I hope your are keeping well? I am a huge fan of your music and have had the pleasure of seeing you play all over the country many times, Including The Vicar street gigs at Christmas time which is now becoming a great tradition.
I am taking my partner to see you this Monday (17/12/18) as it will be our fist concert together since the birth of our baby girl last March.
I was really hoping you could play “Quiet Desperation” as the song is about the place I have named our little girl after and it would mean the world to hear you sing it. Although my partner has no clue where I got the idea for such a peculiar name. Hearing the song might be a nice way of solving the mystery for her.
Thank you for all the music and memories.
Wishing you and your family a very Happy Christmas.
Robert
Christy's reply
Hope you both have a good gig….
I’ve not sung that song for a while
I’ve been practicing it here in the work room
such a beautiful and simple song from Floyd (Red Crow)Westerman
Well Christy, I had the privilege of being in the barrowlands this year and hearing the boy from tamlaghtduff for the first time and I’ve been listening to it ever since. Will be there on Monday the 17th and hope to hear it again. All the best!!
Christy's reply
Well DJ, Lets see what way the wind blows….from Gallowgate to Tamlaghtduff and back around by Christchurch
Another year gone by and again I get ready to leave Sydney and start the trek home for Christmas.
My Dad and I will be in Vicar Street on Monday 17th – I bring him every year to repay him in what little way I can for all he has given me, not least a massive appreciation for your music. It all started in Goff’s in November 1994, for my 10th birthday and has stayed with me since!
I know have left it late, but if there is space on Monday’s setlist for Smoke and Strong Whiskey, that would top off another incredible night in your company. It was the first of your songs I learned to play on his guitar, many moons ago.
All the best to yourself, Dec and the gang for the Vicar Street run this year.
Happy Christmas!
All the best,
John Fitz
Christy's reply
Good man John Fitz…..may your jaunt from Sydney to Baile átha Cliath be stress free….I remember those gigs in Goffs very clearly…startled to read it was 25 years ago….Hope you and your Dad have a good night in Vicar St….
Dear Christy,
My wife, Anne & I were at Vicar Street on Monday and Tuesday. Our good friend, Ken gave up his front row seat so that I could see you up close and personal (and he could sit with the lovely Anne). Hillary spotted me and procured one of your plectrums (which since I play guitar may play a role more than a memory). Anyway, we had a wonderful time and your shout out from the stage on Tuesday will be a lifetime highlight for us. Hope to see you again soon-thank you so much! The music, indeed, keeps our spirits high. Joe & Anne
Christy's reply
Joe & Anne from Wisconsin….twas great to have ye in the room for those gigs….that ye met up with some new friends and followers of song…hope the plec works out for you….that the shape,weight and flex concurs with your style of strum !!
😂 Cheers Christy not a great spellar but im out of the Queens gaze here in Dublin so ill get away with it. The crack is bad news. The mushrooms on a weekend in Amsterdam be better craic.
Best of luck with the remaining gigs.
Cheers,
Seán
Christy's reply
sound Sean..your spelling is 100%
I’ve always had a bee in my bonnet about “the crack” being spelt craic
I’t started in The Irish Post when crack smoking arrived in London and the auld PC kicked in
Hi Christy, It is 40 years since I first saw you perform and I am really looking forward to the concert on Monday evening at Vicar St. We are a family of fans and I will be accompanied by my son Patrick. Thank you for all the great music and pleasure.
Christy's reply
Be warned Joy,
after 40 years the hair is gone,
so too the clogs and flares
some songs have disappeared
some new ones have come along
hope you and Patrick have a good night,
The Band and I are having a good run…
We are big fans from the USA. We would like to come to one of your concerts. Some are listed as solo and others not. Do the concerts not listed as solo include your band? Thanks!
Christy's reply
Hey DG…
Welcome …..Apart from those listed as SOLO, all upcoming gigs will feature the Band with Declan Sinnott,Jimmy Higgins and Cathal Hayden…..
Hi Christy, we’re looking forward to hearing & seeing you again in the New Year….as bright light in what has been as very sad year for my family.
