7 November 1966 They've had number ones sung by their frontman Brendan Bowyer ('The Hucklebuck' et al.) and their bass player Tom Dunphy ('If I Didn't Have A Dime (To Play The Jukebox)'), and now here's a Royal Showband chart-topper with vocals by their drummer. Was this a marketing move, similar to how most Beatles … Continue reading Charlie Matthews and The Royal Showband – ‘Somewhere My Love’
Author: Aidan Curran
Dermot O’Brien and His Clubmen – ‘The Merry Ploughboy (Off To Dublin In The Green)’
26 September 1966 Here's a factoid to squirrel away for your next table quiz: Dermot O'Brien won an All-Ireland senior football title as captain of Louth in 1957 and had an Irish number one single with 'The Merry Ploughboy' in 1966. We're used to GAA stars topping the polls as politicians, but Dermot O'Brien is … Continue reading Dermot O’Brien and His Clubmen – ‘The Merry Ploughboy (Off To Dublin In The Green)’
Jessie J ft. B.o.B. – ‘Price Tag’
10 February 2011 Tempting as it is to read social commentary into an Irish number one single of 2011 with the chorus "We don't need no money, money, money", 'Price Tag' isn't your zeitgeist-capturing anthem of troika-era Ireland. Instead, it shares with 'Imagine' that timeless lack of self awareness in which a big-budget pop track … Continue reading Jessie J ft. B.o.B. – ‘Price Tag’
Bruno Mars – ‘Grenade’
13 January 2011 Content warning: self-harm It's not just our (hopefully) more enlightened sensibilities - already in 2011 Bruno Mars' chorus litany of angsty, performative self-harm came across as overwrought and crass, even by the shirt-rending benchmarks of '90s US R&B balladry and the asinine skidmarks of '00s US hip-hop-diluting chart hits. And his gripe … Continue reading Bruno Mars – ‘Grenade’
Joe Dolan and The Drifters – ‘Pretty Brown Eyes’
5 September 1966 In more recent times Joe Dolan was synonymous with much-loved hip-swinging cabaret oldies like 'You're Such A Good-Looking Woman' and 'Make Me An Island' - neither of which got to number one in Ireland. What actually topped the '60s Irish charts for Joe were, and you'll be unastonished to hear this, showband … Continue reading Joe Dolan and The Drifters – ‘Pretty Brown Eyes’
The Beatles – ‘Yellow Submarine’
22 August 1966 The song 'Happy Birthday To You' dates from the end of the 19th century. Before that, what did people sing at birthday parties? I ask because with 'Yellow Submarine' we're moving into the realm of Beatles songs that transcend mere pop records and have become as woven into our shared human experience … Continue reading The Beatles – ‘Yellow Submarine’
Matt Cardle – ‘When We Collide’
16 December 2010 A year after the 'Killing In The Name' eejitry of Christmas 2009, had everyone copped themselves on? Not at all. It kicked off again for Christmas 2010 when that year's X Factor winner's single, this retitled cover of Biffy Clyro's 'Many Of Horror', was greeted with another online campaign: get the original … Continue reading Matt Cardle – ‘When We Collide’
The X Factor Finalists 2010 – ‘Heroes’
25 November 2010 You Irish people of 2010 must have really loved the British Army, since this is the second charity fundraiser for injured British military personnel that you sent all the way to the top of the charts in Ireland—my country—in two years. I had emigrated then, as all true sons and daughters of … Continue reading The X Factor Finalists 2010 – ‘Heroes’
The Johnstons – ‘The Travelling People’
15 August 1966 They never had an Irish number one single, but any mention of the Irish folk boom of the '60s should include The Clancy Brothers. I get the sense they were more loved in the US than by traditionalists back home, but they still sold albums here by the truckload. Their influence on … Continue reading The Johnstons – ‘The Travelling People’
Gregory and The Cadets – ‘More Than Yesterday’
25 July 1966 This is indeed the same showband with whom Eileen Reid in 1964 became the first Irish woman to go to number one in Ireland, with 'Fallen Star'. Eileen is still there, but The Cadets always had a male vocalist too, to provide some counterpoint and variety for their stage act. In that … Continue reading Gregory and The Cadets – ‘More Than Yesterday’
