About the Band

Named after a town in County Antrim, Ireland, Abbots Cross is a dynamic Celtic group who has been performing together for nearly 20 years. Alan Booth's resonant vocals, coupled with Mike Clancy's flute and percussion skills shaped by a jazz background, create a unique and thrilling musical blend. Paul Busalachhi on bass and Josh Gerba on drums add a strong foundation, driving the music with rhythm and depth. Their diverse musical roots in jazz, classical, rock, and folk infuse a fresh energy into traditional Celtic tunes, showcasing a commitment to both honoring tradition and exploring innovative musical territories.

 Alan Booth

vocals, guitar, fiddle
Alan has been around music since birth. Both of Alan's parents are retired public school music teachers. At age 5, piano lessons began. Piano led to guitar, which led to acoustic bass, which led to fiddle, which led back to guitar, which led to singing!

Alan has a passion for people and loves to sing and play along with new people he meets. He has volunteered singing and playing music at The Washington City Mission (Washington, PA), the Bidwell Street Highrise, the Pressley Street Highrise (both in Pittsburgh's Northside Neighborhood)...and even into the Mathare Valley slum of Nairobi, Kenya!

He is an alumnus of several Pittsburgh celtic bands.

Mike Clancy

flute, Irish flute, whistles, percussion
Mike is a multi-instrumentalist who performs regularly in the Pittsburgh area as a freelance musician. He headed his own band, The Mike Clancy Quartet, for many years as well as working with Latin jazz/salsa groups such as Latin Impulse and La Moderna. Mike released his debut cd, "Illusions," in 1996 which features 9 of his original jazz compositions. Mike played alto and soprano saxophone, flute and congas on the recording "Illusions."

Over the years, Mike has shared the stage with Johnny Mathis at Heinz Hall and Al Martino at the Mountaineer. He also performed for several Broadway shows that have come to Pittsburgh such as Chicago (Heinz Hall), 42nd Street (The Benedum), and H.M.S. Pinafore (The O'Reilly Theater).

In addition to his Irish music project with Alan Booth, Mike currently plays saxophone, flute, and clarinet with Stick-2-it ( a duo featuring Dave Brosky on Chapman Stick), RML Jazz, and Grammy-nominated Grkmania (a Slovenian polka band).