Wishing you the most peaceful of Christmas’s & continued singing in the Year of 2019!
Tina & my now 18yr old son, Daniel! From mount Scott, Mullagh, 4 miles south of Sràid na Catharach!! Xx
Christy's reply
Greetings to you and all the good people of Mullagh,Quilty,The Crosses of Annagh, Knockliscrane agus Sráid na Cathrac….May the White Light shine upon us all as we head towards the glorious mystery of whatever lies ahead
Christy, it was such a beautiful evening last night in Vicar Street. Thank you. And thanks for singing my favourite song Viva La Quinta Brigada. I hoped and prayed you would and don’t have the balls to be shouting out from the crowd! As always, you sing a new song that totally captivates me. Last night, it was Ringing the Bell and I have spent the morning looking up Rob Corocoran and his work. Hope he enjoys your rendition of his song tonight. Wish I was going again as your music touches my soul.
Christy's reply
Sound Fergal…..in these crazy times some of us need the balm of music and song to help us thru the night..
ah christy what a gig what a setlist and what an audience in vicar street last…my friend joe and his wife anne have flown in especially from wisconsin for the first two gigs…both life long fans and their first gigs …joe was buzzin’ after the gig and then after the gig didn’t hilary pass on one of your plectrums to him for which he was simply stunned to receive…joe said you sang every one of his favourite songs last night (although i suspect every song is his favourite) except one ‘the contender’ so he sang us a couple of verses in the pub afterwards…a great night with you and the boys in top form….we are back tonight and are looking forward to watching the rafters on vicar street shake and rattle and roll…thanks again for making joe and anne’s life long dream come true…..ken
Christy's reply
Fair Play to You Ken…
No Paseran! …
I hear you gave up your front row seats last night… thats pure 4711….we are blest to have such listeners coming to the songs…I love the way the gaggle has developed over the years…people looking out for each other…… we’re back here in Vicar St now getting ready to do it all again…
Welcome Joe &Anne from Wisconsin..Thanks for making the trip…and Bobby Meehan from Texas….. Shine On you Crazy Diamonds
Hi Christy, I am heading to see you live tonight in Vicar Street for the first time, really looking forward to it, Would love if you could play “Motherland”, Thanks, Jim.
Christy's reply
Sail On Jimmy Óg….I’m only after reading your post , but its the morning after, if I’d got it in time I’d have given Natalie’s beautiful song a twirl for we do love to dance around dear old Motherland…if you are ever coming for a second look give me a bit more notice but dont be holding your breath for these nights we do be going with the flow,,,we tend to sail along to wherever the airs do take us….last night we went all the way to Houston Texas, then back around to beneath the Black Mountain, on The Mountains of Pomerey we met up with Billy Gray and him on his way to an Irish Pagan Ritual…..
ISIS, ASTARTE, DIANA, HECATI, DEMITRE, KALI, INARNA ( Kildare spellings) sang Charlie Murphy ( via Roy Bailey), two good men a long time gone..
and de dems from the LGBT choir were singin Galway Gay
“Take me home to Mayo, thats where I long to be” ( Michael Gaughan)
Hi Christy, i’ve been listening to a podcast lately which interviews musicians of a rebel nature once a month.
This month Derry’s own Declan Mc Laughlin was interviewed.I really enjoy his music. Anyhow, he shares a few funny stories and preforms two excellent songs at a the end of the podcast.
It’s worth a listen and hopefully something you and the other 4711ers might enjoy.
