In the small hamlet of Oak Ridge, Tennessee is a theater called the Grove. It used to be a movie theater, but that was decades ago. Over the most recent years, it has been owned by a church, but one who understands that to stay in business, they should open up their venue to different events that have nothing to do with religion. Unless, of course, one counts music as a religion.
For the last decade-plus, in early February (normally), the Grove has been home to one of the most underrated music festivals in the United States. There are reasons for this (one needs to be a fan of Irish music, but one should), but one of the keys to the event called Tune Junkie is that it isn't just about listening to music. It is about how the music is made.
The festival also includes classes taught by some of the musicians who feature in the main concert that ends the weekend. These aren't by rote classes, though. One gets to know about the music they are learning, and the songs are not easy. They get complex, and the student is challenged. The payoff is fantastic.
Tune Junkie weekend proves to be a success once again
But the concert that ends Tune Junkie is overwhelmingly great. Hosted mainly by a group called Four Leaf Peat, the invitees come from both sides of the pond. The weekend is about the love of traditional Irish music, and to be sure, some of the musicians who attend the weekend are Irish. But not all, and that is important.
The influences felt by the audience watching the show are several. Opener Liz Hanley remade a Grateful Dead tune and a Tom Waits song into the Irish genre. Both sounded wonderful and likely, the original artist would have been honored by the care Hanley and bandmate Don Penzien took to make sure the structure remained the same but was augmented by the perceived simpleness of violin and acoustic guitar.
The show is split into two sides, and the second set opens with Englishman John Skelton. He turns his flute and whistle into magical instruments for good. One will find themselves tapping their foot almost absentmindedly. That is how high the quality of the music is. One becomes a part of it without even playing an instrument on stage.
The first set ends with Four Leaf Peat, though. This is part of the Tune Junkie weekend tradition. The band plays without ego (if they were too much of that then other musicians might not attend the event; they would likely feel as if they are just opening acts of a Four Leaf Peat concert). Still, the 21 years they have put into being a four-piece band always pays off.
They are seamless and bring the full thrust of what Irish music is about to bear. There is sadness to the tunes, but joy as well. By the end of the weekend, one might be inspired to learn an instrument and join in when the next year comes around for Tune Junkie.