Music
20 Mar 01

Christy Moore plays the Inaugural Gig at the Mean Fiddler

THE QUEUES down Wexford Street for this rare club appearance from the mighty Christy were reminiscent of the crowds that stormed The Baggot Inn for those legendary Moving Hearts shows, all of fifteen years ago. Since then, Christy has become a megastar of ludicrous proportions and not surprisingly, the "Sold Out" signs were in place by around 8:00pm.

July 1995

THE QUEUES down Wexford Street for this rare club appearance from the mighty Christy were reminiscent of the crowds that stormed The Baggot Inn for those

legendary Moving Hearts shows, all of fifteen years ago. Since then, Christy has become a megastar of ludicrous proportions and not surprisingly, the "Sold Out"

signs were in place by around 8:00pm.

Following a well-received set from Eleanor Shanley, accompanied by the brilliant Robbie Overson on guitar, Christy took the stage to a tumultuous roar. The familiar

chord sequence to the anthemic Jackson Browne number Before the Deluge prompted yet another outbreak of whoops and hollers - gosh, this man is truly

popular! From then on in it was classic Christy Moore all the way as he quickly worked up the now trademark sweaty brow. He really doesn't need to work this

hard anymore but to his credit, he does anyway.

Christy pretty much stuck to his Live at the Point repertoire with the audience providing a rowdy chorus on almost every number. The Rose of Tralee seemed to

go on forever but it drew chuckles and cheers aplenty - in stark contrast to his sensitive reading of Ewan McColl's The First Time I Ever Saw Your Face which

brought an eerie hush over the place. The hilarious Joxer Goes To Stuttgart went down a treat. Ordinary Man sounded chillingly topical in the light of the Dunne's

Stores dispute, while returned emigrants responded knowingly to Go Move Shift.

But of course this was much more than just another Christy Moore show. it was the inaugural gig at the Mean Fiddler - a much-anticipated, mid-sized club venue,

badly needed to inject a shot of life into the live scene. While the roster of acts booked in for the opening weeks is impressive, the venue itself is curiously different.

The design is minimalist, post-industrial with bare girders, air conditioning pipes and black & white tiled flooring. This, combined with the bright decor and coloured

strip-lighting around the side walls, creates a feel which is far removed from the kind of warm, intimate atmosphere beloved of Irish audiences.

It'll be interesting to watch how people take to it over the coming months.