Planxty on Rattlebag '05

Here a very laid back bunch of musicians, laying back in big armchairs, in front of what looks like a large stately home. In that picture among others, were Liam O'Flynn, Christy Moore, Donal Lunny and Andy Irvine. All of which went on to form Planxty. Last January and February, after a gap of some 20 years, all four were back on stage for 12 sell out gigs. Two in Glor in Ennis, in the heart land of Clare, and ten in Vicar Street in Dublin. Of course, the gigs showed that the magic was still there and the proof in that is in the brilliant new live album that has now just been released, Planxty live 2004.

To celebrate that album, and the music, with us today are Andy Irvine, Donal Lunny and Liam O'Flynn. You’re all very welcome.

All, Thank you.

Let's just see what happens when we listen to the real music, and that that speak for itself before we talk to you. This is the opening track on the album 'Starting Gate'. (Plays song)

That’s was the opening track and believe me it gets better from then on, 'Starting Gate' from Planxty live 2004. Donal, was that recorded at one of the Vicar Street gigs?

Donal, Yeah it was, we recorded the last 4 concerts and sifted through it all and got the best out of it, I think. It was nice.

You were saying while you were listening there, Liam, by the way were any of the family in there on the night?

Liam, OH, we had the whole O'Flynn tribe in with microphones held and the whole lot.

(LAUGHS)

Did you have them in every night, just to cover, just incase?

Liam, (laughs) oh absolutely!

You were saying while we were listening there, that it's very different to a situation where you are listening to a recording, that you focus in on what your doing yourself.

Liam, Absolutely! Yeah, where you have recorded 4 separate concerts, you can't help but listen to your own performance all the time. That's why it is so important that someone can listen to each individual performance. There has to be a compromise right across.

Are you very harsh on yourself, Andy, are you hard on your self when you’re listening back to stuff like that?

Andy, Generally to the point where I would listen to it once and go phew, wipe the sweat from my brow and then no listen to it again for about 15 years ( laughs ) by which time you are able to listen to it objectively.

And what about with a studio album, is that different?

Donal, Very different I think.

I mean in terms of listening, not just performing.

Andy, With a studio album I think, you have heard it endlessly while it's taking shape in the studio and you’re fairly, well it's a nice surprise when you hear it all put together.

I suppose in the studio, you are more part of the decision making?

Andy, You probably would be, you should, but I mean Donal produced all out later albums so her would...

Know what everyone wants!

Andy, Yes he would! Actually yes he would, you could always trust Donal to get it right.

Donal, Well, thank you Andy.

Well, listen the last few months must have been quite incredible, live CD out last week, there is a live DVD out to go along with it, but the gigs them selves, what was the atmosphere like.

Donal, Stunning!!

Liam, Oh, Absolutely incredible! We knew there was going to be a certain amount of interest, at a level, excitement and so on when we decided to reform but all of us were just blown away by the sheer warmth of welcome that we got. Incredible, to walk on stage to a standing ovation, and to leave the stage after the gig with a standing ovation was incredible.

Donal, Getting a round of applause like that before you even played a note, we though we better be good (laughs)

Liam, Certainly settled the nerves!

Andy, I mean the look on the faces, looking down at the people clapping and their faces were just shining! It was lovely.

Looking down at all this clapping and shining faces and all the expectations was there a little bit of nerves creeping in, you know, or what ever, for 20 years later are we still going to have it, is the magic still going to be there?

Donal, Well, I suppose a little bit but you know we did put it all in the water before Christmas. We did some rehearsals and a very small, quiet gig down in Lisdonverna.

Is there such a thing down in Lisdonverna?? (Laughs)

Donal, (laughs) a small gig. A small cheerful gig. It was great, and that settled the nerves. 'Cause the music took off.

When you did your first rehearsal, where did that take place? Was in the Hotel, Paddy Doherty's Hotel....

Donal, The Spa !

