It had been whispered and anticipated for a number of years, but in December it will finally become a reality. Horslips, the band who devised the template for Irish rock music in the 1970s, paving for way for U2 in the 1980s, the band who not only played around the world but in every corner of Ireland and the band regarded by many as the godfathers of Celtic Rock will return to the stage for their first full live shows in 29 years. They will be performing 2 shows: one in the O2 in Dublin on December 2 and a second in Belfast’s Odyssey on December 3. While these two massive arenas are a far cry from the dancehalls of the 1970s, it was three fans from those heady days that started the ball rolling in 2004 for what would eventually become a Horslips band reunion.
“If I have to blame anybody for Horslips getting back together it would be Jim Nelis, Stephen Ferris and Paul Callaghan,” laughs Horslips bassist and Ardboe native, Barry Devlin, speaking from Dublin. “They put on an exhibition of Horslips memorabilia at the Orchard Gallery in Derry in March, 2004. We all came along to see if the platforms would still fit, so to speak. When there we figured we’d have to do something. We ended up performing a short acoustic set, which topped off one amazing night.”
That night in Derry turned out to be the band’s first tentative steps into collaborating again. Soon after, they were in the studio recording ‘Roll Back’, an album of acoustic re-workings of some of their old tracks. Television appearances on ‘The Late Late Show’, ‘Other Voices’ and TG4 followed, as did a double DVD, ‘The Return of the Dancehall Sweethearts’, which documented Horslips’ career and included live footage. Demand for the band to perform some fully-fledged shows increased almost daily. Rumours circulated but nothing ever came to fruition, until this summer!
“For the last few years we’ve been looking at doing some proper live shows,” explains Barry. “Denis Desmond gave us great encouragement. The O2 was mentioned and I thought we’d never fill it. Denis reassured us that we would. So we announced the Dublin and Belfast shows last June. Unfortunately Eamon Carr couldn’t commit to the shows but it was Eamon who suggested that we get Ray Fean, guitarist Johnny’s brother, to take his place behind the drum kit.”
While Eamon could not commit to the two shows, he did rehearse with the band during the summer as they began to reacquaint themselves with their back catalogue. When Ray finally stepped in to take Eamon’s place, did it affect the harmony within the band?
“Not really,” says Barry. “It was interesting playing with someone we’ve never played with before but as Ray himself says, he feels like he has been in this band since he was ten because of Johnny. He’s a great man for a laugh and he’s certainly going to add a new dimension to the live shows.”
Ireland has changed a great deal since Horslips last played a full concert. The O2 and the Odyssey didn’t even exist back in the days when the band covered every nook and cranny of the country.
“I know and CDs didn’t exist either,” laughs Barry. “So much has changed. The biggest indoor gigs in Dublin in those days were at the National Stadium with 2,500 people. We’d also go to great places like Culdaff, Derry and, of course, the Astoria in Bundoran and those venues would always be packed out, too.”
Indeed, it appeared that Horslips, during this period, were flying the flag for an indigenous rock scene that previously didn’t exist in Ireland. Raising the dancehall roofs with their own material unavoidably made them stand out from the Showbands of the time.
“I loved the Showbands and still have a great love for them,” stresses Barry. “But original material did make us stand out. Remember, this was pre-U2 Ireland and there was no rock industry, as such. There was Thin Lizzy, Rory Gallagher and us and that was it. The way it worked back then was, you’d make it to the top in Ireland, you’d travel to England, live on porridge, record an album for Decca and then come home. We didn’t really have the appetite for that, so we decided to set up our own record label, design our own covers and basically kept everything based here in Ireland. It was a model that U2 followed soon after. The first gigs Bono and the rest of those lads went to were Horslips gigs. They saw that it could all be done right here. They could see that Irish kids didn’t have to look to Top of the Pops, they could have their own rock stars right here.”
Another aspect that made Horslips stand out was their willingness to play in the North when other acts refused to cross the border, particularly after the Miami Showband massacre in July 1975.
“It was a scary time, no doubt about it,” recalls Barry. “Up until that terrible day in July it was often thought that despite whatever madness was going on, the entertainment should be allowed continue. That myth was then shattered. We were nervous but bolshy. It took a lot of will but we always had a special affinity with the North. I’m a Tyrone man myself and we refused to be deterred from playing places we had a great identification with: places like Belfast, Derry and all over Donegal, places we related to.”
Anybody who ever attended a Horslips show now has the chance to do it all again next month in Dublin and Belfast. Barry has promised “the classics as people know them with one of two surprises along the way”.
