Another young singer from Donegal is making waves in the north west. Keelan Arbuckle is 14 years old and hails from the village of Burnfoot. He has just released a debut 10-track album, That’s Important To Me, as well as a single, That Summer.

Keelan, who is being promoted by manager Steve Bloor, starting taking guitar lessons five years ago and started to feature in the school choir and concerts. He scooped the Clonmany Talent U-15 event at the age of 12.

Last year, Keelan, who is a student at Crana College in Buncrana, was one of the top four prize winners at the Roaring Meg Busking Festival. He also played the Clipper Festival in Derry.

Some of his videos have been shown on the various country shows on Sky television and he has started to perform as a guest at shows around Ireland.

Keelan is the featured guest on the Frank Kilbride Show on Sky 266 on Tuesday 7 July at 9.30pm, with a repeat in the same time slot on Thursday 9 July.

For frther details in relation to Keelan, contact his manager Steve Bloor on 087-1754633. CL

The annual Mick Flavin and Friends Weekend returns to the McWilliam Park Hotel in Claremorris this year. The event will be held on the weekend of 11-13 September.

Mick and the band will be on stage on the Friday and Saturday nights shows as well as the Sunday afternoon show. His guests on Friday night are Gerry Guthrie and his band, while young Cavan-based singer Shane Owens and band will be Mick’s guests on the Saturday night show.

For further details about the weekend, contact the hotel on 094-9378000.

This week also sees the release of his new single, Just A Little Too Much, a song composed by American country singer Johnny Burnette and originally recorded by the late Ricky Nelson. CL

Longford native Dermot Hegarty, who came to national prominence when he scored a massive No 1 hit back in 1970 with Twenty One Years, is putting the finishing touches to a new album.

“It’s been a while since I released an album and I have put a lot of thought into this new one,” Dermot told Irish Country Sound at the recent Enjoy Travel Festival week in the Diamond Coast Hotel in Enniscrone.

“I hope to have it ready for launch in the coming months.

“I’ll be 50 years involved in the business next year, so that might be a good time to do a nostalgic tour of selected venues around the country.”

Dermot is a regular performer on many of the Enjoy Travel shows in Ireland, the UK, Spain and Portugal.

“I still love the stage as much as ever and it’s great to keep in touch with people from everywhere such as Antrim down to Cork.

“Though I have lived in England for many years, the music scene gives me a special link with so many people.

“Not a show goes by that people don’t come up and share some memories from over the years.”

Tipperary ready to Cut Loose once again

The Cut Loose Country Festival at Holycross, Co Tipperary, has become a regular fixture on the music scene in recent years.

It is full steam ahead for the big day again this year, which will be held on Sunday, 19 July, from 1pm to 7pm at the spacious venue in Tipperary.

The headline acts this year are Nathan Carter, Michael English, Robert Mizzell, Mike Denver and Lisa McHugh. The hard-working committee are once again putting a major push behind this event which attracts people from over many counties to the Holycross venue, just a few miles from Thurles.

Tickets for the show are priced at €20 and are available from several outlets in the Tipperary region as well as online at holycrossmusicfestival.eventbrite.ie

Those were

the days

Forty years ago in 1975, Margo O’Donnell and Larry Cunningham recorded their first duet, Yes Mr Peters.

The song was a major success for them and some months later they released an album of duets.

Larry (RIP) and Margo toured Ireland and the UK with The Country Blue Boys and attracted major crowds in that era. Both were superstars on the country scene in those times.