Horslips
Encyclopedia
Horslips are an Irish Celtic rock
band that compose, arrange and perform songs based on traditional Irish jigs and reels
. The group are regarded as 'founding fathers of Celtic rock' for their fusion of traditional Irish music with rock music and went on to inspire many local and international acts. They formed in 1970 and 'retired' in 1980 for an extended period. The name originated from a spoonerism
on The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse which became "The Four Poxmen on The Horslypse".
Horslips were one of Ireland's leading rock groups of their era. Although they had limited commercial success in their own lifetime, there was a revival of interest in their music in the late 1990s and they came to be regarded as one of the defining bands of the Celtic rock genre. There have since been small scale reunions including appearances on The Late Late Show
and RTÉ
's Other Voices. The band reformed for two Irish shows in the Odyssey Arena in Belfast and the O2 Arena in Dublin respectively at the end of 2009, and have continued to play shows since then.
) commercial but needed a keyboard player. Devlin said he knew a Jim Lockhart that would fit the bill. They enjoyed the act so much that they decided to try to do the rock thing properly. They hooked up with guitarist Declan Sinnott
, a colleague of Eamon Carr's from Tara Telephone and Gene Mulvaney (briefly) to form Horslips (originally Horslypse) in 1970.
They went professional on St Patrick's Day 1972 having shed Mulvaney and released a single, "Johnny's Wedding", on their own record label, Oats. Declan Sinnott left soon after, primarily due to his annoyance at the group appearing in an advert for Mirinda
orange drink (shot in The People's Park in Dun Laoghaire
in Easter 1972) and was replaced by Gus Guest briefly, then Johnny Fean.
for release outside Ireland. They kept their base in Ireland, unlike previous Irish bands.
In October 1972 Horslips went to Longfield house in Tipperary
and recorded their first album, Happy To Meet, Sorry To Part, in the Rolling Stones Mobile Studio
. They then released another single, "Green Gravel". On the first album the melodies were mostly traditional. Jim Lockhart was on keyboards and gradually mastered other instruments including uillean pipes. Eamon Carr was on drums, including the Irish bodhrán
. Happy To Meet, Sorry To Part was the fastest-selling album for 8 years in Ireland. The sleeve was an elaborate concertina-shaped fold-out design which made the LP stand out in the shops.
The Abbey Theatre
in Dublin asked the band to provide the background for a stage adaptation of "The Táin". They leapt at the opportunity. "Táin Bó Cúailnge
" (The Cattle-Raid of Cooley) is a tenth-century story written in Old
and Middle Irish
. It tells of an ancient war between Ulster
and Connaught
. The Táin
was released in 1973 and had more original material alongside the traditional tunes, and greater emphasis on rock. In the same year a single, "Dearg Doom", went to number one in Germany.
Dancehall Sweethearts
followed in 1974, and also balanced folk with rock. Their fourth album, The Unfortunate Cup of Tea, drifted toward pop music and was a disappointment by comparison.RCA
ended their funding deal for the group in 1975. The group funded their next venture themselves and went back to basics. Drive The Cold Winter Away (also 1975) was their most traditional album to date. They signed with DJM Records
worldwide through A&R
man Frank Neilson. The Book of Invasions: A Celtic Symphony (1976), like The Táin, was an adaptation of Irish legends built into a complex story. It became their only entry in the UK Albums Chart
to date, where it peaked at #39 in 1977.
Ever ambitious, they now tried to make it in the United States. They brought in Jim Slye to become their manager. He later sold their publishing rights to William McBurney for £4,000. In 1977 they produced Aliens, about the experience of the Irish in nineteenth-century America, which included very little folk music. They toured Britain, Germany, Canada and the United States. The night that they played the Albert Hall
in London was described by one critic as the loudest gig there since Hendrix
. The Man Who Built America (1978), produced by Steve Katz of Blood, Sweat and Tears and Blues Project fame, concerned Irish emigration to the USA and was commercially their most successful album. The heavier sound did bring some acceptance in America but they lost their folk base and their freshness. Short Stories, Tall Tales (1979) was their last studio album and was panned by the record company and critics alike.
were at its peak, Horslips played gigs in both Northern Ireland
and the Republic of Ireland
without prejudice and were accepted everywhere. Their last recordings were from live performances at Whitla Hall in Belfast April and May 1980. A few months later, on October 12, 1980 they played their final gig in the Ulster Hall. They made no public announcement. They simply gave an encore—the Rolling Stones
' song "The Last Time
" (this was a reference to the recording studio of their first album) and the final act was Charles O'Connor throwing his mangled fiddle into the audience. Ten years after they formed, they disbanded.
" in 1980. They played straight rock and soul on the Irish circuit, and they recorded several singles. Another spin-off group called "Host" contained Fean, O'Connor and Carr. They issued one album, Tryal, in 1984, and two singles.
The final album that had a Fean/Carr collaboration in the 80s was the 1986 under-rated The Last Bandits in the World.
Barry Devlin issued a solo album called 'Breaking Star Codes' in 1983 with some help from Jim Lockhart. The album had 12 songs, each based, loosely, on the signs of the zodiac. Further Lockhart/Devlin collaborations included the theme tune to the popular RTÉ
drama series 'Glenroe
'.
