November 2009 - New record is now officially released. More info is here. You can stream the record in its entirety. Download it now for only $6.99. Eleven new songs.

October 2009 - New acoustic record is being prepared. "Pete Townshend's Ghost" should be available before the end of the year.

You can get the latest news on the record in the bunker diaries. It's been an interesting creative process to say the least. Join the mailing list and get a free download.

September 2009 - Full band record is now on hold. I've got the songs but not the cash to flush 'em out. Not sure what my next move is at this point. I'll keep the bunker diaries updated for interested parties though. I may rob a bank or have a large garage sale. Or maybe just scrap the new songs for now and write new more acoustic based stuff. Idleness is not an option, however. That much I know.

August 2009 - Still writing songs for the new record. Have got about 15 written and demo'd. Probably shoot for 30 or so, and then whittle them down to the final 10. Also trying to work on a play that I was commissioned to write that I should have completed about 3 months ago. But I don't feel all that bad 'cause I haven't been paid yet. As always, you can check out the Bunker Diaries for all the latest mayhem.

July 2009 - Decided to document the making of the new record, no matter how long it takes to come together (songs aren't even written yet actually). Also, you can catch of glimpse of my sometimes unusual work ethic, which features frequent doses of massive and near-manic procrastination. So get your front row seat here...

The Bunker Diaries

June 2009 - Working on new record.

This one is gonna be with a full band. Very loud. Volume is a good thing to remember (or not to forget), especially at my age. 

Currently writing the songs, which I'll then demo and show the band. Then we'll all bash away until we're either done or I'm out of money. Record will be released under the name "Tom Flannery and the Shillelaghs". No working title yet. Would like to document some of the recording process on video....that is if I can find somebody willing to do it for free (hint hint).

I'm thinking of releasing the solo-acoustic demos as well....as a sort of bonus-disc type thing. Hopefully all this will be done and ready to go by the end of the year....assuming we're not nuked into oblivion by North Korea before then of course.

Have also been commissioned to write a new play about the horrors and highs of high school, which should prove to be interesting, especially since my own high school years turned me into a 20 year drunk. I'm fine now though. It's all about patience and liver problems.

Should be an interesting second half of the year.

Sláinte

April 2009 - UPDATE. WEST MEMPHIS BLUES is now available

A Free Online Song Cycle
by Tom Flannery, Josh Pratt, and Lorne Clarke
click here....

Sorry for the delay. Was recently commissioned to write a one-act play commemorating the 200th birthday of Abraham Lincoln, so many of my recent late nights have been spent on the couch with legal pad in hand, staring into the fireplace. I kinda lost myself in 1863, but I think I'm back now, and I'm quite pleased with the little play I came up with, called The Lincoln Summation, which takes place the evening before the Gettysburg Address. It's hard to add anything new to the Lincoln legend, so I just imagined Abe crafting his words with the voices of a variety of war weary Americans in his ear. We'll see if it works.

Gotta get back to the WM3 project. There's lots happening with the case, and we're really anxious to get the songs finished. But it's been hard coordinating all our schedules and finding the time to write and record. We really should have it complete by the end of this month. I'll keep you posted.

February 2009 - Lots happening. My play The Purgatory Diaries of Jason Miller will be performed in Philadelphia, Camden, and at the Shawnee Playhouse in the Poconos in the upcoming months. I may even be paid, which is shocking.

Been working on songs for the upcoming West Memphis 3 song cycle. Working with fellow singer-songwriters Lorne Clarke and Josh Pratt. Together we're putting together 10 songs to try to raise some awareness to this wretched miscarriage of American justice. If it can happen there, it can happen here. Or where you are. Don't turn your head on this one. Please.

Here's a sneak peak. A song called Away. Get it here.

January 2009 - My play Colorblind: The Katrina Monologues has been selected to perform at the Region II (Delaware, District of Columbia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New Jersey and New York) Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival (KC/ACTF) to be held at the University of the Arts in Philadelphia, January 13 – 17

The SUNY College at Brockport’s production at the festival, will be seen by the National Selection Team and is eligible for invitation to the national festival in Washington, DC.

Colorblind: The Katrina Monologues is scheduled to be performed at 12:30 in the afternoon, Friday, January 16 in the Merriam Theatre. You can read the official Brockport press release here. It would have been nice if they'd mentioned that I...you know....wrote it. But...well....never mind. It's cool news anyway.

January 2009 - More battles to fight. More songs to sing. Here's where my mind is at right now. They're with the so-called  West Memphis Three, three boys (now grown men)  accused and convicted of 3 brutal child murders back in 1993.......a crime most who study the case today are convinced was committed by the step father of one of the victims. The boys were picked up because they fit the profile. Weirdos. Dressing in black. Banging their heads to Metallica. One is borderline retarded. They must be Satanists. So this must be a ritualistic killing (one wonder if Abba fans would have been charged). The authorities in this small, conservative town want to see these kids fry.....even when major evidence comes to light that points the finger at the aforementioned step-father of one of the dead boys.....a (literally) brain damaged, violent man with a history of beating his step-son, while at the same time taking at least 7 different medications to control everything from panic attacks to post traumatic stress to seeing visions of bugs on the floor that aren't really there. Oh, and his wife, the dead boy's mother? She died in her bed under "mysterious" circumstances a few years after her son was murdered. Nobody knows why...although there are whispers that her husband smothered her with a pillow.

Or could it be the step-father of another of the dead children (what kind of water are step-father's in West Memphis drinking anyway....)? Recent DNA evidence shows that his hair was found at the scene....and even his now ex-wife believes that the convicted 3 are innocent, and her ex possibly guilty.

Can anybody down there say "reasonable doubt"?

So now what? I don't know.  Maybe a song. Or 10. Just something to raise some awareness. I came across this case accidently. Why can't somebody else? It's a valid goal for the new year. I hope it matters.

December 2008 - The Civil War Battle Ballads is now available.

The BBC documentary short "Huntington's Home" is now available to view online. The film features my song Talkin' Woody Guthrie Huntington's Chorea Blues. Click on the logo below to watch.

November 2008 - Working on a new song cycle. Probably end up making it available for free too.....so that's good news for those interested in my music.... in this economy or any other. Not so much for me though, but then such is the life of a largely unknown folk singer. I'd rather go broke and let you hear my songs than go broke and have you pass them by 'cause I'm charging .99 cents a track.

Anyway, it's a cycle of ballads...each named after a Civil War battle. Sounds like a hoot eh?

There's a song you can grab now. I'm very proud of this one. It says what I want to say about war. It's called "Franklin". Get it here.

More news coming. I hope to have it complete (at least 10 songs) before the holidays. After all, what's Xmas without some newly penned  Civil War Ballads?

October 2008 - My song Talkin' Woody Guthrie Huntington's Chorea Blues will be used in an upcoming BBC documentary. The film follows 20 people with Huntington's disease who are cared for in a specialized group home. It is set to air before Xmas. I should have a video link to watch it online soon.

September 2008 - The new record is here...

Auctioneer

20 new songs
download it now
only $9.99
visit the store