Press Reviews

"This young concertina star from Clare has taken his time before releasing a debut CD, and it's paid off. Bye A While shows maturity and style as well as virtuoso talent. The foibles of this fiddly instrument are usually apparent even in the hands of a master, but the opening Barbara Needham's

and the great Christy Barry's Jig are well past before the concertina is allowed to constrain Pádraig Rynne's music. Not many players can achieve that. Even if you've come across Pádraig before as part of Cían or other groups, you can't fail to be impressed by his performance here. Molloy's and The

Palm Tree flow from his fingers. Paddy Fahy's Jig, learnt from the man himself, fairly dances along. Pádraig's talent is broad enough to encompass the wonderful bouncy Fusco from Galician band Berroguetto, the hypnotic Plevin by Brittany's Soig Siberil, and a couple of other glorious oddities.

Amongst tunes by several great composers, he sneaks in a very decent jig of his own which provides the album's title.

Pádraig has surrounded himself with some great session musicians on this recording. John McSherry plays angelic whistles and demonic pipes, John Jo Kelly beats all kinds of magic out of a goatskin.

Tóla Custy and Mirella Murray add their duo skills to the party, and the foundations are laid by Arty McGlynn and Paul McSherry on guitars, amongst others. The slow reels The Old Bush and The Swallow's Tail are a definite highlight, with plenty of space for tune and accompaniment. The New

Century Hornpipe and the one that comes after it are a rare treat too, as is the set of reels which ends this album.

Check out Padraig's own site for more info:www.padraigrynne.com

Irish Music Magazine, March 2006

"I first heard Pádraig Rynne in 1998 and was immediately taken with his vigourous, yet subtle musicianship, and his mastery of his chosen instrument. Pádraig is of open mind musically, and this is reflected with integrity and style, on this long awaited debut album, which includes some of the best musicians in this country today. Enjoy."Brendan O'Regan

Froots Magazine

"One of the freshest sounds in Irish music..

Claddagh Records.

"This is top class music. Pádraig is a young concertina player from County Clare, but he's a vastly experienced one. He has gathered a group of similarly experienced friends to make a recording of mostly Irish music, with a sprinkling of Breton and Galician. The friends include Arty McGlynn, Mirella Murray, John Jo Kelly, John McSherry and Donal O'Connor, so you can see the respect with which Pádraig is regarded."

All Celtic Music.

"Jigs to go! And we do, at a nice pace with clean clear playing. There is a strong supporting line-up on this debut CD and that generally hints at a player respected by his peers and a guy folk just want to play along with."

Trad Magazine France, French version on: www.tradmagazine.com

"First there was Turas. It was a long time ago, a group of unknown but talented young men, with amongst them an outstanding concertina player... A very young Pádraig Rynne.

A couple of years later, Cian emerged. More modern and catchy and once again the public discovered Pádraig Rynne, concertina player amongst the best of his generation. This was in 1999.

Here we are in 2005 with this youths work of art finished. Like Niall Vallely and Mícheál O'Raghallaigh, two-masters on their subjects, Pádraig Rynne recorded one of the most beautiful CDs on concertina. Long awaited by his fans, the CD is self-produced, recorded with some of his friends

like Tóla Custy, Mirella Murray, John Joe Kelly, and the appearance of John McSherry. Accompanied by Kevin Dorris playing bouzouki, Paul McSherry and Arty McGlynn playing guitar.

If you were an unconditional fan of Cian but frustrated by the intrusion of the keyboard, then in Padráig's CD the alchemy is a dream come true. The repetoir, principally trad, is highlighted by original arrangement, giving a little tribute to The Bothy Band with The Fisherstreet jig! Padraig

Rynne explores Irish music with a sensitivity and a taste as good as his fabulous variations and whoever had the privilege to be at his concerts, knows what this magician of a Concertina player is able to do... Anne Girard

Custy's Music, 2005

"October 2005 release of a CD by another of Co. Clare's young crop of fine young concertina players. Lissycasey-native, Pádraig, has made a huge impact latterly with his band, Cian, and his debut solo album has been eagerly awaited."

Celtic Grooves, 2006

"A former member of the band Cian, Padraig Rynne is a high-power concertina player whose choice of material and arrangements set him firmly among the modernists. So one shouldn't be surprised to find quite a few new compositions as well as a smattering of Breton and Galician tunes on the album. Nor will the list of guest musicians, a who's who of the "fast and the furious" of today, leave any doubt about the approach to music, generally full steam ahead with high-wire virtuosic detours.

