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Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
I was at a session last night and the unacceptable, unthinkable and the most extreme tradition wrecking occurence happened.
The Guinness ran out!
Forget players being upset/ put off by bodhran players, shaky eggs, Gypsy music, loud box players, miserable gits, out of tune fiddlers, Bob Dylan songs, smelly armpitted flute holders, requests for Danny Bwoy...this proved catastrophic!
Some even ended up in the pub next door forsaking music playing or beer drinking. The true sign of the real musician!
Re: Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
OMG - it happened once at my session. People looked at
each other in disbelief - like if someone proved Elvis really
*is* alive or if New Zealand beat Australia in Test cricket.
Or if Arnie Schwarzenegger became Governor of California and
a pro wrestler became Governor of Minnesota, or the son
of George Bush also became President or if turned out that the
international banking system was floating on mathematical
fantasies
Re: Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
I was watching a session in Cork at An Spailpin Fanach last year and all the musicians were sitting having a nice cup of tea. Pretty civilised eh? The music was great.
Re: Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
Last time I was in Gus O'Connors in Doolin, none of the musicians were drinking alcohol - in fact I believe Christy Barry (flute player) was drinking a coffee...
Bren - speaking of sessions in Scotland... Where can I get one or are there any regular ones?
Re: Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
'Dry' sessions are becoming an increasingly common sight, in my experience. On my last trip to London, I went to a session where, in the centre of the table, stood a large jug of water, surrounded by glasses thereof and the odd orange juice or lemonade. I bucked the clean-as-a-whistle trend by sipping a strong black coffee - whilst my wild friend from Wales transcended all bounds of decency by indulging in a pint of Chiswick ale.
Re: Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
O, Guinness,
Thou opiate of the masses,
Thou duller of the dull,
LSD to howler monkeys, and snore amplifier,
Thou hast bruised the livers of wet, sopping cities.
Yeah yeah but I guess you taste okay. Still, a real man will call for a wine spritzer, a pink lady, a Singapore sling, or a flaming rum punch. Those are your Mettle Testers.
Re: Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
Drinking and playing. Worth a doctoral dissertation not a thread on a website.
Once upon a time I swore I would never play while/after drinking.
You listen to a tape or see a video someone took....and you realize you get fearless after a few. Doesn't mean its good. And you don't remember. But the tape sure doesn't lie
Re: Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
I prefer Smithwick's myself.
But last night the gorgeous actress Penelope Cruz said on a talk show that she drinks Guinness, so I might have to change my mind. (No, really. She said that Irish friends introduced her to it, it's the only adult beverage that she ever drinks, and it takes her just one pint to get completely drunk. I would buy her that pint, in a nanosecond.)
Re: Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
Fortunately my session is in a brewpub so running dry is not a problem. HOWEVER, the day before yesterday I was playing tunes with the house brewer out on the pub's patio and this hippie knucklehead decided he wanted to contribute something. I figured he'd pull out a harp or whistle. Instead he waits til we stop playing then goes into reciting poetry!!! Feck!
Then I heard from someone else later that the same guy wants to show up to my thursday night session to recite some more. I ended up p*ssing off the person who told me that because not only did I say no, but I also told her Bob Dylan was a hack. LOL "But he's a poet." she says. "With no musical talent." I say.
She just couldn't understand that it isn't an "open mike night" but rather a "music session" where everyone plays together. Poetry is a solo act and as such is not welcome.
Re: Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
There's only a couple of our regular session players who run on Guinness only, myself being one. Most are on real ale, a few on lager, and some on various strange liquids devoid of alcohol.
The Guinness did indeed run out once, and despite being highly tempted to follow, I stayed and took the opportunity to sample some guest ales. There really is no substitute, although I would happily drink in the Porterhouse (which has no Guinness).
Re: Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
Heh heh, I'm reminded of being in class 4 at St Alipius Christian Brothers' school in Ballarat, and we sang "The pub with no beer" for the Christmas concert. Parents were taken back by the verse:
The dog on the verandah, for his master he waits,
but the bastard's inside, drinking wine with his mates
He scurries for cover, and he cringes in fear
It's no place for a dog, round a pub with no beer.