In 1986 Johnny Fean moved to England. An English indie
band called Jacobites
(1983 to 1986) consisted of Nikki Sudden and Dave Kusworth. Their 1986 album Ragged School had Johnny on guitar.
He also played sporadically with a Horslips tribute band Spirit of Horslips and pub gigs with pick up three-piece The Treat, which sometimes featured former Thin Lizzy guitarist Eric Bell instead of Fean.
In 1990, the electric guitar intro to "Dearg Doom" was used for Put 'Em Under Pressure
, Ireland's 1990 World Cup song, written by Larry Mullen and featuring the Republic of Ireland national football team
and Moya Brennan
. This use of the intro may be better known in Ireland than the original.
Charles O'Connor released an instrumental album called 'Angel on the Mantelpiece' in collaboration with Paul Whittaker in 1997.
The former band members fought back and on March 7, 1999 won a court victory in Belfast for the copyright ownership and a substantial financial settlement. Horslips are now again fully in control of their music and, to that end, released the entire back catalogue on CD in 2000 / 2001 with updated artwork and digitally remaster
ed sound.
. It was opened by the band, who played five songs acoustically. Buoyed by this first public appearance in 24 years, Horslips returned to the studio in Westmeath to produce a studio album, Roll Back, in the summer of 2004. Described as "Horslips Unplugged", the album contains acoustic reworkings of many of their best-known songs.
The same exhibition moved to Drogheda
in October 2005, courtesy of longtime fan Paddy Goodwin, and was formally opened on October 6 by a tribute band, Horslypse, composed of nine teenage musicians. Horslips did a rambunctious version of "Furniture" at the end.
The exhibition moved to Belfast in February and March 2006 and there were plans for a New York showing in 2007. In February 2008, the exhibition opened in Ballinamore
in County Leitrim
, and then, in July, opened in Ballybofey
in Donegal
.
A double DVD entitled Return of the Dancehall Sweethearts came out in November 2005. Disc one is a documentary and disc 2 is live footage of the band from the 1970s, including promo videos and slots on The Old Grey Whistle Test.
In December 2005 the band played in front of an invited audience for the recording of the RTÉ
television program Other Voices in Dingle
in County Kerry
. Part of the set included three songs done "full-on" -- the first time the band played live and electric since October 1980.
The last Horslips' event so far in this phase of their career was a TG4
tribute show recorded and broadcast live on March 25, 2006 before a live invited studio audience. A number of Irish personalities were interviewed, in Irish, about what the band meant to them and how Horslips shaped modern Irish music.
covered 'Dearg Doom' on their full length "Hardworlder" for Cruz Del Sur music.
Drummer Eamon Carr did not play the concerts, citing personal reasons, though he was fully supportive and remains a fifth member. His place was taken by Johnny Fean's brother Ray Fean.
The band played two invite-only warm up gigs in McHugh's of Drogheda on 26 and 27 November. (19)
The band was set to play at "Live at the Marquee" Cork City on the 26th June 2010, but the concert was cancelled due to Jim Lockhart falling ill.
In November and December 2010, Horslips, again with Ray Fean on percussion, returned to some of their old stomping grounds with a 4 gig tour of Ireland. These included the INEC (Ireland's National Event Centre) in Killarney (27 November), the Royal Theatre in Castlebar (28 November), the Waterfront Hall in Belfast (1 December) and culminated in a return to the O2 Arena on the 4th of December.
They played at the 2011 Celtic Connections Festival in Glasgow's "Old Fruitmarket" on January 18. An enthusiastic crowd welcomed the band, who played an incredible set.
Barry Devlin joked that they were back in Glasgow after 31 years, "the longest fag break in history!"
On the 10th February 2010 it was announced that Horlsips would be very special guests under Fairport Convention
at Fairport's Cropredy Convention 2011. The announcement said "We are delighted to announce that probably our most requested band, HORSLIPS,will be attending this year's Cropredy festival as our very special guests". They performed on Saturday 13 August to an enthusiastic crowd.
On St Patrick's Day, 17 March 2011, the band played a BBC concert with the Ulster Orchestra at Belfast Waterfront Hall.
Celtic rock
Celtic rock is a genre of folk rock and a form of Celtic fusion which incorporates Celtic music, instrumentation and themes into a rock music context...
band that compose, arrange and perform songs based on traditional Irish jigs and reels
Reel (dance)
The reel is a folk dance type as well as the accompanying dance tune type. In Scottish country dancing, the reel is one of the four traditional dances, the others being the jig, the strathspey and the waltz, and is also the name of a dance figure ....
. The group are regarded as 'founding fathers of Celtic rock' for their fusion of traditional Irish music with rock music and went on to inspire many local and international acts. They formed in 1970 and 'retired' in 1980 for an extended period. The name originated from a spoonerism
Spoonerism
A spoonerism is an error in speech or deliberate play on words in which corresponding consonants, vowels, or morphemes are switched . It is named after the Reverend William Archibald Spooner , Warden of New College, Oxford, who was notoriously prone to this tendency...
on The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse which became "The Four Poxmen on The Horslypse".
