Meet Sean Daly
Sean Daly grew up during the troubles and from an early age was inspired by music that championed freedom. He listened as the Wolfe Tones sang songs about Ireland, and the Irish Brigade sang songs about the ten. At thirteen he sang “Joe MacManus” in front of more than a thousand comrades. He carried those songs with him through his life, across the ocean where he finally settled in San Francisco. He played cover songs, rock and roll, but he longed to sing songs of freedom, he longed to champion his homeland through song, story, and action. When he moved his family back to Donegal he began to find his songs again. The Shams toured throughout Europe and sang Rebel Songs, Sean knowing every word by heart, singing them from his memories as a young boy, and living the music as a homage to what the ten suffered in the H Block cells.
Tiocfaidh Ar La! Up the Ra!
But fortune called him back to the United States. He moved to Portland Oregon where he collected musicians of similar ilk. Naturally Irish he made friends everywhere he went.
The idea of the “Shams” stalled for a time as Sean searched high and low for the right players, bringing in some and watching as a revolving door of players came and went. Then out of the blue, Sean got a phone call about a mandolin player. Troy came to the band with more than twenty years of touring and road experience and as the frontman of an American Irish pub rock band called The Humble Hooligans. He was looking to do something different and was ready to step in as the mandolin and whistle player that Sean was looking for.
The boys immediately got to work, learning more songs, creating original arrangements of classic rebel music, and keeping the spirit alive. In early 2022 they burst onto the West Coast Irish Scene playing gigs from San Francisco to Portland and began touring and recordings. Their passion for the music is evident, and their desire to honor the heroes of Ireland is crystal clear. They represent the next generation of Irish bands to carry the torch.