Thanks for sharing 2811….we’ll be giving Declan a spin as soon as we get the porridge and find the headphones….He be one of Derry’s finest….we’ll be walkin the Walls, lookin down at The People
Dear Christy I hope you and yours are well. It’s blowing a gale . We were very fortunate to get tickets via Michael’s West Ham mate to attend a Q and A with Eliza Carthy interviewing Peggy Seeger at Wanstead library. A great woman full of tales. And so funny as well. Irreverent at times. She spoke of the performers’ need to be authentic. Walking a thin line between performance and the true self. Though I myself wonder what that means? Her book is called First Time Ever. Eliza Carthy spoke also about her mother and father and their trad journey of trying to keep songs alive. It was a fine night. Anyhoo the dinner menu needs deciding. Keep warm. Xx
Christy's reply
a pair of strong women both steeped in the annals of music and song
that “thin line” is one many of us walk when performing the songs….its all an act…once the listeners gather and the lights go down…the play is on…
“Some of them are dreamers, some of them are fools”
“you’d better ask me Sister, sez Kattie Barry ,
and I showed her the colour of me money when I got back from Katanga”
I still remember the first time I heard Liza’s Mother sing, twas back in 1967 and The Watersons were playing in Hyde,Chesire, their sound still reverberating in my auld head…a few months after I hear Carthy & Swarbrick play “Jack Orion” in the MSG Club, Manchester…
Shared a stage with Peggy & Ewan in London…that was a huge night in my young life…sitting with a Master of Song, transfixed by Peggy’s riffs
its a long thin line, goes on and on, so many disguises to hide behind,
we must never confuse the singer with the character of the song
Love to dear old blighty, my heart goes out to you all over there in that green and pleasant land,no one knows whats going on, no one knows the truth,
and that prick Boris is coming to Dublin to talk down at us…fuck him and his Bus
Hi Christy.
I’m a solo performer, of a similar style to yourself. Heavily influenced by Luke Kelly, The Dubliners, The tones, yourself etc.
I write some of my own songs, & try hard to make them blend in with the old ballads.
There’s one in particular, its a bit of fun, & people keep telling me I should try get you to sing it.
How can I get you to hear it?
Thanks for the many, many happy moments you have given me through your music over the years.
Roger,
Wexford.
Christy's reply
bang it up here Roger and we’ll all have a listen….just bang it up…go public… dont mind what people be tellin you
Christy,
Myself and the father are looking forward to seeing you again tomorrow night in Vicar Street. We’ve followed you around the country but there’s always something special about the gigs leading up to Christmas.
I’m a huge fan of some of your more recent works detailing the chronicles of Kildare, the famous names, places and faces of our county outlined in your songs. However one stands out from the rest, and that’s ‘1945’, which strikes a personal chord with me everytime I hear it. The soldiers and jockeys of the plains, the Dominican brothers of Newbridge College, and of course the great Con Collins a good friend of my grandfather who also visited Frank Kelly’s for a pint or two and a game of cards.
Up the Lillys !
Christy's reply
Fair play to to you, thanks for the thumbs up on 1945…I’ve never gigged it…maybe I should get it out and have another look at it…I only sang it once or twice but never in public..
Kelly’s “of the lock” was a great watering hole back in the early 60s..great times..I was just learning the songs and guitar and Kellys war where I made my first Balladeer outings…. “Phelim Brady” Jug of punch” “Brennan on The Moor” …Austin O’Donnell from the Curragh and Kevin Prendergast from Miltown were two other apprentice balladeers, both good men gone…
the card school on Tuesday Nights was legendary…..Dick and Con Collins,Owen McGinn, Red Prendergast, “Long” Paddy Prendergast some of the card sharks I can recall..there would be stacks of notes on the table and we’d be in the back lounge trying to get the price of a pint together
CM(73)such Windy rainy night here .How is the house building near you these days?.Thon windmill has been installed with two big lights on top ,looks like two eyes of a monster watching every move.Now digging up the road to bring a cable to Boss Windmill.They cut out the internet one day ..another day all the electric was gone then the water cut out aswell ..what a mickey mouse carry on!
I had a chance to read some of the 1,000 (not all) page 25 year study of the different dialects of spoken Irish on the Aran islands. You’d be surprised how different dialects can be from one village or island very close to another (I notice it now in secondary school) . It seems the people on Inish Oirr (where Pat Quinn lives) adopted a more Munster form of Irish.
Aparently Dún aengus was connected to the cliffs of Moher one time..sure did travel a mighty distance. Another Dadó story is that Galway bay was a tiny lake called “loch lurgan” before the ice or something.