Horslips were one of Ireland's leading rock groups of their era. Although they had limited commercial success in their own lifetime, there was a revival of interest in their music in the late 1990s and they came to be regarded as one of the defining bands of the Celtic rock genre. There have since been small scale reunions including appearances on The Late Late Show
The Late Late Show
The Late Late Show, sometimes referred to as The Late Late, or in some cases by the acronym LLS, is the world's longest-running chat show by the same broadcaster and the official flagship television programme of Irish broadcasting company RTÉ...
and RTÉ
RTE
RTÉ is the abbreviation for Raidió Teilifís Éireann, the public broadcasting service of the Republic of Ireland.RTE may also refer to:* Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, 25th Prime Minister of Turkey...
's Other Voices. The band reformed for two Irish shows in the Odyssey Arena in Belfast and the O2 Arena in Dublin respectively at the end of 2009, and have continued to play shows since then.
Band members
- Jim Lockhart (born 3 February 1948), from James's St in Dublin, studied Economics and Politics at University College Dublin. He fell under the influence of Seán Ó RiadaSeán Ó RiadaSeán Ó Riada , was a composer and perhaps the single most influential figure in the revival of Irish traditional music during the 1960s...
, wanting to build an orchestral sound out of Irish music. He plays keyboards, pipes, whistles and flute. He did vocals on a select number of songs, mainly in ManxManx languageManx , also known as Manx Gaelic, and as the Manks language, is a Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family, historically spoken by the Manx people. Only a small minority of the Island's population is fluent in the language, but a larger minority has some knowledge of it...
or Irish. - Eamon Carr (born 12 November 1948), is from Kells, County MeathKells, County MeathKells is a town in County Meath, Ireland. The town lies off the M3 motorway, from Navan and from Dublin. In recent years Kells has grown greatly with many Dublin commuters moving to the town....
. He was one of the founding members of a poetry and beat performance group called Tara Telephone in Dublin in the late 60s that also published the quarterly literary journal Capella. He is the drummer in the band. - Charles O'Connor, (Born 7 September 1948) from MiddlesbroughMiddlesbroughMiddlesbrough is a large town situated on the south bank of the River Tees in north east England, that sits within the ceremonial county of North Yorkshire...
in the UK plays concertinaConcertinaA concertina is a free-reed musical instrument, like the various accordions and the harmonica. It has a bellows and buttons typically on both ends of it. When pressed, the buttons travel in the same direction as the bellows, unlike accordion buttons which travel perpendicularly to it...
, mandolinMandolinA mandolin is a musical instrument in the lute family . It descends from the mandore, a soprano member of the lute family. The mandolin soundboard comes in many shapes—but generally round or teardrop-shaped, sometimes with scrolls or other projections. A mandolin may have f-holes, or a single...
, fiddleFiddleThe term fiddle may refer to any bowed string musical instrument, most often the violin. It is also a colloquial term for the instrument used by players in all genres, including classical music...
and both electric and slide guitar. He also shares the main vocal tasks with Barry Devlin and Johnny Fean. - Barry DevlinBarry DevlinBarry Devlin is an Irish musician, screen writer and director.-Early life:Devlin is from Ardboe, Moortown, County Tyrone...
(born 27 November 1946), from ArdboeArdboeArdboe is a small village in the north east of County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It is near the western shore of Lough Neagh and lies within the Cookstown District Council area...
in County TyroneCounty TyroneHistorically Tyrone stretched as far north as Lough Foyle, and comprised part of modern day County Londonderry east of the River Foyle. The majority of County Londonderry was carved out of Tyrone between 1610-1620 when that land went to the Guilds of London to set up profit making schemes based on...
, Northern IrelandNorthern IrelandNorthern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
, once trained as a Columban priest. He left this to do English in UCD and then after joined a graphics company as a screenwriter. He is the band's bass player, shares vocals and its unofficial front man. - Johnny Fean (born 17 November 1951) spent his childhood in the city of LimerickLimerickLimerick is the third largest city in the Republic of Ireland, and the principal city of County Limerick and Ireland's Mid-West Region. It is the fifth most populous city in all of Ireland. When taking the extra-municipal suburbs into account, Limerick is the third largest conurbation in the...
and in Shannon, County ClareCounty Clare-History:There was a Neolithic civilisation in the Clare area — the name of the peoples is unknown, but the Prehistoric peoples left evidence behind in the form of ancient dolmen; single-chamber megalithic tombs, usually consisting of three or more upright stones...
. He soon mastered guitar, banjo, mandolin and harmonica. In his teens, he played in sessions in Limerick and County ClareCounty Clare-History:There was a Neolithic civilisation in the Clare area — the name of the peoples is unknown, but the Prehistoric peoples left evidence behind in the form of ancient dolmen; single-chamber megalithic tombs, usually consisting of three or more upright stones...
. He developed his listening tastes from rock to blues and incorporated it into his guitar style. In his late teens he played in a group called "Sweet Street," with Joe O'Donnell on electric fiddle and Eugene Wallace. He later played in "Jeremiah Henry," a rock and blues band. His idols were Jimi HendrixJimi HendrixJames Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix was an American guitarist and singer-songwriter...
and Eric ClaptonEric ClaptonEric Patrick Clapton, CBE, is an English guitarist and singer-songwriter. Clapton is the only three-time inductee to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: once as a solo artist, and separately as a member of The Yardbirds and Cream. Clapton has been referred to as one of the most important and...
