Maybe it was a combination of the post-Christmas blues, the freezing weather outside and the fact that the gig fell on a mid-week night. Or perhaps it was the unveiling of that magnificent statue of Philo late last year that dissipated the celebrations somewhat. Whatever the reason, this year’s 20th anniversary vibe lacked the atmosphere of previous years’ events.
The boy is very much back in town on August 20 when a slew of Phil Lynott’s friends and admirers gather for the mother of all tribute concerts in The Point.
From strange days coming second in a yoghurt-sponsored competition and playing awful gigs sandwiched between boy bands, Damien Dempsey, with a little help from Shane, Sinéad and Christy, has survived and thrived. Eamon Sweeney meets a rap balladeer with a hit album, a social conscience and more than a few stories to tell.
For Thin Lizzy fans, all roads will lead to Arklow on Sunday May 3 when Friends of Philo will hold their Shades of a Blue Orphanage tribute gig, headlined by Renegade at the Arklow Bay Hotel.
PHIL LYNOTT would have been 50 on 20th August this year. Here, PETER MURPHY profiles the legendary Philo, and talks to other stars about his enduring influence.
The great and the good of the Trinity philosophical society recently assembled to discuss not epistemology, theology or indeed any other class of “ology”, but rather to address the question, “Is music losing its right to artistic licence?”
Somebody up there likes us -that's for sure! Slane Castle 4pm on Saturday 25th August 2001 and the sun is shining down through deep blue skies like it hasn’t done all summer.
As rock’n’roll’s finest get ready to remake ‘Do They Know It’s Christmas?’ Colm O’Hare talks to the man who kickstarted it and numerous other hits, Midge Ure.
There is many a haven for shunners of the Christmas Cheer like myself. Lots of lovely bands, singers, comedians and even hynotherapists are at hand to entertain the life out of us, and distract Santa while we throttle him. Right up to the New Year there’s so much going on you needn’t come home till Easter.
FROM A WHISPER TO A SCREAM is a major new six-part RTE series. Directed by DAVID HEFFERNAN, and featuring new interviews with the major players including Van Morrison, Bob Geldof, U2 and Siniad O Connor it traces the history of Irish music, from showbands to boybands and beyond. By PETER MURPHY.
DAVID HEFFERNAN pays tribute to the producer/director whose many and varied professional credits included some defining images of Irish and international music
Bertie Ahearn demonstrated his support for the Grafton Street tribute to Phil Lynott by inviting the Thin Lizzy man’s mother, Philomena, to the Department An Taoiseach in Merion Square last week.
A spell in jail and another working in the music biz helped push Ollie Byrne in the direction of running a football club. The colourful Shelbourne chairman offers some typically forthright views on Dunphy, Racism, the FAI and the National Stadium as the new domestic season gets under way.
It's time to lock up your sons, daughters, pet poodle and drinks cabinet, as eight of Ireland's top bands descend on the venue, london, for the first major Hot Press-sponsored musical event of the year.
He began working in music as a drummer, but Dave Pennefather's greatest success has been as MD of Universal Music. Hot Press looks back over the life and times of a man with a larger than life reputation.
U2 are about to unleash their new album How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb. The world’s media are descending on Dublin. And Bono is back at the punch-bag, getting into fighting shape before the shit storm really explodes. The gloves are off. He’s got work to do. And he’s going to do it. Words Stuart Clark, additional reporting by Niall Stokes.
One of Irish rock's holy grails finally sees the (official) light of day this week, with the release of a digitally enhanced version of Thin Lizzy's UK Tour from 1975.
Today is the 22nd anniversary of the death of Irish rock legend Phil Lynott. To mark the occasion, Hotpress.com is revisiting some of the Thin Lizzy man's most notable appearances in the pages of the magazine.
A huge crowd was present this evening (Friday August 19) as Philip Lynott’s mother, Philomena, unveiled a life-size bronze statue of the Thin Lizzy legend in Dublin’s Harry Street.
We arrived just in time for Ham Sandwich – soft vibes, floating vocals, bass-player with the best rhythmic leg scratch in Ireland. It might have been the midges.
The sight of a crowded Point Depot singing “Happy Birthday to Philip in heaven” under the instruction of an emotional Philomena Lynott is certainly one to behold. Unfortunately, on an evening pitched as a celebration of the life and work of Philip, much was promised but little was delivered.
Nice to see Father Ted’s Graham Linehan back in Dublin recently, taking a break from writing his latest project, a comedy feature film set in ‘20s Paris
It appears that the Smuggler’s Tour scheduled for Vicar St on February 18th and featuring Howard Marks and Robert Sabbag has been canceled
Tommy Tiernan is keeping schtum about his recent visit to the USA where he ‘had talks’ with TV entertainment giant NBC
Last night began a momentous chapter for the world’s biggest band. For U2, it was the first live airing and radio/internet broadcast of material from their eleventh studio album, How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb. For those in attendance, it was an opportunity as rare as they come. The location: Dublin, Ireland. More specifically, at the album’s birthplace, in their Hanover Quay studios. Hot Press editor Niall Stokes was in attendance to feel the impact and capture the aftershock. [photos by John Dardis, courtesy of U2]
