Hamsandwich on Sunnyside New York

A new music television series brings the sunny side of life in New York to our screens when Irish musician Cathy Maguire presents her new show, ‘The Sunnyside Sessions’. She has been resident in the United States since 2001.
The six-part series, which airs on Mondays on IRISH TV, showcases talented and mostly Irish musicians as they stop off to play and perform in Cathy’s large back garden in the Sunnyside district. Artists in the series include Julie Feeney, Mark Dignam, The Doyle Bros, Hamsandwich, Tara O’Grady and The Black Velvet Band.
“The Sunnyside Sessions came about because I have a big garden – which is something unusual in New York - so people come a lot to enjoy music here and the series is based around those sessions in my garden”, explains Cathy.
“We showcase two artists in each episode and I finish with a performance with my country and western band. We also do a recording with someone well known in the area, for example, local congress man and Democratic representative Joe Crawley, who encourages music and whose roots are in Armagh where his mother is from. 
“We have also had well known Irish comedian Des Bishop as a guest because he was brought up in Flushing in Queens – which is about three miles from where we are in Sunnyside. We are blessed to have great bands coming to live here at various times, such as Hamsandwich who recently stopped by and that was great fun.
“Sunnyside is a predominantly Irish area and we have people living here who emigrated all of 60 years ago and never left. There are so many great singer songwriters living here now and it all leads to a great sense of community,” said Cathy.
The Dundalk singer’s latest album produced by renowned Nashville prowducer Cowboy Jack Clement is due for release in autumn 2016.
The Sunnyside Sessions promises the best of musical talent, lots of New York colour and a Big Apple slice of Irish America on Mondays at 8.30pm on IRISH TV.
Maguire also takes viewers to meet some of New York’s most prominent Irish American singers and musicians. The series is produced by Colm Flynn for IRISH TV in association with Moon TV Productions and White Wolf Productions. IRISH TV is on Sky 191, Freesat 400, www.irishtv.ie and www.irishtv.com