THE CHURCH & GENERAL CELEBRATION CONCERT

THE CHURCH & GENERAL CELEBRATION CONCERT (National Concert Hall, Dublin)

A BIT of backslapping, lots of Gaybo jokes from compere Mike Murphy, and the possibility of cringing in embarrassment when the edited highlights are shown on RTE and the nation gets a chance to see what you really look like on a bad hair day – this is the kind of thing to expect from a televised concert to showcase the work of Irish songwriters and composers.

Less expected was a show that would prove consistently entertaining, although with most artists performing no more than two songs, the danger of any act becoming boring was substantially reduced.

It was, of course, a show as opposed to a gig. There were no teenagers bouncing up and down in the NCH pouring Carlsberg over each other to the strains of John O’Conor, no frantic stage diving to Niamh Kavanagh’s moving rendition of ‘In Your Eyes’, and the two Irish rock representatives, Something Happens and An Emotional Fish, while extremely proficient live, aren’t exactly cutting edge material.

‘Celebration’ was polite and safe, but, for the most part, it was also great fun. The first half featured the likes of Eleanor McEvoy, a definite crowd favourite, Euro-king Johnny Logan, the splendid Altan and an even more astonishing Frances Black, who sang a yearning, gorgeous version of Christie Hennessy’s ‘In My Life’. The undoubted highlight of this section though, and I realise this may come as something of a surprise, was Micheal O’Suilleabháin’s exhilarating piano-led Hiberno-Jazz. Even the Irish Chamber Orchestra’s traditional take on Ravel’s ‘Bolero’ (a bit of a plug for Church & General, who use the original in their television ads) was spirited and enjoyable.

The second half sprawled a little in comparison, although the quality of the music wasn’t diminished, with Paul Brady, Jimmy McCarthy, An Emotional Fish, special guest Jimmy Webb, and the exceptionally talented Anuna among those contributing. Ensemble finales are compulsory on such occasions, and this one, led by Hothouse Flowers, ended the evening in typically self-congratulatory style.

But hell, that’s what these events are all about; to help us feel good about ourselves, to recognise the phenomenal achievements of Irish musicians and songwriters, and to offer punters the opportunity of appearing on national television for five seconds. Roll on next year.

• Lorraine Freeney