No Ordinary Pub
The charismatic Lisdoonvarna publican Peter Curtin is in demand. It seems all the national media wants to talk to him. Yesterday it was the Irish Times. This morning it was Newstalk Radio. Peter is in the news because he has just launched the Burren Tolkien Society on two continents – North America and Lisdoonvarna! He is of the strong opinion that the otherworldly Burren in County Clare was the inspiration for Middle Earth in Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings. Tolkien’s connections with the region are in fact well detailed on the new society’s website. The society had 7 members as of this morning. However, if further research proves that Tolkien’s book was indeed inspired by the Burren, the society will not remain a small band for long.
A plaque outside the pub commemorates the founding of the society but also in a sense it puts the visitor on notice that he or she is about to enter no ordinary bar. The pub interior is perspiring with old character and the customers are an intoxicating (not intoxicated) mix of locals and visitors. The 101 year old pianoforte is a strong statement in itself of the importance of music in the establishment. Garret Fitgerald former Taoiseach/Prime Minister is one former owner of the piano. The pint of stout here is always frothy and fresh and then the whole affair is presided over by Peter with his singular panache. The pub was founded in 1865 and has been under the management of the Curtin family for 3 generations now.
I rambled in 2 Saturdays ago on the trail of a few tunes and was not disappointed. The ensemble was Paul Dooley (fiddle), Terry Bingham (concertina) and Ian Lambe (guitar). The trio played a sweet selection of polkas, jigs and reels.
Apart from playing fiddle, Paul is a fine harp-player and harp-maker. Ian hand-makes polished aluminum tuneable low whistles and sells them mainly on the worldwide web. He also made the beautiful guitar he is seen playing in the photo. Terry is from the north originally but is at home playing the instrument most associated with County Clare i.e. the concertina. That all adds up to an awful lot of talent around a pub table on a Saturday evening.
Ireland is home at the moment to one the western world’s richest folk music traditions. County Clare in its turn is the unofficial capital of the music in Ireland. (“If it’s music you want, You should come to Clare…” from the song “Lisdoonvarna” by Christy Moore). And as for the Burren itself, it would be no bad thing to set up a musical pub trail in the region which would include information on-line and off about the great tunes going down in vibrant music villages and towns such as Lisdoonvarna, Kilfenora, Doolin, Kinvara, Corofin, Ballyvaughan………
In the end I beat the midnight curfew albeit reluctantly but not before paying homage on the way home to the Tolkien plaque. By the way you can catch music sessions at the Roadside on Friday and Saturday evenings 11 months of the year. In the month of July there is music every evening except Sundays.
No ordinary pub – no. One of the finest pubs on the western seaboard of Ireland – yes.
Next blog – Research, Tracing and Tales. A remarkable exhibition of local maps and history at X-PO, the former post office in Kilnaboy.
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