George brings his take on balladeer tradition to glór

BALLADEER George Murphy clearly remembers his first encounter with the voice of the legendary Luke Kelly, and the impact that those richly textured tones had on him.

“I was learning the poem ‘Raglan Road’ in school and my dad told me that it had been sung as a ballad by Luke Kelly,” he recalled.

“I was nine years of age and from that moment, I was hooked. Luke’s voice is simply unmistakeable.”

Less than a decade later, George wowed television audiences, as well as the judging panel of Phil Coulter, Louis Walsh and Linda Martin, when he performed ‘Raglan Road’ on talent show You’re a Star on RTÉ.

To-date, George has four studio albums to his credit: Dreamed A Dream (Sony), So The Story Goes, The Ballad of Archie Thompson, and 2016’s Shadowman: The Stable Sessions. 

He also has a touring track-record George with The High Kings, filling the vacancy left by the departure of Martin Furey.

In 2018 when he decided to tour his solo show, he was told to find two or three session musicians, work on a set and take the show on the road. What initially started off as musicians at a session progressed to a unique collective.

Mixing electric rock guitar and bass with whistles and bodhráns gives the band, The Rising Sons, its unique sound. Now a collective of eight musicians, George will take then to Glór, Ennis for an eagerly-anticipated gig on April 16.

An absolutely brilliant night of music at Seachurch, Ballycotton on Friday night with George Murphy and The Rising Sons, supported by a brilliant new singer from Cork, Meadhbh Walsh. Seachurch is such an intimate and beautiful venue. pic.twitter.com/gY1IcTuT8y

— Joe O'Brien (@pnamblath) March 20, 2022

“It all started out in a local session with friends, family and neighbours,” he said.

“There were 16 of us and eight of us are now on the road together. We come from all ages and backgrounds with every kind of instrument and I think audiences really respond to that.”

George is already well known to Clare music lovers and is looking forward to returning to the Mid-West.

“I have a really loyal following in Clare and I’d been coming to Ennis for years and had been playing in a great pub called Barcode,” he said.

“I have made great friends like Aidan O’Connor, Declan Meaney and Damien Gormley. I’m really looking forward to playing at Glór, I think it’s one of the finest venues in the country. To be up on that stage is just magical.”

George is also a big fan of piper Blackie O’Connell. “I just love his sessions,” he said. “That’s always a highlight on a visit to Clare.”

The pandemic has put the brakes on The Rising Sons and this spring sees them rearing for road. “We had only really gotten together and were starting to gallop,” George said.

“Then Covid brought everything to a stop. We’ve been on hold for the last couple years. While we’ve been together for four years, we lost two of those and we’re looking forward to getting out to show people what we’re about. The current tour will be our second one and we’re really excited about it.”

Despite the hitch, The Rising Sons, have released a live album The New Beginnings Tour and the single ‘Darndale to the States’.

That ballad recounts the true story of two young Dublin lads who, in 1985, managed to avoid authorities at train stations, ferry ports and airports to travel from the streets of Dublin all the way to New York.

George has also written his own original ballad ’Dublin Inspires’, a tribute to the history and heritage of the capital.

“I got the chance to sit down and write during the first lockdown,” he explained.

“I had always wanted to write an original ballad. It wasn’t for the want of trying. I suppose I’m my own worst critic and when I was stuck in the house at the start of the pandemic, I came back to the idea. Things seemed to be going in the wrong direction and I wanted to capture all of this history and heritage of Dublin and to write something that could do it justice.

“It was daunting and challenging. I wanted to write something that could take its place alongside ‘The Rocky Road to Dublin’, ‘The Rare Auld Times’ and ballads like that. ‘Dublin Inspires’ is now the most requested song at our gigs. It reached Number 2 in the Irish charts and the video has had 200,000 views online.

“As a Dublin balladeer for many years I wanted a Dublin ballad of my own. This is it. A tip of the hat to our nation’s capital and all the history, culture, tradition and characters it’s thrown up over the years.”

These two singles will appear on The Rising Sons’ upcoming studio album, due out later this year.

George’s repertoire is steeped in Ireland’s ballad heritage. He credits his family for inspiring his deep interest in the tradition.

“At every family get-together and particularly Christmas, my nana and grandad, aunties, uncles, my dad and my sisters will be singing,” he said.

“My father has been a professional singer for all of my life and most of his and his repertoire would include a few ballads, but also a bit of rock and roll and material from the ‘60s, ‘70s and ‘80s.

“My grandparents favourite song is ‘When You Were Sweet Sixteen’ and I would have sung it a lot for them. My uncle Johnny sings ballads and I grew up listening to him singing those.”

The tradition is one that George is keen to maintain and to pass on to the next generation of the family.

“My little girl is growing up and has a great voice so I would love to be able to pass the tradition on. It’s something for all ages, that’s the beauty of of these old songs. Kids love them if they’re presented in the right way.

“At my gigs, there’ll be 16 and 17 olds in the audience and people of all ages up to 90. If I can still hold a tune, I intend to be singing in my 70s.”

George Murphy and The Rising Sons play Glór on Saturday, August 16 at 8pm. Tickets are available at ticketmaster.ie and at Glor.ie.