Anyways I was thinking lately that there is hardly that many places on Ireland that you haven’t played or even gone through. Did you ever venture to the islands (some connected by roads) west of spiddal? Lettermore ,Lettermullán,Garmuna,Cean Golam,Inish Bearachain ,Inse Gaineamh , Inish Oirk,?
CS(14)
PS:Thinking of putting christmas lights on Bláthín and Noinín the evenings get dark so quick cant see them half the day.Did you ever get to see Harriet? She certainly has a different dialect to my donkeys .
Christy's reply
Many years ago myself and my brother in law went for a game of pool in a local pub…we came home with a beautiful donkey who graced the back field for many years
the building site next door is almost finished….with awful consequences for the immediate environment, 4 beautiful old trees downed by the last wind…all because their root systems were compromised by the works…trees that exuded peace and beauty all the year round…. an acre where bushes, foliage, orchard and fruit trees once flourished is now covered in concrete and tarmac…habitation of many species of birds and insects, of squirrels, of hedgehogs….no more apples pears nor goosegogs…
But thats the way of the world a Mhacín….thats the way she’s going..God Love Her…
Dear Christy,
Many thanks for your lovely reply. Very good that you took “The Sun is Burning” out of mothballs! (Wish I could have eavesdropped on you in your workroom) So there’s hope I’ll get to hear this great song some day … There’s a strong probability that we are visiting Ireland first, though the prospect of your coming back to Germany is thrilling!
I like Pat Quinn’s song “The Great Potato Feud” – thanks for the hint too!
All the best,
Traudel
Christy's reply
The song was written by Ian Cambell who fronted his own Band in Birmingham in the 60s…I played at his club where I heard him sing the song…I remember playing it in Buncrana in 1978, the week after the Le Mons Restaraunt Bomb ….the last verse was imbued with different images as the song unfolded….Ian subsequently moved to Ireland where he spent the remainder of his life…. his two Sons were part of the Band UB40 for many years
Luke Kelly did a fine version, he lived with the Cambells for a while in Birmingham….I recorded it on the album “The Iron behind The Velvet” in the 70s. There is another of Ian’s songs on “The Box Set”… “The Old Man’s Song”..its on the Green Disc
really looking forward to seeing you on Monday at Vicar Street. I have seen you last year in Belfast and really enjoyed it!!!
Would be great if you come again to Germany in the not too distant future (Bochum for example is so long ago…).
I have a question (I hope it’s not a stupid one): Is there a chance to get an autograph of you (or better even: two – one for me as a souvenir, one for my guitar teacher who tries to teach me some of your songs and suffers from my poor performances 🙂 ). With an autograph I can try to make up for it as he is a big fan of you as well.
Thank you in advance.
Cheers
Birgit
Christy's reply
Maybe some day I will get back to sing in Germany..who knows what way the wind will blow
For you Christy ,and anyone else interested , i have a cd called ‘first i’m going to sing you a ditty’ which is worth tracking down, some songs are on youtube mind you.
There are some great scottish voices and wonderful old traditional songs ( some near forgotten no doubt) included ,but also a range of traditional singers from all over ireland, names like tommy mcgrath,maggy murphy, rose anne murphy, ellen o’dwyer, paddy breen, mary ann carolan, nora cleary, jim and seamus donaghue and of course john reilly. Perhaps most intriguingly of all is a singer called ‘maurice’ and all that is said to be known is…middle aged in 1965, well known in Paddy Haughton’s pub in Ross, Waterford.
Anyway, any chance of some inkling of the tunes you would put into that traditional album if it were ever to happen for you?
Cheers Rory
Christy's reply
gonna get that album, thanks for the tip…Topic records have a long history of releasing good music and song..
I do have songs gathered for a poss ” Trad ” collection but to talk about them here might “hex” the idea…
heard some great singers in Scotland in the 60s.. Davey Stewart,Jimmy McBeath, Jeannie Robertson….down South of the Border I encountered Fred Jordan
Christy,
I hope your are keeping well? I am a huge fan of your music and have had the pleasure of seeing you play all over the country many times, Including The Vicar street gigs at Christmas time which is now becoming a great tradition.
