What’s in a name? Plenty, especially when you are Martin McCormack. No, I am not narcissistic or do I consider my name some special name that has been endowed upon me.
There were no trumpets blaring when I was born. In fact, my mom offered me up during her labor that the Vietnam War would end. That was 1963 and we know how that turned out.
The truth is, had my folks given me a first name that was a bit unusual, say Jebediah, this blog wouldn’t be happening, and I would be a country music singer or perhaps changing your oil at Jiffy Lube.
Martin is a good Irish name. There are, much to my amazement, a slew of Martin McCormack’s out there in the world, all of whom were named so, because their Irish mothers also felt Martin was a good name.
Ironically, I was named for St. Martin DePorres. He was a Peruvian monk of African descent. And like St. Francis could communicate with animals! Martin made some deal with the mice and rats to not invade the friary. The deal was in turn, he would feed them elsewhere. Well, while St. Francis liked animals, St. Martin was willing to cut deals with them. If I could cut deals with the Majestic Norwegian Rats in my neighborhood, I would be a tribute to my namesake and on a path to sainthood, but alas, I digress.
I have had to use for clarification in this world chock-full of Martin’s and Marty’s, the full name my dear departed parents gave me: Martin Laurence McCormack. This is to help those who follow my art and music a way forward, a lighthouse if you will so as to not wreck their cursors on the rocky shoals that are the search engines with the name Martin McCormack and thus enter the safe harbor of my website and artistic ambitions.
So, who are these guys?
Let’s meet three of ‘em.
Marty McCormack This guy is a race car driver in the UK. Now, it looks like fun, but I am sure that somehow our DNA is not the same, as I don’t really have a flair for racing cars, but mainly keeping them rolling safely to a musical destination with Switchback. Still, better Marty McCormack the race car driver to share a name with than Marty McCormack, dog orthodontist. And if there is a Marty dog orthodontist out there, I am only kidding.
Martin McCormack Martin and I have a lot in common. He’s a painter, I’m a painter. He is an Irish citizen; I have my Irish citizenship. We both live in towns that start with the letter C. He has a beautiful website and some pretty amazing paintings. His main idea is to use peat from a peat bog as a medium, which is a pretty Irish thing to do. He also conducts some painting classes, something I have thought about after watching my required amount of Bob Ross PBS shows. So important for me to keep my “L” in my full name when it comes to Martin here, as I don’t wish to step on his toes. He is out there, slugging away in the trenches like me.
Martin McCormack This Martin and I also have a lot in common. He’s a musician, I’m a musician. He is Irish. I am Irish. He formed a band. I, too, formed a band. Martin is an uilleann piper and as Bing told me: Martin McCormack, an influential Irish musician, is known for his mastery of Uilleann pipes and low whistle. He began playing these traditional instruments at the age of 12 and has collaborated with many renowned Irish musicians. Notably, he co-founded the band Moving Hearts, which blended original compositions with a folk-rock sound1 So, we have that in common too, blending Celtic melodies with folk-rock sound.
I am pretty sure this man is a great musician and that his playing the Irish pipes is pretty formidable in that they are a difficult instrument to play. How fun it would be to collaborate with him as well.
There you have it. Check them out and if you would be so kind, let them know you know Martin Laurence McCormack, and he says hello.
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