By Denny Dyroff, Entertainment Editor, The Times
John Francis O’Mara
John Francis O’Mara is the second most famous musician to graduate from Owen J. Roberts High School.
If you’re wondering who is the most famous, think “Sara Smile,” “She’s Gone” and “Maneater” – think Daryl Hall of Hall & Oates.
Like Hall (actually Hohl), O’Mara has toured a lot over the last few decades and performed at venues all around the world.
However, the two talented musicians have operated in different genres and at different levels.
O’Mara, a singer-songwriter/guitarist, has never had an MTV hit but has reached people on an intense personal level ever since his high school days.
Now, O’Mara is celebrating a new album – “Forbidden Hymns” – with an album release show on January 17 at 118 North (118 North Wayne Avenue, Wayne, www.118northwayne.com).
On his first full-length album in a decade, O’Mara delivers a collection of 13 songs encompassing a variety of genres — alt-country, Americana, folk and rock.
They are also songs that explore social justice, hope and heartbreak.
O’Mara recorded the album many years ago but held off releasing it until recently.
“The reason I held off putting the album out was that I wanted it to have a fighting chance,” said O’Mara, during a phone interview Wednesday afternoon from his home in Richmond, Virginia. “I wanted to have a team around me that could give it that chance.”
Talking about the album’s title, O’Mara said, “Why ‘Forbidden’? Look around! The social and political landscape has taken a very dark and ugly turn. Stateside, the innocent and most vulnerable are being kidnapped and denied basic civil and human rights, while literal genocide and starving children’s screams are live streamed in real time.
“Elites and the billionaire class rule from their ill-gotten thrones. Truth, beauty, and conscience are being legislated into silence, banned, and literally ‘forbidden’. The soul of America, and the very soul of humanity, is at stake. Many among us are being made to fear raising our voices.
“Many among us are not afraid! I’m here to tell you, not on my watch. This is the precise moment many of us have been preparing for, and I will not be silenced. We who believe that a world full of empathy, justice, dignity, and love is possible, will not be silenced! This record will not be silenced! Time to turn up the volume! Time to sing ‘Forbidden Hymns.’”
Hymns also play a role in O’Mara’s other career.
In addition to his career as a singer-songwriter, O’Mara is an ordained Episcopalian priest and Liberation Theology scholar, currently working toward his Doctorate in Theology with a Social Justice focus, from Howard University School of Divinity.
“I got ordained in the Episcopalian Church even though I had a background as an Irish Catholic,” said O’Mara, who had just hung up from talking to his 102-year-old great aunt.
It seems that O’Mara was destined to be a member of the clergy.
“I’m from Philly and lived in Kensington when I was a baby,” said O’Mara. “My childhood and teen years were spent in Chester County.
“My mom is from West Chester, and my dad is from Upper Darby. They met when they were students at Kutztown University. Both were from Irish immigrant families.
“We lived in St. Peter’s Village, and I graduated from Owen J. Roberts High School. My dad is still a priest at St. Mary’s Episcopal Church in Warwick.
“I went to Messiah College in Grantham and majored in English Literature and World Religion. After I graduated, I hit the road for 18 years.
“I moved to Philly and lived at 13th and Christian for eight years. I moved there with goals – to make a record, to get played on WXPN, to play the Point and the Tin Angel – and I did it all quickly.”
It seems that O’Mara was destined to be a musician.
“Music is in the family,” said O’Mara. “Both parents played guitar and sang with powerful voices. I cut my teeth in church. I’d write songs and bring them to my dad. Music was just part of the family.
“My early influences were Dylan and Neil Young. My dad also had Jimi Hendrix and Led Zeppelin albums that I listened to. There were also albums by Loretta Lynn, Johnny Cash and Peter, Paul & Mary.
“My main influence as a songwriter was Dylan. I became a student of Bob Dylan. Dylan is a bridge that every singer-songwriter has to cross.
“I also love artists like Bob Marley, Bruce Springsteen and Odetta – artists who are saying something and speaking truth to power in a creative way.”
After his time in Philly. O’Mara headed south.
“I moved to Nashville,” said O’Mara. “I was in Nashville for five years and I made a record there. I played 200-250 dates a year for 15 years.
