When the Irish find their prodigal son was last year’s MTC post about the music of the Irish/bluegrass band JigJam. Earlier this week these terrific musicians were back in the Washington area, set to play one of the summertime Lawn Concerts at the Strathmore Music Center in nearby Bethesda, Maryland.

Only the weather didn’t cooperate. Or perhaps it did in the end.

The forecast on Wednesday was for hot, muggy temperatures with a very good chance of thunderstorms. So what else is new. To be safe, the Strathmore folks moved the concert into the world class music hall.

As lead singer and guitarist Jamie McKeogh said as they arrived on stage, “Well, it is a little smaller than the rooms we’re use to playing, but it will do.”

JigJam’s 90 minute show—held in the cool, mosquito-free, dry, and acoustically marvelous concert hall—was a delight . . . and I suspect few missed the miserable heat or the downpour that was pelting the lawn as the band was playing its final notes for the evening.

Besides McKeogh (lead singer and guitar) and Daithi Melia (5 string banjo and dobro), both from Offaly, Ireland; JigJam is composed of Tipperary-born Gavin Strappe (mandolin and tenor banjo); and the only non-Irish member of the band, Kevin Buckley (fiddle) from Missouri. On Wednesday New York native Matty Mancuso—the regular fiddler for the Irish band The Jerimiahs—sat in on fiddle as a quick substitution for Buckley.

Mancuso didn’t miss a beat.

JigJam opened Wednesday’s show with the classic Good Ole Mountain Dew.

Bluegrass, as I noted last year, was formed out of a number of cultural influences, but among the strongest is Irish music as brought over by the Irish diaspora. And while there are many examples of American bluegrass and roots musicians who travel to Ireland to explore their musical heritage, there are not a lot of examples of bluegrass bands from Ireland who cause a stir in America.

Until now.

JigJam is rectifying that oversight and making waves throughout the roots music community. Across the Pond, released in 2024, is the band’s most recent album, and music from that set as well as earlier efforts were spotlighted during the Strathmore show. The reimagined old Irish song The Wild Rover was a big hit with the knowledgeable concert audience.

The band handles all sorts of instrumental pieces exceptionally well. Bluegrass Today called out the “exceedingly jaunty” sound of The Appalachian Irishman as well as the “infectious Cluck Ole Twig, a play on the Appalachian favorite, Cluck Old Hen.” The latter is a great jam tune for these four musicians, and they make the most of it.

Many writers and fan have compared the band’s progressive sound to the seminal New Grass Revival. On the most recent album they included a NGR classic, This Heart of Mine.

Appropriately they ended Wednesday’s very satisfying show with their original Time to Go Home.

JigJam continues to tour this summer, so look for them at a venue or festival near you.

More to come . . .

DJB

Band photo credit JigJam.ie; photos of JigJam in concert by DJB; photo of Strathmore exterior credit Judy Davis for Strathmore; interior photo credit American Hardwood Export Council.