Celtic Cross has had quite a year ever since they released Shores of America, the Irish Voice’s pick for album of 2008.

They have maintained a dizzying schedule of open air summer festivals that have brought them into the upper echelons of the Irish American music scene, so it was nice to see them on St. Patrick’s Day playing in the bar scene that gave birth to the group.

In front of a rowdy, boozy crowd, the band played a ferocious mix of reels, original compositions, and crowd pleasing cover tunes.

The band’s songs are like a musical scrapbook of the average Irish American. “Those Were the Days” is a tune chock full of images of playing in the Catskills and listening to WFUV, while “Who I Am” describes the feeling of not quite fitting in when visiting the cousins back on the “auld sod.”

And who knew a white Irish woman had so much soul? Singer Kathleen Vesey Fee tore up Alicia Keys’ “No One” as the band fiddled behind her. Her brother John lit the button accordion keys on fire as he peeled one hot reel after another from his squeeze box as bassist Pat Dineen brought the funk in the background.

Celtic Cross is at the top of their game as a touring outfit, and they are itching to take that live energy into the studio and apply it to the new tunes they have been writing on the road. That’s always good news!

The Blind Pig in midtown hosted Celtic Cross on this afternoon, and any responsible Irish music journalist should always give a special shout-out to bars that still believe in hosting live Irish music these days.

The Blind Pig provided the perfect setting for a perfect St. Patrick’s Day hooley — the floor sticky with spilled beer, the big screen televisions illuminating the dark bar with images of European soccer games, and a white hot band serving a Celtic soul garnish to go with creamy pints that went down way too easy. Ah, if only St. Patrick’s Day happened every weekend!

To pick up a copy of Shores of America or to follow the band’s busy schedule, log onto www.celtic cross.com.