Eleanor Shanley first came to prominence as part of De Dannan, but has in recent years established herself as a solo artist. She seemed thoroughly at home in the intimate surroundings of the Cobblestone, accompanied only by guitarist Bill Shanley (no relation). Together, they produced an evening of spare, powerful music.
Like all the best performers, Shanley makes it look very easy. She phrases beautifully and brings a sense of drama to each song. She also chooses great songs. All her strengths were evident early on with an old De Dannan favourite Call and Answer, delivered with a mix of subdued precision and loud emotion.
Maggie was a delight - gentle chum-chumming guitar with Shanley's voice soaring effortlessly above. It also featured a disarmingly simple guitar solo (Bill Shanley's playing was always a pleasure, sympathetic and un-showy). She performed I Still Love Him with out accompaniment, making the melody skip along easily.
The second set was launched with I Don't Believe You've Met My Baby - it has a hopelessly corny lyric, yet still manages to be moving in the right hands. However, the highlight of the evening was without doubt Kilkenny, a narrative song made up of letters sent by a father to his son in America.
Shanley's performance was absorbing and painfully sad ("In case you hadn't noticed, I like sad songs," she told us).
Liverpool Lou cued an enthusiastic sing-along, led forcefully by Shanley. She concluded with an unusually brisk and optimistic version of Hard Times. Folk music doesn't get much better than this.