Beoga -"a lovely madness"
Lively aint the half of it!”

Beoga's "A Lovely Madness" well named. It is the most schizophrenic CD I've listened to all year, and also one of the most delightful! Welcome to the Beoga fun house where you will come to expect the unexpected. Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain. Get ready for the roller coaster, 'cause it's gonna be one heck of a trip!

Beoga means "alive" or "lively" and this group certainly picked the proper name for themselves. Formed from a session when they were all at the fleadh in Listowel in 2002, Beoga are Liam Bradley, (piano, hammond organ, clavinet) Sean Og Graham, (button accordion, guitar), Damian McKee (button accordion)" and Eamon Murray (bodhran). All are from the Antrim or Derry in Northern Ireland and have loads of credentials in trad music. However, sneaky lads that they are, their musical chops embrace many worlds, as you shall see once you get on the roller coaster.

First stop is the "Prelude Polkas" where you will experience your first set of twists and turns. Supposedly composed in the back of Liam's Honda Prelude, it would have better been named "Barrel over Niagara Falls"! tempo and key changes set the stage for further mayhem in subsequent cuts. I could not wipe the grin off my face for quite some time after this cut had finished.

However dont for a moment think that this CD is just a harmless bagatelle (hmmm...great band that) - these lads are rock sold musicians. They have a command of the music that is secure enough to tweak and twist without harming a thing. An ability that if tried by the less accomplished would result in the whole train slipping from the tracks in a massive wreck. With Beoga it is all part of the fun, and you are invited in with them. That said, they can do the straight ahead trad as well as anyone. Just check out the "Boxy set", where it is just Damian, Sean Og and Eamon. Simple, pure, peppery and crisp, it is a delight.

My favorite track is "Funk" (Funk in Class/Inver Bank) for the smoky, smooth jazz bass of James Blennerhasset coupled with the swing of the button box. Just as the jazz vibe is getting good and thick and further enhanced by the sax licks from Peter Tomelty, the roller coaster shoots down into the hard driving full ahead trad of "Inver Bank". Which brings up another reason this CD is such a stunner. A large number of the tunes are original—composed primarily by Sean Og and Damian. Trust me when I tell you that musicians will be snapping up these tunes as soon as they get a chance. They are addictively good!

The bright notes of Damian's button box on "Hello Again" (Hello again/Eat the crust) are beautifully underscored'by Sean Og on guitar. And just to prove that it isn't all twists and turns, the roller coaster levels out beautifully on "The Solid Man", an air composed by Damian in memory of his father, Frank.

Grab hold of the safety bar for "Amsterdam Blues" two magnificent examples of the original tunes on this CD. It don't mean a thing if it ain't got that swing, so as you get into the the title tune, with a cigge hangin' out of the corner of your mouth and gettin' to be a real hep cat, you are jerked by the neck of your shirt into the hoedown, hillbilly, foot-stompin', turkey-in-the-straw tune, "Hamin' hen factory". This totally bi-polar cut leaves you a bit disoriented, but still deliriously happy.

The flamboyant finish of the title track, "A Lovely Madness" (Bill Harte's/Blue Eyes/A Lovely Madness) can't resist one last tweak before gently setting you down. Eyes, slightly glazed, grin firmly fixed and unable to be removed. I had more fun listening to this CD than any that has crossed my desk in many a year. Beoga are excellent musicians that are unafraid to take the more interesting path. If you care to go along with them, you will be richly rewarded.
Long may they play!

www.beogamusic.com.

Cindy Reich is a contributing writer to "The Living Tradition", Ayrshire, Scotland, "Irish Music Magazine", Dublin, Ireland, and presents the radio music show, "The Long Acre" on Mondays, 1pm 3pm on 88.9 FM, KRFC - Ft. Collins