Tiger's Island' is the first album from Irish American outfit Shirae and covers varying moods from Folk to Traditional, Rock and World Music etched with an autobiographical narrative strain. John O'Regan reports.

It crosses into singer/songwriter territory with a natural storyteller's finesse, but it is no idle collection of rose-tinted recollections. The stories from the up tempo 'Granny' to Sorry Flowers' 'Silent People' and the closing 'September' are carved from real life events, tragedy, joy, emigration, loss, and family pride.

Shirae is made up of mother and daughter Reidin O'Flynn and Shireen Russell. Now based in New York the family has Irish roots in Ballyhea near Charleville, County Cork Reidin now lives in the Catskills, while Shireen having graduated with a psychology degree from Rochester University lives in Boston, She also represented New York State in the 2002 Rose of Tralee contest where she sang 'September' the pivotal song on 'Tiger's Island'.

'Tiger's Island' refers not to a place but departed family member Tiger was my brother and rather than call the album 'September' we decided to call it Tigers Island'. He was one of my six brothers and growing up under the Clancy influence we all sang. Although we all sang together, we all had our own song that the others didn't invade and Tiger's songs was 'Will Ye Go lassie Go?' And I wrote 'September' for him as he was born in September and he was killed in September and I weaved 'Will Ye Co Lassie Go?' into the song" Reidin explained.

The O' Flynn family kept singing as a life¬line, "People used to say that the family that prays together stays together but for us it was the family that sings together stays together. We always had a great tradition of singing'. While not being particularly affluent, the family possessed a lasting legacy "whatever about being poor but happy, I would say that we were poor but rich. We grew up in a house that was rich in music. Although we never had records, we listened to the radio a lot and through that heard Classical Music and |jazz and also Ciaran Mac Mathuna's traditional music programs on RTE.

"We also had the tradition 01 having sessions in the house. My father who was a great singer used to hold the tradition of the 'Noble Call' in which he'd ask someone to sing, and if they didn't sing he would end the session there and then. People had lo have their party pieces ready! We used also have the Sunday fry after Mass which would usually go on for hours and include a session and having local singers and musicians corning to the house was a regular occurrence. "

Emancipation happened through an influential source "The Clancy Brothers were our rock and roll, my brothers and I loved their singing and the way they handled the ballads and Liam Clancy to me is the greatest singer of all lime." Getting her first break in a ballad competition in Kilfinane Co. Limerick, Reidin and her brother relished the opportunity "We entered this competition and won the first prize of £15, which was great money at the time'. This would have been at the cusp of the ballad boom when other familial groupings such as The Johnstons' and the Pattersons' were also springing up,"

Having listened lo Tigers Island' many times, with its refreshing contemporary Irish Folk/Pop/Rock sound and musical approach bordering on 60/70's fusion, it recalls The lohnstons1 and particularly Adrienne's solo album f Adrienne Johnston of The Johnstons' released by KCA in 1 *)7^}. Reidin also bares both a vocal and physical resemblance to the late Adrienne that borders on the surreal. I am not alone in making this comparison, Nicky Rossiter's CD review in this magazine hinted at a similar connection. Maybe it's the red hair, the vivacious personality, the singing family background or the vocal sound rich and strong, full 01 confidence and verbal cohesion complete with a natural earthbound timbre that does it! Who knows? But it does reconnect with something we have lost in Irish music.

Reidin on reaching school leaving age decamped with the family to London where she worked in the area of finance. When married, her entire family moved to America settling in The Catskills. Wanting to return to work while waiting for her Visa, Reidin decided to embark on a business Career "I knew how lo clean houses but I didn't want to be classed as a maid so I came up with an idea that I would offer my services to clean family antiques, silver etc and started my own business doing this," Living in an affluent area she worked for wealthy patrons and picked up some high profile work.

Raising her own family with the same discipline as he had known herself she fostered a love of Irish culture and also kept up the session and the Sunday fry traditions. "I have tried to keep the life that I came from and its amazing that Irish American families and families in Ireland have kept that Irish feel about their lives and that's what I struggled to keep for myself and my kids. I am delighted to see that Shireen has kept up the culture and the singing. I was blown away when she sang her first Irish song to me some years ago, I never expected it from her as she was listening to Jewel, and Alanis Morrissette, We were at one of our kitchen sessions and Shireen sang The Wicklow Boy1 and it blew me away." To instill a wholesome discipline, television was banned except for weekends and by culling down on luxuries her own family grew up solidly grounded in family values and aware of their native folklore. This made visits to the household a novelty for Shireen's friends including the session and the noble call.

On her separation and eventual divorce, Reidin moved further into the Catskills where she lives now on a house by a lake. She works from home having moved from the antique cleaning service into caring for Alzheimer's patients. Highly involved in cultural aspects of life in her new-found community, Reidin's life was in order, however tragedy brought a new epoch. 'After my brother’s death, I started writing songs but in a different way than before when a friend of mine gave me a present 01 a Physic reading and while I went along for a laugh, it had more to it than I though!. The psychic asked me what my talent was and I said that I loved to sing and she then said that I was holding back and so I said that I wanted to write songs. Her words were you want to write the perfect song, you must lose the ego. Thai floored me'.

Forgetting writing lo formula, Reidin O'Flynn gleaned her ideas from experience and wrote 'September' for her late brother. Many people thought that it was in the wake of 9/11 but it was a comment on loss following her brother's death. More songs followed 'Sorry Flowers', 'Silent People' based on the famine and more, suddenly the events of an early life in the Cork countryside flowed into a New York minute and songs with an identity and clear sense of realism and meaning emerged.

The recording sessions for 'Tigers Island's produced by Scott Apicelli followed an open house criteria recalling the Sunday fry sessions where nothing was invalid. 'The album treated itself as we recorded it, we had no set ideas when we started recording it as to how it would go'.

Shirae the duo is now backed by a five-piece band including the rhythm section from Hair of the Dog and have played the local festival rounds to great acclaim. The seeds of another album are fizzing through Reidin O'Flynn's brain, as is their next project, film music. Already they are in the process of cutting a version of 'Ard Ti Cuan' for a documentary, and there is also the hope of Irish distribution for 'Tiger's Island".

So how would I summarize their impact? Genetics and family culture work hand in hand for this duo, harmonies come easily, there's a telepathy, and musk: is an umbilical cord holding their truth together.

John O'Regan - Irish Music Magazine