FOR generations of music fans in Limerick, the pilgrimage to The Shannon Arms or The Parkway to hear Joe Browne and The Dirty Dawgs was a weekly ritual on Sundays to hear Joe and his band of quality players perform their take on classic tunes like Tennessee Stud, Never Spoke Spanish and Tonight The Bottle Let Me Down.
Always a great show, Joe Browne is one of Limerick’s most loved and respected singers and performers and now he has recorded a collection of some of his most popular songs performed at those legendary gigs.
Reunited with Dave Keary and Ralf Lindheim with Danny Byrt on drums and percussion, recording began 10-11 years ago at Keary’s Red Door Productions Studio.
Then, that was followed by quite a hiatus before resuming and finishing the album became possible.
Dave Keary takes up the story from here.
“We had some very strong basic tracks with the core rhythm section of myself, Ralf and Danny and Joe’s vocals and guitar in particular were nailed as we say!
“So, we had a great foundation to work from. Like many things, life and time got in the way to finish and complete the album satisfactorily. We all had various commitments and I was away touring abroad quite a lot with other work. Covid19 gave the space and time to focus and apply what was necessary to complete Joe’s album with the attention to detail it deserved. Also, in a way time gave us the benefit through technology that other players and singers could contribute to the songs via online recording.
We feel it’s turned out to be a great body of work that hopefully reflects Joe at his best.”
Other contributions were recorded for the album from John Steele, Brian O’Connor, James Hanley and Kieran O’Loughlin. Richard Dowling of Wav Mastering mastered the recordings.
Joining Joe Browne’s band or stepping in for a set was an honour for Limerick musicians, always a joy to watch, the players’ love of the music and the fun of playing it live.
Musician John Steele told Limerick Post about his experience playing guitar with Joe Browne’s band.
“Joe Browne was the conduit between the older generation of musicians and the new up and coming ones. His gigs, particularly the Sunday afternoon ones were always packed and any musician who was off would definitely attend. I was one of the understudies who got to fill in when someone was missing and, though it was a steep learning curve and you had to work to earn your place on that stage, it was always fun. There’s always something to learn from musicians of that calibre. To me it felt like a footballer getting an international cap, such was the esteem in which I held that band. Great times.”
The Right To Disappear will be available to purchase digitally by download through the usual platforms. Physical CD’s can be purchased through P&P via a dedicated Joe Browne Facebook page and bought at Steamboat Music and FSV William Street Limerick
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