Hi Christy,
When you line them all up like that it was some
purple patch Jimmy Mack went on.
You brought them to life like they were your own.
(Never knew you took a stab at Aincent Rain)
I was wondering did Shane’s Broad Majestic Shannon
ever get brought down to the workshed for a workout ?
Tabhair Aire
Bourkey
PS Fair play to St. Thomas but that VAR goal will be
all over the papers in the morning.
Might even make it to Joe Duffy on the wireless.
I’ll never know. Switch off after Louises slot.
Who would’ve thought she could step into the bould
Ronan Collins shoes so well…
Stormy days for your break Christy, but at least there is no gig in this weather. A Rebel 4711er found and shared this, it’s new to me and great to hear U2′ s version, https://vm.tiktok.com/ZGeMQpD3K/ fingers crossed that it works.Stay safe ! Beir bua agus beannacht.H
Christy's reply
Never heard U2 sing the song..fair play to them…. writing it with Bono was a most enjoyable experience…a true wordsmith…The Edge wrote a fitting melody..he also called into the garden shed when I was recording the Traveller album…picked up the guitar and nailed the track in two passes…
I copped my first guitar recently and it would be a lie to say you didn’t inspire the purchase, especially after I saw you in Lyrath back in November. I’m looking to tip at the Bodhrán on the side, would you have any advice on what to start with?
Christy's reply
get a few lessons to get the ball rolling…important to find a teacher who’ll help you accompany songs that YOU like
I started with two chords, then 3 (C F G)..then I got the A minor….60 years later I have 9 or 10 chords and a good Capo
main thing is practice, every day..its a killer for a while then the clouds clear and you have a friend for life
Bodhrán is a different story..just get one a tip away with the index finger..
Donal Lunny started me on the guitar circa 1962 and ten years later handed me a Bodhrán in Planxty
good luck with it Matty
Something just happened somewhere between my ears and brain. Might be stupid .
Is there a connection between Sweet Thames Flow softly and the Barrowland song, there’s an easy place…
Got a feeling, one turned up in the other…
We’re home all safe.
Begod Christy! Doesn’t Matty Mulchin “paint” a lovely image with that verse! I think he may have had the air of “Morrissey and the Russian Sailor” in his head when he composed it!?
Christy's reply
“twas in the 37th round the Russian smelt a fart
when Morrissey with a dreadful blow struck him on the heart”
Great finds in a charity shop today,made me think of the importance and diversity of accents…
Did you ever come across ‘Maart’/Martin Allcock RIP?
A Middleton guy who made it from being a fan to a member of Fairport for a good few years,plus Jethro Tull and helping many locals,loaning instruments etc…today,I found a great CD of his,that I’d never even heard about and covers loads of genres,and his multi instrument talents.Very poignant,as the poor guy went way too soon. His website is still up and contains a great story about Kevin Bourke being the source of ‘Maart’,having heard the strong North Manchester accent…you’ll remember the sound,I’m sure!
Second ace accent today,and very powerful in song,Lisa O’Neill…’Heard Along Gone Song’…wow,the power she has…minimalist accompaniment and a fine crop of songs…ending with Shane’s Lullaby of London,hence the album title…
Great to read about your superb gigs…enjoy time in the workroom,there’ll be a head of steam in there,I bet.
All the best
Dave
Christy's reply
Never met the good man… my Manchester time was 10 years before ….Middleton was always a hub back then lots of clubs nearby…Blakeley, St. Clare’s, Hopwood Hall, Kingsway….great Sun Sessions with the late Des Donnelly in Middleton…Des was a dazzling fiddle player and it was always a pleasure to meet him…. I’m trying to figure out if Dezi Donnolly is related to Des (who died tragically on a building site)
Hi Christy,
Well that’s the first gig of the new year done and dusted.
Frances Black, Mary Coughlan and Sharon Shannon
in The Hanger, Salthil, Contae na Gaillimhe.
Jimmy Mack’s songs were well represented.
Frances gave us a fine rendition of Bright Blue Rose.
But when herself and Mary tore into Ride On
they near took the roof of the old venue.
Sharon came on and gave us a few tunes that had us
dancing in the aisles … maybe it wasn’t dancing.
The three took to the stage for the last few numbers and
got the standing ovation and encore they deserved.
You were saying earlier that the rehearsals and sound check
are one thing but if you don’t deliver on stage the audience
won’t follow. This was a magic night when singers, songs and
songsters were all one. We are both looking forward
to your two visits to The Hanger later in the year.
Tabhair Aire and enjoy the well earned break.
