BBC - Radio 3 - Womad 2004

SHARON SHANNON (IRELAND)

The cover of Sharon Shannon's latest CD 'Libertango' shows her giving a shy, attractively impish smile to the camera. By contrast, her t-shirt portrays the face of Jack Nicholson bearing his iconic "Here's Johnny !" psycho smile from Kubrick's film 'The Shining'. This juxtaposition neatly sums up the essence of Shannon's music. Not that there's any kind of slasher psychosis lurking in there. No, it's just that she manages to mix the pure and gorgeous simplicity of traditional Irish music with all kinds of extraneous, unexpected interventions, which jolt you into accepting the fact that there's a whole wide world beyond the smiling hills of Connemara and Clare where Shannon grew up.

Acknowledged as the 'Queen of the squeezebox', Shannon has become a permanent fixture in the Irish musical landscape and worked with artists as diverse as Sinead O'Connor, Kirsty MacColl, Nigel Kennedy, The Waterboys, The Indigo Girls, Malawian rapper Marvel, Donal Lunny and Adam Clayton from U2. She has released a total of seven albums in just over a decade, including the wondrous 'Libertango', and notched up sales far in excess of what most trad Irish musicians can expect.

Her music boldly goes into territory where other traditional musicians fear to tread. A dance remix of her tune 'Bag Of Cats', held its own in the Irish top twenty for more than six weeks, and her collaboration with Steve Earle, Jackson Browne et al on the triple platinum selling album 'The Diamond Mountain Sessions' represents a veritable milestone in the history of Irish music. So everybody smile...here's Sharon!

Courtesy of Andy Morgan, July 2004

Read other people's comments then

Tell us what you think:

John
Another fine quality performance from Ireland's top accordian player!

billyboy northampton
simply my dream girl she has everything and much much more . I think I am in love

Colin Hugh Abbott, Western Australia
Wow! What a woman! What a sound! I've seldom heard such perfection . Sharon's fingerwork was an absolute blur. Pure magic. How do you top that? (March 2006).

lyngdoh,India
soothingly calm and beautiful thankyou sharron for the lovely melodies & composition.

Steve U, Cork
An excellent taste of heartwarming Irish music,Sharon is a outstanding performer! Thouroghly enjoyed, many thanks

Paul Cromer
Superb uplifting inspiring a real mind body and soul rejuvenator!!!

kanabi A, Medford
I think sharon shannon's music is best and it is amazed that I really like listened again. because it is very great to listen. also, I like how she play , I really joy her music.

PrettyAnab11
I think sharon shannon her music is very great and I like too she better maybe I would like listened again good luck sharon shannon

alanxdunn
Excellent musician unfortunately her choice of material/guests included and studio production fall below the mark.She should get together with Davy Spillane for some ideas.

Ward De Craene, Sleidinge, Flanders, Belgium
I just happened to surf in by some coïncidence! For a fan to stumble on an entire concert of Sharon Shannon and her band gives a feeling like finding that pot of gold that some leprechauns hid away at the other end of the rainbow ... It's priceless ... Thank you very much, BBC, thank you very much Radio 3.

philip mexico
i woul like to hear this album i think that could be amazing

Tim Edey
Sharons the greatest accordeon player ever to be heard! amazing gig

Gilmond Larocque Lamèque, N.-B. Canada
What king of accordion do you play with. I have an A and D Hohner and I am a lover of Irish music. You play very very well...

rose davidson leech
i really liked your music so we got your albam me and my mum listen to it a lot

joe davidson leech, Birghton
My mum and dad loved listening to your music and your voice at womad and Pauline Scanlon as well they have even brought the two albums.

Sharon & Richard, Sussex
We saw Sharon and the band on the village stage (our much preferred venue at WOMAD) - she was fantastic - charming, modest and a virtuoso to boot.

Ralph, S. London
Had an absolutely lovely time in R3 tent listening to Sharon. Great atmosphere. No ego on display from Sharon or her sister. It was like they were playing to some friends in their local pub. I'd always thought Irish folk was a creatively restrictive idiom, but Sharon and her group really changed my mind... Really flawless playing...

Steve Lismore, Chesterfield
I would like to hear this gig, but the link takes me to Darra J. Nice, but not Sharon Shannon. By the way, this BBC site is fantastic. The debate on licence fee tends to concentrate on television but BBC radio and website are themselves worth 3 licence fees!

Graeme Merifield, Oxford
Sharon Shannon was cracking at Womad last night. After playing to the crowds in the siam tent, it was a real joy to see her in the intimacy of R3's stage