. He left "Jeremiah Henry" in 1970 to play traditional music again in Limerick.
Original line-up
Barry Devlin, Eamon Carr and Charles O'Connor met up when they worked at the Gerry Maher graphics company in Dublin. They were cajoled into pretending to be a band for a beer (Harp LagerHarp Lager
Harp Lager, is a pale lager brand created in 1960 by the Guinness Brewery in their Dundalk brewery. It is a leading lager brand in Ireland, and is also popular in Australia, Canada, Africa and the United States...
) commercial but needed a keyboard player. Devlin said he knew a Jim Lockhart that would fit the bill. They enjoyed the act so much that they decided to try to do the rock thing properly. They hooked up with guitarist Declan Sinnott
Declan Sinnott
Declan Sinnott is an Irish musician and producer.Originally from Wexford, where his family ran a record shop in John Street, he came to Dublin in the late sixties. Around 1970 he was a member of the poetry-and-music group Tara Telephone, in which he composed, sang, and played guitar...
, a colleague of Eamon Carr's from Tara Telephone and Gene Mulvaney (briefly) to form Horslips (originally Horslypse) in 1970.
They went professional on St Patrick's Day 1972 having shed Mulvaney and released a single, "Johnny's Wedding", on their own record label, Oats. Declan Sinnott left soon after, primarily due to his annoyance at the group appearing in an advert for Mirinda
Mirinda
Mirinda is a brand of soft drink originally created in Spain, but with global distribution. The word Mirinda means "admirable, wonderful" in Esperanto....
orange drink (shot in The People's Park in Dun Laoghaire
Dún Laoghaire
Dún Laoghaire or Dún Laoire , sometimes anglicised as "Dunleary" , is a suburban seaside town in County Dublin, Ireland, about twelve kilometres south of Dublin city centre. It is the county town of Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown County and a major port of entry from Great Britain...
in Easter 1972) and was replaced by Gus Guest briefly, then Johnny Fean.
The albums
Horslips designed their own artwork, wrote sleeve-notes and researched the legends that they made into concept albums. They had their own record label and licensed the recordings through RCARCA
RCA Corporation, founded as the Radio Corporation of America, was an American electronics company in existence from 1919 to 1986. The RCA trademark is currently owned by the French conglomerate Technicolor SA through RCA Trademark Management S.A., a company owned by Technicolor...
for release outside Ireland. They kept their base in Ireland, unlike previous Irish bands.
In October 1972 Horslips went to Longfield house in Tipperary
Tipperary
Tipperary is a town and a civil parish in South Tipperary in Ireland. Its population was 4,415 at the 2006 census. It is also an ecclesiastical parish in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cashel and Emly, and is in the historical barony of Clanwilliam....
and recorded their first album, Happy To Meet, Sorry To Part, in the Rolling Stones Mobile Studio
Rolling Stones Mobile Studio
The Rolling Stones Mobile Studio is a mobile recording studio owned by the musical group the Rolling Stones. Numerous bands and artists have recorded music using it, including Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple, Lou Reed, Bob Marley, Horslips, Fleetwood Mac, Bad Company, Status Quo, Iron Maiden, Mola Mola...
. They then released another single, "Green Gravel". On the first album the melodies were mostly traditional. Jim Lockhart was on keyboards and gradually mastered other instruments including uillean pipes. Eamon Carr was on drums, including the Irish bodhrán
Bodhrán
The bodhrán is an Irish frame drum ranging from 25 to 65 cm in diameter, with most drums measuring 35 to 45 cm . The sides of the drum are 9 to 20 cm deep. A goatskin head is tacked to one side...
. Happy To Meet, Sorry To Part was the fastest-selling album for 8 years in Ireland. The sleeve was an elaborate concertina-shaped fold-out design which made the LP stand out in the shops.
The Abbey Theatre
Abbey Theatre
The Abbey Theatre , also known as the National Theatre of Ireland , is a theatre located in Dublin, Ireland. The Abbey first opened its doors to the public on 27 December 1904. Despite losing its original building to a fire in 1951, it has remained active to the present day...
in Dublin asked the band to provide the background for a stage adaptation of "The Táin". They leapt at the opportunity. "Táin Bó Cúailnge
Táin Bó Cúailnge
is a legendary tale from early Irish literature, often considered an epic, although it is written primarily in prose rather than verse. It tells of a war against Ulster by the Connacht queen Medb and her husband Ailill, who intend to steal the stud bull Donn Cuailnge, opposed only by the teenage...
" (The Cattle-Raid of Cooley) is a tenth-century story written in Old
Old Irish language
Old Irish is the name given to the oldest form of the Goidelic languages for which extensive written texts are extant. It was used from the 6th to the 10th centuries, by which time it had developed into Middle Irish....
and Middle Irish
Middle Irish language
Middle Irish is the name given by historical philologists to the Goidelic language spoken in Ireland, Scotland and the Isle of Man from the 10th to 12th centuries; it is therefore a contemporary of late Old English and early Middle English...
