By Lori Cassels
Slainte Oakland on November 13th welcomed Irish American Writers & Artists again. IAW&A board member Lori Cassels hosted a grand evening of authors and musicians.
L to R: Heather Moore-Farley, Baldwyn Chieh, (in front) Amelia Hogan, (behind her) Robert Anderson, Lori Cassels, Kelsey Goeres
Robert Anderson is a singer/songwriter who writes both for solo acoustic performance and full arrangements for alternative rock with influences from classic rock, blues, and country. He has an album of originals available at rwaproject.com with another record planned for release this year. Accompanying Robert from the Neoriffs tonight is Slainte-regular Baldwyn on guitar and Heather on cajon, performed a rousing original Beauty All Around Us and Broken Record. Also performed a cover Born to Run.
Kelsey Goeres is a poet and journalist based in Alameda. She is the Managing Editor of the Alameda Post. Recently, her writing has been featured in The LA Times, Bay Station Eagle, The Dillydoun Review, {M}aganda Magazine, Brave Voices Magazine, and Oxygen: Parables of the Pandemic, an anthology published by River Paw Press. She shared thought provoking and humorous poems. She began with coincidentally ironic one titled ‘Small-Town Bar on a Wednesday”. All in the bar on this particular Wednesday night enjoyed. Finished with My Friend Calls herself a Bitch that paid homage to a loyal, strong-willed friend that many wished they had. Kelsey’s poems:
“Small Town Bar on a Wednesday”
“Ode to Young Tattoos”
“Job Application”
“Happiness is a Stray Cat”
“My Friend Amy Calls Herself a Bitch”
Amelia Hogan, renown singer graced us with three songs, Lark in the clear Air, Rolling in the Gold and Chi Mi Na Morbheanna. Amelia Hogan is an impeccably authentic singer of Celtic music, and her deep understanding of the tradition comes through in honeyed tones on Irish, Scottish, British, and American-styled vocals. She sings strongly influenced by her deep roots in the Irish Sean-Nós, or “old style” tradition, a highly lyrical solo a cappella style.
Recent recording, Taking Flight that can be found on Bandcamp and YouTube.
Attending the event was Tony Bucher, president of Irish Literary and Historical Society of San Francisco who spoke briefly about the upcoming monthly events.
Lori Cassels, host ended the evening by reading from an article that she published in Irish America magazine, a memoir piece about her grandmother, Kate Connolly from Sligo and sang the original song Katie with the Smiling Eyes that is from her CD Tear of the Clouds.