Review of Christy Moore at Vicar Street on December 13th 2011
I hadn’t looked forward to a gig as much as I had to this one for a very long time. Christy Moore and Declan Sinnot have great chemistry on stage and their performance was phenomenal. I’m pretty sure I’m going to go and buy a ticket to see them again in January I enjoyed it that much.
The day of the gig everyone received a message/email warning them that the show started at 8pm sharp and not be late. Having heard many stories about how Christy gets angry if you walk in late I made sure I was on time. At around twenty past eight they finally appeared, and it was worth the wait.
I had the perfect seat on the balcony, directly facing the stage. I was amazed at how quiet and still the crowd were. I have never experienced anything like it. There was no support act, no photographers, no effects, and no dramatics. It was just two men on stage with guitars, and beautiful songs. The crowd remained still and silent until they were encouraged to join in. It remained like this throughout the gig and so it was very easy to become entranced with what was happening on stage. There were no distractions, everyone was focused. Occasionally the audience’s voices could be heard joining it with the singing, but that just enhanced the effect. The crowd got a bit livelier for the up tempo songs such as Joxer went to Stuttgart, Honda 50 and Weekend in Amsterdam. The Lyrics for Weekend in Amsterdam were hilarious and the crowd laughed throughout. I never thought I would hear Christy Moore say the words big black dildo or hash but that song proved me wrong.
Towards the end of the show Christy encouraged the audience to shout out the songs that they would like them to play. And I have to give it to them, they got through pretty much all the requests. The highlight for me was a haunting rendition of Beeswing, kindly requested by two lads behind me. North And South and Reel In The Flickering Light also made a very welcome appearance. They finished the set with a great cover of Fairytale of New York, complete with stories of Shane Mc Gowan thrown in between lyrics.
For anyone considering going to see them in the New Year I would really encourage it. The venue may not be as intimate as Vicar Street but with talent like that they could light up any room, and I for one can’t wait to see them again.