I am taking my partner to see you this Monday (17/12/18) as it will be our fist concert together since the birth of our baby girl last March.
I was really hoping you could play “Quiet Desperation” as the song is about the place I have named our little girl after and it would mean the world to hear you sing it. Although my partner has no clue where I got the idea for such a peculiar name. Hearing the song might be a nice way of solving the mystery for her.
Thank you for all the music and memories.
Wishing you and your family a very Happy Christmas.
Robert
Hope you both have a good gig….
I’ve not sung that song for a while
I’ve been practicing it here in the work room
such a beautiful and simple song from Floyd (Red Crow)Westerman
Well Christy, I had the privilege of being in the barrowlands this year and hearing the boy from tamlaghtduff for the first time and I’ve been listening to it ever since. Will be there on Monday the 17th and hope to hear it again. All the best!!
Well DJ, Lets see what way the wind blows….from Gallowgate to Tamlaghtduff and back around by Christchurch
Christy,
Another year gone by and again I get ready to leave Sydney and start the trek home for Christmas.
My Dad and I will be in Vicar Street on Monday 17th – I bring him every year to repay him in what little way I can for all he has given me, not least a massive appreciation for your music. It all started in Goff’s in November 1994, for my 10th birthday and has stayed with me since!
I know have left it late, but if there is space on Monday’s setlist for Smoke and Strong Whiskey, that would top off another incredible night in your company. It was the first of your songs I learned to play on his guitar, many moons ago.
All the best to yourself, Dec and the gang for the Vicar Street run this year.
Happy Christmas!
All the best,
John Fitz
Good man John Fitz…..may your jaunt from Sydney to Baile átha Cliath be stress free….I remember those gigs in Goffs very clearly…startled to read it was 25 years ago….Hope you and your Dad have a good night in Vicar St….
Dear Christy,
My wife, Anne & I were at Vicar Street on Monday and Tuesday. Our good friend, Ken gave up his front row seat so that I could see you up close and personal (and he could sit with the lovely Anne). Hillary spotted me and procured one of your plectrums (which since I play guitar may play a role more than a memory). Anyway, we had a wonderful time and your shout out from the stage on Tuesday will be a lifetime highlight for us. Hope to see you again soon-thank you so much! The music, indeed, keeps our spirits high. Joe & Anne
Joe & Anne from Wisconsin….twas great to have ye in the room for those gigs….that ye met up with some new friends and followers of song…hope the plec works out for you….that the shape,weight and flex concurs with your style of strum !!
😂 Cheers Christy not a great spellar but im out of the Queens gaze here in Dublin so ill get away with it. The crack is bad news. The mushrooms on a weekend in Amsterdam be better craic.
Best of luck with the remaining gigs.
Cheers,
Seán
sound Sean..your spelling is 100%
I’ve always had a bee in my bonnet about “the crack” being spelt craic
I’t started in The Irish Post when crack smoking arrived in London and the auld PC kicked in
Hi Christy, It is 40 years since I first saw you perform and I am really looking forward to the concert on Monday evening at Vicar St. We are a family of fans and I will be accompanied by my son Patrick. Thank you for all the great music and pleasure.
Be warned Joy,
after 40 years the hair is gone,
so too the clogs and flares
some songs have disappeared
some new ones have come along
hope you and Patrick have a good night,
The Band and I are having a good run…
Thanks for listening
Hi Christy,
We are big fans from the USA. We would like to come to one of your concerts. Some are listed as solo and others not. Do the concerts not listed as solo include your band? Thanks!
Hey DG…
Welcome …..Apart from those listed as SOLO, all upcoming gigs will feature the Band with Declan Sinnott,Jimmy Higgins and Cathal Hayden…..
Hope it works out for you.
Hi Christy, we’re looking forward to hearing & seeing you again in the New Year….as bright light in what has been as very sad year for my family.
Wishing you the most peaceful of Christmas’s & continued singing in the Year of 2019!