“Then, I went to seminary, I went to Princeton Seminary and got a masters in Liberation Theology. After that, I went to General Seminary in New York – in Chelsea – and got another masters degree.
“I got ordained in the Episcopalian Church. I was a priest in northern New Jersey – in Westfield – for five years and then in Madison, Wisconsin for three years. I’ve still been performing shows the whole time.
“For the last year-and-a-half, I’ve been back in Virginia where my family moved 12 years ago. I do priesting on Sunday and other things during the week.”
With song titles such as “Jesus Walked on Water,” “Ashes, Ashes,” “Miracle,” “No One Gets Out Of Here Alive” and “Mighty Power,” it’s fairly easy to see where O’Mara’s new album is coming from.
And it has timely themes – especially during a time when things like the atrocities in Minnesota are getting headlines.
“This is a time when teaching history is being banned, and books are being taken out of libraries and that’s not good,” said O’Mara. “Stories about marginalizing people of color are not O.K. with me.”
But “Forbidden Hymns” is not a somber, depressing album. It is an LP filled with hopeful, energizing songs.
Produced by Ken Coomer (Grammy winning Producer, and drummer for Wilco, Uncle Tupelo, Steve Earle), the album includes a studio band of guitarist Kenny Vaughan (Marty Stuart, Lucinda Williams), multi-instrumentalist Chris Scruggs, John Lancaster on keys, the late great bassist Dave Roe (Johnny Cash, John Mellencamp, Dwight Yoakam) as well as backing vocalist, Vinchelle Woods.
O’Mara has a network of musicians with which he works.
“I have a band in Nashville, in Ireland, in Switzerland and in Philly,” said O’Mara.
“My Philly band that will be with me this weekend is Chris Giraldi on drums, Todd Erk on bass, Jaron Olevsky on keys and Erik Sayles on guitar.
“I’m headlining the show but there will be acts on before and after me. Adrien Reju will open – and sing a song with me. Thr Jason Ager Trio will close the show.”
Video link for John Francis O’Mara — https://youtu.be/uKhdoLXvows.
The show at 118 North on January 17, which has Adrien Reju and Jason Ager as the support acts, will start at 8 p.m.
Tickets are $20.75.
Other upcoming shows at 118 North are Almost There on January 16 and Damn Tall Buildings with Box of Books on January 18.
Roomful of Blues
Roomful of Blues has a long history of touring internationally over the last five decades.
The band from Providence, Rhode Island, which has had many lineups in its history, is led by Chris Vachon (guitar, background vocals) and Rich Lataille (tenor and alto saxophone).
One of the band’s favorite annual destinations over the years has been the Sellersville Theater.
This weekend, Roomful of Blues will make their yearly trek from New England to this area for a show on January 16 at the Sellersville Theater (24 West Temple Avenue, Sellersville, www.st94.com).
“We come to Sellersville once a year, and it seems it’s always in winter,” said Vachon, during a phone interview Wednesday afternoon from his home in Wakefield, Rhode Island. “There’s usually snow – and it’s cold in that back room at the theater.
“We’re doing mostly weekends now. Weekday stuff isn’t there anymore. We still play a lot of shows every year – mostly on Thursdas, Fridays and Saturdays.”
Roomful of Blues has a new album – “Steppin’ Out!” – and a new vocalist – D.D. Bastos, the band’s first female vocalist.
“D.D., who joined in June 2024, is the first female vocalist in the band,” said Vachon.
“Lou Ann Barton was in the band for about 10 minutes several years ago. She was in Rhode Island and played with the band for about three months but never recorded anything with us.
“I have another band – Sons of Providence – and D.D. would front us once in a while. We did that for 10 years but only for a handful of gigs.”
Bastos replaced Phil Pemberton, who retired because of health issues. He was the band’s vocalist from 2009-2024.
“With Phil leaving, I thought about D.D.,” said Vachon. “I gave her a few gigs, and she made a good impression. Fans really enjoyed her.
“And it allowed us to change everything. The current lineup has been together for little over a year. Prior to that, we had a mass exodus.”
