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Sleeve Notes (1968)
Quote: Whether the folk club purists like it or not, the commercial success of The Dubliners has given British traditional music the biggest boost it has had for years.
Robin Denselow, The Observer
THE DUBLINERS restore songs to the folk sources they came from and the authenticity of their music is assured by their everyday living of informal hooleys and sing-songs, drinking and courting. What they sing about is confirmed by personal experience — they never let their individuality be taken away by success.
Perhaps the unique atmosphere created by THE DUBLINERS is helped by the wealth of history, not only behind their songs, but also attached to the instruments they play. Apart from new tin whistles which they go through at the rate of 8 a month, and mouth organs one a month, because of a high value set on anything played by THE DUBLINERS, most of their instruments arrive from anywhere but new over the shop counter.
Barney, acknowledged as one of the world's finest banjo players, now uses a 1930 Paregon which he once had to buy back from thieves who had stolen it, along with his 1890 Stradent mandolin, from the back of a car. Before that he played a 1920 timber banjo, but owns eight mandolins, four banjos, a two hundred year-old Portuguese guitar, a fiddle and a melodeon.
Ronnie's Manuel Reyes guitar, bought from a Spaniard he met at Casa Pepe in London, he had to pay for twice because the first time the money was stolen from his pocket. There are countless other stories and ale has been spilt too many times to remember.
THE DUBLINERS are the undisputed leaders of the current folk music fervour. But commercial success does not mean in this case 'commercialised', for as their recording manager. Tommy Scott, says: These boys will NEVER need to become commercialised, in the accepted sense of the word to stay popular-they have a magic and commercialism all of their own.
Sleeve Notes (2012)
The Dubliners began in O'Donoghue's pub on Merrion Row, Dublin in 1962 as a quartet known as the Ronnie Drew Ballad Group. They comprised Ronnie Drew (vocals and guitar), Luke Kelly (vocals and 5-string banjo), Barney McKenna (tenor banjo, mandolin, melodeon and vocals) and Ciarán Bourke (vocals, guitar, tin whistle and harmonica). Drew was rather reluctant to be regarded as the nominal leader of the band and Kelly, who at the time was reading 'Dubliners' by the great Irish author James Joyce, suggested that 'The Dubliners' was a better name for the band.
The Dubliners' repertoire largely comprised traditional songs, to which they added an element of Celtic magic and humour. As Ronnie Drew noted: "When we started, Irish music always sounded a bit staid, not much fun, and tended to be presented in an academic way. We never did it like that. In England and America, there'd been folk revivals, but in Ireland it hadn't needed it because it had always been alive". Their material and approach brought them surprising commercial success.
In 1963, The Dubliners were spotted playing at the Edinburgh festival by Nat Joseph of Transatlantic Records, for whom they started recording. Their first album, 'The Dubliners', was not released until 1964, soon after which Luke Kelly left and Bobby Lynch (vocals and guitar) and John Sheahan (fiddle, tin whistle, mandolin, concertina, guitar and vocals) both joined. When Kelly returned and Lynch left in 1965, the widely accepted 'classic line-up' of the band was in place, which lasted until 1974.
After two further LPs for Transatlantic, the live albums 'In Concert' and 'Finnegan Wakes' (the latter named after a run of shows at the Gate Theatre) The Dubliners signed to Major Minor Records, a label launched by Phil Solomon (1926-2011) whose family had been involved in the Irish entertainment business, and who promoted such Irish acts as Ruby Murray and The Bachelors. Following this, Solomon became heavily involved with the pirate radio station Radio Caroline, on which he ensured that Major Minor releases enjoyed heavy rotation.
The legendary group's four original Major Minor studio albums from the 1960s, which have never previously been released on CD in their original form, have been expertly digitally remastered from original mono source tapes.
The first of these LPs, 'A Drop Of The Hard Stuff' was released in the spring of 1967, but was quickly re-titled and re-issued as 'Seven Drunken Nights' after the opening track was released as a single that stayed in the UK chart for four months and peaked at No. 7 in June 1967.
Though some felt that the success of the 'Seven Drunken Nights' single was unlikely to ever be repeated, 'A Drop Of The Hard Stuff', spent nearly ten months on the UK albums chart, reaching No. 5. This chart success was further reinforced by the release of a second single from the album, 'Black Velvet Band', a traditional English and Irish folk song describing transportation to Australia, a common punishment in 19th century Britain and Ireland. The single also made the UK Top 20 and led Transatlantic Records to release an album of their earlier recordings, 'Best Of The Dubliners' that joined 'A Drop Of The Hard Stuff' in the UK album chart for over two months.
Following the success of the second Major Minor album 'More Of The Hard Stuff (UK number 8, October 1967), this third album 'Drinkin' & Courtin'' was released in March 1968. Among the songs included here, the opening track, 'Dirty Old Town', was written by Ewan MacColl (1915-1989), regarded as one of the greatest British folk singers of the 20th Century, not least because of this song about his home town of Salford. The album, which once again reached the Top 40 of the UK chart, also included another UK Top 50 single, 'Maids, When You're Young, Never Wed An Old Man'. 'Peggy Gordon' is a Canadian folk song, which has also been recorded by The Corrs and Sinéad O'Connor among others, while 'The Parting Glass', dating from the 18th century, is an Irish traditional song often sung at the end of a gathering of friends. 'Mrs. McGrath' is based on the tune of another original Irish folk song, this version telling the story of a country boy who goes to college in Dublin to but fails due to spending all his money and time on women and drink.
Sometimes underrated aspects of The Dubliners's musical artistry are their considerable instrumental prowess and arrangement skills, as heard in the two non-vocal tracks here. One of them, 'O'Carolan's Concerto', dates back to the 17th century and was written by the legendary blind Irish harpist and troubadour Turlough O'Carolan, while the other, 'Donkey Reel' (aka 'Flop Eared Mule') is a traditional tune expertly adapted by the band.
In addition to 'A Drop Of The Hard Stuff', 'More Of The Hard Stuff' and 'Drinkin' & Courtin'' this remaster and re-issue of The Dubliners' early work also includes the classic album 'At It Again!', all of which have never sounded so good!
Despite the fact that most of the original members are sadly no longer with us, The Dubliners remain active in 2012, fifty years after their formation! They are deservedly revered around the world and their unique take on Irish traditional music ensures that they rank alongside other notable acts from Ireland such as The Chieftains, Van Morrison and U2 and remain one of the most influential of Ireland's traditional folk bands.
John Tobler, Washington, UK), March, 2012
Edited by Jon Wilson
