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Sleeve Notes
LUKE
An Ancient Voice … that Speaks to Tomorrow
When they started in 1962, they were the Ronnie Drew Ballad Group (or "Ballet Group" as some deaf misprinter had it). Barney McKenna, admittedly jealous, would have preferred the Barney McKenna Group. Finally, in a quiet Dublin pub on a wet afternoon, the debate was settled. Luke was reading — as ever — and threw his book down. It was James' Joyce's Dubliners … and the legend was born. You only have to ask to hear a story of Luke's sharpness. Heckled on stage as "ould Woolly Head", he shouted back, "At least mine's only woolly on the outside!" He was as witty and literate as he was compassionate and inquisitive. But he was also unique. The Dubliners were unusual," says Barney, "because they all, individually, contributed different types of music to the blend," Luke's was the music of the street, first learned in the congested alleys of Dublin's inner city, then honed in the companionship of Ewan McColl, and the socialist activists of the fluxing sixties. "Listening to the songs Luke brought home awakened our sensitivity to social issues," says Ronnie today. And there was more than just the power of content There was the power of interpretation. "He was like a jazz singer," says John Sheahan. "He never sang a song the same way twice. It was always new."
It remains "new". Donovan, whose music heightened the spiritual sensitivities of the sixties' popism, rates Luke and the Dubliners as major contributors to the yet-to-be-fully harvested Celtic revival. "He is more than a folk singer or a pop icon. He is ah Ancient Voice mixing love ballads with social reportage to speak to Tomorrow".