Bourkey
Christy's reply
So many great songs from Jimmy Mack’s purple patch….he wrote many classics that will resound as long as songs are sung… Irish Ballad singers were blest to have gained access to those wonderful songs…
I first heard Jimmy MacCarthy when Southpaw played in The Meeting Place , Dublin in the mid 70s…subsequently I got to record Ride On,The Contender, Missing You, Bright Blur Rose, Mad Lady & Me, Mystic Lipstick… had a stab at Ancient Rain and Pyramids of Sneem but could not do them justice…
Good to hear news from The Hanger…keep coming back Bourkey…we always welcome news from The West
Haha, Christy Johnny’s the lad you need to nobble/nibble. By the Lord Harry, Peggy”s Legs…… haven’t heard that for years!
Looking forward a few years from now to a team of toothless wonders setting up the shows!
As you say, there was an amazing contrast in the audience last night as we all quietened down in awe and appreciation for the quietly spoken/sung but still powerful messages, and the fun times. But you know fella, I have often heard about an artist having the audience in the palm of the hand. Never was it more obvious to me than last night…..with the help if a few chosen,well directed (and received) words from yourself! Long may it continue.
Christy's reply
in de authentic Irisch Pub down Gooter Strasse
two sham chuckies were on De Kuypers Gin
to and fro the pair of them debatin
over who’s turn it was to get them in………..an abandoned verse penned in Sviebel Hamburg circa 1975
Hi Christy. Myself, Paul and Tomás (my older and younger brothers) made our annual pilgrimage to see you play in Vicar St last night (the 19th). It’s in or about 35 years since I first saw you live. Paul and I went to your gig in Carlow RTC which was part of Rag Week 1989. The Students’ Union had over-estimated the demand for tickets so there was a good bit of empty space in the hall, but you came on firing on all cylinders and sent everyone who was there home on a great buzz. No empty seats last night in Vicar St of course. A wave of joy we were all riding swept us up into the standing ovation at the end. The ballad for Lyra McKee, The Time has Come and A Pair of Brown Eyes stood out for me as being particularly magical last night. I hope you and your crew enjoy a well earned rest. Ciaran.
Christy's reply
Carlow was a hotbed of gigs back then….Fury’s, El Ruedo, Pedigree Corner, Glenside,Seven Oaks,Dolmen and the aforementioned RTC..I remember gigging the RTC in 1973 with Planxty shortly after it opened….the one and only time I ever did sound was for De Danann in the RTC…in the mid 70s I was living above Carlow on the Castlecomer Plateau…I had a small PA and somehow I ended up doing sound for De Danann….possibly at the behest of Paddy Carroll who still promotes many of our gigs in Leinster…
Sounds like the flock descended on Thomas St. last night in full voice..thanks for all the birdly reminders on here.. Kudos to all involved on another remarkable run of gigs.. long may the gigs continue to captivate.. Enjoy the break..
Hello Christy,
So I’m stood in the building lobby on Francis Street, surrounded by harp, pipes, music and kitchen gear etc… etc… don’t seem to know how to travel light. We’ll be off to the port in a few minutes.
I’ve got a question, maybe not for here? It’s a musician thing. Last night there was a very smooth, beautifully handled key change in Well Below the Valley. Do you remember what happened. Whatever it was, we got the luxury of hearing your voice in two different, but equally effective keys.
Still hoping to share a cup of tea with you sometime. Clearly you’d need to be chaperoned as I can’t be trusted. Waiting here for the flat ‘No’. I’m used to it. Hard to be a female musician in such a male world.
I think my vote’s going on a canter of hedgehogs. We should race the little blighters. They have a wild turn of speed when they get those back legs going.
Rebecca
Christy's reply
safe journey back to Yorkshire…
that key change in “The Well” was on the hoof…I started too high..took a stab at dropping the key but ended too low..decided to keep going and it just about passed muster…
I’m seriously chaperoned around gig time…some times I dont even meet myself
Thanks Christy, And thanks Hilary for the hospitality!
One if your stage crew got a bag of German goodies for the team. I hope he shared it with you!
All the best in Dreamland, I will stick on Come on you Dreamers when I get home….
Christy's reply
the feckin lousers…never caught sight,sound or taste of a German Goody last night…they’re divils for the sweets, forever chewing are the crew, soon as the Christmas selection boxes are devoured they start looking towards Easter Eggs..Tobelrones, Ferrari Roachies, Double Centres, Nancy Balls, Honey Bees, Peggys Legs..by the end of this tour they wont have a tooth left between them
Well Christy, a grand night altogether. You were in superb form, obviously enjoying yourself…..and a lovely singing crowd, quiet respect for certain songs, and an unholy rumpus in the queue for the last few choc-ices! And the shout-out you gave me! Magic. Thank you very much for the mention, the songs, the enthusiasm, the never ending fleadh!