Tina & my now 18yr old son, Daniel! From mount Scott, Mullagh, 4 miles south of Sràid na Catharach!! Xx
Greetings to you and all the good people of Mullagh,Quilty,The Crosses of Annagh, Knockliscrane agus Sráid na Cathrac….May the White Light shine upon us all as we head towards the glorious mystery of whatever lies ahead
Great gig last night Christy. Lovely buzz off it. Amazing crack. Cheers
great to hear from someone who emplys the correct spelling
“O The Crack was 90 in The Isle of Man”
Christy, it was such a beautiful evening last night in Vicar Street. Thank you. And thanks for singing my favourite song Viva La Quinta Brigada. I hoped and prayed you would and don’t have the balls to be shouting out from the crowd! As always, you sing a new song that totally captivates me. Last night, it was Ringing the Bell and I have spent the morning looking up Rob Corocoran and his work. Hope he enjoys your rendition of his song tonight. Wish I was going again as your music touches my soul.
Sound Fergal…..in these crazy times some of us need the balm of music and song to help us thru the night..
but the question remains..
What is Art ?
ah christy what a gig what a setlist and what an audience in vicar street last…my friend joe and his wife anne have flown in especially from wisconsin for the first two gigs…both life long fans and their first gigs …joe was buzzin’ after the gig and then after the gig didn’t hilary pass on one of your plectrums to him for which he was simply stunned to receive…joe said you sang every one of his favourite songs last night (although i suspect every song is his favourite) except one ‘the contender’ so he sang us a couple of verses in the pub afterwards…a great night with you and the boys in top form….we are back tonight and are looking forward to watching the rafters on vicar street shake and rattle and roll…thanks again for making joe and anne’s life long dream come true…..ken
Fair Play to You Ken…
No Paseran! …
I hear you gave up your front row seats last night… thats pure 4711….we are blest to have such listeners coming to the songs…I love the way the gaggle has developed over the years…people looking out for each other…… we’re back here in Vicar St now getting ready to do it all again…
Welcome Joe &Anne from Wisconsin..Thanks for making the trip…and Bobby Meehan from Texas….. Shine On you Crazy Diamonds
Hi Christy, I am heading to see you live tonight in Vicar Street for the first time, really looking forward to it, Would love if you could play “Motherland”, Thanks, Jim.
Sail On Jimmy Óg….I’m only after reading your post , but its the morning after, if I’d got it in time I’d have given Natalie’s beautiful song a twirl for we do love to dance around dear old Motherland…if you are ever coming for a second look give me a bit more notice but dont be holding your breath for these nights we do be going with the flow,,,we tend to sail along to wherever the airs do take us….last night we went all the way to Houston Texas, then back around to beneath the Black Mountain, on The Mountains of Pomerey we met up with Billy Gray and him on his way to an Irish Pagan Ritual…..
ISIS, ASTARTE, DIANA, HECATI, DEMITRE, KALI, INARNA ( Kildare spellings) sang Charlie Murphy ( via Roy Bailey), two good men a long time gone..
and de dems from the LGBT choir were singin Galway Gay
“Take me home to Mayo, thats where I long to be” ( Michael Gaughan)
Hi Christy, i’ve been listening to a podcast lately which interviews musicians of a rebel nature once a month.
This month Derry’s own Declan Mc Laughlin was interviewed.I really enjoy his music. Anyhow, he shares a few funny stories and preforms two excellent songs at a the end of the podcast.
