Folk column: the beat goes on

The best news I’ve heard in a long time came my way just before Christmas from the many headed-monster that was Moving Hearts. Although there have been a handful of live appearances since they officially hung up their boot in 1985, there has been nothing for years now to indicate that there was any hope of the band getting back together on a full-time basis.
Originally formed by Christy Moore, Donal Lunny, Keith Donald, Declan Sinnott, Davy Spillane, Eoghan O’Neill and Brian Calnan the band was unique on a number of fronts. Most significantly, they decided to operate as a collective with the seven members of the band and the three crew all benefiting equally.
When Brian Calnan vacated the drumstool, for instance, Matt Kelleghan from the road crew simply stepped into his place. Equally unusual was the band’s outspoken political stance. In an Ireland still reeling from the death of 10 Republican hunger strikers and where Section 31 of the broadcasting act gagged any attempt to bring Sinn Fein into a political dialogue, the band openly confronted these and a host of other political issues.
When Christy Moore decided to move on, an equally politicized Mick Hanly took over the vocal duties. Described by Chris Rea as “a sort of Celtic Little Feat,” Moving Hearts also carried a hint of punk rock swagger in the vein of Sandinista! era Clash, especially when you saw them live.
When Mick Hanly also departed the band carried on as a largely instrumental undertaking, although Flo McSweeney did supply vocals for a time. Their defining moment (on record at least) for many remains The Storm, for which I can’t resist wheeling out the old rock cliché ‘blistering’.
The band’s two Vicar Street dates, on February 8 and 9 feature The Storm line-up of Donal Lunny, Keith Donald, Eoghan O’Neill, Davy Spillane, Matt Kelleghan, Anto Drennan, Noel Eccles and Graham Henderson. With no obvious vocalist on board it’s doubtful, therefore, if any of the Christy era shout-alongs will get an airing although, given the amount of friends these guys have, a few guest appearances wouldn’t be out of the question either.
It’s not clear yet whether these gigs are a one-off or part of something bigger. When I spoke to Keith Donald, the band’s saxophone maestro, he intimated that the band were taking it one step at a time, seeing how the personalities gelled again – certainly they weren’t going in with any preconceptions as to what might happen. So cross your fingers people, and buy your tickets.
Eoin Dillon will be returning to the fray with a solo concert in Whelan’s of Wexford Street, Dublin, on Saturday, January 13, followed by a Belfast concert in The John Hewitt, Donegall Street at 3pm on Sunday January 21.
He’ll be performing with his solo band and will play tunes from his solo album The Third Twin, which made it into our very own Top 20 folk albums of 2006 along with Kila’s Kila & Oki album – putting him in the enviable position of being the only artist to chart twice.
In late January, Eoin and Frank Tate will be performing two concerts by special invitation in Baracaldo, near my old stomping ground of Bilbao in Spain. Apparently he has also been working away in the studio with Frank Kearns (formerly of Cactus World News) and a collaborative project will see the light of day at some point in the future.
A legend in his native Canada, Bruce Cockburn is lamentably under-recognised here. He’ll be trying to redress the balance with two Irish shows this month. He takes the stage at Belfast’s Empire on Sunday January 21 and follows it up with a visit to Whelan’s in Dublin on Monday, January 22. Throughout his 35-year career, Cockburn has been honoured with multiple awards including the inaugural Humanitarian Award at Canada’s 2006 JUNO’s and the Tenco Lifetime Achievement Award in Italy. He is also an inductee into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame, as well as the recipient of honourary degrees in Letters and Music from several North American universities, including Berkley and Toronto’s York University. His songs have been covered by such diverse artists as Jerry Garcia, Barenaked Ladies, Jimmy Buffet, Maria Muldaur, k.d. Lang and Judy Collins
Having sneaked an album out towards the end of last year, No Crows, featuring Steve Wickham, Felip Carbonell, Anna Houston and Eddie Lee, have seen it pick up a gratifying amount of airplay, and later this month they’ll be sallying forth from their Sligo stronghold to start on the conversion of the masses around the rest of the country. They play in Omagh on Saturday January 27, invade the Aula Maxima at the NUI Galway on Monday February 5 for a lunchtime show and can be found closer to home at the Dock in Carrick on Shannon on Friday, February 16. The band’s sound encompasses everything from Irish slow airs to a Django-esque gypsy strut and they like to mix it up royally on some numbers. Keep an eye out for them as more dates are likely to be added during February.
Crash Ensemble, Ireland’s leading contemporary classical music group, will premier a new work by Donnacha Dennehy for Sean Nós singer Iarla Ó Lionáird as part of a unique celebration of newly composed music inspired by the sounds and ideas of ethnic music. Called ‘Strange Folk’, this one-night concert at the Samuel Beckett Theatre, Dublin on Saturday February 10, will not only be the occasion for the premier of Dennehy’s large new piece for Iarla and the ensemble in advance of its New York debut, but for the first time in the ensemble’s 10-year history, they will be presenting work by internationally acclaimed composers , and Franghiz Ali-Zadeh.
The highlight of the concert will be Donnacha Dennehy’s new piece specially written for Iarla and the group. This marks a significant new adventure for both Donnacha and Iarla. Commissioned by Trinity College, ‘Grá Agus Bás’ is inspired by the moments of ecstasy (both luscious and dark) within a number of particular Sean Nós songs, but especially ‘Aisling Gheal’, and uses these as a collective point of departure for a journey exploring the themes of love and death. It is almost a year and a half since Donnacha and Iarla began meeting and recording in advance of this piece, and Iarla has shown true collaborative spirit in assisting Donnacha with the project. ‘Grá Agus Bás’ will be accompanied by a special new film made by the artists/programmers Neil O’Connor and Gavin O’Brien.