With all six players in The McKrells capable of lead singer status the harmony vocals of this collective of like-minded musicians is stunning, the energy explosive, each song a gem. They make their appearance at the Music Hall Main Stage, McCrobie Civic Center, 41 Lake Street, Oswego on Saturday, February 25.

The line-up can be said to be a Who's Who of North Country Roots Music, with each player a top draw in their own right.

Kevin McKrell pioneered American Celtic music beginning in 1979 with the band Donnybrook Fair. The original trio of Jeff Strange, David McDonnell and McKrell's 1982 album Tunnel Tigers remains a landmark of the form with its blend of Clancy Brothers swagger and upstate NY attitude. Donnybrook toured throughout the U.S. and Ireland performing in classic Irish Folk music rooms McAfferty's Red Hand in St. Paul Minnesota, The Patriot Game in San Diego, The Irish Village Chicago, O'Donaghue's The Blarney Stone, Pittsburgh, The Embankment, Tallaght Co. Dublin, The Parting Glass Saratoga Springs NY. In 1998, McKrell—who has four solo albums to his credit—formed a powerhouse band under his own name, merging the Irish sensibility of Donnybrook with a steely, world class bluegrass edge. McKrell, a respected portrait painter is best known for his indelible songs—classics like 'Donegal', 'You and Me’, 'I Miss the Rain' and the eternal 'All of The Hard Days Are Gone'—which have been sung and recorded by artists like The Kingston Trio, from Ireland, The Furey Brothers, Seamus Kennedy, The Druids, The Dublin City Ramblers from Scotland North Sea Gas, from Australia Pat McKernan. From the US Bob Shane, Hair of the Dog, Wood’s Tea Company, Get Up Jack and many many more. Kevin and his bands have performed for audiences at the top Celtic, Folk and Bluegrass festivals as well as Carnegie Hall, Lincoln  Center, Troy Music Hall, Caffé Lena, Berklee Performance Hall, Proctors Theater, The Sellersville Theater, Saratoga Performing Arts Center, The Egg, North Texas Irish Festival, The Landmark Theater Syracuse, Milwaukee Irish Festival, Celtic Classic, The Great American Irish Festival, MusikFest, Falcon Ridge Folk Festival, Winterhawk Bluegrass festival are some of the top venues where Kevin and his bands have appeared.

Arlin Greene has toured the world with the likes of The McKrells, Bill Keith, Dan Tyminski, James "D Train"Williams, Bolton, Nolan and Greene, Big Medicine, George Fletchers, Folding Money, and The Trophy Husbands.

Peter Pashoukos has been a mainstay in the Saratoga and Capital Region music community for over 20 years. An original member of Garland Nelson’s Soul Session, half of the award-winning acoustic duo, The Tequila Mockingbirds, as well as being a “hired gun” for many local bands has quietly made him one of the busiest guitar players around. Throughout his career he has performed at the Tulip Festival, The Egg, Caffe Lena (in support of several groups as well as a sold-out performance for The Tequila Mockingbirds), The Linda Norris Auditorium, The Universal Preservation Hall. Self-taught, Peter draws inspiration from many genres from Soul to Bluegrass which comes through in his phrasing, speed, and playfulness. In recent years Peter has also received acclaim as a ukulele player having taught and performed at Festivals from the Flower City Ukulele Festival in Rochester, N.Y. to Seoul S. Korea for the 13th annual Aloha Ukulele Festival. Currently Peter performs solo. Sometimes utilizing looping and other techniques. He is the lead singer of Saratoga based R&B/rock/blues trio, Perennial; as well as having the pleasure of contributing and being a member of The McKrell’s.
 

Brian Melick has been professionally involved in music for over 42 years starting his career at the age of 14. As a recording artist, he has been featured on over 400 releases both for independent as well as major labels. He has four releases under his own name “Percussive Voices”, “uduboy”, “Diverse Elements” and “In Motion”. The first three, respectfully, have also been released as sound libraries for commercial industrial use and are finding much success on several major networks, cable networks and motion picture organizations such as Discover Channel, The Learning Channel, Disney, Columbia Pictures, and NBC to name just a few. As an Educator, Brian has developed several diverse participatory programs exploring the world of percussion, the world of udu drum as well as creating percussion instruments out of found objects. He holds several U.S. Patents for his custom designed percussion stands and built and performs on the first ever Lego Drum Set which was featured in the international drum magazine Modern Drummer. Brian made a second Lego Drum Set for the permanent collection of Percussive Arts Society’s international percussion museum known as Rhythm! Discovery Center in Indianapolis Indiana. Brian maintains a very diverse recording and teaching schedule as well as performing throughout the US and Canada including producing his own 4-part concert series’ “Acoustic Doorways” and “ONE World Music” 

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For many years Frank Orsini has been one of the prominent acoustic musicians on the Upstate New York music scene, playing fiddle, viola, mandolin and guitar. A versatile fiddler and a seasoned ensemble player and singer, he has been a member of many long-standing established groups. Frank has also worked as a free-lance player in countless live performance situations and recording projects. Decades of studying and playing many styles of fiddling have given him a wide-ranging versatility and repertoire on the instrument, from older, traditional material through more contemporary styles, and he also enjoys switching to viola, mandolin or guitar in the appropriate musical situation. A sampling from Frank’s repertoire may include an Elizabethan or early music selection, Celtic music from a variety of sources, Old-time fiddle tunes from the Southern mountain tradition, New England and Canadian dance tunes, Bluegrass and Country classics, Cajun, blues and ethnic selections as well as Urban and Western swing standards.

For further information, visit https://themckrells.com/home or the McKrells Music Facebook page.

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The Winter/ Spring season continues with Guy Davis on the 11 and Deeper Than Skin w/ Greg Greenway and Reggie Harris on the 25. April shows include Jonathan Byrd on the 15 and the Burns Sisters Band on the 29. The Season Finale on May 13 will feature Annie Sumi & Travis Knapp. 

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