Three highlights from this show give conclusive evidence that, in Eleanor McEvoy, we have an incomparably assured performer and a composer of consummate wit and intelligence who has yet to receive her due acclaim at home.
These highlights were a chilling reading of her own ‘Famine 1848’, the hauntingly sad ‘Anach Cuann’ and the beguiling ‘The Rain Falls’, the latter in particular making full, inventive use of the RTE orchestra.
McEvoy’s five studio albums have shown her to be a writer capable of merging a wide range of elements from Bach to Bacharach, and many of them tonight found their natural home.
The full-on use of the orchestra’s widest palette allowed new light to shine on songs such as ‘Did You Tell Him’ and the scathing ‘Territory Of Poets’. The latter was taken at a brisker tempo than on record.
Liam Bradley’s backing vocals on the sublime ‘Something So Wonderful’ suggest that this is a song that will endure, while ‘Please Heart You’re Killing Me’ took on a mariachi-lite flavour.
Elsewhere, the heavily percussive ‘Not Quite Love’ worked a treat with just drums and voice. Other gems to lift the soul included a provocative version of Chuck Berry’s rock classic ‘Memphis Tennessee’, here transformed into a panoramic paean to long-distance loneliness.
The first half had been slightly marred by leaden drum sounds and the harshness of a band at odds with McEvoy’s subtle vocals. In the end, though, nothing could mask the clarity, depth of emotion and range of McEvoy’s warm presence.
Her obvious encore – ‘A Woman’s Heart’ – made you hope that one day Ireland’s rocknoscenti will acknowledge the towering qualities of both this song and its writer.