Outdoor Concerts in our area this week - Part Three

Wrapping up a busy (& a little smokey) week of outdoor concert opportunities... Hoping the weather holds out on Saturday so folks will be able to double-dip two very cool shows...

First up, the peeps over there at Jackyard Concerts have The John Byrne Band appearing at the beautiful East Goshen Township Park (1661 Paoli Pike in West Chester)...

Dublin native and Philadelphia resident, John Byrne leads his eponymously-named band. They perform songs about living and pushing forward through negative times. With influences ranging from Tom Waits to Planxty, John’s songwriting honors and expands upon the musical and lyrical traditions of his native and adopted homes. Critics have called his writing “powerful, deeply moving work that will stay with you long after you have heard it;” Both as a solo/acoustic act, and a full 6-piece band, John logs in over 100 shows per year, building a loyal and devoted following along the way.

Byrne’s songs are rich with the sounds and themes of Irish tradition, one that survives in a modern world… full of raw strength… The Philadelphia Inquirer called him “...one of the few musical artists today who truly manage to be traditional and modern at the same time.” The Philadelphia Daily News shared that sentiment and wrote “He’s good, period, with material that’s edgy yet accessible in a Luka Bloom meets Bob Dylan kind of way.”

This will be a DONATION concert event at the Veterans Memorial Pavilion and is scheduled to run from 4:00 to 7:00 PM... Keep up with the latest info for this show at: facebook.com/groups/298020064581854

You can keep your Celtic groove going after that show by jumping over to the Concerts Under the Stars series where the High Kings will be appearing!

These shows are usually held at the Upper Merion Township facilities in King of Prussia, but a little birdie told us that, due to the smokey skies & sketchy weather forecast on Saturday, they are gonna move this show down to the Ardmore Music Hall...

The High Kings are Ireland’s premier folk storytellers—an act that has taken Irish traditional folk music global, while re-imagining it for a new generation. Over the years, they’ve grown from national treasures into an international phenomenon, selling out tours worldwide and redefining what Irish folk can sound like in the 21st century. They’ve performed for presidents and prime ministers, played Glastonbury, the Isle of Wight Festival, Times Square, and Trafalgar Square, while continuing to dominate Irish festivals across the USA every year. Their 2023 release, The Road Not Taken, became a streaming juggernaut with 14 million streams in its first year—and topped charts across Ireland, the USA, Germany, Belgium, and the Netherlands. With rich harmonies, rousing energy, and songs that bridge past and present, The High Kings aren’t just carrying Ireland’s folk tradition forward—they’re supercharging it.

That show is slated to start at 7:00 PM with the Brian Boru Pipes & Drums opening, so one really COULD go to BOTH shows... Totally do-able! More info on that show can be found at: concertsunderthestarskop.com/

Finally, if you've got a little more life in ya, there's a VERY friendly family-oriented show out at the gazebo in Bryn Mawr as the Twilight Concert Series hosts Trout Fishing in America on Sunday afternoon (a 4:00 PM start time) on what is promising to look like an amazing day with clear comfy weather set to cooperate...

For 50+ years, Keith Grimwood and Ezra Idlet have been blending genres, breaking molds, and bringing multi-generational audiences together to share in the joy of music. As Trout Fishing in America, these songwriting friends have released something like 25 albums on their own record label, and traveled over a million miles through the entire US and parts of Canada.

Drawing inspiration from childhoods spent listening to top-40 AM radio, the two songwriters seasoned their music with stylings from rock and roll, blues, folk, country, bluegrass, funk, Latin, and reggae…whatever sound would best bring out the flavor of the lyrics they wrote. From the beginning, they were a song writing team with Keith typically being the lyrical generator while Ezra developed the music. Their collaborative natures allowed them to edit each other’s contributions without egos clashing.

Trout’s genre-defying musical style and unique stage presence did not lend itself to standard marketing strategies so their following developed through word-of-mouth recommendations from fans and club owners. No one could explain what kind of music Trout played but would also tell you that theirs was not a show to miss.

It is not unusual for three or four generations of a family to show up at a Trout performance and this is a point of pride for both Keith and Ezra. It may still be impossible to tell you what kind of music Trout plays, but after attending a show, you’ll know exactly what you’ve witnessed: two guys who still love what they do and are excited to share it with you.

More info at: brynmawrtwilightconcerts.com/

PHEW! Quite a week of musical memories for you to make... Hope you can get out to some (or ALL!) of these shows... ENJOY!