Celtic band Bailey’s Mistake members are Travis Cote (left), Dean Clegg, Troy R. Bennett and Rob Babson. Eric Worthley photo
Guitarists Sean Mencher and Hugh Bowden will perform at 7 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 14, at Cadenza, 5 Depot St. in Freeport. Celtic band Bailey’s Mistake takes its turn at 4 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 15.
Guitarists Hugh Bowden (left) and Sean Mencher will perform at Cadenza in Freeport Saturday. Courtesy of Cadenza
Mencher has been called “hands down, one of the finest guitarists ever to call Maine home” in an album review by Chris Busby in The Bollard. The album has a title that gets right to the point: “Sean Mencher Plays Guitar.” It consists of 16 solo guitar pickin’ instrumental tracks, most of them written by some of Mencher’s musical idols, including Merle Haggard, Merle Travis, Hank Williams and Chet Atkins. Mencher loves country and rockabilly so its no surprise that those genres are represented on the CD, but a few of the songs — notably “America the Beautiful” and “Someone to Watch Over Me” — give him the opportunity to show a different side of his talent.
Bowden draws from a musical library that includes American standards, folk and country songs, and more than 100 of his own compositions. As a youth in rural Maine, he taught himself to play the guitar after becoming captivated by the music of legendary guitarist Chet Atkins. Bowden, who now lives in Ellsworth, has performed widely throughout Maine and beyond for several decades, both as a solo fingerstyle guitarist and singer, and as a member of several small musical groups, in various styles of music.
Shows by Bailey’s Mistake sell out quickly. The a neo-traditional, Celtic-inspired folk band plays ancient songs of the sea, Newfoundland, the auld sod and the members’ home state of Maine. The group’s highly danceable music invites merry hearts to sing along and feel the power of ancient tradition as it transitions into the 21st century.
Bailey’s Mistake features singer and front man Troy R. Bennett on guitar and Travis Cote on bagpipes and tin whistles. The band’s rhythm section is rounded out with Dean Clegg on drums and Rob Babson on bass.
Tickets for Saturday’s show are $23 online and $28 at the door; $25 online and $30 at the door for Sunday’s show. Visit cadenzafreeport.com for tickets and more information.
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