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The Connolly Brothers Reunion @ Riley’s: Looking back at then from now.

The Connolly Brothers 1975 crop 2“. . . looking back at then from now.”

That’s a line from “Leaves and Dust,” a song that my brothers and I performed back in our folk-rock salad days. The lyric makes a pretty good tagline for today’s post. (And you can hear our vintage recording of the song by clicking on the link at the bottom of this page.)

Earlier, I blogged about my reunion show with Chris Laughrey, whom I started performing with back in college.  Along the way we opened for The James Gang and Andy M. Stewart, did some radio and TV, put out a couple of CDs (now out of print), and perfected a sound that keeps pulling us back together in spite of the divergent paths life has charted for us over the years.

That reunion performance with Laughrey Connolly was back in May. Now I’m gearing up for an even bigger show, this time with my brother Mark (that’s us in the photo above, circa 1975). Once again, the show will be at Riley’s Pour House, the pub that the readers of Pittsburgh Magazine have named one of the best Irish Pubs in Pittsburgh. The date: Wednesday 17, 8:00 – 11:00PM. Trust me, you don’t want to miss this one.

Lauren and Soundbord crop 1 drotoneMark and I started playing professionally in the mid-70s. We called ourselves The Other Brothers back then, and under that name spent a year performing the coffeehouse circuit before Mark relocated to New York. After that, brother John and I kept The Other Brothers flag flying through the end of the decade, performing five-nights a week with a more electrified version of the folky acoustics that had defined the performances with Mark.

When Mark rejoined us in the 90s, we changed our name to the The Connolly Brothers, which is how we’re being billed at Riley’s, even though we will also be performing with Lauren Connolly Moore (who is carrying on the tradition through another generation!)

Paz & Ukulele Eddy

The dynamic duo of Paz & Ukulele Eddie will kick off an opening set at 8:00 PM.

So save the date. If you’re anywhere in the Pittsburgh vicinity on July 17, you won’t want to miss this one.

Rock on!

Photos: The Connolly Brothers (Lawrence and Mark) in Oakland 1975, photo by Pat McGuire. Lauren at Jerree’s Recording Studio 1991, photo by Lawrence Connolly. Paz & Ukulele Eddie, from their Facebook page.

Music: “Leaves and Dust,” words and music by Lawrence C. Connolly, performed by Mark, John, and Lawrence Connolly, recorded at the Black Frier Studios. Copyright © 1978 by Lawrence C. Connolly. All Rights Reserved. Click here to play: Leaves & Dust by The Connolly Brothers.


2 responses to “The Connolly Brothers Reunion @ Riley’s: Looking back at then from now.”

  1. M.A. Connolly Avatar
    M.A. Connolly

    Can’t wait! How can I send this notice to my facebook page?

  2. Lawrence C. Connolly Avatar
    Lawrence C. Connolly

    Good question. I should see about getting a share button. In the meantime, just copy the link and paste it to a FB post. Should work. Thanks!

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