Shamtown Records have released a new best collection, celebrating 25 tracks from the 25 years of The Saw Doctors.

This new compilation entitled 25:25 - The Best of The Saw Doctors Vol II is out now and is available from all the major digital retailers, including iTunes and Amazon.

The Track Listing is

1. Downtown (with Petula Clark)

2. Red Cortina (acapella)

3. I Hope You Meet Again (2012)

4. N17 (original recording)

5. Tommy K

6. Friday Town

7. Me Heart is Livin’ in the Sixties Still

8. Takin’ The Train

9. Galway and Mayo

10. Presentation Boarder

11. I’ll Be On My Way (Live)

12. Goodbye Again

13. Wake Up Sleeping

14. Music I Love (2012 Remix)

15. Villains

16. Chips

17. Bless Me Father

18. Out For A Smoke

19. Share The Darkness

20. Mercy Gates

21. You Got Me On The Run

22. Michael D Rockin’ in the Dail

23. Howya Julia

24. Hazard

25. I Useta Lover (Live)

Note: The iTunes version contains an exclusive 17 minutes commentary track in which Davy and Leo discuss the stories behind the songs.

Click here to Purchase 25:25 on iTunes

By George Lenker

The Republican Newspaper

NORTHAMPTON – There are  probably no better lyrics one could use to describe the late Republican music critic Kevin O'Hare than "I will always be your friend until the end."

Those words are from the Saw Doctors' "Never Mind the Strangers," and that was the song the band dedicated to him during a sold-out show at the Calvin Theatre in Northampton Saturday, which also happened to be O'Hare's birthday. He would have been 56.

The touching nod to O'Hare was just one of many highlights from the two-hour show, which drew the usual zealous response for the Docs' ardent fan base.

The band kicked off their night with their recently reprised version of "Michael D. Rocking the Dail" – about current Irish President Michael D. Higgins. The song was written years ago, when Higgins was an Irish senator (the Dail is the Irish senate) but was resurrected when Higgins won the presidency in 2011.

This was followed by "Hazard," a dark-themed tune about rising unemployment in Eire that is driven by an ominous riff from lead guitarist Leo Moran. The band then bounced back to a more upbeat mood, with the always popular "Tommy K," a song that features a dance not dissimilar to the one attached the Village People's "YMCA" and featuring a zippy organ line from keyboardist Kevin Duffy.

Next was the pure pop harmonization that sweetens "Exhilarating Sadness," followed by the wistful take of longing, "Takin' the Train, which showcased the dynamic range of singer Davy Carton's voice. While Carton can belt a tune with the best of them, he handled this song with appropriate finesse.

While the next two songs, "Music I Love" and the gorgeous "Only One Girl" both would have been great songs to dedicate to O'Hare, the band chose the subsequent "Never Mind the Strangers."

A group from O'Hare's extended family, including his wife Suzanne and sons were in the crowd, and Moran acknowledged them while praising O'Hare as a friend and supporter of the band whom they enjoyed knowing before his too-early death in August of last year. The crowd gave a rousing response to the tribute.

The second half of the show featured numerous gems: the anthemic "Clare Island," during which bassist Anthony Thistlethwaite switched to sax and unfurled a powerful and soulful solo; the zydeco feel of jumping "Joyce County Ceili Band" and the ska rhythms of "On My Way," which were deftly guided by drummer extraordinaire Ricky O'Neill.

After ending the set with a rousing "N17," the band returned for a five-song encore, leading off with the pretty "Red Cortina" and ending with the audience-engaging "Hay Wrap."

“Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow”

We’ve got the white stuff here now, but luckily it doesn’t look like we won’t be able to get from A to B. They’re good and used to it over here, plenty a salt on the highways.

The flakes started flakin’ as we were pulling in to Ridgefield yesterday afternoon; wasn’t sticking at that stage but when the gig was finished we had dense and swirling fine white precipitation that certainly was sticking and piling up.

Our support act until Paddy’s night in Philly, The Latchikos, joined the tour last night. Our old fiddler, yarn-teller, singer friend, Aindrias De Staic and the multi-musical Australian, Tim Scanlan, put on a unique show and it’s a lovely element to the tour that we have these two taking the stage before us and putting people in good humour with their daft, distinctive mayhem. If you’re coming to any of the upcoming gigs, come early, you won’t be sorry.

Parked here at a hotel about eight miles from The Paramount in Huntington. The conditions are not inviting for going out for a walk, and there’s nothing visible to walk to anyways. You’d want good boots, or at least very good shoes, for dealing with the slush.

It’s a ‘vegetate on the bus’ couple of hours, after the shower in the day room…….