. It tells of an ancient war between Ulster
Ulster
Ulster is one of the four provinces of Ireland, located in the north of the island. In ancient Ireland, it was one of the fifths ruled by a "king of over-kings" . Following the Norman invasion of Ireland, the ancient kingdoms were shired into a number of counties for administrative and judicial...
and Connaught
Connacht
Connacht , formerly anglicised as Connaught, is one of the Provinces of Ireland situated in the west of Ireland. In Ancient Ireland, it was one of the fifths ruled by a "king of over-kings" . Following the Norman invasion of Ireland, the ancient kingdoms were shired into a number of counties for...
. The Táin
The Táin (Horslips)
The Táin is the name of a music album by Irish rock band Horslips. Their second studio album, it was Horslip's first attempt at making a concept album, an idea they would return to in 1976 with The Book of Invasions: A Celtic Symphony...
was released in 1973 and had more original material alongside the traditional tunes, and greater emphasis on rock. In the same year a single, "Dearg Doom", went to number one in Germany.
Dancehall Sweethearts
Dancehall Sweethearts
Dancehall Sweethearts is the name of the third studio album by Irish rock band Horslips. Recorded during the 1974 World Cup Finals, the songs were loosely based on the travels of the famed 18th century blind harper, Turlough O' Carolan...
followed in 1974, and also balanced folk with rock. Their fourth album, The Unfortunate Cup of Tea, drifted toward pop music and was a disappointment by comparison.RCA
RCA
RCA Corporation, founded as the Radio Corporation of America, was an American electronics company in existence from 1919 to 1986. The RCA trademark is currently owned by the French conglomerate Technicolor SA through RCA Trademark Management S.A., a company owned by Technicolor...
ended their funding deal for the group in 1975. The group funded their next venture themselves and went back to basics. Drive The Cold Winter Away (also 1975) was their most traditional album to date. They signed with DJM Records
DJM Records
DJM Records was the record label set up in the 1970s by British music publisher, Dick James, distributed by Pye Records in the UK and various other companies around the world, including the USA...
worldwide through A&R
A&R
Artists and repertoire is the division of a record label that is responsible for talent scouting and overseeing the artistic development of recording artists. It also acts as a liaison between artists and the record label.- Finding talent :...
man Frank Neilson. The Book of Invasions: A Celtic Symphony (1976), like The Táin, was an adaptation of Irish legends built into a complex story. It became their only entry in the UK Albums Chart
UK Albums Chart
The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart...
to date, where it peaked at #39 in 1977.
Ever ambitious, they now tried to make it in the United States. They brought in Jim Slye to become their manager. He later sold their publishing rights to William McBurney for £4,000. In 1977 they produced Aliens, about the experience of the Irish in nineteenth-century America, which included very little folk music. They toured Britain, Germany, Canada and the United States. The night that they played the Albert Hall
Royal Albert Hall
The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall situated on the northern edge of the South Kensington area, in the City of Westminster, London, England, best known for holding the annual summer Proms concerts since 1941....
in London was described by one critic as the loudest gig there since Hendrix
Jimi Hendrix
James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix was an American guitarist and singer-songwriter...
. The Man Who Built America (1978), produced by Steve Katz of Blood, Sweat and Tears and Blues Project fame, concerned Irish emigration to the USA and was commercially their most successful album. The heavier sound did bring some acceptance in America but they lost their folk base and their freshness. Short Stories, Tall Tales (1979) was their last studio album and was panned by the record company and critics alike.
The last time
At a time when The TroublesThe Troubles
The Troubles was a period of ethno-political conflict in Northern Ireland which spilled over at various times into England, the Republic of Ireland, and mainland Europe. The duration of the Troubles is conventionally dated from the late 1960s and considered by many to have ended with the Belfast...
were at its peak, Horslips played gigs in both Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
and the Republic of Ireland
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
without prejudice and were accepted everywhere. Their last recordings were from live performances at Whitla Hall in Belfast April and May 1980. A few months later, on October 12, 1980 they played their final gig in the Ulster Hall. They made no public announcement. They simply gave an encore—the Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones are an English rock band, formed in London in April 1962 by Brian Jones , Ian Stewart , Mick Jagger , and Keith Richards . Bassist Bill Wyman and drummer Charlie Watts completed the early line-up...
' song "The Last Time
The Last Time (song)
In 1967, after the imprisonment of Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, on drugs charges, The Who recorded covers of "The Last Time" and "Under My Thumb" as a single. The intention was to help Jagger and Richards make bail, but by the time the single was made available, they had been released. The...
" (this was a reference to the recording studio of their first album) and the final act was Charles O'Connor throwing his mangled fiddle into the audience. Ten years after they formed, they disbanded.
Musical life after the breakup
Even before Horslips ended, Johnny Fean, Eamon Carr and two others founded the "Zen AlligatorsZen Alligators
The Zen Alligators were a short-lived rhythm and blues band that arose out of the ashes of Horslips. Fronted by two ex-members of Horslips, guitarist and vocalist Johnny Fean and drummer Eamon Carr, they were joined by bass player Gary Eglington and Philip Fay on guitar.They released a number of...
" in 1980. They played straight rock and soul on the Irish circuit, and they recorded several singles. Another spin-off group called "Host" contained Fean, O'Connor and Carr. They issued one album, Tryal, in 1984, and two singles.
The final album that had a Fean/Carr collaboration in the 80s was the 1986 under-rated The Last Bandits in the World.
