Review of Paul Brady at Vicar Street – April 1st 2011
Review by Sean Stevens
It had been a while since I last stepped into Vicar Street for a gig so the excitement was very much there on arrival into the venue to see Paul Brady do what he does best. The stage was not hosting any gimmicks rather it was full of guitars and mandolins along with keyboards and a grand piano. Arriving on stage alongside Bill Shanley on guitar and Steve Fletcher on keyboards Paul Brady greeted the enthusiastic Friday audience. After spotting Glen Hansard in attendance I started to think that a duet may be in order at some stage in the night. Last time I seen Hansard play he invited Brady on stage to perform alongside him so maybe a return of the favour was in order. Starting off with ‘Stories’ and ‘Lord Thomas & Fair Ellender’ before getting into ‘Trust in You’ and ‘Nobody Knows’ the crowd were already in full singing voice before Brady introduced ‘Rainbow’ from his most recent album ‘Hooba Dooba’.
My suspicion of an oncoming duet with Hansard was about to become a reality as Brady introduced The Frames man onto the stage to sing ‘Hard Station’ which was sung with real passion from both performers and a real highlight from the night overall. As quickly as he arrived on stage Hansard was gone to make his way to a charity gig in The Olympia. As Brady made his way to the piano for his next song ‘Mother and Son’ from ‘Hooba Dooba’ I had begun to realise how focused I had become whilst listening to him perform his set. This was the first time I had seen Brady perform in an intimate setting having previously seen him perform brilliant sets at Electric Picnic and Midlands Music Festival a few years ago so it was a change and one that was equally as satisfying.
After mentioning Planxty whom he toured with and The Johnstons it was the traditional side of Brady (which my Dad was very happy about) that was about to perform ‘The Jolly Soldier’ followed by ‘Wearin’ The Britches’ which had myself and my Dad in aw of his guitar and mandolin playing and came across as someone who could more than likely play these instruments in his sleep. After a huge applause and appreciation by the audience he kicked into ‘Nothing but the Same Old Story’ followed by ‘Living the Mystery’ which is the last track on his ‘Hooba Dooba’ album.
‘Follow On’ and ‘The Island’ was greeted with huge enthusiasm with Brady allowing his audience take over on singing duties during ‘The Island’ after which received an emotional standing ovation from the crowd on the lower floor. With all three musicians resuming their position on stage it was a small mishap from Fletcher which prompted Brady to remind us that it wasn’t always a ‘slick show’ but nobody in attendance would have minded as Brady had already put smiles on the audiences faces from his set so far. If that wasn’t enough the crowd pleasers were still in plentiful supply with ‘The Long Goodbye’ ‘Crazy Dreams’ ‘The World is What You Make It’ and ‘Arthur McBride’ lined up one after the other. As Brady prepared for the end of his two hour set a member of the audience shouted out a request for ‘The Rocky Road to Dublin’ where he obliged without hesitation and bursted into the rapid paced song before finishing with the ever brilliant ‘Homes of Donegal’ and ‘Busted Loose’.
Brady to me is one of the finest musicians Ireland has to offer and after his performance in Vicar Street on Friday my opinion has not changed. His show was everything anyone would want from a Brady show. With old and new tracks all getting the same reaction because he is as good as it gets. My highlight of the night would have to be how much I realised that Brady as a musician and performer was up their with the best and he certainly captured my attention along with every member of the audience.