The Lucky Charms

Community Living

Irish and Celtic sounds

Local musician adds talent to band The Lucky Charms

By: Community Living

Irish and Celtic sounds

Local musician adds talent to band The Lucky Charms

By: Emily Hoffman

Wednesday, January 17, 2007 4:25 PM CST


Even before you reach the belly of the Weston Brewing Co., the harmonious melodies of The Lucky Charms snake up the stairs. Kearney resident Dori Walker Como coaxes music from the bodhran, and Irish drum, while harmonizing to the voices of Alaina Romine and Christine Pugh, two other members of the band.

Tonight it is three women who gather to entertain patrons. The fourth member of The Lucky Charms, Gerry Monks, usually doesn’t join the rest on their regular Thursday night gig. He waits for Friday nights at Marfield’s in Leavenworth, Kan.

Enthusiasm for the Irish ballads comes through in their vocals and the easy tone of their guitars. The group moves from song to song, from genre to genre with ease. The small crowd grows quiet as they sing “Zombie,” made popular by The Cranberries.

“We’re really diverse,” Como says. “We sing new Irish, old Irish, fighting songs and drinking songs.”

Where they play is also diverse.

“We love to do festivals. We love to do pubs,” Como says. “That’s a natural place for a Celtic band to be.”

Using vocal harmonies, guitar and the bodhran, the group performs Celtic folk, Irish folk, traditional Celtic and American folk music. The band has been together for 8 or 9 months and released its first CD this month. For being together such a short time, Como is thrilled at their success.

“To be where we are, we’re really excited,” Como says. “We love to create a following.”

Como loves music. It plays in her head though out the day. It’s in her hands as she taps the bodhran and sings.

“I help them keep their beat,” she says.

She’s been involved in the Celtic culture for years. It’s in her blood and a part of her heritage. Music filled her house during her early years as her dad played the played the bagpipes.

Como is the oldest of three girls. All have been Scottish and Irish dancers from their youth. She started teaching professional Scottish dancing and as a child took part in competitive Irish dancing.

She and her husband moved to Kearney from Omaha, Neb., in October. They were ready for a change, and both were plugged into the Celtic community in the Kansas City area.

Como had been with a band in Omaha for three years. While playing with that group, she met the editor of Irish Focus, a Midwest Irish newspaper. He said he had a friend looking for a bodhran player.

When Pugh, founder of The Lucky Charms, met, then performed with Como, she knew she’d found the missing link for the band.

“When we got Dori, we knew right away it was going to work out,” Pugh said.

As the night wears on at the Weston Brewing Co., The Lucky Charms begin to include the audience, asking them to sing along with the group. A table of men joins the song with hearty voices.

They have to turn off the microphones at 9 p.m., the time the bar closes on weeknights. But they’ll strap on their guitars — Walker her bodhran — again tomorrow night when they perform at Marfield’s.

Visit the Web page of The Lucky Charms — www.theluckycharms.com — to hear clips of their music and to purchase copies of their new release, “The Lucky Charms.”

Kearney Editor Emily Hoffman can be reached at 628-6010 or ehoffman@kearneycourier.com.



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- ehoffman@kearneycourier.com.

Sunday, January 07, 2007
The Lucky Charms

Sunday, January 07, 2007
The Lucky Charms

I've been charmed.
I chanced upon The Lucky Charms at O'Malley's Pub in Weston when a few friends gathered in the underground venue to celebrate my niece Jessie's birthday. I've seen them twice since, and have at least two future dates inked to date.
Go to www.theluckycharms.com and, because they are nice folk, you can listen to some of their music free. Or you can buy their debut CD, which I'll review for you now.
The Lucky Charms is a nice sampling of what this band from the greater Kansas City area does best: harmony, nice playing, and fun - all with a bit o' the Irish mixed in to spice it up.
Although five of the 11 cuts are termed "traditional," The Lucky Charms make them their own, such as "Nancy Whiskey," in which they nicely blend a bit of the standard "Heart and Soul." It's a catchy tune, about drinking of course, and I find myself humming it several times a day.
But the one that comes to me the most is Dominic Behan's "Black & Tans." It's a rousing song with definite Irish roots. It stands alone, but if you take the time to Google or Wikapedia the demons who carried that nickname, you'll get a definite appreciation for why it's one The Lucky Charms really belt out. And they "charm" it a bit, too - slipping in someof The Ramones "What I Like About You."
As you can learn on their website, The Lucky Charms is made up of three ladies and a gentleman. Christine "Cricket" Pugh is the original member; she plays guitar, flute and tin whistle. Alaina Romine plays guitar and bass. Dori Walker Como plays the Irish drum. Gerry Monks plays guitar and mandolin.
And they all sing ... very well. The harmony of the three women is a real treat - check out "The Skye Boat Song" on the website as a good example. And aside from his excellent playing, Gerry comes through very strong on his two original songs on the CD, "The New World," a upbeat song that can stir the heart of anyone who can trace their family tree to the Emerald Isle, and "One Last Jar" (again, about drinking) which is my second favorite song on the CD (next to "Black & Tans.")
The Lucky Charms is an outstanding first effort for the group. But if you want to fully appreciate it, you're going to have to come hear them perform so you can be charmed as well.
Having both packed-house and snow-restricted shows to compare, I can testify that they are great fun. They'll mix songs from the CD with a wide variety of American folk, Celtic tunes, and covers, ranging from Janis Joplin to Richard Thompson. If Cricket doesn't have the song in her head or her Big Book, she'll do it best to have it ready when you come back for another show ... and you will come back.
The Lucky Charms both entertain and involve their audiences, giving little assignments that range from singing a bit to drinking a bit to spewing a bit of mild profanity - all in fun, of course. And even if she doesn't bring along her dancing shoes, make sure to get Dori to lead you through "The Unicorn Song."
Here's wishing The Lucky Charms good luck with their CD! Best wishes for many more!

- John Myers