John Whelan with Flynn Cohen & Liz Simmons

Traditional Irish accordion, guitar, mandolin and songs!

John Whelan:
Although John grew up near London in Dunstable, England, he was raised on the fiddle and pipe music of Ireland. Dunstable has a large Irish community, and his father, Denis, was from Ireland’s County Wexford. “Ours was a very traditional household,” John says. “My father didn’t have any major vices – his only addiction was to Irish music.” Denis Whelan carried a reel-to-reel tape recorder to many shows, collecting hours of live music. Songs of home elicited sentimental tears, even when the words were not in English. “It was not the words but the emotion of the music that moved me”.
John’s latest album, Passage of Time, is now available on Bandcamp! It features 33 of his original compositions, many of which have been performed and recorded by artists all around the world. Unfortunately John does not have physical CD’s at this moment but you CAN download it.

Flynn Cohen:
Acoustic Guitar and mandolin player Flynn Cohen has performed all over the world with many notable acts in traditional and contemporary acoustic music. He can be seen in concert with the American folk band LOW LILY (formerly known as Annalivia), and legendary Irish Accordion player John Whelan, as well as duo shows playing music from his four solo albums.

Flynn has also performed with Ruth Moody, Halali, The Sevens, Aoife Clancy, Cathie Ryan, Lawrence Nugent, Dylan Foley, Skip Healy, Joe Derrane and Frank Ferrel, John McGann, Matt Glaser, Brian Wicklund, Tony Watt and Southeast Expressway, Adrienne Young, Jake & Taylor Armerding, Laura Orshaw, Duncan Wickel, Gail Davies, Jilly Martin, Malibu Storm, Bruce MacGregor, Lissa Schneckenburger, Laura Cortese, Mark Simos, Matt Heaton, The Boxcar Lillies, Women of Ireland, The Vancouver Symphony, the Orchestra of Indian Hill, Revels, and Footworks Percussive Dance Ensemble, among others. He has performed at the Library of Congress and the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C., and at Lincoln Center and Carnegie Hall in New York City.

A former guitar student of John Renbourn, Davey Graham, Scott Nygaard, and Paul Binkley, Flynn has degrees in Music from Dartington College of Arts in Devon, England and at Mills College in Oakland, California. He taught for many years in the Music Departments at Keene State College in New Hampshire and Bridgewater State University in Massachusetts and is currently an online guitar instructor with Peghead Nation.

Liz Simmons:
Born in San Francisco to musician parents, Liz spent her early childhood traveling through the wilds of north America in a sky blue VW bus. Her parents were itinerant, moving from California to Oregon, then to Ketchikan, Alaska where they played regular gigs in the pubs for the locals. Liz and her sisters’ lullabies were traditional songs, and by day their soundtrack was the rock and roll and New Orleans brass music their parents played in their band.   

Once the family settled in rural New Hampshire, Liz received classical musical training, but as her teen years drew to a close she found her way back to folk music. She was particularly drawn to the intersections of traditional music, and how they connect with contemporary sounds. In 2005, Liz received a BA from Goddard College where she studied American vernacular music of the 1920s and 30s. She then went on to found Annalivia with her husband Flynn Cohen, as well as perform alongside Long Time Courting, Hannah Sanders, EVA, Livingston Taylor, Tom Chapin, and Melanie.  

With their friend and oft-collaborator Lissa Schneckenburger, Liz and Flynn formed the band Low Lily in 2015. Setting down roots in Brattleboro, Vermont, the band has crafted a signature sound which they have shared with enthusiastic audiences throughout North America and the UK, garnering two #1 songs on international folk radio and two Independent Music Award wins.

Ashland is lucky and honored to have these three amazing musicians collaborate here!