When you did that first rehearsal, when you walked into the room and you all sat down. What happened then, did someone start a tune? Did someone say 'Let's play.....' ? What actually happened?

Donal, Well, Andy started tuning his instruments and 2 hours later (All laugh)

Is that just like the old days (laughs?)

Andy, I don't actually remember the very beginning.

Donal, Oh, I think we had a list of things that we were going to try, so it was just like that.

Andy, It went very well didn't it? We started in the afternoon, and it went to bed really up, and excited and the next day was the opposite. We got bogged down on something, and we thought ' Oh God, is this going to work'

So you started in the afternoon, do any of you remember how long it was. Do You Remember?

Liam, Oh it started about, it lasted about 4 hours, started around 2 and ended about 6 - ish, and then we came back for another little tinkle later.

Individually, before you went in to that, Andy, Did you think, I better check it this is still sitting on the fingers?

Andy, Oh it wasn't still sitting on the fingers, I am not sure about the rest of them but I had to have CD's made up of all the songs we were going to do, and I had this thing called the amazing slow downer, which is on a computer which you can slow down the music with out slowing down the speed. And there were something’s that I worked at into the small hours, thinking what is that phrase, I just can't quite get it and then it would just come! It was there, it is amazing how things are in the brain but sometimes you just can't access them.

Donal, Must be your muscle memory.

Liam, It is true actually, It is amazing how it can just come right back. From the brain, through the muscles in your fingers.

But then the brain gets in the way as you start to think. We'll play another part off the album 'The Clare Jig' can you tell me about it?

Liam, Yeah, we actually decided to do a, as a contrast, just a whistle to carry the tune, just two lovely jigs that I associate with County Clare.

Did you have a favourite gig, Liam, out of all of them?

Liam, It is impossible to say this one was the favourite, blah, blah, blah. It is just that the very first public gig we did was in Ennis, and I will never forget that welcome that we got when we walked on stage. The anticipation of the audience, it was just magical. I will bring it to the grave with me for sure.

And Andy, you were saying something happened after the gig, that wouldn't usually.

Andy, Well I must have been kind of nervous, it went great but I just came off stage, looked at everybody showing the whites of my eyes and said 'Was that alright Lads, did it go well?' And Liam gave me a big hug, and I was taken-aback by that (laughs) Hugging is not his speciality.

Donal did you get a hug?

Donal, I don't know but I got a great buzz out of the gig.

Does it stand out for you, that first one?

Donal, it does, it does! It absolutely does, it was wonderful. It was a humbling experience for us all, we felt so lucky.

We don't have Christy here, but do you know how I might get him here.

Donal, Parachute him in!

( play Raggle Taggle Gypy and Tabhair dom do lamh )

Andy you were saying that you actually have on tape, the first time that happened.

Andy, Yeah, I have a tape when we got together in 1967 to put together 'Prosperous' and why I put, well I put the tape in the machine just incase anything interesting came out of it, something musically interesting that we could use. I was trawling through tapes the other week and I found 'the moment' where Christy says ' would it be great if we could go in to Tabhair dom do lamh after Raggle Taggle Gypsy? How are we going to do that and Donal came up with that. At the time I was thinking ' Aaagghh, that does work but I was kind of wrong wasn't I (laughs)

Well I think Christy has taught us a different lesson to that, listening back to it there, it just has that moment when you feeling it going there and the bridge is happening, and your thinking when are we going to get there and whack!

Andy, It always got a roar that, didn't it.

Liam, Yes it did ! And during the Vicar Street concerts the anticipation from the audience for that moment, the audience reaction was really magical.

Given the great reaction to it this time, but looking back at the success the band had over the years, Did you all become millionaires out of that??

Donal, Many times over do you think??? Three times over I think it was, yeah!

Oh, That's it Andy has just taken out his entire million pounds and it amounts to about.......six Euros. (Laughs) Ok, Well maybe things didn't work out for you financially well could have.

