ShamRockers visit Ireland, record third CD
Berl Tiskus
Neal Lewing laughs at a quip from one of the ShamRockers during a recording session.
Berl Tiskus
The ShamRockers — from left John Glueckert, Rick Skates, Mike Lozar, Rob Sloan and Neal Lewing — record songs for their third CD, due out in December.
Berl Tiskus
The ShamRockers use many instruments to produce sounds on their albums.
Berl Tiskus
Berl Tiskus
Berl Tiskus
Berl Tiskus
ShamRocker Mike Lozar
Berl Tiskus
ShamRockers Rob Sloan and Neal Lewing record a new CD.
Berl Tiskus
Berl Tiskus
ShamRockers John Glueckert and Rick Skates record a new CD.
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POLSON — “Hie, hie, hie to the Irish spirit at its best,” a line from “The Day the Irish Start to Sing and Dance” describes the Montana ShamRockers. They’re fresh from a visit to Ireland and are recording a new CD in their 11th year singing together.
The new album of Christmas tunes will be released on Dec. 20. Lewing wrote six of the songs. There will be 16 to 18 songs on the album, and not all of them are Celtic. It’ll be their third CD after Just Plain Lucky and New and Used.
John Glueckert, Neal Lewing, Mike Lozar, Rick Skates and Rob Sloan form the group although they use stage names taken from Irish song lyrics. Glueckert is Liam O’Leary; Lewing, Niall O’Connor; Lozar, Paddy Doyle; Skates, Mick Houlihan; and Sloan, Robby Flynn.
“We just kinda came up with them,” Lewing said. “We have a tremendous amount of fun. It’s a great release for us all.”
The group realized their earnings probably wouldn’t send their kids to medical school, but for the last 10 years, Lewing said the group put all their earnings into a pot. They used the loot to pay for a couple of sound systems, but the remaining funds were enough to send all five Shamrockers and their wives to Ireland for 10 days in June.
“Somebody had to do it,” Sloan deadpanned.
While they didn’t have gigs booked, the ShamRockers “just asked ‘em if we could sing.”
They sang in pubs, restaurants, in a rest stop when a tour bus came along, in the airport and in the rental car place.
“But mostly we sang in pubs,” Lewing said.
The pubs were small, warm and “mature” with lots of memorabilia, according to the ShamRockers.
Glueckert said different groups of musicians the group talked to “discouraged us from doing Irish music over there. But Neal would, after a couple of Guinnesses, send me up to ask if we could sing.”
The ShamRockers would sing a capella Irish songs and “they absolutely loved us,” Sloan said.
“They laughed, cried, clapped, sang along, asked us back,” Lewing added.
“We all have Irish in us,” Lewing said, “some more then others. We just get such a kick out of the Irish culture and history.”
“Oh, my goodness,” Glueckert said, “It was absolutely wonderful — even if I did have to go with these guys.”
They all laughed.
One of Skates’ favorite venues was Murphy’s Pub, where the ShamRockers sang and used a local man’s guitar.
“They liked our music,” Sloan said.
There were German tourists there who tried to talk the ShamRockers into going to Germany for a festival.
The ShamRockers ended up in Waterford and explored the Waterford/Montana connection created by Thomas Frances Meagher. After a tumultuous stint as member of the Young Ireland movement, which passionately wanted Irish independence, and a colorful Union Army career, Meagher became secretary for Montana territory, courtesy of U.S. President Andrew Johnson. Then, in 1865, Meagher was named Montana’s acting governor.
The ShamRockers visited the Granville Hotel in Waterford where Meagher was born. There’s a statue of Meagher in Waterford.
About six years ago, a Meagher sculpture was unveiled at Fort Benton, where Meagher disappeared from a docked steamboat. The ShamRockers did the music for the whole celebration, put on by the Ancient Order of Hibernians of Helena. A Montana flag, flown over Meagher’s statute at the capitol, was sent to Ann Cuzak, proprietor of the Granville.
“We got ahold of those lads over there,” Lewing said, adding that they found out Cuzak’s Montana flag was in shreds.
The ShamRockers took another Montana flag flown over Meagher’s statue at the state capitol and gave it and a proclamation signed by Governor Steve Bullock to Cusak.
They ended up staying in Waterford for three days and had a great time with Cuzak.
“The people of Waterford, they know where Montana is — with the Thomas Francis Meagher connection, some of them have even been here,” Lozar said.
In driving around the countryside, even with congested and narrow roads, Skates said he never heard a horn honk.
The Irish people the ShamRockers met were kind and friendly. They loved the Kennedys, especially President John Fitzgerald Kennedy and Jackie, who visited Ireland. American football is starting to become popular in Ireland, too.
Visiting Ireland reminded Sloan of “what life was like in the ‘50s when I was growing up.”
One of the most beautiful sights, the ShamRockers agreed, were the cliffs of Moher.
And it was so green.
“You’ve never seen green,” Skates said.
Glueckert added, “1,000 shades of green.”
“It was a lot of sightseeing, a little research, a singing marathon across a lovely country,” Lewing said.
