Jackdaw was a

Celtic rock Celtic rock is a genre of folk rock, as well as a form of Celtic fusion which incorporates Celtic music, instrumentation and themes into a rock music context. It has been extremely prolific since the early 1970s and can be seen as a key foundat ...

band from

Buffalo, NY Buffalo is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of New York (behind only New York City) and the seat of Erie County. It is at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of the Niagara River, and is across the Canadian border from South ...

from 2000 to 2009. One of the group's members,

George Tutuska George Tutuska (born February 27, 1965) is an American musician, best known as the former drummer of the alternative rock band Goo Goo Dolls. Life and career Tutuska is from Buffalo, New York. He is of Irish and Hungarian descent, and he is marr ...

, was a former drummer for the

Goo Goo Dolls The Goo Goo Dolls are an American rock band formed in 1986 in Buffalo, New York, by guitarist/vocalist John Rzeznik, bassist/vocalist Robby Takac, and drummer George Tutuska. After starting off as a cover band and then developing a punk sound, ...

. The band formed in 2000, when Tim Byrne, returning from Europe and Tutuska looking to do something different approached singer/songwriter and Celtic performer Geno McManus about joining him up on his annual "Irish Week" of gigs. After a night of "hanging and drinking" with Tim and George the idea of the band was formed and they started the idea to create a "Brick Throwing" Celtic Rock band, that was "Factory Born" and based on their Irish heritage and industrial

South Buffalo South Buffalo is a neighborhood that makes up the southern third of the City of Buffalo, New York. Traditionally known for its large Irish-American community, this community also has a strong presence of various other nationalities. The once-hea ...

area roots. McManus then recruited Tommy Jordan to play bass (Jordan also came up with the band's name based on a passage from the Frank McCourt memoir ''

Angela's Ashes ''Angela's Ashes: A Memoir'' is a 1996 memoir by the Irish-American author Frank McCourt, with various anecdotes and stories of his childhood. The book details his very early childhood in Brooklyn, New York, US but focuses primarily on his life ...

''), and thus the core band was formed. The songs "Maggie" and "Raise a Glass" were penned during these first rehearsals. As the core members rehearsed, wrote and performed more, they decided they needed to search for additional players, in order to balance the "raw style" with the traditional "celtic sound." It was then that principal songwriter Byrne found and recruited multi-instrumentalist David Moore, while Tommy Jordan recruited long-time friend Joe Davies to play violin. In late 2000, McManus left the band. Mike Jordan, who replaced McManus to provide vocals and guitar, left the band in November 2004. The band remained a five-piece group until their break-up in 2009 after Byrne left. In 2006, a compilation of their first three albums and EPs entitled ''Brilliant, Sad & Guilty'' was released. The two-disc album included interviews, live tracks, and studio outtakes. Jackdaw lovingly refers to its most devout followers as the "Jacks" and "Jackies." Jackdaw won Buffalo's Best Rock Band (and on one occasion beating fellow nominee the

), presented by the free publication

Artvoice ''Artvoice'' is an American web based publication covering arts, business, and general editorial news nationally and internationally. Artvoice began in Buffalo, New York, in 1990 as a free weekly print publication with a 65,000 circulation. ''Artv ...

, in 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, and 2007. The band toured the eastern states extensively and Ireland, opened for

Dropkick Murphys Dropkick Murphys are an American Celtic punk band formed in Quincy, Massachusetts in 1996. Singer and bassist Ken Casey has been the band's only constant member. Other current members include drummer Matt Kelly (1997– ), singer Al Barr (199 ...

Thursday at the Square ''Thursday at the Square'' was a free weekly concert series held annually from May through August in downtown Buffalo, New York at Lafayette Square. History The first year of the series was held in downtown Buffalo at the corner of Main and Chi ...

. In July 2007, the band opened for

Pete Best Randolph Peter Best (né Scanland; born 24 November 1941) is an English musician known as the drummer of the English rock band the Beatles who was dismissed immediately prior to the band achieving worldwide fame. Fired from the group in 1962 ...

and his band at Club Infinity in

Williamsville, NY Williamsville is a village in Erie County, New York, United States. The population was 5,423 at the 2020 census. The village is named after Jonas Williams, an early settler. It is part of the Buffalo–Niagara Falls Metropolitan Statistical ...

Former members

* Geno McManus: vocals and guitars *Tim Byrne (founding member): guitar, mandolin, banjo, piano, vocals *Joe Davies: fiddle *Tommy Jordan: bass, backing vocals *David A. Moore: accordion, highland bagpipes, uilleann pipes, whistles, concertina, buttonbox,

hurdy-gurdy The hurdy-gurdy is a string instrument that produces sound by a hand-crank-turned, rosined wheel rubbing against the strings. The wheel functions much like a violin bow, and single notes played on the instrument sound similar to those of a vio ...

, vocals *

(founding member): drums * Mike Jordan: vocals, lead guitar

Discography

Albums

''Armed And Legged'' (2000) ''Jackdaw'' (2001) ''Triple Crown'' (2004) ''Brilliant, Sad & Guilty'' (2006)
Blackgrass
' (2007)

EPs

''Whiskey'' (2001) *1) Where is Claire? *2) Devil With One Leg *3) So Far ''Seven'' (2001) *1) Butcher Boy *2) Black Cat Luck *3) LV82

Singles

''Cruel/The Book'' (2004) *1) Cruel *2) The Book (Losing, My Friend) coustic

Compilations

*''Paddy Rock Radio Volume 1'' - (Something About Nothing) *''Shite'n'Onions Volume 2'' - (Hogjaw) *''Bring It Back To Life'' - (Pigtail Man)

References

* "Blackgrass" CD Review
Susan Marie Public Relations

Buffalo Rising
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jackdaw Punk rock groups from New York (state) Celtic punk groups Street punk groups