Donal, No we didn't make that much money at the beginning. but we got by.

Certainly, from what you have been saying, everyone seems a bit happier with that side of things this time round.

Donal, Well there is more water under the bridge, and we've seen more contracts, and we are, I guess, more aware of that whole side of things. So , I think we delt with it properly this time round. Which is great.

Well, I know this ground has been covered before but when you listen to this album 'Planxty Live 2004' for those who are wondering what album we're listening to, recording from the Vicar Street gigs, that reunited Planxty earlier this year. When you listen to it, it is not a bad album when you listen to the roars from the audience and the reaction on that first track when they hear you coming in there Liam on the pipes. It is clear that there was huge delight from it, Why did it ever stop ! Why didn't it continue ? What was it ?

Donal, Eh, well, it was a kind of gradual process. The first incarnation of Planxty, I was the first to leave and I think I just had very wide horizons at the time and I didn't realise, or didn't have a view of where the band was going. Or what ever, so, I think that was our general view and we would share that opinion, that we knew what we were doing but we didn't know where it was going, so.

And then the fact that you came back together in the 80's.....

Liam, I think it is also very significant that after the band broke up, in 82 or 83 or something. We all followed very active and individual solo careers and then 20 years later we decided that if we are going to come back then we are going to come back. You had four people, like I said, who had very active musical careers we thought this was the right thing to do, musically. Bringing all that to bear was pretty significant.

Well you came back with a great freshness and alot of experiences that weren't there before. I guess you just enjoyed playing together as musicians I guess.

Andy, Looking back at it now, looking back over the past 30 years, and the vicar street concerts. It all seems to have worked out exactly as it should have done. I mean, if we had of done it a few years ago, it might not have been the right moment for us, or the audience, I don't know. It just seems to have worked out exactly right. like some body was guiding us.

Donal, Yeah, if we had of stuck at it way back then we might not be sitting here now !

Might have burned itself out, with nothing left to rediscover.

Donal, Yeah maybe !

Andy, your interests in music from Eastern Europe and you brought that back into the band originally. Didn't you, that kind of sound.

Andy, Well I did yes and I was nervous about it, even mentioning it. It took me ages to get the hang of it but I had this song called Banasa's Green Glade and I used to play a bit of a Bulgarian tune after it. And I did it with Donal a few times and we did it with the band, but it was only Donal and Myself that did it at the end, as I was terrified of asking Liam to play it. One day I plucked up the courage and said to Liam ' Liam, do you fancy trying this tune ?' and he said 'Yeah, sure I know it well' ( all laugh )

Liam, Thought you'd never ask ( laughs )

Would it be difficult to you in terms of scales and notes available to you on the pipes?

Liam, More really the tempo! The time signature.

Donal, I still don't know what time signature it is.

Been listening to the album over that past couple of days, maybe one of you can help me out with this? I am not going to play the entire 'Blacksmith and Blacksmitherians' but it has that sort of feel to it. Starts out with a song and mixes in to a tune. I wonder if anyone out there can work out what time signature it changes into.

Andy, I always though that was 5/8........yeah, 5/8 !

Donal, somewhere around there !

Andy, But I was talking to someone, a Bulgarian that we know, Nikola Parov. And he said 'Oh, Andy I presume you were trying to play in 9 there !' ......9.........5/8....... ( laughs )

As well as this 5 or 7 or 9 or what ever, you have this shifting action that seems to move right across the bar !

Andy, Well t is not ALL in 5/8 that is why. It is the first...1,2,3,4,5,1,2,3,4,5,1,2,3,4,5,1,2,3,4,5 well that is how I count it. I am not sure it that is musically correct?

Donal, that sounds good to me ! You could count up to ten !

Andy, 10/8 maybe 10/8 ? but the bit before it is in 4 too, isn't it. Diddle dum, diddle dum.

Donal, That's right yeah ! You don't stop to think about that.