Have a good family time, and hope to see you in the near future.
Christy's reply
after 58 years the gig has arrived at ,for me,a special place….since I departed The National Bank,Ballyaunis,County Mayo in 1966, the road has led me on to thousands of pubs,clubs and halls,to venues great and small scatttered around the world….songs and listeners have been my fuel…I’ve learned from and played with so many players, been helped along the journey by so many guiding hands…
Last night I marvelled at the singing in the room…(over the years I’ve read critics saying “he does not like the audience to sing”….) the volume of the audience singing then fell into utter silence for “Lyra McKee”, “How Long”, “The Well”, “The Stardust ” , “Black & Amber”only to erupt again for “Cabaret”, “Lisdoon” “Ordinary Man”…..I got lost in Ordinary Man but the audience carried on regardless until I found me way again….
Over the past weeks I’ve been reflecting on all those who are directly involved in making the gig happen…all told there were 75 people directly involved in staging last night at Vicar St….there are so many different aspects, so many different skills brought to bear, each and every one of us focused on the same purpose….
and then there are the listeners who come from far and near…who’s enthusiasm fires the night… last week I heard an old interview with Maggie Smith & Michael Parkinson.. Maggie said that the audience do half the work at any given performance…I could not agree more… I play these songs in the work room every day, I do sound checks and rehearsals….nothing special happens until I get before the lamps and the crowd “kick-in” ….only then can Duende descend
thats all for now Patsy…. I’m going back to sleep..
It’s a good thing we’re not looking for lyrics that mention dinosaurs or hedgehogs. I’ve no idea what a group of either of them is called.
A roar, a lumber?
A prickle?
I never saw this before. Gay still doing the Late Late I see.
Hi Christy,
When you line them all up like that it was some
purple patch Jimmy Mack went on.
You brought them to life like they were your own.
(Never knew you took a stab at Aincent Rain)
I was wondering did Shane’s Broad Majestic Shannon
ever get brought down to the workshed for a workout ?
Tabhair Aire
Bourkey
PS Fair play to St. Thomas but that VAR goal will be
all over the papers in the morning.
Might even make it to Joe Duffy on the wireless.
I’ll never know. Switch off after Louises slot.
Who would’ve thought she could step into the bould
Ronan Collins shoes so well…
Stormy days for your break Christy, but at least there is no gig in this weather. A Rebel 4711er found and shared this, it’s new to me and great to hear U2′ s version,
https://vm.tiktok.com/ZGeMQpD3K/ fingers crossed that it works.Stay safe ! Beir bua agus beannacht.H
Never heard U2 sing the song..fair play to them…. writing it with Bono was a most enjoyable experience…a true wordsmith…The Edge wrote a fitting melody..he also called into the garden shed when I was recording the Traveller album…picked up the guitar and nailed the track in two passes…
I copped my first guitar recently and it would be a lie to say you didn’t inspire the purchase, especially after I saw you in Lyrath back in November. I’m looking to tip at the Bodhrán on the side, would you have any advice on what to start with?
get a few lessons to get the ball rolling…important to find a teacher who’ll help you accompany songs that YOU like
I started with two chords, then 3 (C F G)..then I got the A minor….60 years later I have 9 or 10 chords and a good Capo
main thing is practice, every day..its a killer for a while then the clouds clear and you have a friend for life
Bodhrán is a different story..just get one a tip away with the index finger..
Donal Lunny started me on the guitar circa 1962 and ten years later handed me a Bodhrán in Planxty
good luck with it Matty
Something just happened somewhere between my ears and brain. Might be stupid .
Is there a connection between Sweet Thames Flow softly and the Barrowland song, there’s an easy place…
Got a feeling, one turned up in the other…
We’re home all safe.
Romeo and Juliet were regulars in The Scotia
Begod Christy! Doesn’t Matty Mulchin “paint” a lovely image with that verse! I think he may have had the air of “Morrissey and the Russian Sailor” in his head when he composed it!?
“twas in the 37th round the Russian smelt a fart
when Morrissey with a dreadful blow struck him on the heart”
Hi Christy
Great finds in a charity shop today,made me think of the importance and diversity of accents…
Did you ever come across ‘Maart’/Martin Allcock RIP?
