Martin Marron

"The first time The Saw Doctors managed to make it to Norfolk, VA was February of 2002. Martin and Charlie were opening the show and that was immediately apparent. They had the audience in the palms of their hands, worked up to a frenzy, as they obviously must do on a regular basis around the venues of Norfolk and beyond. They joined us later on for a rockin' version of 'Joyce Country Céili Band' and proved themselves shams of the highest order. I thought it was a great steam!"

Leo Moran, The Saw Doctors

Armed only with an acoustic guitar, and a comedic wit, has been winning fans over since 1986. Along with singing Irish standards like The Wild Rover and Whiskey In The Jar with some classic ballads thrown in, Martin may be better known for his bawdy Sing-A-Longs, and his audience-participation songs. Music and jokes aside, Martin's trademark may be the one word he uses to end all of his songs: "T'anks!" Thanks, that is. Born in Chicago, raised in Co. Sligo, Ireland, he moved back to Chicago in 1982. Three years later he joined the long established folk group The Irish Minstrels, and later went on to play with the likes of Denis Allen, Martin Hayes, and others. Martin played bass guitar with The Dublin City Ramblers during their 1988 U.S. tour and was also a founding member of Stephen's Green. Since then, Martin has played from "Boolya to Ballymagash" and back again and has thrice played as support for The Saw Doctors. Now living in Virginia Beach, Martin plays at Mo & O'Malley's Irish Pub in Norfolk on a regular basis, which has necessitated the bar's expansion in January of 2004.

We're Windy City Irish - Martin Marron 2006
"By the time I returned from Ireland in 1982, I had learned the grand total of zero Irish songs, though I might have been able for the chorus of the Black Velvet Band...maybe. A great deal of my time was spent going ‘round to all the pubs in the Chicago area to places like the Irish Village, Shannon’s Landing, the Atlantic, Fox’s, etc. It was a great time for Irish music in those days with groups like The Irish Minstrels, The Parting Glass, The Irish Brigade, The Celtic Aires to name a few. This is where I learned my trade. Chicago. So when it came time for me to record again I decided to pay tribute to the bands that influenced me".