Brian Lally, the new host of RTÉ Radio 1's popular country music showcase Country Time, writes for Culture about his own musical journey, his passion for the great singer-songwriters of the genre, and - above all else - keeping it country...
My first country record... remember those? What I remember is Me and Bobby McGee. I can still see the eyes of Kris Kristofferson staring out from the sleeve. My family had and still have disparate but eclectic musical tastes, and Mary introduced me to this former pilot, occasional CBS janitor and Rhodes scholar.
I would later become a true fan and still seek out Darby’s Castle, Casey’s Last Ride, The Pilgrim and many more. My country connections were somewhat sporadic for many years because I never really thought much of the Country and Irish scene, and rock n' roll, especially Messrs Dylan Morrison and Springsteen, became the blessed trinity for me.
Anyway, while Irish place names like Glenamaddy and lovely Leitrim do have their resonance, I just could not connect - except for Ray. Ray Lynam was, for me, the lone bartender at the Quality Irish Country saloon for many years. He has a believe-ability that never wavered. From He Stopped Loving Her Today to the Shane McGowan referenced My Elusive Dreams, you could believe the voice... there was a ring of truth.
I still got the occasional shot of the good stuff thanks to Neil Toner and PJ Curtis on the radio and people like Freddie White introducing Guy Clark’s music to this country. His take of Clark's Desperados Waiting For A Train lives long in the memory of those who were at his shows.
Fast forward a few more years, and I was one of the civic-minded people whose sterling efforts after midnight every Friday and Saturday kept the Olympia in Dublin from closing. Weekly blasts of the Fleadh Cowboys or Hank Halfhead and the Rambling Turkeys augmented by afternoons in the Lower Deck with the Rhythm Kings and even the odd Sunday Brunch with the aforementioned Mr Toner at the Harcourt Hotel added to the enjoyment and exploration of this increasingly addictive music.
On the major gig front, things were getting good too, and live encounters with Lyle Lovett and his Large (not Big) Band, Nanci Griffith, KD Lang and Mary Chapin Carpenter were never to be forgotten experiences.
Getting involved with radio, you could meet artists and record them playing, talk for ages about music, and call it work. I vividly remember Tom Russell and his then sidekick Barrence Whitfield traipsing up 7 flights of stairs with guitars in hand to play at Dublin Anna Livia radio for nothing!!! In RTÉ the stakes were high and the breaks were even higher. I spent some time booking the music on Pat Kenny’s radio show – among others – and regularly there’d be a music item that’d knock your socks off. I kept a few of the recordings on a USB and was delighted to play one of them on a recent Country Time. It was Kieran Goss, Brendan Murphy, Kimmie Rhodes, and Sharon Vaughan doing a song they’d finished writing that weekend. A stellar US Civil War ballad called Why Should I Be Lonely, jaw-dropping stuff and every bit as heartbreaking as anything in the George Jones catalogue ...almost!
Listen to Country Time with Brian Lally:
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Being a Bobcat, I was thrilled when Redbird popped in and slayed me with their version of Dylan's Buckets of Rain ... I’ll try and get that out some week. When I got to producing, John Kelly’s Mystery Train on RTÉ Radio 1 was the first assignment and the education and exploration continued - and now on Country Time I get to bring music to folks every week and hope that they and you like it as much as I do. Not a bad way to make a living!
Brian Lally presents Country Time on Saturday nights from 11pm, doing his very best to have something old, something new, something borrowed and something bluegrass - listen back here.
