Moving Hearts | |
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Background information | |
Origin | Dublin, Ireland |
Genres | Celtic rock, folk rock |
Years active | 1981 to 1985 2007 Intermittently later |
Members | Dónal Lunny Davy Spillane Eoghan O'Neill Keith Donald Noel Eccles Anton Drennan Graham Henderson Liam Bradley |
Past members | Christy Moore Declan Sinnott Mick Hanly Brian Calnan Declan Masterson Greg Boland Kevin Glackin Matt Kellaghan Flo McSweeney Jimmy Smyth James Delaney |
Website | movingheartsmusic |
Moving Hearts is an Irish Celtic rock band formed in 1981. They followed in the footsteps of Horslips in combining Irish traditional music with rock and roll, and also added elements of jazz to their sound. [1]
The group was formed in 1981 when Dónal Lunny (bouzouki) and Christy Moore (vocals, guitar and bodhrán), of Planxty, wanted to explore the possibilities of linking contemporary music to Irish traditional music. [2] They initially intended to form a trio with guitarist Declan Sinnott, [3] but then expanded the group to include established Irish musicians Keith Donald (alto sax), Eoghan O'Neill (bass), Brian Calnan (drums), and Davy Spillane (uilleann pipes). [2] In their first year together, Moving Hearts performed to packed audiences during their three-night-a-week residency at the Baggot Inn on Baggot Street in Dublin. [4]
This laid the basis for a powerful, new Irish sound, which was coupled on the band's first two albums, Moving Hearts and The Dark End of the Street, with songs of explicit political engagement, often concerning the situation in Northern Ireland. [2] The band was organised as a cooperative effort, with all profits and costs borne by the seven band members and three members of the road crew.
Calnan was replaced for the group's second album by Matt Kelleghan, and, in 1982, Moore left to pursue his solo career and was replaced by Mick Hanly. [2]
Moving Hearts played many prestigious gigs including the Montreux Jazz Festival, The Bottom Line in New York and the Lorient Festival in Brittany, and the line-up with Hanly was recorded on the 1983 album Live Hearts. They also played on two tracks on Van Morrison's 1983 album A Sense of Wonder .
For a period after Hanly's departure, Flo McSweeney and Anthony Drennan came in on vocals and lead guitar. [2] The following year the group performed as an instrumental group, recording the album, The Storm . At this point the line-up consisted of Spillane and Declan Masterson on uilleann pipes, Lunny on bouzouki, synthesiser & bodhrán, Donald on sax, Noel Eccles on percussion, Matt Kelleghan on drums, O'Neill on bass and Greg Boland on guitar.
The group ceased touring in 1984, appearing only at occasional festivals such as the Preseli Folk Festival [5] –now the Fishguard Folk Festival–in 1986. In 1990, the band performed at Dublin's Point Theatre for a sold out farewell concert, with McSweeney on vocals.
Moving Hearts re-formed in 2007, announcing concerts in Dublin [6] and at the Hebridean Celtic Festival in Stornoway. [7] The new line-up was: Lunny, Spillane, O'Neill, Donald, Kellaghan, Eccles, Drennan, Kevin Glackin and Graham Henderson.
They continue to reunite for occasional concerts every few years. The 2022 line up is Lunny, Spillane, Donald, O'Neill, Eccles, Drennan, Bradley and Henderson. [8]
William Michael Joseph Whelan is an Irish composer and musician. He is best known for composing a piece for the interval of the 1994 Eurovision Song Contest. The result, "Riverdance", was a seven-minute piece of original music accompanying a new take on traditional Irish stepdance that became a full-length stage production and spawned a worldwide craze for Irish traditional music and dance. The corresponding soundtrack album earned him a Grammy. "Riverdance" was released as a single in 1994, credited to "Bill Whelan and Anúna featuring the RTÉ Concert Orchestra". It reached number one in Ireland for 18 weeks and number nine in the UK. The album of the same title reached number 31 in the album charts in 1995.
Planxty were an Irish folk music band formed in January 1972, consisting initially of Christy Moore, Andy Irvine, Dónal Lunny, and Liam O'Flynn. They transformed and popularized Irish folk music, touring and recording to great acclaim.
Christopher Andrew "Christy" Moore is an Irish folk singer, songwriter and guitarist. In addition to his significant success as an individual, he is one of the founding members of Planxty and Moving Hearts. His first album, Paddyon the Road was recorded with Dominic Behan in 1969. In 2007, he was named as Ireland's greatest living musician in RTÉ's People of the Year Awards.
