From The Bog Carrot journal, 29 July 2000:
Dan Rooney, owner of the Pittsburgh Steelers had been inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton Ohio. Mrs Rooney thought some Celtic music would be appropriate for the afternoon post-induction party. The family contacted an agent who, in turn, contacted our band. He originally booked us to play from 3:00 to 7:00 PM. Then, a couple of days before the gig, he called again and asked if we could start at 2:30. John told him it would be no problem. The agent said he didn't know if he could get us more money for the extra half-hour. John said not to worry; we could put out a tip jar. The agent was totally horrified. Said that would not do for an outfit like this. John was only kidding him (we never put out a tip jar.). You have to get in an agent's face from time to time, lest he forgets just who the hired help is.
We usually won't take a four-hour gig. After performing for about three hours, we are past our peak. Fingers get sore, muscles fatigue, the flautist's pucker goes akimbo, and one's attention begins to wander. This, however, was an afternoon dinner party. These things seldom last for three hours, let alone four. People come in, hoist a couple of beverages, schmooze the host, eat, talk to friends, and then scarper. They are in and out in an hour and a half. A few die-hards will last for two hours. Even the host goes home before three hours are up.
We arrived at the venue at 1:30 and met the Master of Ceremonies. He showed us where he wanted us to set up in the banquet room. The acoustics were good in there. I didn't have to finagle the equalizer to make the instruments sound natural.
The guests began to arrive at 3:15 and we began to play. At 4:30, we took a break and the MC invited us to partake of the food and drink. It was your standard catered party food. The twice-baked potatoes were great.
We began another set at 4:45. By 5:30, the guests and man of the hour had gone and we were left playing for the bus boys and wait staff. The MC gave us the lolly envelope and told us we could pack it in.
I don't follow the sport of football and so didn't recognize anybody. You could tell the players because they all looked like they had a package of hot dogs on the back of their necks. Tom pointed out Mean Joe Greene to me. That guy looked like he had been chiseled out of a solid chunk of granite. I think they made him wear a helmet and pads to protect the opposing team.
We thought that, with a name like Rooney, the customer would want just Irish music. But the agent insisted it be “Celtic”, so we sprinkled a few Scottish, Welsh, and Galician tunes into the Irish tune list, just to keep all the bases covered. We each play multiple instruments and so we arranged the tunes in a way to minimize instrument changes between tunes. An audience probably doesn't want to see a Chinese fire drill twenty times in one set.
TUNE LIST
Set 1.
Cannnaughtman's Rambles / Morning Star Reel
4 hornpipes: Faerie's / Burn's / Morning Fair / An Cara Don
Planxty Hewlett
The Island Fortress of Oar
The Boys of Blue Hill
Inisheer
The Blarney Pilgrim
Egan's Polka
New Claret
Killin's Faery Hill / The Eagle's Whistle / Dusty Bob's Jig
The Flowers of Edinburgh
The Maid Behind the Bar
Set 2.
The Dancing Master Jig / Morrison's Jig
3 polkas: Leary's / Murphy's / London Bridge
The Delight of the Men of Dolgellau
The Last 100 Yards to the Pub (a quickstep)
The Pearl
St. Kilda Wedding
Tommy Bhetty's Waltz
Master Reginald Mc Donald / Stewart Rant
A Bruxa
Tatter Jack Walsh
Teribus / Bill Powry
March of the Men of Devon
The Kid on the Mountain
Set 3.
Coalminer's Reel / Silver Spear
Miss Stewart's Jig
The Butterfly
Idr Deighric
The Munster Cloak
The Princess Royal
The Green Hills of Tyrol
The Carin' O't
Tobin's Favorite / Calliope House
Megan's Daughter / Megan's Granddaughter
Anglesy
Cooley's Reel
Da Slockit Light
The Rose Among the Heather / Dick Gossip's Reel
Alternates:
Captain Campbell's / Highland Donald
Jackson's Jig / The Priest in His Boots
Seamus Mc Manus
Harvest Home
MCR>
Abstractor of the Quintessence
Order of the Digital Grail
