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JOE DERRANE, SEAMUS CONNOLLY AND JOHN MCGANN
The Boston Edge
Ossian
****

Woah! Curve balls like this aren't supposed to appear on the horizon as the year winds down. Music with so much fire in its belly, it could heat an entire auditorium on the back of its powerhouse opening reels, The Curragh Races/The Skylark/The Reconciliation. This year's National Endowment winner, Irish-American box player Joe Derrane, leads the trio with spirited aplomb. Seamus Connolly's fiddle and John McGann's guitar and mandolin lend a gloriously fluid counterpoint to Derrane's liquid accordion lines on an eclectic gathering of reels, hornpipes, jigs and slow airs. Meticulously recorded live, all three bring original tunes to the mix; but it's spirit that matters much more than the virtuoso playing. An unexpected shot in the arm as the festive season engulfs us.

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