A Middleton guy who made it from being a fan to a member of Fairport for a good few years,plus Jethro Tull and helping many locals,loaning instruments etc…today,I found a great CD of his,that I’d never even heard about and covers loads of genres,and his multi instrument talents.Very poignant,as the poor guy went way too soon. His website is still up and contains a great story about Kevin Bourke being the source of ‘Maart’,having heard the strong North Manchester accent…you’ll remember the sound,I’m sure!
Second ace accent today,and very powerful in song,Lisa O’Neill…’Heard Along Gone Song’…wow,the power she has…minimalist accompaniment and a fine crop of songs…ending with Shane’s Lullaby of London,hence the album title…
Great to read about your superb gigs…enjoy time in the workroom,there’ll be a head of steam in there,I bet.
All the best
Dave
Never met the good man… my Manchester time was 10 years before ….Middleton was always a hub back then lots of clubs nearby…Blakeley, St. Clare’s, Hopwood Hall, Kingsway….great Sun Sessions with the late Des Donnelly in Middleton…Des was a dazzling fiddle player and it was always a pleasure to meet him…. I’m trying to figure out if Dezi Donnolly is related to Des (who died tragically on a building site)
Hi Christy,
Well that’s the first gig of the new year done and dusted.
Frances Black, Mary Coughlan and Sharon Shannon
in The Hanger, Salthil, Contae na Gaillimhe.
Jimmy Mack’s songs were well represented.
Frances gave us a fine rendition of Bright Blue Rose.
But when herself and Mary tore into Ride On
they near took the roof of the old venue.
Sharon came on and gave us a few tunes that had us
dancing in the aisles … maybe it wasn’t dancing.
The three took to the stage for the last few numbers and
got the standing ovation and encore they deserved.
You were saying earlier that the rehearsals and sound check
are one thing but if you don’t deliver on stage the audience
won’t follow. This was a magic night when singers, songs and
songsters were all one. We are both looking forward
to your two visits to The Hanger later in the year.
Tabhair Aire and enjoy the well earned break.
Bourkey
So many great songs from Jimmy Mack’s purple patch….he wrote many classics that will resound as long as songs are sung… Irish Ballad singers were blest to have gained access to those wonderful songs…
I first heard Jimmy MacCarthy when Southpaw played in The Meeting Place , Dublin in the mid 70s…subsequently I got to record Ride On,The Contender, Missing You, Bright Blur Rose, Mad Lady & Me, Mystic Lipstick… had a stab at Ancient Rain and Pyramids of Sneem but could not do them justice…
Good to hear news from The Hanger…keep coming back Bourkey…we always welcome news from The West
Haha, Christy Johnny’s the lad you need to nobble/nibble. By the Lord Harry, Peggy”s Legs…… haven’t heard that for years!
Looking forward a few years from now to a team of toothless wonders setting up the shows!
As you say, there was an amazing contrast in the audience last night as we all quietened down in awe and appreciation for the quietly spoken/sung but still powerful messages, and the fun times. But you know fella, I have often heard about an artist having the audience in the palm of the hand. Never was it more obvious to me than last night…..with the help if a few chosen,well directed (and received) words from yourself! Long may it continue.
in de authentic Irisch Pub down Gooter Strasse
two sham chuckies were on De Kuypers Gin
to and fro the pair of them debatin
over who’s turn it was to get them in………..an abandoned verse penned in Sviebel Hamburg circa 1975
Hi Christy. Myself, Paul and Tomás (my older and younger brothers) made our annual pilgrimage to see you play in Vicar St last night (the 19th). It’s in or about 35 years since I first saw you live. Paul and I went to your gig in Carlow RTC which was part of Rag Week 1989. The Students’ Union had over-estimated the demand for tickets so there was a good bit of empty space in the hall, but you came on firing on all cylinders and sent everyone who was there home on a great buzz. No empty seats last night in Vicar St of course. A wave of joy we were all riding swept us up into the standing ovation at the end. The ballad for Lyra McKee, The Time has Come and A Pair of Brown Eyes stood out for me as being particularly magical last night. I hope you and your crew enjoy a well earned rest. Ciaran.
Carlow was a hotbed of gigs back then….Fury’s, El Ruedo, Pedigree Corner, Glenside,Seven Oaks,Dolmen and the aforementioned RTC..I remember gigging the RTC in 1973 with Planxty shortly after it opened….the one and only time I ever did sound was for De Danann in the RTC…in the mid 70s I was living above Carlow on the Castlecomer Plateau…I had a small PA and somehow I ended up doing sound for De Danann….possibly at the behest of Paddy Carroll who still promotes many of our gigs in Leinster…
Sounds like the flock descended on Thomas St. last night in full voice..thanks for all the birdly reminders on here.. Kudos to all involved on another remarkable run of gigs.. long may the gigs continue to captivate.. Enjoy the break..
