This was never intended to be an album. Each track was rescued from frail pre-digital tape taken from a live gig. When I recorded gigs back in the day, it was with the faint notion that I might listen back for practice purposes, but I rarely did. Each tape got tossed on top of the last, ending in a great big crateful of varying shaped relics covered in dust. With every move; to the US, back to Ireland, Australia, US again and home again, that battered crate of tapes was always on my list of items for the chop! Something stopped me but I also knew I could not take on the project of listening to a mountain of myself. The last time I loomed over a skip, I had a fl ash of inspiration. ‘Mike!’
Mike Maguire is a librarian by profession who also happens to know his music. Over several years, when I was in his locality, he had invited me to do lunchtime gigs in the Limerick city library. I was pretty sure he’d listen to those tapes and just maybe he would archive. Listen he did, he had paid to be there live the fi rst time around – now he was really paying!
Fast forward to today and thanks to Mike’s tenacity and despite my reticence, we have an album of songs that have not appeared on any of my previous releases. The sound quality may not be pristine but with a little mixing, editing and mastering wizardry… well, you be the judge. Let’s keep the fabled rooms of music alive, they will always give back. Credits below but more credit to you, best audience bar none.

Produced by Freddie White, Mike Maguire, Trish White
Second guitar on track three, side two, Albert Niland
Mixed and edited by Dave Keary www.reddoorproductions.ie
Mastered by Richard Dowling www.wavmastering.com
Photography by Shane Serrano www.crudemedia.pixieset.com
Vintage photography by John Francis Bourke, Brigid Gordon,
Tom Lawlor, Liz Linder, Eamon O’Dwyer
Compilation of venues by Mike Maguire
Sleeve design by Véronique Druesne
Special thanks to my agent of many years, Madeleine Seiler
www.theheadlineagency.com
My memory isn’t up to the task of accurately detailing where each of the tracks came from or who may have been on sound. Listed below are possible candidates and masters of the craft:
Ray Barron, Gerry Brady, Mick Daly, Dan Fitzgerald, Justin Forbes, Dennis Herlihy, Matt Kelleghan, Chloé Nagle, Kevin O’Dwyer, Mairead O’Reilly, John O’Sullivan, Mark O’Sullivan, Paul Scully, Paul Tiernan, Errol Walsh…

If I have left you out, please accept my apologies and get in touch. I’ll be sure to include your name on Volume Two of these recordings.