Callaghan’s Irish Social Club has quietly become Mobile’s home for Americana. Tucked beneath the oak canopy of the historic Oakleigh district, the intimate neighborhood bar has grown into a regular stop for nationally touring folk and country acts — and in 2014 its patrons voted it their favorite local venue.
Bluegrass Night offers a prime chance to see why, with a gathering of some of the area’s finest string players on one small stage.
A master class in strings
Anchoring the night is Eldon Bryson, a genuine master of stringed instruments whose proficiency runs from fiddle to guitar and just about anything else with strings attached. Award-winning guitarist Ben Jernigan joins the circle, along with Cassidy Koonce and Phil Proctor, a devoted student of the Americana tradition ready to lend both his guitar work and his genre knowledge to the mix.
Rounding out the lineup are Pat Murphy and Benita Averett Murphy, co-creators of what they call the “delta bluegrass” sound and best known for their work in the band Delta Reign.
For fans of acoustic music, it is a rare concentration of hometown talent in a room built for close listening — one more reason Callaghan’s remains the beating heart of Mobile’s Americana scene.