It’s worth a listen and hopefully something you and the other 4711ers might enjoy.
https://podtail.com/en/podcast/the-rebel-collective-podcast/
Thanks for sharing 2811….we’ll be giving Declan a spin as soon as we get the porridge and find the headphones….He be one of Derry’s finest….we’ll be walkin the Walls, lookin down at The People
Dear Christy I hope you and yours are well. It’s blowing a gale . We were very fortunate to get tickets via Michael’s West Ham mate to attend a Q and A with Eliza Carthy interviewing Peggy Seeger at Wanstead library. A great woman full of tales. And so funny as well. Irreverent at times. She spoke of the performers’ need to be authentic. Walking a thin line between performance and the true self. Though I myself wonder what that means? Her book is called First Time Ever. Eliza Carthy spoke also about her mother and father and their trad journey of trying to keep songs alive. It was a fine night. Anyhoo the dinner menu needs deciding. Keep warm. Xx
a pair of strong women both steeped in the annals of music and song
that “thin line” is one many of us walk when performing the songs….its all an act…once the listeners gather and the lights go down…the play is on…
“Some of them are dreamers, some of them are fools”
“you’d better ask me Sister, sez Kattie Barry ,
and I showed her the colour of me money when I got back from Katanga”
I still remember the first time I heard Liza’s Mother sing, twas back in 1967 and The Watersons were playing in Hyde,Chesire, their sound still reverberating in my auld head…a few months after I hear Carthy & Swarbrick play “Jack Orion” in the MSG Club, Manchester…
Shared a stage with Peggy & Ewan in London…that was a huge night in my young life…sitting with a Master of Song, transfixed by Peggy’s riffs
its a long thin line, goes on and on, so many disguises to hide behind,
we must never confuse the singer with the character of the song
Love to dear old blighty, my heart goes out to you all over there in that green and pleasant land,no one knows whats going on, no one knows the truth,
and that prick Boris is coming to Dublin to talk down at us…fuck him and his Bus
Hi Christy.
I’m a solo performer, of a similar style to yourself. Heavily influenced by Luke Kelly, The Dubliners, The tones, yourself etc.
I write some of my own songs, & try hard to make them blend in with the old ballads.
There’s one in particular, its a bit of fun, & people keep telling me I should try get you to sing it.
How can I get you to hear it?
Thanks for the many, many happy moments you have given me through your music over the years.
Roger,
Wexford.
bang it up here Roger and we’ll all have a listen….just bang it up…go public… dont mind what people be tellin you
Christy,
Myself and the father are looking forward to seeing you again tomorrow night in Vicar Street. We’ve followed you around the country but there’s always something special about the gigs leading up to Christmas.
I’m a huge fan of some of your more recent works detailing the chronicles of Kildare, the famous names, places and faces of our county outlined in your songs. However one stands out from the rest, and that’s ‘1945’, which strikes a personal chord with me everytime I hear it. The soldiers and jockeys of the plains, the Dominican brothers of Newbridge College, and of course the great Con Collins a good friend of my grandfather who also visited Frank Kelly’s for a pint or two and a game of cards.
Up the Lillys !
Fair play to to you, thanks for the thumbs up on 1945…I’ve never gigged it…maybe I should get it out and have another look at it…I only sang it once or twice but never in public..
Kelly’s “of the lock” was a great watering hole back in the early 60s..great times..I was just learning the songs and guitar and Kellys war where I made my first Balladeer outings…. “Phelim Brady” Jug of punch” “Brennan on The Moor” …Austin O’Donnell from the Curragh and Kevin Prendergast from Miltown were two other apprentice balladeers, both good men gone…
the card school on Tuesday Nights was legendary…..Dick and Con Collins,Owen McGinn, Red Prendergast, “Long” Paddy Prendergast some of the card sharks I can recall..there would be stacks of notes on the table and we’d be in the back lounge trying to get the price of a pint together
CM(73)such Windy rainy night here .How is the house building near you these days?.Thon windmill has been installed with two big lights on top ,looks like two eyes of a monster watching every move.Now digging up the road to bring a cable to Boss Windmill.They cut out the internet one day ..another day all the electric was gone then the water cut out aswell ..what a mickey mouse carry on!
I had a chance to read some of the 1,000 (not all) page 25 year study of the different dialects of spoken Irish on the Aran islands. You’d be surprised how different dialects can be from one village or island very close to another (I notice it now in secondary school) . It seems the people on Inish Oirr (where Pat Quinn lives) adopted a more Munster form of Irish.
Aparently Dún aengus was connected to the cliffs of Moher one time..sure did travel a mighty distance. Another Dadó story is that Galway bay was a tiny lake called “loch lurgan” before the ice or something.