Barry Devlin issued a solo album called 'Breaking Star Codes' in 1983 with some help from Jim Lockhart. The album had 12 songs, each based, loosely, on the signs of the zodiac. Further Lockhart/Devlin collaborations included the theme tune to the popular RTÉ
Raidió Teilifís Éireann
Raidió Teilifís Éireann is a semi-state company and the public service broadcaster of Ireland. It both produces programmes and broadcasts them on television, radio and the Internet. The radio service began on January 1, 1926, while regular television broadcasts began on December 31, 1961, making...
drama series 'Glenroe
Glenroe
Glenroe was an Irish television drama series broadcast between September 1983 and May 2001 on RTÉ One. The programme was a spin-off from Bracken, a short-lived RTÉ drama itself spun off from The Riordans. Glenroe was broadcast on Sunday nights at 20.30, generally from September to May. The show was...
'.
In 1986 Johnny Fean moved to England. An English indie
Indie (music)
In music, independent music, often shortened to indie music or "indie" is a term used to describe independence from major commercial record labels or their subsidiaries, and an autonomous, Do-It-Yourself approach to recording and publishing....
band called Jacobites
Jacobites (band)
Jacobites were an English rock band formed in Birmingham in 1982 by Nikki Sudden and Dave Kusworth, following the breakup of their respective previous bands, the Swell Maps and the Subterranean Hawks.-Career:...
(1983 to 1986) consisted of Nikki Sudden and Dave Kusworth. Their 1986 album Ragged School had Johnny on guitar.
He also played sporadically with a Horslips tribute band Spirit of Horslips and pub gigs with pick up three-piece The Treat, which sometimes featured former Thin Lizzy guitarist Eric Bell instead of Fean.
In 1990, the electric guitar intro to "Dearg Doom" was used for Put 'Em Under Pressure
Put 'Em Under Pressure
"Put 'Em Under Pressure" was the official song to the Ireland national football team's 1990 FIFA World Cup campaign in Italy . It is regarded as "an all-time classic that the entire country knows every single word to, even the spoken words of wisdom from Jack Charlton, it's place in the hearts of...
, Ireland's 1990 World Cup song, written by Larry Mullen and featuring the Republic of Ireland national football team
Republic of Ireland national football team
The Republic of Ireland national football team represents Ireland in association football. It is run by the Football Association of Ireland and currently plays home fixtures at Aviva Stadium in Dublin, which opened in May 2010....
and Moya Brennan
Moya Brennan
Moya Brennan, born Máire Ní Bhraonáin , also known as Máire Brennan , is an Irish folk singer, songwriter, harpist, and philanthropist who began performing professionally in 1970, when her family formed the band Clannad, and is now widely considered as the "First Lady of Celtic Music"...
. This use of the intro may be better known in Ireland than the original.
Charles O'Connor released an instrumental album called 'Angel on the Mantelpiece' in collaboration with Paul Whittaker in 1997.
Current activities
- Johnny Fean continues to play live music with Stephen Travers, formerly of The Miami ShowbandMiami Showband killingsThe Miami Showband killings was a paramilitary attack at Buskhill, County Down, Northern Ireland, in the early morning of 31 July 1975. It left five people dead at the hands of Ulster Volunteer Force gunmen, including three members of The Miami Showband...
. - After his retirement from swinging the drum sticks Eamon Carr went on to become a noted producer of young rock talent in the mid 1980s and also forming his own record label called Hotwire (which sponsored noted acts like the punk rockPunk rockPunk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
group The Golden HordeThe Golden Horde (band)The Golden Horde were a rock, punk, psychedelic band based in Dublin, Ireland. The most renowned line-up of the band was: Peter O'Kennedy, John Connor, Sam Steiger, Des O' Byrne, and Simon Carmody, although at the very first live performance, there were 13 band members on stage.Their first...
. He has also did a number of specialist DJ slots on radio before morphing into a music/sports journalist with the Evening HeraldEvening HeraldThe Evening Herald is a mid-market tabloid evening newspaper published in Dublin, Ireland by Independent News & Media. It is published Monday-Saturday, and has three editions — City Edition, City Final Edition and National Edition...
in Dublin. More recently he has presented on a Dublin station 'Carr's Cocktail Shack' in which Eamon plays American music of the 50s and 60s. - In 2008 Eamon Carr and former Wings and Joe Cocker guitarist Henry McCullough co-wrote a new bunch of songs. A resulting album entitled "Poor Man's Moon" was released on 1 September 2008.
- Also in 2008, Eamon released his first book, The Origami Crow, Journey Into Japan, World Cup Summer 2002, a book that is at once a travel log about his journey to Japan, a poetry collection, an homage to Japanese poet Basho, heralded by many as the creator of Haiku, and also has some sports commentary thrown in.
- Barry Devlin has directed for the screen and been a drama writer for radio and screen, as can be seen from his credits on the IMDB and for the radio detective drama Baldi He produced a number of U2U2U2 are an Irish rock band from Dublin. Formed in 1976, the group consists of Bono , The Edge , Adam Clayton , and Larry Mullen, Jr. . U2's early sound was rooted in post-punk but eventually grew to incorporate influences from many genres of popular music...
videos in the mid 80s. Examples of his screen writing are evident in the joint RTÉRaidió Teilifís ÉireannRaidió Teilifís Éireann is a semi-state company and the public service broadcaster of Ireland. It both produces programmes and broadcasts them on television, radio and the Internet. The radio service began on January 1, 1926, while regular television broadcasts began on December 31, 1961, making...