He adds, “We’re hoping everyone will enjoy it. We’ve been blown away by how well the tickets have sold. The audience won’t be hearing revamped versions of the classics. They’ll hear them just as they are on albums like ‘The Tain’ and ‘Book of Invasions’, or as close as we can get to them in 2009. A friend recently asked me if we’re worried about forgetting some of the words. No chance! The crowd will be hopefully singing every word along with us, keeping us right,” laughs a very excited Barry.
“If I have to blame anybody for Horslips getting back together it would be Jim Nelis, Stephen Ferris and Paul Callaghan,” laughs Horslips bassist and Ardboe native, Barry Devlin, speaking from Dublin. “They put on an exhibition of Horslips memorabilia at the Orchard Gallery in Derry in March, 2004. We all came along to see if the platforms would still fit, so to speak. When there we figured we’d have to do something. We ended up performing a short acoustic set, which topped off one amazing night.”
That night in Derry turned out to be the band’s first tentative steps into collaborating again. Soon after, they were in the studio recording ‘Roll Back’, an album of acoustic re-workings of some of their old tracks. Television appearances on ‘The Late Late Show’, ‘Other Voices’ and TG4 followed, as did a double DVD, ‘The Return of the Dancehall Sweethearts’, which documented Horslips’ career and included live footage. Demand for the band to perform some fully-fledged shows increased almost daily. Rumours circulated but nothing ever came to fruition, until this summer!
“For the last few years we’ve been looking at doing some proper live shows,” explains Barry. “Denis Desmond gave us great encouragement. The O2 was mentioned and I thought we’d never fill it. Denis reassured us that we would. So we announced the Dublin and Belfast shows last June. Unfortunately Eamon Carr couldn’t commit to the shows but it was Eamon who suggested that we get Ray Fean, guitarist Johnny’s brother, to take his place behind the drum kit.”
While Eamon could not commit to the two shows, he did rehearse with the band during the summer as they began to reacquaint themselves with their back catalogue. When Ray finally stepped in to take Eamon’s place, did it affect the harmony within the band?
“Not really,” says Barry. “It was interesting playing with someone we’ve never played with before but as Ray himself says, he feels like he has been in this band since he was ten because of Johnny. He’s a great man for a laugh and he’s certainly going to add a new dimension to the live shows.”
Ireland has changed a great deal since Horslips last played a full concert. The O2 and the Odyssey didn’t even exist back in the days when the band covered every nook and cranny of the country.
“I know and CDs didn’t exist either,” laughs Barry. “So much has changed. The biggest indoor gigs in Dublin in those days were at the National Stadium with 2,500 people. We’d also go to great places like Culdaff, Derry and, of course, the Astoria in Bundoran and those venues would always be packed out, too.”
Indeed, it appeared that Horslips, during this period, were flying the flag for an indigenous rock scene that previously didn’t exist in Ireland. Raising the dancehall roofs with their own material unavoidably made them stand out from the Showbands of the time.
“I loved the Showbands and still have a great love for them,” stresses Barry. “But original material did make us stand out. Remember, this was pre-U2 Ireland and there was no rock industry, as such. There was Thin Lizzy, Rory Gallagher and us and that was it. The way it worked back then was, you’d make it to the top in Ireland, you’d travel to England, live on porridge, record an album for Decca and then come home. We didn’t really have the appetite for that, so we decided to set up our own record label, design our own covers and basically kept everything based here in Ireland. It was a model that U2 followed soon after. The first gigs Bono and the rest of those lads went to were Horslips gigs. They saw that it could all be done right here. They could see that Irish kids didn’t have to look to Top of the Pops, they could have their own rock stars right here.”
Another aspect that made Horslips stand out was their willingness to play in the North when other acts refused to cross the border, particularly after the Miami Showband massacre in July 1975.
“It was a scary time, no doubt about it,” recalls Barry. “Up until that terrible day in July it was often thought that despite whatever madness was going on, the entertainment should be allowed continue. That myth was then shattered. We were nervous but bolshy. It took a lot of will but we always had a special affinity with the North. I’m a Tyrone man myself and we refused to be deterred from playing places we had a great identification with: places like Belfast, Derry and all over Donegal, places we related to.”
Anybody who ever attended a Horslips show now has the chance to do it all again next month in Dublin and Belfast. Barry has promised “the classics as people know them with one of two surprises along the way”.
He adds, “We’re hoping everyone will enjoy it. We’ve been blown away by how well the tickets have sold. The audience won’t be hearing revamped versions of the classics. They’ll hear them just as they are on albums like ‘The Tain’ and ‘Book of Invasions’, or as close as we can get to them in 2009. A friend recently asked me if we’re worried about forgetting some of the words. No chance! The crowd will be hopefully singing every word along with us, keeping us right,” laughs a very excited Barry.
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