Kev
O to be in Dún na Rí
Hello Christy,
So I’m stood in the building lobby on Francis Street, surrounded by harp, pipes, music and kitchen gear etc… etc… don’t seem to know how to travel light. We’ll be off to the port in a few minutes.
I’ve got a question, maybe not for here? It’s a musician thing. Last night there was a very smooth, beautifully handled key change in Well Below the Valley. Do you remember what happened. Whatever it was, we got the luxury of hearing your voice in two different, but equally effective keys.
Still hoping to share a cup of tea with you sometime. Clearly you’d need to be chaperoned as I can’t be trusted. Waiting here for the flat ‘No’. I’m used to it. Hard to be a female musician in such a male world.
I think my vote’s going on a canter of hedgehogs. We should race the little blighters. They have a wild turn of speed when they get those back legs going.
Rebecca
safe journey back to Yorkshire…
that key change in “The Well” was on the hoof…I started too high..took a stab at dropping the key but ended too low..decided to keep going and it just about passed muster…
I’m seriously chaperoned around gig time…some times I dont even meet myself
Nobody does it better 🎸🎼
fair play to you Marty
Thanks Christy, And thanks Hilary for the hospitality!
One if your stage crew got a bag of German goodies for the team. I hope he shared it with you!
All the best in Dreamland, I will stick on Come on you Dreamers when I get home….
the feckin lousers…never caught sight,sound or taste of a German Goody last night…they’re divils for the sweets, forever chewing are the crew, soon as the Christmas selection boxes are devoured they start looking towards Easter Eggs..Tobelrones, Ferrari Roachies, Double Centres, Nancy Balls, Honey Bees, Peggys Legs..by the end of this tour they wont have a tooth left between them
We won’t feel it now until we’re cuttin it, footin it….. I may start that auld stretching craic myself!
Well Christy, a grand night altogether. You were in superb form, obviously enjoying yourself…..and a lovely singing crowd, quiet respect for certain songs, and an unholy rumpus in the queue for the last few choc-ices! And the shout-out you gave me! Magic. Thank you very much for the mention, the songs, the enthusiasm, the never ending fleadh!
Have a good family time, and hope to see you in the near future.
after 58 years the gig has arrived at ,for me,a special place….since I departed The National Bank,Ballyaunis,County Mayo in 1966, the road has led me on to thousands of pubs,clubs and halls,to venues great and small scatttered around the world….songs and listeners have been my fuel…I’ve learned from and played with so many players, been helped along the journey by so many guiding hands…
Last night I marvelled at the singing in the room…(over the years I’ve read critics saying “he does not like the audience to sing”….) the volume of the audience singing then fell into utter silence for “Lyra McKee”, “How Long”, “The Well”, “The Stardust ” , “Black & Amber”only to erupt again for “Cabaret”, “Lisdoon” “Ordinary Man”…..I got lost in Ordinary Man but the audience carried on regardless until I found me way again….
Over the past weeks I’ve been reflecting on all those who are directly involved in making the gig happen…all told there were 75 people directly involved in staging last night at Vicar St….there are so many different aspects, so many different skills brought to bear, each and every one of us focused on the same purpose….
and then there are the listeners who come from far and near…who’s enthusiasm fires the night… last week I heard an old interview with Maggie Smith & Michael Parkinson.. Maggie said that the audience do half the work at any given performance…I could not agree more… I play these songs in the work room every day, I do sound checks and rehearsals….nothing special happens until I get before the lamps and the crowd “kick-in” ….only then can Duende descend
thats all for now Patsy…. I’m going back to sleep..
No amount of choc ices would have silenced that crowd to night… Fantastic gig, thank you so much and to all the crew along side you. A special bunch.
Home now with a sup of tae and Paul McGrath on the late late…no mention of Joxer yet
Where the Heather & The Moss grow
and the turf lies,row after row,
out there in the Sun to dry
I take it all in as I pedal on by….. (Luka)
Another brilliant gig …. what a great night , really great audience that sang along beautifully….
Thanks Christy and all the crew.
Its dark and lonely work Marty…but someones gotta do it
It’s a good thing we’re not looking for lyrics that mention dinosaurs or hedgehogs. I’ve no idea what a group of either of them is called.
A roar, a lumber?
A prickle?
Hope you have a good and productive break.
a clatter…. a gansey…..a shower…. a clutch….
Murmuration! Thankyou