'Lost' Philip Chevron project The Tuner to be released this weekend

Nearly 11 years after the of death of Philip Chevron, a 'lost' collection of songs from the Irish music legend is set to be released.

Out this weekend via Bandcamp, The Tuner was a musical Chevron devised alongside writer Declan Lynch, which told the story of Irish-American boxer Jack Rooney. The limited edition CD, of which there are only 250 copies, features contributions from the likes of Kirsty MacColl, Ronnie Drew and Sarah Jane Morris – as well as his Pogues bandmates Spider Stacy and Andrew Ranken.

Renowned for his work as a part of The Radiators From Space and The Pogues, Chevron had previously discussed the project back in 2001, as part of a special tribute to Kirsty MacColl in Hot Press.

"For some time, Kirsty had been enthusiastic about a stage show myself and Declan Lynch have been writing, called Jack Rooney: In Person," he wrote. "Last month, with characteristic generosity, she agreed to perform one of the principal roles in our recording of the score. She bestowed on the character all the wit, warmth, resilience and tenderness Declan and I had dared hope for."

He had also previously told Hot Press that the music he first connected to in his early days "was theatre music, the music of Broadway shows."

"There's a tradition there which started as early in this century as 1910 and that those songwriters felt themselves a part of," he said of Broadway musicals. "Like, George Gershwin would have shot himself rather than write anything which caused offence to Jerome Kern. So the standard was not only maintained but improved as the decades went on.

"Who remembers Anything Goes?" he continued. "But that show included 'It's De-Lovely' and 'I Get A Kick Out Of You'. They are immortal but the show is essentially shit. That's the feeling I've got as a songwriter. I wouldn't want to write songs that I wouldn't want to play to those guys – which is why I write so few songs. What unites anything I do is love of the songs. You shouldn't defile the traditions of songs, whether it's the Irish song tradition or the Broadway song tradition."

The Tuner was compiled and constructed for 2024 release by Chevron's Radiators From Space bandmate Pete Holidai.

You can pre-order the album via Bandcamp below: