John McSherry - Soma

(April 2010) 10 tracks: An Bhean Chaointe * Atlantic Drive * Stone of Destiny * Ba'dai' na Scada'n * The Wave-Sweeper * The Rambles of Kitty * The Maid of Murlough * Aisling Gheal * The Slide From Grace * A'ille's Antics.

Uilleann piper John McSherry has been performing and recording with everybody from Donal Lunny to Clannad and The Corrs.

He is hailed as one of the finest exponents of the art of Irish uilleann piping in the world today, and his debut solo album Soma is a fiery blend of pipes, whistles, guitars, bouzoukis and fiddles. Mixing traditional tunes with John's own compositions, this album has surprises in store.

Coming from a family steeped in traditional music, John focused his energies on the pipes from an early age. By the time he reached fifteen he had two All Ireland Championship titles under his belt, and at the age of eighteen he was the youngest ever winner of the prestigious Oireachtas piping competition.

John has toured the world as both a solo performer and a member of several outstanding bands. He was a founding member of top trad band Lunasa, whose albums rocked the Irish music world. He also joined forces with his siblings in the trad/rock group Tamalin, whose debut album was Rhythm And Rhyme.

Collaborations followed with Donal Lunny's ground-breaking supergroup Coolfin (which included Sharon Shannon and Nollaig Casey), wooden flute master Michael McGoldrick (At First Light was voted Best Traditional Album of the year by the Irish American News), fiddle prodigy Donal O'Connor (Tripswitch album), Clannad, Sinead O'Connor, Nancy Griffiths, Shaun Davey, Dan Ar Braz and The Corrs.

"My love for music embraces everything from these most ancient airs, jigs and reels to the harmonies and high powered, driving rhythms of modern music. I'd like to think of this album as a little melting pot of all the influences on my musical journey so far..." (John McSherry)

"A true master..." (Irish Music Magazine)