Joe O'Donnell's Shakyala headline St Patrick's weekend celebrations

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Irish electric fiddle legend, Joe O’Donnell headlines Guinness Anniversary Tradfest in Manchester
Limerick’s electric fiddle legend Joe O'Donnell is to headline the Guinness Anniversary St Patrick’s weekend Celtic Rock tradfest on Saturday 14 March as part of this year’s Manchester Irish Festival.

The two week tradfest is being sponsored by Guinness to coincide with their 250th anniversary and features two hundred and fifty hours of traditional and contemporary Irish music and culture. Joe will be performing with his band Shkayla and supported by Manchester’s Celtic rock band The Whiskey Bastards and Dion from Thembones.

The Manchester Irish Festival runs from Friday 6 March to Sunday 21 March and features nearly 200 art, comedy, culture, community, dance, music and theatre events. Now in its fourteenth year it is one of Europe’s biggest Irish Festivals.

Tickets for the Celtic Rock tradfest night are just £3 in advance or £5 on the door. Doors open at 8pm, at the m19 bar, 847 Stockport Road, Levenshulme, Manchester, Tel 0161 224 8135, www.m19bar.com

The highly acclaimed fiddle and mandolin-player, Joe O'Donnell has built up a worldwide fan base over the years. He also sings in English and Gaelic.

A leading light in the Irish and UK folk rock and alternative scene in the 1970s, Joe worked with late guitar legend Rory Gallagher, Gary Moore, Phil Lynott and former Steeleye Span members Terry and Gaye Woods. Joe was also a member of cult rock band East Of Eden when he replaced their fiddle-player Dave Arbus.

Now based in Coventry, Joe has pulled together some of the most respected musicians on the Midlands music circuit to form the line-up of Shkayla. Named after the Gaelic word for 'stories', their recently released album, Celtic Cargo has picked up excellent reviews from leading music magazines in the UK and Ireland. It features eleven tracks of tunes and songs from Ireland, Scotland and Brittany, performed with powerful rock and funk rhythms and arrangements.

Shkayla's keyboards-player Martin Barter and drummer Brendan J.Rayner are members of leading jazz band The Big Easy. Coventry guitarist Si Hayden has a huge reputation in his own right for his impressive fingerpick and flamenco-style playing, and newest member, bass-player Adrian Litvinoff has toured extensively with leading name blues and jazz line-ups.

Joe O’Donnell says: ‘These guys are fantastic musicians to work with. They come from different musical backgrounds but there’s a great bond between us on stage and they really do bring out the power of Celtic music.’

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www.m19bar.com

For an interview with Joe O'Donnell, please call 02476 275807.