29 May 1964
Here’s the first Irish number one single by an Irish woman. You’d think that Irish pop-cultural landmark would be more widely known and recognised, but prior to this I really only knew Eileen Reid from her TV appearances in the ’80s and after, some of which were religious in subject. The only song of hers I’d heard of was the melodramatic ‘I Gave My Wedding Dress Away’, which seems to be her best-known song despite not being a number one.
‘Fallen Star’ is also notable as part of the only joint Irish number one: it and ‘I’m Yours’ by Dickie Rock topped the charts together for the week of 29 May 1964. (The UK almost had a joint number one in 1990 when Deee-Lite’s ‘Groove Is In The Heart’ had identical sales to the reigning chart-topper, the Steve Miller Band’s ‘The Joker’. However, ‘Groove Is In The Heart’ was denied the number one spot because of the UK chart’s then-tie-break-rule of having a lower week-on-week increase in sales.) That doesn’t diminish its number one status – or its importance: after ‘Fallen Star’ in 1964 only one solo Irish woman and two Irish groups with female members will have an Irish number one single in the ’60s. And let’s not kid ourselves that things are better in 21st-century Ireland. Jazzy’s ‘Giving Me’ in 2023 was the first Irish number one single for a solo Irish woman in 14 years. (Jazzy is only the 43rd Irish woman, as a solo act or member of group, to have an Irish number one single. Four of those 43 were in B*Witched and three were in Six.)
‘Fallen Star’ is a ’50s US country ballad and a 1962 single for Jim Reeves – in other words, prime Irish showband material. Here, the plaintive harmonica intro and bright piano keep things country-pop, while the male harmony vocals and Reid’s crooning style suggest Patsy Cline as an influence too. It’s a refreshing change from the Elvis aspirations of our male-led showband chart-toppers to date, and even in itself ‘Fallen Star’ has a twinkling charm.
What’s also refreshing about Reid’s ‘Fallen Star’, written and heretofore performed by men, is that she effectively repositions it as a song of female agency about loving someone she loves. Irish women’s number one singles have been rare, and maybe that’s an indicator, however minor or trivial, of how Irish women’s self-expression and agency have been hard-fought and hard-won. Recently on Irish Number Ones we’ve revisited the ’00s and seen, as a barometer of our mainstream pop culture, a litany of crass sexism and overt misogyny, all played round-the-clock on Irish TV and radio. Here in the 2020s male online idealogues create similar—or worse—content with worrying reach. We’d do well today to remember those Irish women who blazed a trail, raised their voices, and made sure we heard.