The 2025 Roomful of Blues lineup features Jeff Ceasrine (Keyboards, Background Vocals), Lou Bocciarelli (Upright Bass), Mike Coffey (Drums), Craig Thomas (Tenor and Baritone Sax), Christopher Pratt (Trumpet) Lataille, Bastos and Vachon.
“Steppin’ Out!” was released on Alligator Records and was the band’s sixth album for the legendary blues label. The first was “That’s Right!” in 2003.
“We started making the new album last year (2024),” said Vachon. “It took a while to get it mixed. We spent seven months cutting tracks and mixing it.
“We recorded the basic tracks at Power Station Northeast in Waterford, Connecticut. I mixed it here at my studio in Wakefield, which is about a half-hour south of Providence.
“This is a covers album because we didn’t have much time to write after D.D. joined.”
The album covers songs by legendary blues acts such as Big Mama Thornton (“You Don’t Move Me No More”), Big Maybelle (“I’ve Got a Feeling,” “Tell Me Who”), Etta James (“Good Rocking Daddy”), Buddy & Ella Johnson (“Why Don’t Cha Stop It”), Jimmy McCracklin (“Steppin’ Up in Class”), and Z.Z. Hill (“You Were Wrong”).
“Steppin’ Out!” was produced and mixed by Vachon for Easy-Vee Productions with horn arrangements by Rich Lataille. It was recorded and engineered by Evan Bakke assisted by Trevor Okonuk at The Power Station New England and mastered by Collin Jordan and Bruce Iglauer at The Boiler Room in Chicago.
Roomful of Blues makes good records, but the band really thrives on stage. The band has toured worldwide and has treated fans around the world to its unique blend of a variety of music genres including rock and roll, swing, R&B, boogie-woogie, soul and a number of different blues styles.
Roomful of Blues has received five Grammy Award nominations and seven Blues Music Awards, including “Blues Band Of The Year” in 2005. The Down Beat International Critics Poll has twice selected Roomful of Blues as “Best Blues Band”.
Over the years, more than 50 different musicians have been part of Roomful of Blues’ line-up, including vocalist/guitarist Duke Robillard, vocalist Lou Ann Barton, keyboardist Junior Brantley and trumpeter Fred Jackson.
“The reason for our longevity is the music we like to play,” said Vachon. “We’ve had our ups and downs. Some years we’ve toured more than others. We currently play about 150 shows a year.
“The band keeps getting new fans, and there are a lot of older people who have been listening to us for years. For young people, their only exposure to us has been at festivals.”
With Roomful of Blues concerts, it’s never a case of “same old, same old.”
“Our live set is really different now,” said Vachon. “We’re doing all the stuff off the new record and only a few old ones.”
Video link for Roomful of Blues — https://youtu.be/2MAc_sqxG3c.
The show at the Sellersville Theater on January 16 will start at 8 p.m.
Tickets start at $29.50.
Other upcoming shows at the Sellersville Theater are Bill Kirchen on January 15, The Harry Chapin Band on January 17, “A Night of Acoustic Guitar Magic featuring Rolly Brown, Bunny Barnes & Curt Lippe” on January 18, “Gary Ho Ho Hoey 30th Anniversary Tour” on January 19, Broken Arrow on January 20 and Joe Cirotti Trio and Wood Flower on January 21.
Uptown! Knauer Performing Arts Center (226 North High Street, West Chester, www.uptownwestchester.org) will present Joe Conklin on January 15 and Bostyx on January 16.
Kennett Flash (102 Sycamore Alley, Kennett Square, 484-732-8295, http://www.kennettflash.org) is hosting The Wild Hymns on January 16 and Atomic Light Orchestra on January 17.
Jamey’s House of Music (32 South Lansdowne Avenue, Lansdowne, www.jameyshouseofmusic.com) will host Vernon Papers on January 16 and Emanuel Casablanca and B-6 on January 17.
On January 18 from 1-3 p.m., Jamey’s will present “SUNDAY BLUES BRUNCH & JAM” with The Blues Muthas featuring Steve Shanahan.
On January 18, Tantric celebrates the 25th anniversary of their gold-certified debut album with a special show at Bar XIII (1706 Philadelphia Pike, Wilmington, Delaware, www.barxiii.com). Supporting acts are Who on Earth and Chaos Protocol.