Slim said later that he thought he'd sung "but the boss is inside". Not how our Christian Brother noted it down!
Getting back to the topic, I've suffered the Guinness running out in a session pub in Canberra. Ghastly! Guinness is such a good session drink, and doesn't affect the flute player's embouchure. I was forced to drink Jamisons.
Re: Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
There is (or was) Guinness and Guinness. Draught Guinness brewed in Dublin was altogether a nicer and more satisfying pint than DG brewed in England. I don't know if this is still the case.
Re: Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
Nicholas,
When one had to travel to Ireland to get the stuff brewed in Dublin, it definitely tasted better than the stuff made in the factory in London NW10! Now whether that was psychological?...!
Now ALL Guinness comes from Dublin the thrill of going across the Irish Sea and getting a pint of “real” Guinness has gone and it’s difficult to judge whether the stuff one gets in London now is as good as the stuff in Ireland either now or back in the “Dublin Guinness for Ireland/ Park Royal (NW10) Guinness for the rest" days.
Re: Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
"I have heard the Irish turn up their noses at Guinness the same way"
You heard wrong Hup. Although it's somewhat less popular with younger folk.
I think it generally tastes better in Ireland, but you have to find the pubs that are known for a good pint. It can be rather good to awful in the UK.
Two of my favourite pints in Ireland are/were The Strand at Cahore, the Sky & the Ground in Wexford and Kehoes in Kilmore Quay.
That's three. oh well.
Re: Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
i was asked in Ireland if Ithought the Guinness was stronger there than in America. Considering the amount of the stuff I'D had at the tome, the point was rather moot, but, I was delighted to point out that the glasses were much bigger! hehheh
cheers, pipewatcher
Re: Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
Somewhere in my archive I have the words of a parody of A Pub with no Beer, brought back to this side of the world and called a Bar with no Stout. I have a vague recollection of the first verse something like this:
We have heard quite a lot of the Pub with no beer,
And some people say twas the hit of the year,
But during the war I was rambling about,
And I called for a pint in a Bar with no stout.
Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
I was at a session last night and the unacceptable, unthinkable and the most extreme tradition wrecking occurence happened.
The Guinness ran out!
Forget players being upset/ put off by bodhran players, shaky eggs, Gypsy music, loud box players, miserable gits, out of tune fiddlers, Bob Dylan songs, smelly armpitted flute holders, requests for Danny Bwoy...this proved catastrophic!
Some even ended up in the pub next door forsaking music playing or beer drinking. The true sign of the real musician!
# Posted on February 4th 2009 by Krick Stahlschwanz
Re: Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
Why didn't you just play in the pub next door?
# Posted on February 4th 2009 by ...
Re: Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
Or get a pint from next door and bring it back to your session pub? Where's your joined up thinking?
# Posted on February 4th 2009 by ...
Re: Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
In the immortal words of Slim Dusty:
"There´s nothing so lonesome, morbid or drear,
than to ........................................................."
# Posted on February 4th 2009 by murfbox
Re: Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
OMG - it happened once at my session. People looked at
each other in disbelief - like if someone proved Elvis really
*is* alive or if New Zealand beat Australia in Test cricket.
Or if Arnie Schwarzenegger became Governor of California and
a pro wrestler became Governor of Minnesota, or the son
of George Bush also became President or if turned out that the
international banking system was floating on mathematical
fantasies
# Posted on February 4th 2009 by Hup
Re: Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
What a disturbing thought...
# Posted on February 4th 2009 by ScotiaBalach
Re: Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
I once played in a session where there was no alcohol let alone Guinness. Oh wait, that was just a bad dream I had once............!
# Posted on February 4th 2009 by SteelPlayer
Re: Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
I was watching a session in Cork at An Spailpin Fanach last year and all the musicians were sitting having a nice cup of tea. Pretty civilised eh? The music was great.
# Posted on February 4th 2009 by d0tter
Re: Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
Not many people drink Guinness at our local session anyway
I guess it's not compulsory in Scotland
# Posted on February 4th 2009 by Bren
Re: Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
Last time I was in Gus O'Connors in Doolin, none of the musicians were drinking alcohol - in fact I believe Christy Barry (flute player) was drinking a coffee...