Anyways I was thinking lately that there is hardly that many places on Ireland that you haven’t played or even gone through. Did you ever venture to the islands (some connected by roads) west of spiddal? Lettermore ,Lettermullán,Garmuna,Cean Golam,Inish Bearachain ,Inse Gaineamh , Inish Oirk,?
CS(14)
PS:Thinking of putting christmas lights on Bláthín and Noinín the evenings get dark so quick cant see them half the day.Did you ever get to see Harriet? She certainly has a different dialect to my donkeys .
Many years ago myself and my brother in law went for a game of pool in a local pub…we came home with a beautiful donkey who graced the back field for many years
the building site next door is almost finished….with awful consequences for the immediate environment, 4 beautiful old trees downed by the last wind…all because their root systems were compromised by the works…trees that exuded peace and beauty all the year round…. an acre where bushes, foliage, orchard and fruit trees once flourished is now covered in concrete and tarmac…habitation of many species of birds and insects, of squirrels, of hedgehogs….no more apples pears nor goosegogs…
But thats the way of the world a Mhacín….thats the way she’s going..God Love Her…
“Agh! the poor auld lousy auld earth” sez Beckett
Dear Christy,
Many thanks for your lovely reply. Very good that you took “The Sun is Burning” out of mothballs! (Wish I could have eavesdropped on you in your workroom) So there’s hope I’ll get to hear this great song some day … There’s a strong probability that we are visiting Ireland first, though the prospect of your coming back to Germany is thrilling!
I like Pat Quinn’s song “The Great Potato Feud” – thanks for the hint too!
All the best,
Traudel
The song was written by Ian Cambell who fronted his own Band in Birmingham in the 60s…I played at his club where I heard him sing the song…I remember playing it in Buncrana in 1978, the week after the Le Mons Restaraunt Bomb ….the last verse was imbued with different images as the song unfolded….Ian subsequently moved to Ireland where he spent the remainder of his life…. his two Sons were part of the Band UB40 for many years
Luke Kelly did a fine version, he lived with the Cambells for a while in Birmingham….I recorded it on the album “The Iron behind The Velvet” in the 70s. There is another of Ian’s songs on “The Box Set”… “The Old Man’s Song”..its on the Green Disc
Hi Christy,
really looking forward to seeing you on Monday at Vicar Street. I have seen you last year in Belfast and really enjoyed it!!!
Would be great if you come again to Germany in the not too distant future (Bochum for example is so long ago…).
I have a question (I hope it’s not a stupid one): Is there a chance to get an autograph of you (or better even: two – one for me as a souvenir, one for my guitar teacher who tries to teach me some of your songs and suffers from my poor performances 🙂 ). With an autograph I can try to make up for it as he is a big fan of you as well.
Thank you in advance.
Cheers
Birgit
Maybe some day I will get back to sing in Germany..who knows what way the wind will blow
For you Christy ,and anyone else interested , i have a cd called ‘first i’m going to sing you a ditty’ which is worth tracking down, some songs are on youtube mind you.
There are some great scottish voices and wonderful old traditional songs ( some near forgotten no doubt) included ,but also a range of traditional singers from all over ireland, names like tommy mcgrath,maggy murphy, rose anne murphy, ellen o’dwyer, paddy breen, mary ann carolan, nora cleary, jim and seamus donaghue and of course john reilly. Perhaps most intriguingly of all is a singer called ‘maurice’ and all that is said to be known is…middle aged in 1965, well known in Paddy Haughton’s pub in Ross, Waterford.
Anyway, any chance of some inkling of the tunes you would put into that traditional album if it were ever to happen for you?
Cheers Rory
gonna get that album, thanks for the tip…Topic records have a long history of releasing good music and song..
I do have songs gathered for a poss ” Trad ” collection but to talk about them here might “hex” the idea…
heard some great singers in Scotland in the 60s.. Davey Stewart,Jimmy McBeath, Jeannie Robertson….down South of the Border I encountered Fred Jordan