Dear Reader –
This week’s title is the Sligo version of the first single from the Theme Night album, released today. Courtesy of a letter reader earlier this year.
*All hyperlinks in bold.
The Big Thing
Do you remember The Story of Number 5?
A tale from last July of how Joanne Stenson was picked to be the newcomer on the Theme Night Album.
Well today, the first single from the album is released, and you can hear just how good Joanne’s vocal is.
Listen on Spotify here, or on Apple Music here.
Or watch Joanne sing it live last September in the Hawk’s Well below.
Where else but Sligo?
Around the time I met Joanne last summer, I wrote of the feeling I get when a new singer walks into the room. The promise, the potential, the possibility. Not knowing what the next few minutes hold and how they might change things for one or both of us.
It happened to me many times last week again as I rehearsed with what is largely a new set of teenagers for this weekend’s Teenage Theme Night #24. One young lady in particular surprised me.
I had never met her before, so when she came in we had a nice chat. She proceeded to let rip on a Miley Cyrus song and we changed key not once but twice to facilitate her impressive range. And then we had another nice chat, as if nothing had happened. But it had.
There was something about her accent that made me think she wasn’t from Sligo. I asked her how she had heard of the nights, and she said she had come from Drumshanbo with her mother to a Christmas shopping event in Shells last year. Two college students who had previously been involved in these nights were playing music at the event and when she approached them, was told unequivocally that she HAD to look in to them.
And so she did, and will make her debut this Friday night.
There is also a show on Saturday, and both will take place in The Model. And it’s not just about the music, it’s about young people expressing themselves, finding a place for themselves in the world, and reinforcing the fact that Sligo is the place to come for great music, no matter what age you are.
You will need to book your tickets beforehand, and you can do so here.
What’s New?
Mícheál Kearney is also a Teenage Theme Night graduate, and has joined us as a co-host on In The Lamplight this season. We interviewed him on last week’s show - you can listen here.
Joanne Stenson also gave an amazing performance of Summer in Dublin on last September’s show - have a look here.
And a big hello to the letter reader I met on Saturday who gave out to me for sending him too much each week!!
Finally…
The original Theme Night performance of today’s new single.
Ide Leddy, Ana Leddy and Mary Roche from The Cosmic Banditos on Theme Night #14 back in 2016.
Till next time - Kieran.
