Steve Cooney, his band Éiníní, and a host of guests including Mary Black and Christy Moore, play Vicar St Dublin, on Sunday next, Sept 30, launching Steve's first solo album Rhapsody and Rascality.
Audiences can expect a wide diversity in the course of this night of Cooney celebration, produced in assocation with RTÉ Radio 1. Fans can even expect desert rhythms from Mali accompanying classic Irish airs and dance tunes on the electric guitar.
Christy Moore, Mary Black, Iarla Ó Lionáird and Luka Bloom will perform on this special night at Vicar St. The instrumental soloists are Dermot Byrne (accordion), Vinnie Kilduff (whistle) and Odhrán Ó Casaide (violin and uillean pipes). Steve’s band, Éiníní comprises Rod McVey (keyboards), Joe Csibi (bass), and twin percussionists, Robbie Harris and Robbie Perry.
Steve’s influence on Irish Music was recently summed up by Mike Scott, in his memoir, Adventures of a Waterboy. “His influence on Irish trad guitar is akin to Hendrix's on rock: he raised the bar and the rest of the world is still catching up. Since Cooney, and in his image, guitar accompanists have driven Irish music with momentum and visceral energy, though none has yet matched Cooney's genius.”
The title of Cooney's long-awaited first solo CD Rhapsody and Rascality arises from a Séamus Heaney quotation, as Steve received the Creative Arts Award at the Rostrevor Fiddler’s Green Festival in 2007. "Master Cooney restores the ancient link between lyre and lyric, between poetry and performance, the rhapsody and rascality, " Heaney declared, honouring the charismatic musician.
Steve came to Ireland from Australia 32 years ago and, beginning as the bass player with Stockton’s Wing. He has worked on Altan and Sharon Shannon albums, and Sharon named her Each Little Thing album after one of his tunes.
His musical gifts have featured ron more than 100 CDs, including releases from the Chieftains, the Dubliners, Séamus Heaney and Liam O’Flynn, Matt Molloy, Tommy Sands, Cormac Breatnach, Luka Bloom, Martin Hayes, Dermot Byrne, Micheál ó hEidhin and Charlie Lennon, Johnny Connolly, Dordán, Gerry O’Connor, Vinnie Kilduff, Stockton’s Wing, a classic pair of Gaelic educational CD’s for children as well as collaborations with Dermot Morgan and the Virgin Prunes.
In 1997 he won the National Entertainment Award for traditional music with accordeon-player Séamus Begley. Their CD Meitheal is arguably the greatest Irish traditional music album of the 1990s, one thinks especially of their astonishingly beautiful version of Bruach na Carraige Bána. Steve's songs have been recorded by Mary Black, Andy Irvine, Altan and others.
The unassuming, amiable Australian has performed with Donovan at Glastonbury, with Melanie, Chuck Berry, Dolly Parton, Sinéad O’Connor and Paul Brady. His TV collaborations include performances with Van Morrison, Elvis Costello, Emmylou Harris and Kirsty McColl.
As a young man, Steve travelled to Australia's Northern Territory to learn the ditjeridú. He was encouraged by the Aboriginal elders there to travel back to Ireland to learn the culture of his forefathers - only by that route could the aspirant musician ujnderstand Australian indigenous culture was what they told him. Over 30 yerars later, the musician and his band will perform a traditional ‘gumborg’ melody with the ditjeridú at Vicar St. on the night.
Tickets on sale from Ticketmaster priced €30 (incl booking fee) from www.ticketmaster.ie & Ticketmaster outlets nationwide. Doors 7.00pm, show 8.00pm.