/BBCBBCThe British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
production BallykissangelBallykissangelBallykissangel is a BBC television drama set in Ireland, produced in-house by BBC Northern Ireland. The original story revolved around a young English Roman Catholic priest as he became part of a rural community. It ran for six series, which were first broadcast on BBC One in the UK from 1996 to 2001...
and ITVITVITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
's The Darling Buds of MayThe Darling Buds of MayThe Darling Buds of May is a British comedy drama which was first broadcast between 1991 and 1993 produced by Yorkshire Television for the ITV Network. It is set in an idyllic rural 1950s Kent, among a large, boisterous family. The three series were based on the novels by H. E. Bates. Originally...
. - Jim Lockhart is head of production at RTÉ 2fmRTÉ 2fmRTÉ 2fm, or 2FM as it is more commonly referred to, is Raidió Teilifís Éireann's second national radio station. It broadcasts popular music programming aimed at a young Irish audience.- History :...
and has also done some production work and music arrangement. - Charles O'Connor owns two antique shops in WhitbyWhitbyWhitby is a seaside town, port and civil parish in the Scarborough borough of North Yorkshire, England. Situated on the east coast of Yorkshire at the mouth of the River Esk, Whitby has a combined maritime, mineral and tourist heritage, and is home to the ruins of Whitby Abbey where Caedmon, the...
in the UK. O'Connor continues to record folk and traditional music in his home recording studio.
Copyright issues
For 20 years William McBurney, head of Belfast based Outlet records for over 40 years, received royalties from vinyl and CDs, including many compilations. He claimed that he bought the rights in "good faith" from Jim Slye, who managed Horslips from the late 1970s until the band's final gig. However, the quality of these releases left much to be desired. Shoddy artwork and dodgy sound meant that most of these releases were in the bargain bin at £2.99, leaving the five former members disillusioned at the state of affairs. In fact it led to at least one band member refusing to listen to the music for almost all of 20 years.The former band members fought back and on March 7, 1999 won a court victory in Belfast for the copyright ownership and a substantial financial settlement. Horslips are now again fully in control of their music and, to that end, released the entire back catalogue on CD in 2000 / 2001 with updated artwork and digitally remaster
Remaster
Remaster is a word marketed mostly in the digital audio age, although the remastering process has existed since recording began...
ed sound.
Return
In March 2004 three Horslips enthusiasts, Jim Nelis, Stephen Ferris and Paul Callaghan, put on an exhibition of Horslips memorabilia in The Orchard Gallery in DerryDerry
Derry or Londonderry is the second-biggest city in Northern Ireland and the fourth-biggest city on the island of Ireland. The name Derry is an anglicisation of the Irish name Doire or Doire Cholmcille meaning "oak-wood of Colmcille"...
. It was opened by the band, who played five songs acoustically. Buoyed by this first public appearance in 24 years, Horslips returned to the studio in Westmeath to produce a studio album, Roll Back, in the summer of 2004. Described as "Horslips Unplugged", the album contains acoustic reworkings of many of their best-known songs.
The same exhibition moved to Drogheda
Drogheda
Drogheda is an industrial and port town in County Louth on the east coast of Ireland, 56 km north of Dublin. It is the last bridging point on the River Boyne before it enters the Irish Sea....
in October 2005, courtesy of longtime fan Paddy Goodwin, and was formally opened on October 6 by a tribute band, Horslypse, composed of nine teenage musicians. Horslips did a rambunctious version of "Furniture" at the end.
The exhibition moved to Belfast in February and March 2006 and there were plans for a New York showing in 2007. In February 2008, the exhibition opened in Ballinamore
Ballinamore
Ballinamore is a small town in County Leitrim, Ireland, from the border with Northern Ireland. It is located on the R202 regional road where it is joined by the R199 and R204. means "mouth of the big ford", and the town is so named because it was the main crossing point of the Yellow River,...
in County Leitrim
County Leitrim
County Leitrim is a county in Ireland. It is located in the West Region and is also part of the province of Connacht. It is named after the village of Leitrim. Leitrim County Council is the local authority for the county...
, and then, in July, opened in Ballybofey
Ballybofey
Ballybofey is a town located on the south bank of the River Finn, County Donegal, Ireland. Along with the smaller town of Stranorlar on the north side of the River Finn, Ballybofey makes up the Twin Towns....
in Donegal
Donegal
Donegal or Donegal Town is a town in County Donegal, Ireland. Its name, which was historically written in English as Dunnagall or Dunagall, translates from Irish as "stronghold of the foreigners" ....
.
A double DVD entitled Return of the Dancehall Sweethearts came out in November 2005. Disc one is a documentary and disc 2 is live footage of the band from the 1970s, including promo videos and slots on The Old Grey Whistle Test.
