Concert: Christy Moore

Christy Moore gives a terrific performance, and a show including him is always a treat. So when we discovered, last December, that he was playing Glór in Ennis this weekend, I counted the weeks left to see whether I was due to be in Ireland that weekend. (I come back every second week.) Sure enough, I was supposed to be here, so I gleefully booked us two tickets.

Mind you, I hadn't reckoned on the timing of Easter, which threw out my schedule (I wanted to be here that weekend). That meant I was here last weekend, which was two weeks after Easter.. but of course, with the tickets already booked for this weekend, I came back again. Worth the trouble, and the extra fare.

Today's schedule was much like the one we had last time we went to Glór, except that we didn't have it on the list to go to the pharmacy, or get petrol (luckily, as it was lashing rain on the way there). So - a visit to my uncle, then straight to The Poet's Corner to get a bite to eat, it being convenient for the cathedral, where we could get Mass, then on to Glór. Parked on the road between the cathedral and the Old Ground Hotel again, as the Poet's Corner is the pub of that hotel.

Despite us arriving half an hour earlier than last week, when we had had no trouble getting a table, it was completely full this evening. We blamed the fact that there were obviously First Communions afoot, what with little girls running about in long white dresses. Well, every table was occupied, but a kindly, elderly American lady at the table by the door, beside which we were standing, invited us to join her, and we did. She was having what looked like a Bailey's, and waiting for her husband. Chattily, she informed us that it was their second time - they'd been 10 years ago and loved it. Last time they were on a tour that started in Dublin - this time, they decided to fly to Shannon and take a tour from there. Pity about the weather, of course - cold and wet - but they were enjoying it. They're off to do the Ring of Kerry tomorrow, and good luck to them - they won't see much if there isn't a dramatic improvement! Well, but you don't come here for the weather.

Anyhow, they were having their dinner in the restaurant, but we ordered ours in the pub - the usual, chicken kiev for me, plaice for my mother (a half portion this time - for some strange reason, they usually give two full-size pieces of plaice, which I defy most people to eat!). We had plenty of time for dessert, which was good, as service was necessarily slower, with the crowds. I had a delicious Bailey's cheesecake, she had a raspberry mousse. And while eating, we had plenty of time to observe, and comment on, Communion fashions, and how that group of fashionable young ladies at the bar must be crippled in those sky-high, clunky-looking, shoes.

We made our way carefully across the road for Mass - it was quite windy by now. The service had been hijacked by the Eucharistic Adoration group, which was canvassing for new members, and whose representative gave a sermon of approximately 10 minutes about the advantages of it. They were handing out forms to be filled in with your details (if interested), and unwisely included pens with them. Wonder how many pens they got back..

We arrived in good time at Glór, and parked as near the entrance as possible. It was a short, but unpleasant, walk in. The lobby was already pretty full - tonight's and last night's concerts were sold out, I believe. I collected our tickets, then dropped off some books at their handy leave-a-book shelves, where we picked up a couple last week. We didn't fancy pushing through the crowd at the bar for a drink, but soon it was time to go in anyway. We were told we were in the centre of the row, and could enter the auditorium by either door, but the usher at the first door tried to send us round to the second door. This made no sense, and my mother just walked on ahead. I duly followed.

We were six rows from the stage. Mind you, with Glór so full these days, you don't get an idea in advance of exactly where that is - they've managed to cram about six extra rows in there. Still, it was a good seat. Legroom is good at Glór, and the seats quite comfortable. The two seats in front of me stayed empty until the third song - they turned up late. The seat beside my mother, however, was the only one that we could see that stayed empty for the entire show - maybe they had difficulty in selling this one single seat. Mind you, I was surprised to see people being sat onstage, at the side! I think they were personal guests of Christy's - he did mention that his brother-in-law was there tonight, among others. They mustn't have had anywhere else to put them. Behind us were two sets of middle-aged American couples - one guy got chatting to the local chap beside him, explaining that they came over every year, and four years ago bought a cottage in Corofin.

And so to the show. I'm used to seeing him either alone, or partnered with Declan Sinnott - but tonight, he had a four-piece traditional band with him. This allowed him to intersperse his playlist with a few traditional numbers, which went down a storm. As did most of his own numbers. My mother had to glare at the aforementioned American before he stopped kicking her seat as he jiggled his leg to the music. And we clapped, and we sang along. And Christy employed his standard audience management techniques - slowing the tempo of a song if we had started to sing or clap along and he'd rather we were quiet. Not that he had to do too much of that - we were very attentive, for which he praised us, near the end. With his enormous back catalogue, you'd forgive him for forgetting the words to one - Duffy's Cut. "Fuck", as he remarked. And sang with his eyes shut, generally, as usual - only once having to wipe the sweat from his brow.. performing live takes an awful toll on him and he doesn't typically tour abroad any more. He lifted the roof off the place with Lisdoonvarna - obligatory for a Clare audience. When they left the stage, we thunderously demanded an encore, which he obliged with, and was rewarded with a standing ovation. If you like this kind of music, do not pass up an opportunity to see this guy. Legendary. Worth the bumpy landing yesterday.

I needed the toilet afterwards, and while I stood in the long queue, was rewarded with a cd of Irish trad playing in the lobby. Anyway, the delay gave the car park time to clear, and we drove home in weather that can best be described as filthy. For anyone not familiar with Irish weather, by this I mean with thundering rain and strong winds. Not for the fainthearted. The black cat was delighted when we arrived and let her in. She was the only one brave enough to come out in that weather.

My mother's making noises about going to O' Brien's for lunch tomorrow before I go back - depends what time I crawl out of bed. For Monday, it's looking like a film, but I have to finish rating what's out before I decide..