Tom Dunne’s 30 Best Irish Hits

OK, first things first: this is certainly not a collection of the 30 best Irish hits of all time. Why? Simple really; there are in fact 34 songs crammed onto the double-CD collection, which is easily the best compilation of its sort since the classic A-Z Of Irish Rock, and features extensive sleeve notes from the former Happens’ frontman turned superstar DJ himself.

It is hard to argue with any of the inclusions here, all but one of which were voted for by listeners to Pet Sounds. The one track that wasn’t the people’s choice is David Kitt’s ‘You Know What I Want To Know’, which hadn’t been released at the time the poll was carried out. However, there are few who would argue against Kittser’s inclusion, although I personally would have opted for ‘Song From Hope Street (New York)’.

Other than young Mister Kitt, all the usual suspects are present and correct. U2? Check. Aslan? Yep. Lizzy? Uh-huh. Rory Gallagher? Yes indeedy. Sinead O’Connor? Of course. The Pogues? You betcha. Van the man? Certainly. Christy? Without doubt. Luke Kelly? Sure, who else could do ‘Raglan Road’ as well.

You have the ’90s sextet of A House, Something Happens, The 4 Of Us, An Emotional Fish, The Stunning and The Fat Lady Sings, all of whom should have been huge success stories worldwide. Then there’s The Frames’ majestic ‘Revelate’, Whipping Boy’s claustrophobic beauty, Neil Hannon’s pomp pop, The Devlins’ sensual charms and Ash’s teenage classic, ‘Oh Yeah’.

Perhaps the inclusion of Mama’s Boys’ ‘Needle In The Groove’ and

The Golden Horde’s ‘Friends In Time’ will raise a few eyebrows, although both are excellent songs. On the other hand, The Frank And Walters, Engine Alley, Fatima Mansions and Gavin Friday can feel slightly peeved at their exclusion.

If you don’t have most of these songs in your collection already, apart from feeling seriously ashamed, you should rush out and buy it immediately…