In December 2005 the band played in front of an invited audience for the recording of the RTÉ
Raidió Teilifís Éireann
Raidió Teilifís Éireann is a semi-state company and the public service broadcaster of Ireland. It both produces programmes and broadcasts them on television, radio and the Internet. The radio service began on January 1, 1926, while regular television broadcasts began on December 31, 1961, making...
television program Other Voices in Dingle
Dingle
Dingle is a town in County Kerry, Ireland. The only town on the Dingle Peninsula, it sits on the Atlantic coast, about 49 kilometres southwest of Tralee and 71 kilometres northwest of Killarney....
in County Kerry
County Kerry
Kerry means the "people of Ciar" which was the name of the pre-Gaelic tribe who lived in part of the present county. The legendary founder of the tribe was Ciar, son of Fergus mac Róich. In Old Irish "Ciar" meant black or dark brown, and the word continues in use in modern Irish as an adjective...
. Part of the set included three songs done "full-on" -- the first time the band played live and electric since October 1980.
The last Horslips' event so far in this phase of their career was a TG4
TG4
TG4 is a public service broadcaster for Irish language speakers. The channel has been on-air since 31 October 1996 in the Republic of Ireland and since April 2005 in Northern Ireland....
tribute show recorded and broadcast live on March 25, 2006 before a live invited studio audience. A number of Irish personalities were interviewed, in Irish, about what the band meant to them and how Horslips shaped modern Irish music.
Cover versions
US band Slough FegThe Lord Weird Slough Feg
Slough Feg is a Heavy Metal band that formed in Pennsylvania in the early 1990s and is currently based in the San Francisco Bay Area. Taking their name from the Celtic folklore-influenced comic Sláine, the band released their self-titled debut album in 1996...
covered 'Dearg Doom' on their full length "Hardworlder" for Cruz Del Sur music.
2009 reunion / 2010 / 2011 Concerts
On July 2, 2009 it was announced that Horslips would reunite for two shows, their first 'open public' gigs since 1980. The band played the Odyssey Arena in Belfast on Thursday December 3 and the O2 Arena in Dublin on Saturday December 5.Drummer Eamon Carr did not play the concerts, citing personal reasons, though he was fully supportive and remains a fifth member. His place was taken by Johnny Fean's brother Ray Fean.
The band played two invite-only warm up gigs in McHugh's of Drogheda on 26 and 27 November. (19)
The band was set to play at "Live at the Marquee" Cork City on the 26th June 2010, but the concert was cancelled due to Jim Lockhart falling ill.
In November and December 2010, Horslips, again with Ray Fean on percussion, returned to some of their old stomping grounds with a 4 gig tour of Ireland. These included the INEC (Ireland's National Event Centre) in Killarney (27 November), the Royal Theatre in Castlebar (28 November), the Waterfront Hall in Belfast (1 December) and culminated in a return to the O2 Arena on the 4th of December.
They played at the 2011 Celtic Connections Festival in Glasgow's "Old Fruitmarket" on January 18. An enthusiastic crowd welcomed the band, who played an incredible set.
Barry Devlin joked that they were back in Glasgow after 31 years, "the longest fag break in history!"
On the 10th February 2010 it was announced that Horlsips would be very special guests under Fairport Convention
Fairport Convention
Fairport Convention are an English folk rock and later electric folk band, formed in 1967 who are still recording and touring today. They are widely regarded as the most important single group in the English folk rock movement...
at Fairport's Cropredy Convention 2011. The announcement said "We are delighted to announce that probably our most requested band, HORSLIPS,will be attending this year's Cropredy festival as our very special guests". They performed on Saturday 13 August to an enthusiastic crowd.
On St Patrick's Day, 17 March 2011, the band played a BBC concert with the Ulster Orchestra at Belfast Waterfront Hall.
Original studio albums
- Happy to Meet - Sorry to PartHappy to Meet - Sorry to PartHappy to Meet – Sorry to Part is the name of an album by Irish rock band Horslips. It was first released in Ireland by the end of 1972 as their debut album. Before this, they had released the same year three singles: Johnny's Wedding/Flower amang Them All and Green Gravel/Fairy King in Ireland and...
(1972) - The TáinThe Táin (Horslips)The Táin is the name of a music album by Irish rock band Horslips. Their second studio album, it was Horslip's first attempt at making a concept album, an idea they would return to in 1976 with The Book of Invasions: A Celtic Symphony...
(1973) - Dancehall SweetheartsDancehall SweetheartsDancehall Sweethearts is the name of the third studio album by Irish rock band Horslips. Recorded during the 1974 World Cup Finals, the songs were loosely based on the travels of the famed 18th century blind harper, Turlough O' Carolan...
(1974) - The Unfortunate Cup of Tea (1975)
- Drive the Cold Winter Away (1975)
- The Book of Invasions (1976)
- Aliens (1977) U.S. #98
- The Man Who Built America (1978) U.S. #155
- Short Stories/Tall Tales (1979)
- Roll Back (2004)
Live albums
- Horslips Live (1976)
- The Belfast Gigs (1980)
- Live at the O2 (2010)
External links
- Official website for Horslips
- Official website for Johnny Fean and Steve Travers
- Come Back Horslips Fansite
- Carr's Cocktail Shack Radio Website
- Tara Telephone Archival History Fansite
- Performance and Interview Pt.1
- Interview Pt.2
- Horslips page on Irish Rockers website
- Eamon Carr & Henry McCullough 2008 CD available here
- Eamon Carr's first book
- Eamon Carr's publisher site, book available here.