Misty Eyed Adventures is a music album by Irish musician Máire Brennan, now known as Moya Brennan. This was the second solo outing for her and features many of her family and friends on the recording. It was released in 1995.
Andrew Kennedy Irvine is an Irish folk musician, singer-songwriter, and a founding member of Sweeney's Men, Planxty, Patrick Street, Mozaik, LAPD and Usher's Island. He also featured in duos, with Dónal Lunny, Paul Brady, Mick Hanly, Dick Gaughan, Rens van der Zalm, and Luke Plumb. Irvine plays the mandolin, mandola, bouzouki, harmonica, and hurdy-gurdy.
Davy Spillane is an Irish musician, songwriter and a player of uilleann pipes and low whistle.
Sweeney's Men was an Irish traditional band. They emerged from the mid-1960s Irish roots revival, along with groups such as The Dubliners and the Clancy Brothers. The founding line-up in May 1966 was Johnny Moynihan, Andy Irvine and "Galway Joe" Dolan.
Dónal Lunny is an Irish folk musician and producer. He plays guitar and bouzouki, as well as keyboards and bodhrán. As a founding member of popular bands Planxty, The Bothy Band, Moving Hearts, Coolfin, Mozaik, LAPD, and Usher's Island, he has been at the forefront of the renaissance of Irish traditional music for over five decades.
Anthony "Anto" Drennan is an English-born Irish guitarist noted for his involvement with the Corrs, Genesis and Mike + the Mechanics among others.
Live Hearts is the first live album by the Irish folk rock band Moving Hearts, recorded on 28 February 1983 at the Dominion Theatre London by the Rolling Stones Mobile Unit. Steve Turner produced and engineered the album.
Ordinary Man is the tenth studio album by Irish folk artist, Christy Moore. It features songs like "Ordinary Man", "St. Brendan's Voyage" and "Another Song is Born". The album featured songs by Peter Hames, Johnny Mulhearn, Hugh McDonald, Colm Gallagher and Floyd Red Crow Westerman; as well as some backing vocals by Enya on "Quiet Desperation", "Sweet Music Roll On" and "The Diamondtina [sic] Drover" and some fine uilleann pipes work by Liam O'Flynn. The original release of the album featured the song "They Never Came Home" which Moore wrote for the victims and families of the Stardust fire. The song was quickly removed from the album because the lyrics were found to be libelous.
The Storm is the third studio album by Irish folk-rock group Moving Hearts, recorded as an entirely instrumental album. When the band re-formed in 2007, they concentrated on performing this material.
Atlantic Bridge was the Irish uilleann pipes player Davy Spillane's first solo album after the break-up of Moving Hearts. Together with producer P.J. Curtis he assembled a stellar cast of musicians from both sides of the Atlantic including, Albert Lee, Béla Fleck, Jerry Douglas, Christy Moore and many more to produce a fine blend of traditional and contemporary music. Curtis observed the album's fusion of Irish traditional, contemporary, bluegrass and country rock, merging "happily to find new dimensions in music which resulted form those meetings."
EastWind is an album by Andy Irvine and Davy Spillane, showcasing a fusion of Irish folk music with traditional Bulgarian and Macedonian music. Produced by Irvine and Bill Whelan, who also contributed keyboards and piano, it was widely regarded as revolutionary at recording.
Words & Music is the sixth album by the Irish folk band Planxty, produced by Dónal Lunny and recorded at Windmill Lane Studios in late October and early November of 1982; it would be their only release on the WEA label. In 1989, the album was reprinted by the Shanachie label, who have kept it in print ever since.
Rainy Sundays... Windy Dreams is Andy Irvine's first solo album, produced by Dónal Lunny and recorded at Dublin's Windmill Lane Studios in late 1979. It was released in January 1980 by Tara Records.
Moving Hearts is the debut studio album recorded by Irish Celtic rock band Moving Hearts. The album features folk singer Christy Moore on vocals.
Declan Masterson is an Irish uilleann piper, traditional musician, composer and arranger. In addition to pursuing a solo career and playing with Moving Hearts and Patrick Street, Masterson was one of the Riverdance musicians.
Live in Dublin is the second live album by Irish folk rock band Moving Hearts, recorded in 2007 at the Vicar Street venue in Dublin by Tim Martin. Noel Eccles and Keith Donald were executive producers, and the album was mixed by Andrew Boland and mastered by Martin Giles at Alchemy, in London.
Dark End of the Street is the second studio album recorded by Irish Celtic rock band Moving Hearts. The album features folk singer Christy Moore on most of the songs, except "Let Somebody Know", written and sung by Declan Sinnott.