County Line: Carbondale's Honorary Irishmen

Local Americana trio County Line might not be the first local band that comes to mind when thinking about a Saint Patrick's Day celebration. However, the folksy three share more than just the same musical spirit of Irish folk music-- last May, mandolin and fiddle player John Beck, double-bass player Sam West, and guitarist Tim Whiteford spent nearly two weeks touring Ireland, including Dublin, Lucan, and Leixlip. The band also released their CD Jackson to their Irish fans, and will have the disc available for the first time in America for their Saint Paddy's Day show Thursday, March 17 at Tres Hombres. They will also perform Friday, March 18 at Rustle Hill Winery, and Saturday, March 19 at Trail's End Lodge.

County Line began playing together in 2006. As yet another band for the busy musicians-- the three men also populate other groups, including the Sam West Trio, Barnacle Billy and the Zebra Mussels, the Rum Runners, and the Soothsayers Jug Band-- Beck, West, and Whiteford got the chance of a lifetime to perform their zestful bluegrass-inspired Americana overseas in 2010.

For West, the Ireland tour was an amazing experience. "We really took in the countryside, played mostly pubs in the east and west, [and] sometimes in some off-the-beaten-path areas where the real magic happens," says West. "The Irish love bluegrass and acoustic music. County Line is definitely not traditional bluegrass, but it didn't seem to matter. It was always about putting on a good show and engaging the audience. We were met with a very enthusiastic, genuine response from everybody."

The band kept an online diary of their tour that can be found on the band's Facebook page. When not performing for their audience, County Line took in the countryside, including LaGrange (home to ancient stone tombs), jammed with some local musicians, ate traditional Irish food, and, of course, visited a Guinness Brewery.

While the trio was in an English-speaking country, they certainly found many cultural differences, even with traditional Irish music, of which they heard a lot. "There's no bass in that music, so when we walked into a pub with an upright bass, right away, it was something different," says West.

"It's interesting that although we all spoke English, there was definitely a language barrier," West adds. "I think half the time when we'd talk to the crowd, they didn't know what we were saying. And at the end of the night, after several pints, dialects would get thicker, and it was us who were just nodding our heads wondering what was the hell this guy was saying."

While in Ireland, County Line released their CD Jackson, a ten-track recording that was recorded both at Misunderstudio in Murphysboro and, as Beck puts it, recorded live hunched around a microphone. "It's kind of cool to have both [recordings] on one album," says Beck, "as they are kind of opposites when it comes to recording techniques."

Containing nine original tracks and a cover of Lionel Richie's "All Night Long," Jackson will in fact be the disc's second pressing. "We sold all our copies at the end of last year's tour [in Ireland]," says West. "We've got a new batch in anticipation of our local shows-- and I suppose you could say it's our first U.S. release. It's worth a purchase."

County Line has just booked a performance at the Westport Bluegrass Festival in June, so it looks like the boys will return to the land of Green nearly a year after their first Irish Tour. Before then, catch the lads locally for a pint or two.

Find out more about County Line on Facebook.

who: County Line

what: bluegrass CD release and Saint Patrick's Day parties

where: Tres Hombres; Rustle Hill Winery; Trail's End Lodge

when: Thursday, March 17; Friday, March 18; Saturday, March 19