Review of Ruby and the Duke at The National Concert Hall on February 2nd

Review by Sean Stevens

Ruby and the Duke in the National Concert Hall all came about through an RTE documentary on the rise and unfortunate fall of one of Northern Irelands finest singers – Ruby Murray. Like many, I had known of the name but nothing more but that soon changed thanks to Duke Special who took it upon himself to tell us the story of her life and to introduce us to a unique and elegant voice. Ruby Murray was in her prime in the 50’s and in 1955 held the record for having five singles in the top twenty in one week.

The show was a real treat as not only was there an introduction of Murray’s songs such as ‘Happy Days and Lonely Nights’ and ‘Two Rivers’ but also a set of Duke Special tunes including ‘Our Love Goes Deeper Than This’ and ‘Digging an Early Grave’ which got a great reaction. The big surprise on the night for me was the performances by May Kay from Fight Like Apes. Her performance of ‘Smile’ stole the show for me and she showed a totally different side of her singing voice and something which should be heard more often. Other guests on the night included Mary Coughlan with the proceedings being orchestrated by the RTE Concert Orchestra. With so many people on stage to count there wasnt one mishap and I hope they all enjoyed it as much as the audience did. More shows such as Ruby and The Duke would be welcomed as chatting with friends after they all agreed it was a night to remember.

The night ended with one of Murray’s best known songs ‘Softly, Softly’ sung by Arthur Mathews accompanied by Duke Special on piano after which all on stage received a standing ovation which was well deserved not only for the last song but for the whole evening. Afterwards I found myself wanting to find out more on Murray’s life and her music career which I am sure was Duke Specials aim for people to remember her life. Overall there was something for everyone young and old and the reaction from the audience throughout the show proved that Duke Special fans went home Ruby Murray fans and vice versa.

Check out the video below:
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QWNRFNxry0M&feature=related