As traditional musicians, the arrangements are very worked out they are very complicated, there is no ' we'll just bust along with this ! Those arrangements, the counter pointing of melody, do you ever write things down ? Ever use dots !

Donal, No I don't think so. No I don't think we ever have. I might have scribbled down a few chords maybe but generally we just sit down together and just get used to it. Get used to a shape, Andy I usually exchange alot of ideas.

Andy, It is kind of important to remember it as well, because if you write it down and you start reading it when your playing it, you never learn it. You'll never get it into your head.

Liam, It is, it is a totally different process.

Just looking at the Blacksmitheriens, which is the name of the second tune there. Is that an original composition, Andy?

Andy, Most of it is ! The Pipes part was written by Donal.

The Planxty Style, we were talking about it when we were listening to it, listening to the Clare Jig, starting off with the one Bodhran, and then there were two of you there, whistle comes in and it builds and it builds. How revolutionary was it when that happened?

Donal, I don't know, I can't relate that specific thing to it, there were other things happening at the time, and the striking thing about Planxty at the beginning was the presents of pipes, so traditional music in the form with two singers, Andy and Christy, so most of our repertoire was songs or at least two thirds of our repertoire was songs. Bt having uillien pipes and integrating them with the songs was a first at the time, and it was alot of peoples first introduction to the pipes. Traditional music and the pipes

So, the idea of the uillien pipes, were there people at the time Liam, that were saying ' That's not the way we should be listening to the Uillien pipes, we must keep it the way it's always been.

Liam, Absolutely. There was alot of people that were very concerned at the time, preserving the tradition and the thought that we might dilute, and so on, and I think it was a very natural tension. I think as long as you go about it giving the tradition due respect....it's getting the balance right.

I suppose people must now be looking at what your doing as the tradition that others must follow?

Liam, Sure but isn't that what the tradition is all about, a living process. It's an organic thing.

Maybe the fact that things are not written down helps it to keep that organic quality.

Donal, I would say so. Listen to things and give your own interpretation of it, so it is always changing.

Andy why do you and Christy get a chance to ' Rove Out ' on this album and the poor other two don't. What's all that about? Let me explain track 9 is 'As Christy Roved Out' and track 10 is 'As Andy Roved Out '

Andy, As Donal Roved Out along time ago, 'cause the words aren’t great.

Donal, ( laughs ) Andy Roves out and Christy roves out, it was one was to differentiate the difference between the two songs. So !

Andy, It is usually called 'As I Roved Out ( Christy) and 'As I Roved Out' ( Andy )

Lets' have a listen to you heading out on your travels ( song )

Now Andy your going to give out to me now, as you said the first verse is always the most difficult to sing.

Andy, Yes it is on that song. I am just wonder if it is that it goes ( sings ) 'as I' and maybe the 'I' isn't strong enough sound for that note. It was always the same, if you listen to the original recording, the first verse is kind of...

Well you said Donal, when he was have that little crisis there, that it doesn't really matter. You hear that introduction on the whistle and your already read for that first verse when it comes. Your ready to hear the narrative. Will the be, that's Planxty Live 2004, I do want to finish off with the 'West Coast of Clare' as that is just a gorgeous track, Will there be Planxty 2005 or Planxty live 2004 and a half ( all Laugh )

Liam, There is time set aside at the back end of the year December into January but we have nothing set in stone at this point, but the plan is to. We would like to !

Donal, We'd like to do some more stuff, let's put it that way !

I think there is going to be alot of people very, very happy to hear that. And those who didn't get a chance to actually get to any of those gigs, Planxty Live 2004 is out on DVD and CD as well. It should be in all the shops and I am told that they are moving very quickly indeed. So get in there and get your copy. The samples today will give you some idea of what you will have in store.

Andy Irvine, Donal Lunny and Liam O'Flynn it has been a real pleasure talking to you, thanks for sharing your music and thoughts with us.

 

Interviewed by Sean Rocks at Rattlebag Radio.