Jerry Hannan Band and Amy Hogan
in Concert at UU Petaluma’s Sanctuary Series
The Jerry Hannan band will perform at 4 p.m. on Sunday, March 15, 2026 at the Unitarian Universalists of Petaluma’s Sanctuary Concert Series. Petaluma singer-songwriter Amy Hogan will provide an opening set for this entry in the concert series, which offers an acoustically outstanding venue for performers and audiences to share in a listening experience.
The series highlights the work of the Sanctuary Coalition of Sonoma County, defending our migrant neighbors from deportation threats.
Jerry Hannan is a distinguished singer/songwriter and entertainer.
He has been called a Marin County treasure, often funny, sardonic in a good-natured way, highlighting issues such as ecology, friendship, and love.
Hannan was raised on jigs and ballads in San Francisco’s Irish community. He grew up listening to the music of his Irish-born parents, The Dubliners and The Clancy Brothers, as well as Cat Stevens.
As a youngster he took accordion lessons, switching to guitar (which he found easier to carry) in high school and played in rock ‘n roll bands.
The Mad Hannans started as Jerry and Sean Hannan in 1996, with their first album “Madly in Love with you”, which became a local cult classic over the years. Sean passed away in 2013 and is remembered fondly in the 2017 film “Mad Hannans” directed by Martin Shore.
Jerry recorded his own haunting composition, “Society” with Pearl Jam’s Eddie Vedder, featured in Sean Penn’s film “Into the Wild”.
In 2003, Hannan recorded his second CD, “Sounds like a Story”. A new song “DaDaDa” from the CD was featured in the film “The Pledge”, which starred Jack Nicholson.
Jerry did 48 performances in Sam Shepard’s 2000 play, “The Late Henry Moss”, at San Francisco’s Theatre on the Square (which featured an ensemble of Sean Penn, Nick Nolte, Cheech Marin and Woody Harrelson.)
He also appeared as a raucous singer who offsets a romantic conversation between Harry Connick, Jr. and Sara Jessica Parker in “Life without Dick.”
Described as “shades of Dylan and John Prine… very Americana with a faint Irish lilt”. Hannan’s songs (like those of Springsteen, Steve Earl and Cat Stevens) speak of our everyday lives and the magic that we sometimes miss. He’s a storyteller, known for his unique lyrics that get to the essence of life. His performances are both uplifting and exuberant.
His most recent recording, “The Light gets Brighter”, features his latest gems, including several songs off the soundtrack from the documentary “Mad Hannans”.
“Mad Hannans”, a documentary, that tells the touching story of brother Jerry and Sean premiered at the Mill Valley Film Festival in October 2017 to sold out audiences. During its European debut in 2018, the film received the Best Documentary Award at the Manchester Film Festival.
Hannan brings with him a talented band including local drummer Tony Blaker (The DoRian Mode, Barry’s New Thing), Cotati’s Andy Tester (Mr. December, Solorio) on bass, and Sven (Craig) Anderson on guitar and dobro.
With a classical piano and vocal jazz background, Amy Hogan combines her piano technique with vocally driven melodies for her original music. She crafts award-winning songs, intertwining imagery with melody to tell her stories and draws upon the talents of her daughter, Holly, to deepen the music with unique harmonies.
“We’re excited to bring a new and beautiful listening room to the already rich Petaluma musical landscape,” says David Dodd, one of the series organizers. “The church sanctuary is an acoustical gem, and we are happy to offer this space for pure musical enjoyment.” The building, a 1901 Italian Gothic Revival gem by noted Petaluma architect Brainerd Jones, is undergoing restoration by the congregation. Dodd says that the UU congregation sees these concerts as a way to raise awareness of the need for defense of our migrant neighbors in the face of ever-increasing threats of deportation.
This is an all-ages event, with no alcohol served–just some snacks and drinks for a late afternoon concert. A suggested donation at the door–no advance ticket sales–of $20 (or more!) will go directly to the artists. The church is located at the corner of 5th and B Streets in downtown Petaluma. Doors open at 3:30, so plan to arrive early to get a good seat!