Asked which historical figure he'd most like to share a pint with if given the chance, Patrick Halloran immediately answers writer- satirist Mark Twain.

"He was the first stand-up comic ever," says the 31-year-old musician, beer enthusiast and Allentown native during a phone interview from Phoenix, Ariz. "Well, American at least."

Twain is a fitting choice for the lead singer, guitarist, co- founder and mastermind of the group Ceann (pronounced kee-AHN), which is Irish for "head." As self-proclaimed purveyors of "Yankee- Irish drinking music," Halloran and company meld traditional Irish folk, rock and reels with drop-dead funny lyrics that playfully poke fun at those who overemphasize the "Irish" in Irish-American. And boy, can you raise a glass to it.

"Don't get me wrong, I love the Irish part. It's very romantic," professes Halloran, whose band's live shows do, indeed, include reverent standards along with the inspired lunacy. "And I love the pub culture, and the sing-alongs, which many people don't realize was developed by the Irish in America." Such is the fodder for "Almost Irish," the 2005 Halloran- produced, independently released Ceann disc, the band's third overall.

"Almost Irish" has propelled the band from resident house rockers at Hurley's Saloon in the heart of the Broadway/Times Square district to the main draw at Irish rock festivals all around the country, including Baltimore's, which Ceann played earlier this month, and New York City's, which will take place at Connolly's on Dec. 2 (the group was a supporting act last year).

Ceann sends up its intended targets with lyrics such as "It don't look too safe as far as I can see/So I'll only order three/But three became four and four became 10/Tell me what's my name again/I'm Patty O'Paddy from Ireland City, Ireland" (from "Green Beer"). And the inclusion of tin whistles, bodhrans, fiddles and pipes, along with sing-along lyrics, make for a raucous night at the pub.

"That's what I loved growing up -- the sing-alongs, which I found inclusive," says Halloran, a 1993 graduate of Allen High School. "I don't dislike those who play up the Irish part, but it's the militant, political stuff, like Americans saying "Kill the Queen,' that I found exclusive and annoying."

Halloran, the youngest of six children in an Irish-American family rife with musicians and artists, is now in the enviable position of supporting himself solely through his art. He finds himself staying in his Woodside, Queens, apartment roughly one week per month, as the band typically schedules five gigs a week.

Next Friday, Ceann will lend its talents to the local chapter of the Ancient Order of Hibernians in a benefit for the Allentown St. Patrick's Day Parade. Which begs the question: Are the Allentown Hibernians ready for Ceann?

"They got a beer license, and have been pre-selling a ton of tickets, which is great," says Halloran. "Some were adamant and [some] hesitant about booking us, but they know what they're in for."

Which has not always been the case. Halloran recalls such a booking at The Banshee in Scranton three or four years ago. "They expected us to play 90 percent Irish standards and 10 percent "Sweet Caroline' and "Country Road,"' he says. "They read us the riot act, and said, "Don't curse,' and "You can't do that!' It's clear that whoever booked us didn't listen to the CD."

Ceann's wide-ranging tastes ensures that even the uninitiated will have a rowdy good time at their shows. In fact, "Almost Irish's" most popular track, "The Worst Pirate Song," is a catchy, clever ditty that would be right at home on a Ween or They Might Be Giants disc. It's been downloaded more than 12,500 times from www.myspace.com/ceannmusic, and has no Irish foundation at all.

"What people react to is the marriage of the cultures," says Halloran. "Here you have this song with its seafaring-type sound, and there are all these pop-culture and modern references. It's designed to catch you off guard, but you don't have to identify with seafaring music to enjoy it. Same with our other stuff -- it's the American experience we sing of, which is often ignored."

Ceann has been reflecting the American experience since 1999, when Halloran met Pottsville native Marc Wisnosky at the Pittsburgh pub Harp & Fiddle when both were students at Pitt (Halloran graduated that year with a bachelor's degree in film). Both were at the pub to see the Northern Irish comic troubadour Seamus Kennedy, and kept going back. "After three times, I noticed that Marc was the other person always there, and he said to me, "I know how to play the tin whistle,"' remembers Halloran. "So we learned 10 Irish songs, wrote two of our own and booked a show at a Polish bar in the Polish part of town."

The two christened themselves Ceann na Caca, which translates to exactly what you think it might, and with tongue planted firmly in cheek slowly built up a cult following by playing self-penned tunes that wed traditional Irish music with lyrics that parodied Pittsburgh.

In 2001, after Halloran moved to New York, the duo added Binghamton, N.Y., native James G. Telfer IV on vocals, bass, fiddle and bodhran, solidifying the backbone of Ceann's lineup (Jeff Hoag plays mandolin, guitar, banjo, and harmonica and John Shea drums).

With the release of "Almost Irish," which includes a Uilleann pipes contribution from former Black 47 frontman Chris Byrne, the band shortened its moniker, and as they refined their musical skills, their legion of fans grew. Yet despite a rising national profile and band members' New York City addresses, Ceann still pledges its allegiance to (and plays its marathon of St. Patrick's Day shows in) Pittsburgh.

"Pittsburgh is where we started, where we got accepted and indoctrinated culturally," explains Halloran. "No where else is there a city with neighborhoods with so much differing character, where you can do a whole lot of traveling within one place."

The band's affection for the Steel City is evident on "Almost Irish's" leadoff (and arguably strongest) track, the rollicking "31 (For Pittsburgh I Am Bound)," propelled by a haunting and medieval mandolin and fiddle. The chorus has fun with local dialects by opening with "Soon we'll be home to the place I know/Where the boys say "yinz' and the girls say

"no." "That's the fun part, bridging the two," says Halloran of the traditional and the modern. "It plays off people's expectations, using the sounds and styles of old Celtic music and Old English phrasing of words."

So what kind of reception does Ceann expect in Allentown?

"In Allentown we always get the funniest reception," says Halloran, citing less-than-capacity crowds for performances at taprooms such as Cannon's, O'Hara's and Volpe's Sports Bar.

"When we play the other guys' hometowns -- Toledo, Binghamton, Pottsville -- it's always shoulder-to-shoulder. Cannon's [where Ceann performed last March] was good, but not incredible. But this time, we're expecting [radio station] WZZO to give us a big boost" -- the band will be on The Bearman and Keith Show on Wednesday morning -- and [the AOH] have pre-sold a ton of tickets, which is kind of what I want."

Stephen Parrish is a freelance writer.

THE DETAILS
CEANN
What: New York City band specializing in Yankee-Irish drinking music and led by Allen High School grad Patrick Halloran in a concert to benefit the Allentown St. Patrick's Day Parade
When: 9 p.m. Friday
Where: Knights of Columbus, 15th and Hamilton streets, Allentown
Tickets: $20; $20, couples, includes beer and soda
Info: 610-432-6333, www.ceannmusic.com
Related event: Appearance on WZZO-FM's The Bearman and Keith Show on Wednesday morning.

Stephen Parrish