British born guitarist, composer & folk singer Jamie O’Brien is releasing a new CD entitled “Chasing Ghosts”. Most of the songs are melodious and “jazzy”, and some are yearning songs of lost love, perhaps the “ghosts” of his past. Jamie asks that we mark Thursday, May 5 on our calendars. That is the release date for this new CD album. Musicians will be flying in from the East Coast & celebrating the release with Jamie at Boondocks that evening (3306 North 1st Avenue at 6:30pm).

Jamie on his guitar, courtesy of the musician

My favorites from this particular CD are #1 “Don’t Look Back”, #7 “See You Sometime” and #15 “You Only Wish”. The titles probably reveal the theme of the song’s lyrics. Jamie composed the 18 songs on this CD, and seven in collaboration with Stephen Roud, Ernest Hone, Peter Cooper, or Peter Morson.

He (and Bob Lee)will be performing at Lani’s Luau restaurant (NW corner of Harrison and Golf Links) on Friday April 29 at 6:30 p.m. Call ahead at 520-886-LUAU (5828). And he and some friends are also performing the next day at Lani’s for a fundraising luau (click here for the flyer).

Website: www.launies.com, email jobrien@launies.com to order this CD and others.

I’ve heard Jamie perform at 2nd Saturdays Downtown as well as at Himmel Park branch library and Bookman’s. He performs a lot of Irish Celtic music as well as Hawaiian slack key guitar and on the ukulele. “Uku” is flea and “lele” means jumping in Hawaiian, which is indicative of the lively music of this instrument. He’s also the winner of the 2011 Hawaiian Music Awards Anthology of the Year.

The local musicians accompanying Jamie on this CD are:
Dillon Barr (trumpet)
Phil Borzillo (guitar)
Bruce Campbell (bass)
Jenny Ford (vocals)
Ryck Kaiser (fiddle)
Henry Koreztky (vocals, mandolin, guitar)
Gary Mackender (accordion, Hammond organ)
Paul McKeown (guitar, keyboards, percussion, vocals)
Jon Villa (trumpet)
Dede Wyland (vocals)