Bren - speaking of sessions in Scotland... Where can I get one or are there any regular ones?
Thanks
Ciaran
# Posted on February 4th 2009 by Ciarán.
Re: Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
Ah yes, that happened once at our local. I ended up drinking something else. I survived, if you can call it that.
# Posted on February 4th 2009 by SWFL Fiddler
Re: Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
'Dry' sessions are becoming an increasingly common sight, in my experience. On my last trip to London, I went to a session where, in the centre of the table, stood a large jug of water, surrounded by glasses thereof and the odd orange juice or lemonade. I bucked the clean-as-a-whistle trend by sipping a strong black coffee - whilst my wild friend from Wales transcended all bounds of decency by indulging in a pint of Chiswick ale.
# Posted on February 4th 2009 by CreadurMawnOrganig
Re: Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
...now I think of it, he actually asked for a pint of Guinness, but they'd run out.
# Posted on February 4th 2009 by CreadurMawnOrganig
Re: Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
Many times of heard that old saying, "never trust a musician that doesn't drink".
Is there creedence in that?
# Posted on February 4th 2009 by Krick Stahlschwanz
Re: Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
Dry session? What's that?
# Posted on February 4th 2009 by DrSilverSpear
Re: Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
A session in a desert?
# Posted on February 4th 2009 by SWFL Fiddler
Re: Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
Which Scotland definitely is not (feck... it's raining again). No wonder we don't have these dry sessions here!
# Posted on February 4th 2009 by DrSilverSpear
Re: Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
Murphys and Beamish are not unacceptable substitutes. Perhaps the range of other beers on offer was so long that you did not see them.
# Posted on February 4th 2009 by nicholas
Re: Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
O, Guinness,
Thou opiate of the masses,
Thou duller of the dull,
LSD to howler monkeys, and snore amplifier,
Thou hast bruised the livers of wet, sopping cities.
Yeah yeah but I guess you taste okay. Still, a real man will call for a wine spritzer, a pink lady, a Singapore sling, or a flaming rum punch. Those are your Mettle Testers.
# Posted on February 4th 2009 by NEW Pure Drop® Ear Canal Oil
Re: Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
Drinking and playing. Worth a doctoral dissertation not a thread on a website.
Once upon a time I swore I would never play while/after drinking.
You listen to a tape or see a video someone took....and you realize you get fearless after a few. Doesn't mean its good. And you don't remember. But the tape sure doesn't lie
# Posted on February 4th 2009 by zippydw
Re: Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
I prefer Smithwick's myself.
But last night the gorgeous actress Penelope Cruz said on a talk show that she drinks Guinness, so I might have to change my mind. (No, really. She said that Irish friends introduced her to it, it's the only adult beverage that she ever drinks, and it takes her just one pint to get completely drunk. I would buy her that pint, in a nanosecond.)
# Posted on February 4th 2009 by John Galt
Re: Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
A wise and learned musician once said to me: "If you want to play while drinking, you have to practice while drinking".
A true sage.
# Posted on February 4th 2009 by Seosamh Ui Sinan
Re: Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
Fortunately my session is in a brewpub so running dry is not a problem. HOWEVER, the day before yesterday I was playing tunes with the house brewer out on the pub's patio and this hippie knucklehead decided he wanted to contribute something. I figured he'd pull out a harp or whistle. Instead he waits til we stop playing then goes into reciting poetry!!! Feck!
I ended up p*ssing off the person who told me that because not only did I say no, but I also told her Bob Dylan was a hack. LOL "But he's a poet." she says. "With no musical talent." I say.
Then I heard from someone else later that the same guy wants to show up to my thursday night session to recite some more.
She just couldn't understand that it isn't an "open mike night" but rather a "music session" where everyone plays together. Poetry is a solo act and as such is not welcome.
# Posted on February 4th 2009 by Fishmonger
Re: Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
There's only a couple of our regular session players who run on Guinness only, myself being one. Most are on real ale, a few on lager, and some on various strange liquids devoid of alcohol.