Rynne is capable of a mellower groove, as on the "Old Bush" track of slow reels--but one whishes the accompanist would have followed suit with less adventurous harmonies. But it's all so well played that it's hard to resist. A guilty pleasure to be sure.**** 4 stars."

FolkWorld - Issue 32 - 12/2006 Source: www.folkworld.de"Pádraig Rynne from County Clare is one of the finest concertina players in the Irish music scene. He started his career with the band Turas when he was seventeen and joined in 1998 another Irish band, Cían. Since he left Cían in 2001 he has worked with some of the best traditional musicians like John McSherry and At First Light, John Joe Kelly and Flook, Paul Meehan (Lunasa, Karan Casey Band, North Cregg) and fiddle maker Paul Bradley. I saw him live in 2004 with Rogaire Dubh (see my review in issue 28 from April 2004) and I was very pleased to receive his first solo CD "Bye a while" for reviewing.

Pádraig Rynne wrote the title track "Bye a while" and named it after a favourite saying of his father. He has been joined by a bunch of brilliant guest musicians; some of them long time musical partners from the At First Light/Flook connection. The album is composed of nine traditional and

contemporary Irish tunes - jigs, slip-jigs, reels, slow reels, hornpipes - as well as two Breton instrumental tracks.

The first set of jigs "Barbara Needham's/Christy Barry's/Bye a while" starts with a brilliant duo with Rynne on concertina and John McSherry on the uilleann pipes. Another great playing together with McSherry on low whistle and pipes can be heard on the beautiful Breton "Dans Loudieg". But the

concertina also matches very well with Mirella Murray's piano accordion on the reels "Not Safe with a Razor/The Palm Tree/Jimmy's Return". The Galician/Breton set "Fusco/Plevin" is a perfect showcase for Murray's musical partner Tóla Custy on fiddle and John Joe Kelly on bodhrán. Arty McGlynn and Paul McSherry add their excellent guitar playing throughout the album and thus together with Kevin Dorris on bouzouki and Kelly on bodhrán they guarantee the breathtaking rhythms. I also love Rynne's playing on the slow reels "The Old Bush/The Swallow's Tail" and Dónal O'Connor's keyboards on the jig/slip-jig/reel set "Fisherstreet/The Wingflapper/The Céilíer".

The CD is a wonderful sample of Irish music brought forward by some of the finest traditional musicians of the Irish music scene.

Adolf "Gorhand" Goirup

Folk Radio UK

"This is a wonderful album from Padraig Rynne in which he has chosen a unique mix of music to show off his great talent with the concertina

Band Details,

Pádraig Rynne, Tóla Custy, and Paul McSherry

Regarded as one of the finest concertina players in Irish music today, Pádraig Rynne was born in Co. Clare. He won five All-Ireland titles as well as three Oireachtas titles and began his recording career with the bands Turas and Cían. More recently, Pádraig has worked and recorded with artists of the calibre of Arty McGlynn, Alan Kelly, John McSherry, John Jo Kelly, At First Light, Flook, and Tamalin. Other recordings include Live in Belfast with Paul Meehan and Paul Bradley, and Pádraig's first solo album Bye A While which was released in 2005 to great critical acclaim.

Tóla Custy is a highly accomplished fiddle player from a renowned Clare musical family. He recorded his first solo album in 1994 and is now one of Irish music's busiest performers and composers.Tóla was a founder member of the Cork-based group Calico and he has also played and recorded

with many artists including Cyril O'Donoghue, Mirella Murray, Flook, Alan Kelly, Arty McGlynn, Heidi Talbot, Pauline Scanlon, Gráda and Chara. Tóla's many compositions can be heard in sessions, albums and performances throughout the Irish music industry.

Paul McSherry hails from West Belfast and began playing guitar at the age of 14. He played and recorded with the Belfast band Commonalty and also with Tamalin who released their debut album Rhythm and Rhyme in 1997. Paul has accompanied on stage and recorded with a wealth of well-

known musicians including Liam O'Flynn, Paddy Keenan, Paddy Glackin, Cathal Hayden, Tommy Peoples, Siobhán Peoples, Michael McGoldrick, Gerry (banjo) O'Connor, Kevin Crawford, Gerry (fiddle) O'Connor and John McSherry as well as singers Tommy Makem and Brian Kennedy.

Guest members include John McSherry on Uileann pipes and John Joe Kelly on Bodhran.