![]() ![]() ![]() A year later, we opened the Back Room at the Burren, with a 250 seat capacity, bringing in a whole range of rock, blues, jazz, and country bands. We looked at each other and said, ‘what have we gotten in to here?’īut the Burren was an instant success from the day we opened. ![]() We went over to Sligo Pub, where there were about five people. We went across the road to Red Bones for a beer and the guy was mopping up the floor, there were no customers left. I remember a week before we opened, we were painting the last few walls with our friend Neilus Reynolds till about eleven o’clock at night. My dad, a master carpenter as well as concertina player, came out from London and helped us build the front room of the Burren, including the bar. Davis Square was all boarded up at the time, but the Somerville Theatre right down the street was ready to grow with World Music, so we took our chance. I saw an ad in the paper for a liquor license for sale in Somerville and we decided to go for it. We decided to open our own pub where we could play music whenever we liked. We eventually moved back to Ireland, got married, traveled around the world and then came back to Boston in 1994, where we still had a bit of a following. We were playing sessions at the Brendan Behan in Jamaica Plain. Louise and I first met in Boston in 1986. How did you and Louise come to start-up the Burren Pub, which you opened in 1996? And she used to go around to the local sessions with her father, an accordion player, and played a lot with DeDannan and other bands around Galway. A nun at her school was putting a Ceili Band together and went out and bought a banjo for Louise. Louise comes from Tulloughmore, County Galway. We played mostly at the Victoria Pub on Holloway Road in North London. Bobby Casey started teaching me a bit, and at about fifteen I started playing at the Irish Centre in Camden Town with banjo player Mick O’Connor and Sean Casey, Bobby’s son. I started playing the fiddle at about thirteen, and I knew my dad was very happy that I was taking up the family tradition. I didn’t show any signs of playing until I was about twelve, when my father bought me a mandolin. After my three older sisters, there was a gap of five years, so by the time I was eight or nine they were already playing around London in the Irish Centers and pubs, so it seemed inevitable I would be part of the music scene. My family comes from West Clare, and I grew up in London in a very musical environment. Tell us about your own background as musicians. We spoke to Tommy recently from Ireland, where he was home with his family. We now bring you the 20 things to do when you’re road-tripping in Ireland, to make sure that you have the ultimate experience in the country.Tommy McCarthy and his wife Louise Costello are musicians and owners of the Burren Pub in Davis Square, Somerville, considered one of the best places to hear traditional Irish music in the United States, if not the world. Yes, you might have an idea on some activities to do but trust us when we say – Ireland is full of adventure for the adventurous. But while you’re busy road-tripping across this beautiful land, you want to make sure that you don’t miss out on any fun stuff to do along the way. The country itself is not that large and the spectacular views will definitely make it worth it. These are just some of the things one can get up to while in Ireland and it is safe to say that perhaps one can get a little overwhelmed with where to start.ĭriving across the country is something many choose to do. There is also the infectious pubs and music that is sure to excite any tourist and of course, locals. Perhaps it is the unbelievable scenery one gets from the place, or maybe the beautiful castles you can explore (with some hotels being based at the castles, you also have the opportunity to sleep in a castle. Visiting Ireland falls on many people’s to-do lists.
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