The Guinness did indeed run out once, and despite being highly tempted to follow, I stayed and took the opportunity to sample some guest ales. There really is no substitute, although I would happily drink in the Porterhouse (which has no Guinness).
# Posted on February 4th 2009 by Rick Payman
Re: Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
[apologies for my bad grammar]
# Posted on February 4th 2009 by Rick Payman
Re: Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
What! No Guinness = Totaly Unacceptable, - lol
jim,,
# Posted on February 4th 2009 by FIDDLE4
Re: Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
Heh heh, I'm reminded of being in class 4 at St Alipius Christian Brothers' school in Ballarat, and we sang "The pub with no beer" for the Christmas concert. Parents were taken back by the verse:
The dog on the verandah, for his master he waits,
but the bastard's inside, drinking wine with his mates
He scurries for cover, and he cringes in fear
It's no place for a dog, round a pub with no beer.
Slim said later that he thought he'd sung "but the boss is inside". Not how our Christian Brother noted it down!
Getting back to the topic, I've suffered the Guinness running out in a session pub in Canberra. Ghastly! Guinness is such a good session drink, and doesn't affect the flute player's embouchure. I was forced to drink Jamisons.
....and a pint of Jamisons, please.
Terry
# Posted on February 5th 2009 by Terry McGee
Re: Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
Hasn't anyone tried Murphy's? That is the ONE beer that's right up there with Guinness...maybe even...dare I say it....
# Posted on February 5th 2009 by Glass of Beer
Re: Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
Cooper's stout isn't bad, but I am no expert.
I have heard the Irish turn up their noses at Guinness the same way
Aussies won't touch Foster's.
# Posted on February 5th 2009 by Hup
Re: Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
There is (or was) Guinness and Guinness. Draught Guinness brewed in Dublin was altogether a nicer and more satisfying pint than DG brewed in England. I don't know if this is still the case.
# Posted on February 5th 2009 by nicholas
Re: Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
Nicholas,
When one had to travel to Ireland to get the stuff brewed in Dublin, it definitely tasted better than the stuff made in the factory in London NW10! Now whether that was psychological?...!
Now ALL Guinness comes from Dublin the thrill of going across the Irish Sea and getting a pint of “real” Guinness has gone and it’s difficult to judge whether the stuff one gets in London now is as good as the stuff in Ireland either now or back in the “Dublin Guinness for Ireland/ Park Royal (NW10) Guinness for the rest" days.
Ja! Bier ist gut!
# Posted on February 5th 2009 by Krick Stahlschwanz
Re: Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
Johnny Cunningham once said that a session was just a drinking binge set to music.
# Posted on February 5th 2009 by Ailin
Re: Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
"I have heard the Irish turn up their noses at Guinness the same way"
You heard wrong Hup. Although it's somewhat less popular with younger folk.
I think it generally tastes better in Ireland, but you have to find the pubs that are known for a good pint. It can be rather good to awful in the UK.
Two of my favourite pints in Ireland are/were The Strand at Cahore, the Sky & the Ground in Wexford and Kehoes in Kilmore Quay.
That's three. oh well.
# Posted on February 6th 2009 by Bren
Re: Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
My favourite pints in Ireland were at St. James's Gate.
# Posted on February 6th 2009 by Ramiro
Re: Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
all my future favourite pints are there too
# Posted on February 6th 2009 by Bren
Re: Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
i was asked in Ireland if Ithought the Guinness was stronger there than in America. Considering the amount of the stuff I'D had at the tome, the point was rather moot, but, I was delighted to point out that the glasses were much bigger! hehheh
cheers, pipewatcher
# Posted on February 7th 2009 by pipewatcher
Re: Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
Somewhere in my archive I have the words of a parody of A Pub with no Beer, brought back to this side of the world and called a Bar with no Stout. I have a vague recollection of the first verse something like this:
We have heard quite a lot of the Pub with no beer,
And some people say twas the hit of the year,
But during the war I was rambling about,
And I called for a pint in a Bar with no stout.
# Posted on February 8th 2009 by awwilko
Re: Unacceptable, unthinkable and session/ tradition wrecking...
As we say in our band---"music is a thirsty business"
# Posted on March 22nd 2009 by hauke