Coleman Centre to host Country Night

A Country Night will be held at the Coleman Music Centre in Gurteen, Co Sligo, on Thursday, May 29th, at 8pm with a great line-up.

Performers will include Carmel McLoughlin, Gerry Guthrie and Effie Neill, as well as music by Brian Kerrigan and Matt Curran.

Carmel McLoughlin is from Co Roscommon and is well known on the music scene, the length and breadth of Ireland, UK and Scotland.

In 2009, Carmel was the overall winner of the hugely popular Irish Country Show Glór Tíre.

Gerry Guthrie needs no introduction to readers of the Western People. The Ballina-based singer has been fronting his own five-piece touring band since 2010. During this time, he has toured extensively throughout Ireland. Gerry’s success on the Country music scene in England and Scotland has in a relatively short time made him a household name in the UK.

In the years preceding the launch of his own band, Gerry worked as a guitar player with several leading Irish artists including Country legends Sandy Kelly, Louise Morrissey, Martin Cuffe and Shawn Cuddy. He also pursued a hugely successful solo career, mainly in Connacht.

To date, Gerry has released six studio albums and a number of promotional singles including The Lucky Horseshoe, which was written especially for him by his longtime friend and manager, Henry Mc Mahon. Other radio hits released by Gerry include The Boxer, New Moon Over My Shoulder, Did She Mention My Name, Another Saturday Night and The Doghouse.

Effie Neill is from a little village on the Beara Peninsula in West Cork. She learned her first song, You Are My Sunshine, from her grandmother when she was five years old.

Her brother gave her, her first 'Chord' guitar for Christmas, which gave her the inspiration to pick up the instrument.

At the age of 14, she was hired for her first job in Kilgarvan’s O’Reilly Bar. After that, her career began to progressively take off.

Her mother Catherine invited her to join her in her business, and she occasionally accompanied her to weddings and funerals.

She competed in the Cowboys and Heroes competition in Co Leitrim in June 2023, and won the festival. The award was the opportunity to record a single, Country is the Best, written by Niall O’Brien which peaked at number one on the Irish Country charts.

Effie's career in Irish Country music was launched on October 2023 with a sold-out Village Inn in Enniskeane, County Cork.