Definitive Dubliners

AFTER 50 years The Dubliners are back on the hit parade but sadly none of the founding members is still alive to see it. Their 50-track CD set climbed to number 16 on the Irish Top 20 last week and a DVD of a live concert at Dublin's Vicar Street, which incorporates some rare vintage footage featuring the founding and some present members, is also climbing the DVD charts â€â€ and deservedly so. This official three-volume set of 50 tracks, The Dubliners â€â€œ 50 Years includes all of the groups timeless hits from their inception in 1962 to today. Mapping out 50 years in the evolution of Irish music, this collection gathers what are surely the finest examples of the traditional Irish air The Marino Waltz, composed by violin player John Sheahan to the rousing Irish pub song Seven Drunken Nights that took them high into the British hit parade in the mid-1960s. On this set the fans can also enjoy the lilting Irish folk ballad The Night Visiting Song and the patriotic Irish message Song for Ireland. Other featured classics of international renown include The Black Velvet Band, a song that was also a No 1 for the late Johnny Kelly from Turloughmore of The Capitol Showband. Whiskey In The Jar, later popularised by Thin Lizzy as a Rock anthem is here as are other ageless classic ballads such as The Wild Rover, The Rare Old Times, The Town I Loved So Well, Dirty Old Town and Molly Malone. The Dubliners became very well known, not just in Ireland but also as pioneers for Irish folk in the UK, mainland Europe, especially in Germany and also in the United States. Their 1967 recordings of the aforementioned Seven Drunken Nights and The Black Velvet Band were released on the fledgling Major Minor label, and were heavily promoted in the UK, especially on pirate radio station Radio Caroline. The result was that both records reached the top 20 in the UK pop charts. A third single, Maids, When You're Young Never Wed an Old Man reached number 43 in December 1967. It was their last UK hit single until they recorded with The Pogues in 1987. The Dubliners also gained popularity among famous musicians such as Bob Dylan, Roy Orbison, Jimi Hendrix and Pink Floyd's drummer Nick Mason, who were all self-proclaimed Dubliners fans. On February 8 last, The Dubliners received a 'Lifetime Achievement Award' at the 2012 BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards. Over the decades the group had many illustrious members but some of them are now sadly deceased and others have retired from performing. Founder members were Ronnie Drew (1962â€â€œ74; 1979â€â€œ95; 2002) vocals, guitar; Luke Kelly (1962â€â€œ84) vocals, banjo; Ciaran Bourke (1962â€â€œ74) vocals, guitar, tin whistle, harmonica and Barney McKenna (1962â€â€œ2012) Irish tenor banjo, mandolin, melodeon, vocals. All have sadly passed away with Barney being the last of the founder member to die on April 5 this year. The strongest link with the founding four is fiddle player John Sheahan (1964â€â€œpresent). John is featured on fiddle, mandolin, tin whistle and concertina on many of the songs on both the triple disc CD and the new DVD. Other members featured include Bob Lynch (1964â€â€œ65) vocals, guitar. Jim McCann, who spent several of his childhood years far from the rocky road to Dublin, living at Dublin Road, Tuam had a number of stints with the group (1974â€â€œ79; 1984; 1987; 2002). Jim is featured on vocals and guitar on many of the tracks. Seán Cannon (1982â€â€œpresent) vocals, guitar, Eamonn Campbell (1984; 1987â€â€œpresent) guitar, mandolin; Paddy Reilly of The Fields of Athenry fame(1984; 1995â€â€œ2005) vocals, guitar; Patsy Watchorn (2005â€â€œpresent) vocals, banjo, bodhrán, spoons are the others who contribute to what must be the definitive Dubliners collection on CD and DVD â€â€ for Folks sake, it can't get any better than this. â€â€ TG.