website for the past years by Fiona and Jacques. My thanks to you both for all the work you did from your home in the Netherlands in keeping people around the world in touch with the gigs, the recordings and all the other goings on. Indeed there were many times when you kept me in touch as well! No doubt I’ll be coming back to you for help but the New Year Resolution is in place to look after this new site myself and no better time than the present to start.
So on this Friday morning, with a robin looking in through the window to my right and a guitar nudging my knee to the left, I’ll make the plan to write a few lines here every few days. I hope you’ll all look in from time to time and say hello if you like. See you later!